Upon the ground before his Majesty lay some twenty or thirty fowling pieces and rifles, and several pages and attendants were bringing in others from the private armoury, where he keeps the more valuable of his fire-arms. An ox skin was brought and laid down for me to sit upon, and his Majesty then began to examine me in my knowledge of his language, but he soon got tired of conversing with me in my halting Amharic, and directing my attention to the guns, inquired of me to tell him which was the best among them; I knew very well that he was a much better judge than myself, and told him so, but unfortunately truth will never be believed in a court, and he supposed I was complimenting him, and insisted upon my pointing out the strongest, that he might take it with him on the next “_zemitchar_” or expedition against the refractory Galla tribes, which would be during the next month. On looking over the very decent collection which he had made during his reign by the contributions of various travellers, who had visited his kingdom, I observed a rifle, manufactured by Theophilus Richards, of Birmingham, and pointed it out to the Negoos as having been made in the town I came from, and as being one of the best. He took it out of my hands as he said, “Agger sou?” (townsman?) and cocking and uncocking it, as if there had been music in the sound, remarked that it was his greatest favourite, and, as if, because I had come from the same neighbourhood, I must be a gunmaker, added, “You know all about guns, and when you are quite well, you must teach my servants how to make them.” After nearly an hour’s conversation upon the same subject, he bid me “Good bye,” in the usual abrupt manner, and I retired with Walderheros to the house of the monks, followed by Tinta, who had been present the whole of the interview, and who now congratulated me upon the position I stood in with regard to the Negoos. I certainly did not attach that importance to his friendship as he seemed to do, although I felt gratified at the attention my endeavours to serve him and his subjects appeared to command. By the time we returned to the college, my wet clothes were all dried, and I soon divested myself of the Abyssinian costume and resumed my usual appearance.