Second visit to Zagé--Arrest of Mr. Rassam and the English
Officers--Charges brought against Mr. Rassam--The former Captives
are brought in Chains to Zagé--Public Trial--Reconciliation--Mr.
Flad's Departure--The Imprisonment at Zagé--Departure for Kourata.
On the 13th of April we made our third experiment of the bulrush
boats, as the Emperor desired once more to see his dear friends
before they left. The European workmen of Gaffat accompanied us.
All the Magdala and Gaffat prisoners started the same day, but by
another route; the whole party was to rendezvous at Tankal, near
the north-west extremity of the lake, where the luggage was also
to be conveyed by boats.
On our arrival at Zagé, we were received with the usual marks
of respect. Ras Engeddah and several high officers came to meet us
on the beach, and richly harnessed mules were provided for us from
the royal stables. We dismounted at the entrance of his Majesty's
inclosure, and were conducted at once to the large audience-hall,
erected quite close to the Emperor's private fence. On entering,
we were surprised to see the large hall lined on both sides by
Abyssinian officers in their gala dress. The throne had been placed
at the extremity of the hall, but was empty, and the large circular
space around it was filled with the highest officers of the realm.
We had only advanced a few stages, preceded by Ras Engeddah, when
he bowed and kissed the ground, we thought out of respect for the
throne; but it was the signal for an act of base treachery. No
sooner had the Ras prostrated himself, than nine men, posted for
the purpose, rushed upon each of us, and in less time than I can
express it our swords, belts, and caps were cast to the ground, our
uniforms torn, and the officers of the English mission, seized by
the arm and neck, were dragged, to the upper part of the hall,
degraded and reviled before the whole of Theodore's courtiers and
grandees!
We were allowed to sit down, our captors sitting next to us. The
Emperor did not appear, but questions were brought to us by the Ras
Engeddah, Cantiba Hailo (the Emperor's adopted father), Samuel, and
the European workmen. Some of the questions asked by his Majesty
were, to say the least, childish: "Where are the prisoners? Why
have you not brought them to me? You had no right to send them
without my permission. I wished you to reconcile me with them. I
intended also to give to those who had no mule a mule, and to those
who had no money some money for the road. Why have you given them
fire-arms? Did you not come with a friendly letter from the Queen
of England? Why have you sent letters to the coast?" and such like
rubbish.
Many of the highest officers several times expressed openly their
approval of our answers--a rare proceeding in an Abyssinian Court.
They evidently did not like, nor could they justify, the treacherous
conduct of their master. Between the questions, a paper was partially
read, referring to his Majesty's pedigree. As it had nothing to
do with, our alleged offences, I could not understand its object,
except that it was a certain weakness of this _parvenu_ to
glory in his supposed ancestors. His Majesty's last message was:
"I have sent for your brethren, and when they arrive, I will see
what I shall do."
The assembly having been dismissed, we waited a little while, whilst
a tent was pitched for us near the Emperor's inclosure. At the time
we were undergoing our trial, all the luggage we had brought with
us was personally examined by his Majesty. All arms, money, papers,
knives, &c., were confiscated; the remainder being sent to us after
we had been escorted to the tent; We had hardly entered our new
abode, and had not yet recovered from our surprise at the turn the
Abyssinian _imbroglio_ had just taken, when cows and bread in
abundance were sent to us by Theodore a strange contrast to his
recent dealings.
At about the same hour which witnessed this reverse in our fortunes,
the released captives were also destined to meet with a fearful
disappointment. Their fate was even worse than ours. After about
two hours' ride they came to a village, and were resting under the
shade of a few trees, until their tents should be pitched, when
they were called for, and told to enter the house of the chief of
the village. As soon as they were all collected, a number of
soldiers entered, and the chief of the escort, showing them a letter,
asked them if it was his Majesty's seal. On their replying in the
affirmative, they were told to sit down. They were rather perplexed,
but imagined that perhaps his Majesty had sent them a letter to bid
them farewell, and that they were allowed to sit down as they were
tired. However, their conjectures were soon set at rest. On a signal
given by the chief of the escort, they were seized by the soldiers
who lined the room. The letter from Theodore was then read to them.
It was addressed to the chief of the escort, and ran thus:--"In the
name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, to Bitwaddad Tadla.
By the power of God, we, Theodore, the king of kings, are well. We
are angry with our friends, and with the Europeans, who say, 'We
are going to our country,' and we are not yet reconciled. Until we
consult as to what we shall do, seize them; but do not make them
uncomfortable or afraid, and do not hurt them."
In the evening they were chained two by two, their servants were
watched, and but two allowed to each individual to prepare his food;
the following morning they were taken to Kourata. There they heard
of our arrest, and even reports to the effect that we had been
killed. The wives of the Gaffat people treated them very kindly:
they themselves were in great anguish, as they were quite ignorant
of the fate of their relatives. On the morning of the 15th they
were taken over by boat to Zagé. On their arrival they were
received by guards, who conducted them to a fenced space; mules had
been brought for Captain Cameron, Mrs. Rosenthal, and Mrs. Flad,
and shortly afterwards the Emperor sent them cows, sheep, bread,
&c., in abundance.
