274 MANUFACTURE SOME 



and which was securely fastened around my neck 

 and in front, to prevent the escape of the vapour of 

 the medicated decoction. This kind of bath was 

 always followed by profuse perspiration, and 

 assisted materially to relieve the violence of re- 

 action in the hot stage, by accelerating that relax- 

 ation of the pores of skins which marks the return 

 of something like comfort to the suffering patient. 



August 8th. — Felt a great deal better after the 

 cupping, and even proposed, as the Negoos was 

 now at his palace at Michael wans, about six miles 

 distant from Aim Amba, that either on the morrow 

 or the next day after, I should take the gunpowder 

 which we had begun very early this morning 

 to manufacture. Tinta sent me a good pair of 

 English scales, several wooden mortars, and two 

 handmills, with a party of labourers, consisting of 

 eighteen or twenty men and boys. One request he 

 made was, that as he desired to learn how to make 

 gunpowder, I would not, therefore, commence 

 weighing and mixing the ingredients till he could 

 come to me. 



My garden now exhibited a lively scene, several 

 men standing around huge mortars two feet and a 

 half high, made out of the round trunks of trees, 

 and pounding the charcoal, or else the saltpetre 

 into fine powder. The pestles consisted of heavy 

 pieces of wood three feet long, which were generally 

 kept going up and down by two men standing 

 opposite each other, and who were relieved three or 



