Russian Envoy Bulatovich, Oromos, Sidamas and the Revelation of Amhara Barbarism in Fake Ethiopia

Continuing the series of articles on the insightful documentation provided by the Russian Military Officer, Explorer, and Orthodox Monk in his books about his deeds and excursions, observations and explorations in Abyssinia (undertaken over three years 1896 – 1899), I herewith republish a fourth part from his second book titled "With the Armies of Menelik II". This excerpt offers an in-depth presentation of Andrachi, the Kaffa capital, and a narration of Bulatovich´s sojourn there (January 8-22).

Despite many inaccuracies pertaining to the Sidamas and the Kaffas, this chapter reveals the barbarous nature of the criminal Amhara armies, their bellicose attitude, and their cruel behavior. This is revealed in the following excerpt that describes a scene of entertainment after a dinner:

"Having dined and drunk their portion of mead, they sat around the campfire and struck up songs. For the most part, these were military improvisations, and their contents amounted to praise of themselves and of their master. Liban sang in his clear, beautiful voice, and the chorus joined in the monotonous refrain, "Gedau! Berekhanyau!" ("Killer, killer, tramp of the desert!"). One of the ashkers, in a form of accompaniment, beat in time with his palms on an empty water tin. Women's voices joined in the chorus".

One has indeed to be as barbarous as an Amhara to praise (instead of denouncing and ridiculing) a "killer" and a "tramp of the desert".

Such barbarism has never been attested anytime anywhere, even among the Nazi soldiers of Hitler´s Germany.

If the "killer" is to be praised collectively by the armed representatives of a society, one can quasi-automatically understand that this society is a barbarous entity that has to be isolated, deprived of any control over other nations, and put under international mandate in order to be re-educated and re-organized from scratch – with forceful imposition of civil and civilized nations´ manners and customs.

This is exactly what I demanded for the troublesome case of the barbarous rulers of Abyssinia and their incestuous society two years ago in an earlier article of mine that was published under the title "Nunca Mas: Two Spanish Words for Noble Somalis and Barbaric Abyssinians" (http://www.buzzle.com/articles/nunca-mas-spanish-words-for-noble-somalis-and-barbaric-abyssinians.html).

In several forthcoming articles, I will publish all the other parts of Bulatovich´s second book, and in addition, I will extensively comment on parts of his first book (notably History, Religion, Conclusion). Herewith, I make first available a recapitulation of the earlier twenty two (22) articles of this series, and then republish the excursion narrative.

All the Oromos, Ogadenis, Afars, Sidamas and others, who fight for their independence, and all the neighboring countries, not only Egypt and Sudan but also Somalia and Eritrea, which are threatened because of the evil, eschatological dreams of Greater Ethiopia, must study, understand and diffuse the insightful documentation available in the two books, which were published by the Russian explorer before 110 years; in and by itself, this documentation constitutes good reason for the world to be preoccupied with the source of every regional trouble and instability: the Amhara and Tigray (Tewahedo) Monophysitic Abyssinians who rule tyrannically over the lands they invaded and the nations they subjugated.

Recapitulation

Earlier articles of the present series can be found here:

1st Article

The Oromo Genocide Solemnly Confessed by Official Russian Explorer in Abyssinia (Fake Ethiopia)

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/the-oromo-genocide-solemnly-confessed-by-official-russian-explorer-in-abyssinia-fake-ethiopia.html

Selected and highlighted excerpts from a book – report published by a Russian explorer, military officer and monk, Alexander Bulatovich, who spent three years in Abyssinia, during the last decade of the 19th century. These excerpts undeniably testify to the Oromo genocide perpetrated by the invading Amhara and Tigray Abyssinian armies, and have therefore to be brought to the surface of political debate by the Oromo political and intellectual leaders at the local, regional and international levels.

2nd Article

Russia, the Oromos, Egypt, Sudan, Abyssinia (Fake Ethiopia), Somalia, Islam & Orthodox Christianity

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/russia-the-oromos-egypt-sudan-abyssinia-fake-ethiopia-somalia-islam-orthodox-christianity.html

Republishing further excerpts from Bulatovich´s book, I focused on the possible reasons for Russia´s failure as colonial power in the region. As reasons I identified an inherent Russian quantitative approach to the colonial process and an overall misperception of the past and the present of Asia and Africa, which is due to the Russian academic, intellectual and ideological acceptance of the Anglo-French Orientalism, a bunch of disciplines elaborated by the French and the English academia in order to mainly promote and diffuse an interpretation of data that would suit the interests of the Anglo-French Freemasonry, namely the driving force of the Paris and London regimes.

