Travels in southern Abyssinia, Volume 2 (of 2) : $b through the country of Adal to the kingdom of ShoaJohnston, Charles
History
Travels in southern Abyssinia, Volume 2 (of 2) : $b through the country of Adal to the kingdom of Shoa
Johnston, Charles
Ethiopia -- Description and travel; Shewa Kifle Hager (Ethiopia) -- Description and travel
The Gongas that I have seen are of short stature, not exceeding five
feet four inches, are delicately made, and of a pale yellow complexion.
The aperture of the eyelid in some were quite straight, but in others
it was obliquely divided. Their hair was straight and strong. A
triangular formed face, the forehead being low and long, and the chins
very pointed. I could not convince myself, as I looked at their whole
appearance, but that they were of the same race as the Hottentots of
the Cape, differing only in so much as that the latter are in a very
degraded state. Many remarkable customs practised by both nations
could not have been merely coincidental; and one, that of voluntary
semi-emasculation, is too extraordinary not to be referred to the same
origin of imposition. Of the identity of the two people there can
be no doubt, and there is no ethnological fact I observed during my
journey of which I am so well satisfied as this.
The remains of this interesting people in Northern Abyssinia are the
Adjows and the Falasha, and if future travellers will expend their
resources in exploring Northern Abyssinia, in preference to the far
more important examination of its southern portion, they cannot occupy
themselves more advantageously to science than by examining into the
customs and characters of the Adjows. I consider it would be a waste
of time that could be occupied much better in another direction, or I
would, for my own satisfaction, visit the country for this purpose; but
as it is far from difficult and constitutes an excellent probationary
journey, I recommend aspirants for fame in the field of African
discovery to make this their trial excursion.
One more remark upon the Southern Gongas of Enarea, Zingero, and
Kuffah, and I must close this notice of a very interesting race of man;
and that is to explain the apparent anomaly of their country, situated
at such an elevation above the level of the sea as I presume it to be,
producing cotton and grapes in profusion.
The observations of that indefatigable and enterprising traveller,
Dr. Beke, has proved that the river Abi, after flowing a distance of
scarcely one hundred and thirty miles, has excavated a valley five or
six thousand feet below the general level of the table land, whilst the
opposite summits of the bounding sides are distant between thirty and
forty miles. We may look in vain over every portion of the known world
for a similar effect of denudation, and this again illustrates the wide
field of novel facts which is promised to science, by an examination of
the unknown interior of Africa.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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