Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile, Volume 2 (of 5): In the years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772 and 1773Bruce, James
History
Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile, Volume 2 (of 5): In the years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772 and 1773
Bruce, James
Egypt -- Description and travel; Ethiopia -- Description and travel; Ethiopia -- History; Natural history -- Ethiopia; Nile River
Socinios left the affair of the rebel Jacob to be ended by Amsala
Christos, an officer of great prudence, whom he made governor of Tigré;
and, taking his brother Ras Sela Christos along with him, returned
to Coga[48]. Amsala Christos being seized with a grievous sickness,
saw how vain it was for him to pursue the suppression of a rebellion
conducted by such a head as this impostor Jacob, and therefore secretly
applied to two young men, Zara Johannes and Amha Georgis, brothers, and
sons of the Shum Welled Georgis, who had committed murder, and were
outlawed by Socinios, and, keeping hid in the mountains, had joined in
fellowship with the impostor Jacob.
These, gained by the promise of pardon given them by Amsala Christos,
chose an opportunity which their intimacy gave them, and, falling upon
Jacob unawares in his retirement, they slew him, cut his head off,
and sent it to the king at Coga, who received it very thankfully, and
returned it to Tigré to Amsala Christos, to be exposed publicly in all
the province to undeceive the people; for it now appeared, that he had
neither scars in his face, broken jaw, nor loss of teeth, but that the
covering was intended only to conceal the little resemblance he bore to
king Jacob, slain, as we have seen, at the battle of Lebart; and he was
now found to have been a herdsman, in those very mountains of Bisan to
which he had so often fled for refuge while his rebellion lasted.
The king, in his return from Tigré, passing by Fremona, sent to the
Jesuits there thirty ounces of gold, about L. 75 Sterling, for their
immediate exigency; testifying, in the most gracious manner, his
regret, “That the many affairs in which he was engaged had prevented
him from hearing mass in their convent, as he very sincerely wished to
do; but he left with them the Abuna Simon, to whom he had recommended
to study their religion, and be a friend to it.”
In this he shewed his want of penetration and experience; for though he
had seen wars between soldier and soldier, who, after having been in
the most violent state of enmity, had died in defence of each other as
friends, he was not aware of that degree of enmity which reigns upon
difference of opinion, not to say religion, between priest and priest.
It was not long, however, before he saw it, and the example was in the
person of his present friend the Abuna Simon.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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