CHAPTER I.

Introductory.

IT is with a view to give every possible information to my reader, that I lay before him the motives upon which these travels were undertaken, the order and manner in which they were executed, and some account of the work itself, as well of the matter as the distribution of it.

Every one will remember that period, so glorious to Britain, the latter end of the ministry of the late Earl of Chatham. I was then returned from a tour through the greatest part of Europe, particularly through the whole of Spain and Portugal, between whom there was then an appearance of approaching war. I was about to retire to a small patrimony I had received from my ancestors, in order to embrace a life of study and reflection, nothing more active appearing then within my power, when chance threw me unexpectedly into a very short and desultory conversation with

Lord Chatham.

A few days after this, Mr. Wood, then under-secretary of state, my very zealous and sincere friend, informed me that Lord Chatham intended to employ me on a particular service; that I might, however, go down for a few weeks to my own country to settle my affairs, but by all means to be ready upon a call. Nothing could be more flattering to me than such an offer; to be thought worthy, when so young, of any employment by Lord Chatham was doubly a preferment. No time was lost on my side; but, just after my having received orders to return to London, his lordship had gone to Bath, and resigned his office.

This disappointment, which was the more sensibly felt by me, as it was the first I had met with in public life, was promised to be made up to me by Lord Egremont and Mr. George Grenville. The former had been long my friend, but unhappily he was then fargone in a lethargic indisposition, which threatened, and very soon after put a period to his existence.

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Seven or eight months were passed in an expensive and fruitless attendance in London, when Lord Halifax was pleased, not only to propose, but to plan for me a journey of considerable importance, and which was to take up several years. His lordship said, that nothing could be more ignoble, than that, at such a time of life, at the height of my reading, health, and activity, I should, as it were, turn peasant, and voluntarily bury myself in obscurity and idleness; that though the war was now drawing fast to an end, a competition full as honourable remained among men of spirit, who should acquit themselves best in the dangerous line of useful adventure and discovery. He observed, that the coast of Barbary, which might be said to be just at our door, was as yet but partially explored. The discovery of the source of the Nile was also a subject of these conversations; but it was always mentioned to me with a kind of diffidence, as if to be expected only from a more experienced traveller. Fortune seemed to enter into this scheme. At the very instant, Mr. Aspinwall, very cruelly and ignominiously treated by the Dey of Algiers, had resigned his consulship, and Mr. Ford, a merchant, formerly the Dey's acquaintance, was named in his place. Mr. Ford was appointed, and dying a few days after, the consulship became vacant. Lord

Halifax pressed me to accept this, as containing all sorts of conveniencies for making the proposed expedition. This favourable event finally determined me. I had all my life applied unweariedly, perhaps with more love than talent, to drawing, the practice of mathematics, and especially that part necessary to astronomy. The transit of Venus was at hand. It was certainly known that it would be visible once at Algiers, and there was great reason to expect that it might be twice. I had furnished myself with a large apparatus of instruments, the completest of their kind, for the observation. In the choice of these I had been assisted by my friend Admiral Campbell, and Mr. Russel, secretary to the Turkish Company: every other necessary had been provided in proportion.

Thus prepared, I set out for Italy, through France; and though it was in time of war, and some strong objections had been made to particular passports solicited by our government from the French secretary of state, Monsieur de Choiseul most obligingly waved all such exceptions with regard to me, and most politely assured me, in a letter accompanying my passport, that those difficul ties did not in any shape regard me, but that I was perfectly at liberty to pass through, or remain in France, with those that accompanied me, without limit

ing their number, as short or as long a time as should be agreeable to me. On my arrival at Rome I received orders to proceed to Naples, there to await his Majesty's further commands. Nothing remained but to take possession of my consulship. I returned without loss of time to Rome, and thence to Leghorn, where, having embarked on board the Montreal man-ofwar, I proceeded to Algiers.

After a year spent at Algiers, constant conversation with the natives whilst abroad, and with my manuscripts within doors, had qualified me to appear in any part of the continent without the help of an interpreter. My immediate prospect of setting out on my journey to the inland parts of Africa had made me double my diligence; night and day there was no relaxation from these studies, although the acquiring any single language had never been with me either an object of time or difficulty.

There was a Greek priest, a native of Cyprus, a very venerable man, past seventy years of age, who had attached himself to me from my first arrival in Algiers. This man was of a very social and cheerful temper, and had, besides, a more than ordinary knowledge of his own language. I had taken him to my house as my chaplain, read Greek with him daily, and spoke it at times when I could receive his correction and instruction. It was not that I, at this time of day, needed to learn Greek,

I had long understood that language perfectly; what I wanted was the pronunciation, and reading by accent, of which the generality of English scholars are perfectly ignorant, and to which it is owing that they apprehend the Greek spoken and written in the Archipelago is materially different from that language which we read in books, and which a few weeks' conversation in the islands will teach them it is not. I had in this, at that time, no other view than mere convenience during my passage through the Archipelago, which I intended to visit, without any design of continuing or studying there: but the reader will afterwards see of what very material service this acquaintance was to me; so very essential, indeed, that it contributed more to the success of my views in Abyssinia than any other help that I obtained throughout the whole journey. This man's name was Padre Christophoro, or Father Christopher. At my leaving Algiers, finding himself less conveniently situated, he went to Egypt, to Cairo, where he was promoted to be second in rank under Mark, patriarch of Alexandria, where I afterwards found him.

I sailed from Algiers, having taken leave of the Dey, who furnished me with every letter that I asked, with strong and peremptory orders to all the officers of his own dominion pressing recommendatory