An Abyssinian Quest By Wilfred Thesiger It was necessary for me to warn the Sultan Mohamet Yaio of Aussa of the approach of my expedition to his territory, as I had to receive his permission to enter Aussa to continue my quest for the end of the Hawash River. I sent a Dankali forward from Abakaborso, and while we awaited his return I investigated the fauna of the surrounding country. It was near Abakaborso that I first en- countered Speke's gazelle, which I later found to be the only gencrally distributed species in northern Dankali;. I had previouslv believed that this gazelle was confined to the high ground in British Somaliland. I found it below sea level round Lake Assal, and nowhere encountered Peizelns, or the Lowland gazelle. I also saw wild ass, and I heard of them at Mataka. in Adaou, and round Abhebad; round Bilen their place is taken by the zebra. Though big game is numerous on the plains and in the bush country south of Badhu, to the north Speke's gazelle, wild ass, and occasional small herds of oryx and soemering are all that are to be found. South of Mount Ayelou, how- ever, is one of the best game districts in Abyssinia. Oryx and soemering abound, though the herds are seldom large. Waterbuck ire to be met with in fair numbers in the thick bush along the river, and in the reed-bed at Bilen. I saw bushbuck along the river, and came across a pair of reedbuck on the edge of the Bilen swamps; this surprised me, as it seemed unsuitable country for them. The Dankalis are not hunters, ahd seldom molest the gamne. They use no form of trap, and value their cartridges too highly to waste them on an animal. There is a small but dwvindling colony of Swayne's hartebeest along the railway line between the Hawash station and Metahara. I met them nowhere else, and believe that there are no others nearer than the Somali border. I saw no gerenuk north of Lake Hertale, but south of this lake they are plentiful. Greater kudu are not uncommon on Mount Ayelou, round Mount Asabot, and in the hills round Afdem station. MANY LEOPARDS Dangerous game is scarce in the Dankali country except for leopard, which abound, par- ticularly in the forests of Aussa. There is said to be one surviving elephant in the country between Bilen and Sade Malka. Lion have never been common in the Dankali country, and I catne across none, though it seems certain that there are a few round Errer. There is a herd of buffalo in the reed-bed at Bilen; from the tracks which I saw I doubt if there are more than ten. They were extremely wary, invariably retiring into the reeds long before dawn. Hippopotami are found in fair numbers in the rivers and in the swamps at Badhu; I counted 34 in one small marsh. They exist in all the lakes in Aussa except Abhdbad, which is salt. Crocodiles are numerous, particularly in Badhu and in the lakes at Aussa, and their food supply presents an interesting problem. Ostriches are to be found wherever the country is suitable. I saw five in one day round Abakaborso, and the natives were continuously bringing eggs and youiig birds into camp. While here we heard that the Wagarat were raiding the Asaaimara on the western bank of the river, but they had withdrawn again with their spoil by the time we moved down there. The Dankalis have suffered badly in the past from the Wagarat raids, and some years ago a notorious Wagarat brigand established himsclf at Abakaborso and harassed the surrounding country unmercifully. Yet the. Wagarat, who are half Moslem and half Christian, speak Amharic and live far away on the plateaux of eastern Tigre. They are intrepid raiders and have penetrated as far as the railway line on the French Somali frontier. Of them alone the Dankalis stand in awe. THE SILVER BATON I was met on the Aussa frontier by two of the Sultan's askaris bearing the famous " silver baton," without the sanction of which no one could hope to cross the Aussa frontier. The baton is a stout bamboo, bound round with en- graved silver bands, and gives to the bearer the authority of the Sultan himself. The quickest and easiest way into Aussa from here is by way of the Galatu Pass through the Magenta Moun- tains which enclose Aussa on the west. But I was determined to follow the river and marched north to Tandaho. We passed through a country of overwhelming desolation. The black pre- cipices of Magenta fell sheer to the river's edge, while to the westward the unending lava quivered in the heat. At Tandaho the Hawash flows through a narrow gorge and the hill tops on either side are strongly fortified. These fortifications were built by Ras Imur of Wollo in the days of the Abyssinian conquest. From here the river bends eastward towards Culsecuma along the edge of a sandy desert which stretches out of sight to the north. After crossing this desert we reached the forest bordering the river at Galifage. I was met by the vizier Kenyasmatch Yaio, with a present from the Sultan of five oxen and numerous sheep. Then by slow stages we moved down to Gurumudlie, where the river was shut in by a dense forest of large mimosa trees smothered under a matted carpet of creepers. The clearings were rich with luxuriant grass and a tangle of bean-like clover. During our stay my weakened camels grew daily stronger. On March 29 I was told that the Sultan was on his way to visit me, and as the sun set I received a message asking me to meet him close by since he had too many men with him to enter mv camp. I left accompanied by my men, dressed in their best clothes and carrying every rifle. The jungle on either side of the path was alive with men and a constant stream of runners came and went. We arrived at a large clearing, where 400 picked Dankalis were forned up round the sultan. They were dressed in clean white loin cloths and " shammas." They carried rifles and all wore the curv6d Dankali knife. Behind the Sultan were grouped his chosen guard, their rifles in red silk covers. The Sultan was dressed in white and wore a very old silver- mounted knife, probably his father's. He is small in stature and his bearded face is oval and rather dark. His features are scnsitive and proud and give a striking imprcssion of breeding and power. Having grceted me he dismissed his men to some little distance., keeping only the Vizier and his trusted adviser Telahun beside him. The full moon lit up the long ranks of squatting Dankalis and the soli- tary little group formied by my men, sur- rounded on all sides by the thick and silent jungle. After the usual exchange of Compliments I gave the Sultan an account of my travels and asked his permission to follow the river through Aussa. He avoided giving me a definite answer, saying be would talk it over next day. He camped in the clearing with his followers, and I met him the following morning. UNDER SUSPICION News had arrived a few days before of the murder of Beights by the Essa while serving on the Abyssinian boundary com- mission, and he suspected me of being connected in some way with this work. The Sultan told me that it was at the same place that he had received Nesbitt in 1928 during his great journey north to Eritrea. Before I left he granted me leave to follow the Hawash River to its end, thus enabling me to pass through the mysterious plains of Aussa, which till then no white man had been allowed to enter. Like his father before him, the Sultan dislikes and mistrusts all Europeans, and has no desire that his country should taste their civilization. He rules Aussa with an iron hand, and here alone in Dankali are peace and security to be found. On return- ing to my camp I found a present of four bulls and quantities of milk and ghee. Throughout my stay in Aussa I received a most lavish hospitality and daily oxen and sheep, milk, and dutrrah bread were brought into my camp as presents from the Sultan. Leaving Gurumudlie we marched along the lava-smothered side of Culsecuma, above the lake of Galifagebada, and entered Aussa proper. From the slopes of Culsccuma I overlooked a natural sanctuary, rimmed in on every side by great mountain ranges. The country was thickly forested, but in the clearings were large herds of cattle, sheep, and goats, while round the Sultan's abode at Fursi were cultivated fields of durrah. At the foot of the Goumard precipices was a grcat lake, and beyond that endless swamps and other lakes barely discernible to the south. (To be conclutded) a Earlier articles in this scrics appearcd in 7he Times of Tucsday and Wednesday. ABYSSINIAN QUEST AN A SULTAN IN THE JUNGLE I1I.-FAUNA NEAR AUSSA