THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. 447
ordered the church to be plundered, and took the fuperio'r, and two of the leading men of the monks, away with him to Gondar; feveral of the others were killed and wounded, without provocation, by the foldiers, and the reft difperfed. through the country,
Prince George had fent immediately in the morning to put me in mind that I had promifed, in the king's tent at Lamgue, under Emfras, to ride with him in his party when in Maitfha. He commanded about two hundred and fifty chofen horfe, and kept at about half a mile's diftance on the right flank of the army. I told the king the prince's defira; who only anfwered, dryly enough, " Not till we pais the Nile ; we do not yet know the Hate of this country." Imme- diately after this, he detached the horfe of Sire and Sc- rawl, and commanded me with his own guards to take pof- feflion of the ford where the Fit-Auraris had crofted, and to fulFer no mule or horfe to pafs till their arrival.
There were two fords propofed for our pafFage ; one op- pofite to the church Bofkon Abbo, between the two rivers Keiti and Aroofli, (on the weft of the Nile,) and the Koga and Amlac Ohha from the eaft ; it was faid to be deep, but paflable, though the bottom was of clay, and very foft ; the other ford propofed was higher up, at the fecond cataract of Kerr. It was thought of confequence to chufe this ford, as the Kelti, (itfelf a large and deep river) joined by the Branti, which comes from the weftward of Quaquera, brings, in the rainy feafon, a prodigious acceihon of water to the Nile ; yet, below this, the guides had advifed the Kas to pafs, and many found it afterwards a found bottom, very little deeper, with level ground on both fides. We arrived ibout four on the
bank