The three days we spent in the small tent at Zagé were days
of great anxiety. We had until then seen but the good side, the
amiable mood of our host, and we were not as yet accustomed to his
sudden bursts of temper, to his violence and treachery. As soon
as our luggage was returned, we destroyed every letter, paper, note,
diary, in our possession, and repeatedly questioned Samuel as to
our future prospects. On the morning of the second day Theodore
sent us his compliments, and told us that as soon as the captives
arrived, everything would be all right. We sent him some shirts
that had been made for him during our stay at Kourata; he received
them, but declined the soap that accompanied them, as, he said, we
should require it for the road. In the afternoon we watched him
through the links of the tent, whilst he was sitting for hours on
a raised platform in front of his inclosure. He appeared calm, and
remained, for a long time, in conversation with his favourite, Ras
Engeddah, who stood below.
We were guarded night and day, and could not move a few steps outside
the tent without being followed by a soldier; at night, if we had
to go out, we were told to carry a lantern with us. Our guards were
all old confidential chiefs of the Emperor, men of rank and position,
who executed their orders, but did not abuse their position to make
us feel still more our disgrace. On the evening of the 15th a small
farce was played that amused me at the time. I was going out a short
distance, a servant carrying a lantern before me. We had only
advanced a few steps when a soldier roughly seized my servant;
immediately the officer on guard ran up towards us, and pretending
to be very indignant at the soldier's conduct, told him to let my
servant go, and lifting up his stick, gave him a few strokes on the
back, exclaiming, "Why do you stop him? These are not prisoners;
they are the friends of the King." On turning round; I saw the chief
and the soldier having a good laugh together. The following morning
the reconciliation was to take place. Theodore desired to impress
us with the idea that we might be still his friends, and that we
had better give in to him with good grace, as the arrest of the
13th would prove to us that he could also treat us as enemies. His
plan was not a bad one; at all events it succeeded.
On the 17th we received a message from his Majesty, telling us to
go to him, as he desired to try before us the Europeans who had,
he said, formerly insulted him. Theodore knows well how to make a
display; and on this occasion he did his utmost to impress all,
Europeans as well as natives, with an idea of his power and greatness.
He was seated on an alga in the open air, in front of the audience-hall.
All the great officers of state were stationed on his left hand in
front; on his right were the Europeans, and around these more
important individuals, the petty chiefs and soldiers formed an
almost complete circle.
As soon as we approached, his Majesty rose and saluted us; received
us, in short, as though we were still his honoured guests, and not
the heralds from a great Power he had recently so grossly insulted.
We were told to sit down. A few minutes of silence followed, and
we saw advancing from the outer gate our countrymen guarded as
criminals, and chained two by two. They were arranged in a line in
front of his Majesty, who, after observing them for a few seconds,
"kindly" inquired after their health, and how they had spent their
time. The captives acknowledged these compliments by repeatedly
kissing the ground before that incarnation of the Evil One, who all
the time grinned in delight at the sight of the misery and humiliation
of his victims. Captain Cameron's and Mr. Bardel's fetters were
then opened, and they were told to come and sit down near us. All
the other captives remained standing in the sun, and had to answer
to the Emperor's questions. He was collected, and calm; only once,
when addressing us, did he appear in any way excited.
He asked them, "Why did you wish to leave my country before you
took leave of me?" They answered that they had only acted according
to Mr. Rassam's orders, to whom they had been made over. He then
said, "Why did you not ask Mr. Rassam to bring you to me, and be
reconciled before you left?" and turning towards Mr. Rassam, said,
"It is your fault. I told you to reconcile me with them; why did
you not do so?" Mr. Rassam replied: that he had believed the written
reconciliation that followed the trial of the charges he had sent
against them to be sufficient. The Emperor then said to Mr. Rassam,
"Bid I not tell you I wanted to give them mules and money, and you
answered me that you had bought mules for them, and that you had
money enough to take them to their country? Now, on your account,
you see them in chains. From the day you told me that you desired
to send them by another road I became suspicious, and imagined that
you did so in order that you might say in your country that they
were released through your cunning and power."
The former captives' supposed crimes are well known, and its the
remainder of the trial was only a repetition of the one of Gondar,
it would be a mere waste of time to speak of it here; suffice it
to say that these unfortunate and injured men answered with all
humility and meekness, and endeavoured by so doing to avert the
wrath of the wretch in whose power they were.
The Emperor's pedigree was then read: from Adam to David all went
on smoothly enough; from Solomon's supposed son Menilek to Socinius
few names were given--perhaps they were patriarchs in their own
way; but when it came to Theodore's father and mother the difficulty
increased, indeed it became serious; many witnesses were brought
forward to testify to their royal descent, and even the opinion of
the puppet-Emperor Johannes was recorded in favour of Theodore's
legal right to the throne of his ancestors.
