THE SOURCE OF THE NILE 619. 
all confumed, and likewife fome rice, if they had any. Upon 
the Arab’s firft delivering his meflage the fathers treated him 
as an impoftor, declaring that they knew from good au- 
thority that I was drowned in the Red Sea, which another 
_ of them contradicted, being equally pofitive, from the fame 
good authority, that my death had happened from robbers 
in Abyflinia. The Barbarin (a fhrewd fellow) defired the 
fathers to obferve, that, if I had been drowned in the Red 
Sea, it was not poflible I could be flain by robbers on land 
two years afterwards ; therefore, as one report was certainly 
falfe, both might be fo, and he aflured them this was the 
cafe, and that I was at How; but they laughed him to fcorn, 
and threatened tocarry him to Shekh Hamam to punifh him, 
The poor fellow anfwered very pertinently, If I had come 
in Yagoube’s name for gold or filver, then you might have 
diftrufted me; but fure it is not worth my while to hirea 
_ camel to come here from How, and go back again to cheat 
you out of two loaves of bread and a pound of rice, which I 
never tafted myfelf till I was with Yagoube, who made us 
partake of every thing that he ate as long as it lafted, and 
fafted with us when our meat was éxhaufted.” They con- 
tinued to afk him, where he had found me? The fellow 
faid, At Ras el Feel; and not being able to defcribe where 
that was, a frefh altercation began, in which it was con- 
cluded betwixt the two reverend difputants, that I had been 
drowned three years before in the Red Sea, and therefore all 
the flory of Ras el Feel muft be a lie, - 
Ir happened, as indeed was often the cafe in thefe mat- 
ters, that my Greek fervant Michael had been more provi- 
dent than I. He had thought fomething of this kind might 
be poffible, and therefore had defired the Barbarin, if fo it 
412 E happened, 
