In any part of Africa a river of tolerable magnitude is an object of the
most anxious interest; and the approach to the Hawash, the boundary river
of the kingdom of Shoa, was looked to with eager speculation. At length
the height was reached from which was obtained "an exhilarating prospect
over the dark, lone valley of the long looked-for Hawash. The course of
the river was marked by a dense belt of trees and verdure, stretching
towards the base of the great mountain range, of which the cloud-capped
cone, which frowns over the capital of Shoa, forms the most conspicuous
feature." The mission now began to exalt:--"Though still far distant, the
ultimate destination of the embassy appeared almost to have been gained,
and none had an idea of the length of time that must elapse before his
foot should press the soil of Ankober." A day of intense heat was as usual
followed by a heavy fall of rain, which, owing to the unaccommodating
arrangement of striking the tents at sunset, thoroughly drenched the whole
party.

The new difficulty was, how to cross the Hawash, "second of the rivers of
Abyssinia, and rising in the very heart of Ethipoia, at an elevation of
8000 feet above the sea. It is fed by niggardly tributaries from the high
bulwarks of Shoa and Efat, and flows, like a great artery, through the
arid plains of the Adaiel, green and wooded throughout its long course,
and finally absorbed in the lagoons of Aussa. The canopy of fleecy clouds,
which, as mid-day dawned, hung thick and heavy over the lofty blue peaks
beyond, gave sad presage of the deluge that was pouring between its
verdant banks from the higher regions of the source."

The party now descended to enjoy the real luxuries of shade and water, in
a region where they had hitherto seen nothing but salt and lava. At first
thinly wooded, they found the soil covered with tall rank grass, from