280 
ARRIVAL AT SHOO A. 
[chap. x. 
several young children, one of whom was an infant. 
These unfortunate women and children, excepting the 
infant, were all tied by the neck with a long leathern 
thong, so as to form a living chain, and guards were 
set over them to prevent escape. The Bari natives 
would make good soldiers, as they are far more cou¬ 
rageous than most of the savage tribes. The best men 
among the party of Ibrahim are Baris; among them 
is a boy named Arnout; he is the drummer, and he 
once saved his master in a fight by suddenly presenting 
his drumstick like a pistol at several natives, who had 
attacked him while unloaded. The natives, seeing the 
determined attitude of the boy, and thinking that the 
drumstick was a firearm, ran off. We started at day¬ 
break on 13th January, and, ascending the whole way, 
we reached Shooa, in latitude 3° 4'. The route through¬ 
out had been of the same park-like character, inter¬ 
spersed with occasional hills of fine granite, piled in 
the enormous blocks so characteristic of that stone. 
Shooa was a lovely place. A fine granite mountain 
ascended in one block in a sheer precipice for about 
800 feet from its base, perfectly abrupt on the eastern 
side, while the other portions of the mountain were 
covered with fine forest trees, and picturesquely dotted 
over with villages. This country formed a natural 
park, remarkably well watered by numerous rivulets, 
ornamented with fine timber, and interspersed with 
numerous high rocks of granite, which from a distance 
produced the effect of ruined castles. 
The pasturage was of a superior quality, and of the 
same description as that of Farajoke. The country 
being undulating, there was a small brook in every 
valley that formed a natural drain. Accordingly, the 
more elevated land was remarkably dry and healthy. 
On arrival at the foot of the abrupt mountain, we 
camped beneath an immense india-rubber tree, that 
afforded a delightful shade, from which elevated spot 
we had a superb view of the surrounding country, and 
could see the position of Debono’s camp, about twenty- 
