200 TRAVELS TO DISCOVER 
and Ludolf’s dictionaries were lying upon it. Yafine was 
fitting by me, and was telling me what news he had picked 
up, and he was well acquainted with Ayto Aylo, from feve- 
ral cominifiions he had received for his merchants in Ara- 
bia. A contention of civilities immediately followed. I of- 
fered to ftand till Aylo was covered, and he would not fit 
till I was feated. This being got over, the firft- curiofity 
was, What my books were? and he was very much aftonifh- 
ed at feeing one of them was Abyflinian, and the European 
helps that I had towards underftanding it. He underftood 
Tigre and Amharic perfectly, and had a little knowledge of 
Arabic, that is, he uaderftood it when f{poken, for he could 
neither read nor write it, and fpoke it very ill, being at a 
lofs for words. 
Tur beginning of our difcourfe was in Arabic, and em- 
barraffed enough, but we had plenty of interpreters in all 
languages. The firft bafhfulnefs being removed on both 
fides, our converfation began in Tigré, now, lately fince 
Michael had become Ras, the language moft ufed in Gon- 
dar. Aylo was exceedingly aftonifhed at hearing me fpeak | 
the language as I did, and faid after, “The Greeks are poor 
creatures ; Peter does not fpeak Tigré fo well as this man.” 
Then, very frequently, to Saleh and the by-ftanders, “Come, 
come, he'll do, if he can fpeak ; there is no fear of him, he'll - 
make his way.” 
He told us that Welled Hawaryat had come from the 
camp ill of a fever, and that they were afraid it was the 
{mall pox: that Janni had informed them I had faved many 
young people's lives at Adowa, by a new manner of treaty 
ing them; and that the Iteghe defired I would come the 
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