GIRALTA. 395 
fun through his body) begin to think it high time to quit the field. 
The Abyssinians, in their pictures, always strangely exaggerate 
the dimensions of the eye, and invariably draw their figures with 
full faces, except when they wish to represent a Jew, to whom they 
uniformly give a side face, but the reason for this singular dis- 
tinction I could never justly ascertain. The colours of the original 
painting are of the most gaudy description ; unbroken greens, 
reds and yellows preponderating, and being most inharmoniously 
distributed throughout the composition. The materials employed 
by this artist were of the most common description, and had been 
brought by a Greek from Cairo. 
After parting from our friends, we proceeded on our journey, 
and having travelled five hours, reached Upper Gibba, which lies 
a few miles to the westward of the place bearing the same name 
which I have before described. The Mas had ordered us a fine cow 
from his own farm, but instead of it they brought us so miserable 
an animal, that it was thought right to refuse it. This gave rise to 
considerable altercation, until a much better was substituted in its 
room. On the head man of the place being asked, why he had not 
complied with his orders in the first instance, he answered, very 
composedly, that ^' it was not the Abyssinian fashion ; he did not 
like to do any thing without a short discussion on the matter." 
At half past five on the following morning we left Gibba, and 
crossing the small river which passes that place, ascended up to 
the high district of Giralta. In our way through a highly cul- 
tivated part of the country, we met with a number of peasants 
engaged in celebrating a wedding. The bride and bridegroom 
were seated on a rude kind of throne, formed of turf and shadowed 
3 b 
