Early next morning I was sent for by a servant of Ozoro Esther, to attend Welleta Selassé, who I was told was at the point of death. I repaired immediately to the house of Ras Michael, where she then was, but found her without possibility of recovery, having already lost her speech. She expired a few minutes afterwards, apparently in violent agonies. The cause was never properly known; some attributed it to the jealousy of Ozoro Esther, others alledged that she had taken poison from apprehension of falling into the hands of Ras Michael: whatever was the truth, her servants certainly told me, that she had confessed she had taken poison, and not till the pain became violent, and then she turned afraid, would she consent to have an express sent to Ozoro Esther, to bring me from the camp. I had unluckily left it before to attend Ayto Confu, neither is it probable I could have been of any service, as the poison she had taken was arsenic. This accident detained me that whole day, so that, instead of returning to the army, I went to Ayto Confu at Koscam, where I found another messenger in search of me. The king's Mahometan was returned from Sennaar, and with him Soliman my servant, who brought me answers to the letters I had written; they had come by Beyla to Ras el Feel, by Sim Sim, and the western deserts, the way to Teawa being much infested by gangs of Arabs, and Ganjar horse, who murdered every body they found in their way. They brought with them only twelve horses, eighteen coats of mail, and about thirty libd[10]; these were mostly returns made by the principal members of government to the presents the king had sent them, for every body at Sennaar now set too great a value upon the armour, and horses, to part easily with them, on account of the unsettled state of the times, the history of which we shall give afterwards.