ANTALOW. 135 
distributed in proportion to their power. As we were going away, 
he stopped us all to witness a Galla dance and song, with which he 
was particularly amused. The review being concluded, the prin- 
cipal chiefs came up and joined the Ras ; among whom I noticed 
a Galla Mussulmaun, who had twenty-nine rings of silver on his 
arm ; and many of the other chiefs had from ten to twenty. 
" From this exhibition we adjourned to the great hall, where 
every thing was prepared for a grand feast. A long table was placed 
in the middle of the hall, at the upper end of which, in a recess, 
the floor of which was raised about half a foot above the level of the 
room, was a couch, with two large pillows covered with striped 
satin, and behind this stood a lower couch covered with a handsome 
skin. The Ras led the way, leaning on two of his principal chiefs, 
and took his seat on the higher couch, inviting us at the same time 
to occupy the couch behind. The chiefs in the mean time ranged 
themselves on their haunches (for there were no benches) on each 
side of the table, and behind the Ras, crowding in two or three 
ranks towards the upper end of the room. The sides of the table 
were covered to the height of a foot by piles of teft bread in the 
form of round thin pancakes^ about two feet and a half in diameter, 
and down the middle of the table was ranged a single row of 
dishes, consisting of hot curry made of fowl, mutton, ghee, and 
curds. A quantity of fine wheaten bread in large rolls, was pre- 
pared for the use of the Ras ; these he broke, and first distributed 
to us, and afterwards to some of the chiefs by whom he was sur- 
rounded. This ceremony served as a signal to begin the feast ; 
upon which several female slaves, placed at different parts of the 
table (having previously washed their hands in the presence of the 
