Magdala Author:Henry M. Stanley Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: was found, however, and the ancient fane remains in precisely the same condition as the workmen of the greedy king left it. Two pillars only are left standing no... more »w, but in some portions the marble pavement is still intact. The river, called solely by that name from courtesy, as rivers were so scarce in the country we were travelling, was a rapid little stream, only ankle deep in its deepest parts, and but a few yards in width, into which our animals and ourselves plunged, and where we revelled for half an hour or so. At the camp of Agulla we found Colonel W. L. Merewether and Mr. Clements Markham, the distinguished geographer of the Expedition. Colonel Merewether was a Colonel of the Scinde Horse, but acted as Political Resident at Aden before coming to Abyssinia. Rassam was a former secretary of his while at Aden, and it was through the influence of Layard of Nineveh that the Armenian gentleman was appointed and i envoy to Theodore. That selection, in my opinion, was most unfortunate; but Merewether adhered to the belief that no better could have been found. The Colonel was the very soul of politeness and affability ; and it was delightful to hear him talk. During the three days we rested at Agulla the Captain went shooting. At nightfall he generally returned with dozens of guinea-fowl, quail, ducks, ibis, wild geese, and turkeys. He said he had shot three wild boars, but I never saw one bristle of them. On the fourth morning we struck our tent, packed our baggage, loaded our animals, and started on our journey to Antalo. Very uninteresting was the march from Agulla river to Antalo. We arrived at Dorello, 19 miles distant from Agulla, on the evening of the first day ; Haikhullut, 9 miles, the second day ; thence to Antalo, 14 miles, on the third day. CHAPTER V...« less