We were then called forward, and the scene of the 18th enacted over,
again. After we had been told to sit down, Theodore called his
workmen before him, and asked them if he ought to get "kassa?"
(meaning a reparation for what he had suffered at the hands of the
Europeans). Some did not audibly reply; whilst others loudly
proclaimed that "kassa was good." In conclusion, his Majesty said,
addressing himself to us "Do you want to be my masters? You will
remain with me; and wherever I go, you will go; wherever I stay,
you will stay." On that we were dismissed to our tents, and Captain
Cameron was allowed to accompany us. The other Europeans, still in
chains, were sent to another part of the camp, where several weeks
before a fence had been erected, no one knew why.
The following day we were again called before Theodore, but this
time it was quite a private affair. The prisoners were first
conducted to our tent, and released from their fetters. We were
then called into his presence; the former captives followed us, and
the Gaffat people shortly afterwards entered, and were told to sit
at the Emperor's right. As soon as the released prisoners entered;
they bowed their heads to the ground and begged for pardon. His
Majesty told them to rise, and after informing them that they had
never done anything wrong, and that they were his friends, bowed
his head to the ground, and in his turn begged for pardon. He
remained in that attitude until they had repeatedly told him, "For
God's sake, we forgive you!" Captain Cameron then read aloud Dr.
Beke's letter and the petition of the prisoners' relatives. The
reconciliation effected, the Emperor dictated a letter for our
Queen, and Mr. Flad was selected to convey it. We then all had our
tents pitched in a large enclosure, fenced that very morning under
his Majesty's supervision. We were once more all united; but this
time all prisoners. Mr. Flad left; we expected that his mission
would be unsuccessful, and that England, disgusted with so much
treachery, would not condescend to treat further, but enforce her
demands. The day Mr. Flad left, his wife accompanied the workmen,
who were ordered back to Kourata; with them we had much less
intercourse than before, as they were at all times timid, and very
careful not to have many dealings with doubtful friends of the King.
Zagé was one of the principal towns of the formerly prosperous
and populous district of Metsha, but when we came we saw nought but
ruins; and had we not been told that the guicho and coffee-covered
hill was only a few weeks before the abode of thousands, we could
not have credited it; nor that the small circular patches, now green
with grass and weeds, had been the homes of a thriving and industrious
population.
A few days after the reconciliation--the very morning Flad left for
England--his Majesty returned us our arms, and a portion of our
money; he also presented us at the same time with silver-mounted
shields, spears, and mules, and a few days later with horses. We
saw him on several occasions: twice he came to see us in our tents;
one day we went with him to assist at the trial of some guns made
by his European workmen; once duck-shooting with him on the lake;
another time to see him play the national game of goucks. He
endeavoured to appear friendly, supplied us with abundant rations,
and twice a day sent his compliments; he even fired a salute and
gave a feast on our Queen's birthday. Nevertheless, we felt unhappy:
our cage was gilt, but still a cage; and the experience we had had
of the King's treachery made us constantly fear a recurrence of it.
When we met him in Damot, and when we visited him before at Zagé,
we had only seen the actor in his smiling mood; now all restraint
was thrown off: women were flogged to death close to our tents, and
soldiers laden with chains or beaten to death on the most trivial
pretexts. The true character of the tyrant became daily more apparent,
and we felt that our position was most dangerous and critical.
Theodore was still bent on building boats; seeing that everybody
seemed reluctant to help him he went to work himself; he made an
immense flat-bottomed bulrush boat of great thickness, and to propel
it made two large wheels worked by hand: in fact he had invented a
paddle steamer, only the locomotive agent was deficient. We saw it
several times on the water; the wheels were rather high up and it
required at least a hundred men on it to make them dip sufficiently.
Strange to say he spent his time in that frivolous way and never
took notice of a large rebel force not four miles from his camp.
Cholera had been making havoc in Tigré; we were not surprised,
therefore, to hear that it had spread over other provinces, and
that several cases had already broken out at Kourata. The King's
camp was pitched in a very unhealthy situation, on a low, swampy
ground; fevers, diarrhoea, and dysentery had prevailed to a great
extent. Informed of the approach of cholera, his Majesty wisely
decided upon moving his camp to the highlands of Begemder. Mrs.
Rosenthal was at the time very unwell, and could not stand the
journey by land; she was therefore allowed to proceed by water to
Kourata, accompanied by her husband, myself, and Captain Cameron,
also in delicate health. We started on the evening of the 31st of
May, and reached Kourata early the next morning. A gale of wind was
blowing at the time, and we had to make frequent stoppages on the
lee of the land, as the heavy sea frequently threatened to swamp
our frail boats. Without exaggeration, this last passage was in all
respects the _ne plus ultra_ of discomfort.