3rd Article

Abyssinian Colonization of Oromia, Sidama and Kaffa in Bogus Ethiopia. An Early Witness from Russia

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/abyssinian-colonization-of-oromia-sidama-and-kaffa-in-bogus-ethiopia-an-early-witness-from-russia.html

Another, longer, excerpt from Bulatovich´s ´From Entotto to the River Baro´ which bears witness to the evil Amhara and Tigray plans of illegal occupation of the annexed lands and of tyrannical consolidation of the Abyssinian colonialism by means of settlements peremptorily implemented among the subjugated nations.

4th Article

Ethiopia (Oromo) vs. Abyssinia (Amhara). Unbridgeable Ethnic, Cultural Gap Revealed by Bulatovich

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/ethiopia-oromo-vs-abyssinia-amhara-unbridgeable-ethnic-cultural-gap-revealed-by-bulatovich.html

Two more excerpts that focus on the Oromo society, namely ´Galla Clothing´ and ´Galla Family Life´.

5th Article

Oromo National Identity Diametrically Opposed to Amhara Manner, Russian Officer Bulatovich Reveals

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/oromo-national-identity-diametrically-opposed-to-amhara-manner-russian-officer-bulatovich-reveals.html

Three chapters dealing with Oromo national identity, religion and language; all the preconceived concepts of the colonial era are herewith present, thus leading Bulatovich to erroneous interpretations. Certainly, the Russian explorer was not a linguist, historian or historian of religions; more importantly, academic exploration was not the primary interest of his travel which was kind of diplomatic reconnaissance. However, the chapter on the Oromo national character is greatly interesting because it demolishes the Ethiopianist myth of a supposed Ethiopian nation.

6th Article

Revelation of the Amhara Fornication: Light on the Anti-Christian Blasphemy of Fake Ethiopia

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/revelation-of-the-amhara-fornication-light-on-the-anti-christian-blasphemy-of-fake-ethiopia.html

Further excerpts from the same volume of Bulatovich, providing with his description of the Abyssinians. Reporting accurately and truthfully, Bulatovich offered the Orthodox tsarist Russia´s top authorities a trustful portrait of the unclean and incestuous character of the pseudo-Christian Abyssinian society.

With no family, there is no Christian society. As a matter of fact, Abyssinian eschatology is a corrupt system at the very antipodes of Christianity.

7th Article

Outrageous Falsehood on Abyssinia (Fake Ethiopia) Rejected: Solomonic Dynasty, Kingdom Do Not Exist

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/outrageous-falsehood-on-abyssinia-fake-ethiopia-rejected-solomonic-dynasty-kingdom-do-not-exist.html

Further excerpts from the same volume of Bulatovich, providing with his description of the Abyssinians. Reporting accurately and truthfully, Bulatovich offered the Orthodox tsarist Russia´s top authorities a convincing presentation and analysis of how and why Abyssinian nobility does not exist – which consists in a formidable blow against the falsehood of the so-called Solomonic dynasty of Abyssinia, and their connection to the Ancient Hebrews. In fact, there has never been any post-Agaw Abyssinian ´Kingdom´. The entire history of post-Agaw Abyssinia is a succession of uncivilized gangsters of incestuous origin, who were peremptorily called ´noble men´, ´kings´ or ´emperors´; they were imposed as such to all the peoples and nations that, with Anglo-French permission and support, the Abyssinians invaded and subjugated.

8th Article

Russian Officer Bulatovich Relates on Colonial Raids of Abyssinia (Fake Ethiopia) in Kaffa Land I

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/invasion-of-kaffa-by-armies-of-abyssinia-fake-ethiopia-narrated-by-bulatovich-envoy-of-russia-i.html

The entire text of Bulatovich´s first excursion from Entotto to the River Baro,

9th Article

Russian Officer Bulatovich Relates on Colonial Raids of Abyssinia (Fake Ethiopia) in Kaffa Land II

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/invasion-of-kaffa-by-armies-of-abyssinia-fake-ethiopia-narrated-by-bulatovich-envoy-of-russia-ii.html

The entire text of Bulatovich´s second excursion from Entotto to the River Baro,

10th Article

The Evil, Colonial State of Abyssinia (fake Ethiopia) Exposed by Bulatovich, the Envoy of Russia

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/the-criminal-state-of-abyssinia-fake-ethiopia-exposed-by-bulatovich-the-envoy-of-russia.html

Chapters on the Ethiopian System of Government, the State Government and the Distribution of Land, the Police, the Judicial System and Procedure, the Law and Custom, the Crimes and Punishments, and the Economic Condition of the State – the Treasury.

