THE?SOURCE OF THE NILE 161 
"Tigré and Siré, this paflage had never been fo far cleared 
but, every month, people are cut off. 
_ Tue plenty of fifh jn this river occafions more than an or- 
dinary number of crocodiles to refort hither, Thefe are fo. 
daring ane fearlefs, that when the river fwells, fo as to be 
paflable only by people upon rafts, or {kins blown up with 
wind, they are frequently carried off by thefe voracious and 
vigilant animals. There are alfo many hippopotami, which, 
in this country, are called Gomari. I never faw any of thefe 
in the Tacazzé ; but at night we heard them fnort, or groan, 
in many parts of the river near us. There are alfo vatt 
multitudes of lions and hyenas in all thefe thickets. We 
were very much difturbed by them all night. The fmell 
of our mules and horfes had drawn them in numbers a- 
bout our tent, but they did us no further harm, except o- 
_ bliging us to watch. I found the latitude of the ford, by 
many obfervations, the night of the 26th, takin ga medium 
of them all, to be 13° 42’ 45” north, 
Tue river Tacazzé is, as I have already faid, the boun- 
dary of the province of Siré. We now entered‘ that of Sa- 
men, which was hoftile to us, being commanded by Ayto 
Tesfos, who, fince the murder of Juas, had never laid down 
his arms, nor acknowledged his neighbour, Michael, as Ras, 
nor Hannes the king, laft made, as fovereign. He had re- 
mained on the top of a high rock called she ews Rock, about 
_ eight miles from the ford. For thefe reafons, as well as that 
it was the moft agreeable {pot we had ever yet fecn, we left 
our ftation on the Tacazzé with great regret, 
Mode. 6 5: ) ahayle On 
