THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. 313 



The fea afforded us plenty of fiifi, and I had no doubt but 

 hunger would get the better of our fears of being poifon- 

 ed : with water we were likewife pretty well fupplied, but 

 all this was rendered ufeiefs by our being deprived of fire. 

 In lhort, though we could have killed twenty turtles a-day, 

 all we could get to make fire of, were the rotten dry roots of 

 the rue that we pulled from the clefts of the rock, which, 

 with much ado, ferved to make lire for boiling our coffee 



The ill of Auguft we ate drammock, made with cold 

 'water and raw flour, mixed with butter and honey, but we 

 foon found this would not do, though I never was hungry* 

 in my life, with fo much good provifion about me ; for, 

 befides the articles already fpoken of, we had two fkins of 

 wine from Loheia, and a fmall jar of brandy, which I had 

 kept exprefsly for a feaft, to drink the King's health on ar- 

 riving in his dominions, the Indian Ocean. I therefore pro- 

 pofed, that, leaving the Rais on board, myfelf and two men 

 mould crofs over to the fouth fide, to try if we could get 

 any wood in the kingdom of Adel. This, however, did not 

 pleafe my companions. We were much nearer the Arabian 

 more, and the Rais had obferved feveral people on land, 

 who feemed to be fifhers. 



If the Abyflinian more was bad by its being defert, the 

 danger of the Arabian fide was, that we mould fall into the 

 hands of thieves. But the fear of wanting, even coffee, 

 was fo prevalent, and the repetition of the drammock dofe 

 fo difgufting, that we refolved to take a boat in the drven- 

 . ing, with two men armed, and fpeak to the people we had 

 feen. Here again the Rais's heart failed him. He faid 

 the inhabitants on that coaft had fire-arms as well as we, 

 Vol. I. R r and 



