404 THE MONK BETHLEHEM. 



started early in the afternoon, and after occupying 

 the remainder of the day in the ascent, I arrived 

 at Musculo's house by sunset. Walderheros went up 

 to the palace to announce my arrival, and returned in 

 the course of half an hour with a turbaned monk, 

 barefooted, and with the usual soft yellow leathern 

 cape of his order over his shoulders. He was an elderly 

 man, spare and short, but he came along actively 

 enough, and as he entered the house, with a good 

 English accent accosted me with, " How do you 

 doT' He soon gave me an account of himself and 

 of his business in Shoa. His present name was Beth- 

 lehem, but by birth he was an Armenian, who had 

 become somewhat educated in European languages 

 and customs, by a military service of many years 

 with the Dutch. Erom other sources I heard that 

 he had distinguished himself greatly in several 

 conflicts, and had received a medal for some par- 

 ticularly dashing exploit. He, however, had now 

 forsworn the world and all its vanities, and after 

 a residence of several years in Abyssinia, had 

 assumed the turban of the clergy of the Greek 

 Church in that country, and probably was among 

 the most correct in conduct, of the members of that 

 rather lax ministry. 



He sat down upon my alga, and after a few 

 sensible observations upon the evil of country- 

 men not being on good terms in a country so 

 situated as Shoa, and the bad effect produced upon 

 the mind of the King by the previous quarrels of 