11th Article

War Criminals of Abyssinia (fake Ethiopia), Their Atrocities Exposed by Bulatovich, Envoy of Russia

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/war-criminals-of-abyssinia-fake-ethiopia-their-atrocities-exposed-by-bulatovich-envoy-of-russia.html

Chapter on the Abyssinian army; this part of Bulatovich´s text is also very critical because it highlights (see the section: ´Conduct of War´) the inhuman practices of environmental disaster spread by the criminal robbers and inhuman soldiers of the Abyssinian state, which supported by England and France, perpetrated the worst atrocities ever attested on African soil and the world´s most appalling and multifaceted genocide.

12th article

The Nile, Egypt, Sudan Menaced by Evil Prophecy, Secret Expansion Plan of Abyssinia (Fake Ethiopia)

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/the-nile-egypt-sudan-menaced-by-evil-prophecy-secret-expansion-plan-of-abyssinia-fake-ethiopia.html

Chapter on Menelik´s family, the ´family of the emperor´. This chapter is of great importance for the diplomatic and national security services of Egypt and the Sudan, because it reveals what the heinous and rancorous Amhara and Tigray Monophysitic (Tewahedo) Abyssinians try to hide; namely that the regime, the elites and the upper classes of these incestuous and barbarous tribes act based on a secret program (that they call "prophecy" because of their sick, abnormal and perverse minds) to destroy Egypt and Sudan, and expand their cannibalistic tyranny throughout East Africa.

13th article

Amhara Pseudo-History of Abyssinia (fake Ethiopia), False Assumptions of Bulatovich, Envoy of Russia

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/amhara-pseudo-history-of-abyssinia-fake-ethiopia-false-assumptions-of-bulatovich-envoy-of-russia.html

Chapter on the Sidamas and the African peoples. This part is full of inaccuracies, inconsistencies and wrong terms; it is clearly the topic Bulatovich explored less and had a most vague idea about. The reason is simple; he did not have the time for direct contact with any of them, being thus the victim of the customary and idiotic Amhara lies.

14th article

Heretic Christianity in Abyssinia (Fake Ethiopia): Russian Errors, Benefits for England and France

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/heretic-christianity-in-abyssinia-fake-ethiopia-russian-errors-benefits-for-england-and-france.html

Chapter on the Abyssinian church and faith that Bulatovich erroneously names ´Ethiopian´; the attribution of the national name of Ancient Kush (Sudan) to Abyssinia relates to the Axumite King Ezana´s partly invasion of Ethiopia and destruction of its capital, Meroe, ca. 360 – 365 CE. That event had however a partly and momentary character that does not justify any further use from any Abyssinian ruler because that country was always located out of the historical borders of real Ethiopia. This is the reason the modern state is called Fake Ethiopia; its right name is just Abyssinia.

15th article

England, France, Italy, Russia, Bulatovich and the Bogus Historical Dogma of Fake Ethiopia

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/england-france-italy-russia-bulatovich-and-the-bogus-historical-dogma-of-fake-ethiopia.html

Chapter on the History of Abyssinia that Bulatovich knowingly calls ´Ethiopia´ erroneously. The lengthy text (5133 words) is a complete collection of Western academic mistakes and misperceptions based mainly, and very often exclusively, on Abyssinian unsubstantiated claims, racist fallacies, and paranoid lies.

16th article

Bulatovich´s Conclusions Support Egypt and Sudan: the Blue Nile Does Not Belong to Fake Ethiopia

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/bulatovich-conclusions-support-egypt-and-sudan-the-blue-nile-does-not-belong-to-fake-ethiopia.html

Conclusion of Bulatovich´s first book; this is a text of the utmost importance for today´s diplomatic services of Sudan and Egypt, as well for the liberation fronts of the subjugated nations of Abyssinia, and more importantly the Oromos, the Bertas, and the Agaws who are the only inhabitants of the areas crossed by the Blue Nile in the monstrous tyranny of Abyssinia (fake Ethiopia) that must cease to exist.

The excerpt clearly demonstrates that the criminal, racist Amhara and Tigray Tewahedo (Monophysitic) Abyssinians never had any right to the Blue Nile waters prior to their illegal, criminal, colonial expansion and invasion of the annexed lands of the Oromos, the Bertas and Gumuz (Benishangul), and the Agaws.

17th article

Bulatovich´s Appendices: Economic Profit as Reason of Support of Fake Ethiopia by England, France

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/bulatovich-appendices-economic-profit-as-reason-of-support-of-fake-ethiopia-by-england-france.html

Most of the appendices of Bulatovich´s first book

18th article

Jewish Soviet Scholar Katsnelson´s Study on Bulatovich Underscores Russian Failure in Fake Ethiopia

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/jewish-soviet-scholar-katsnelsons-study-on-bulatovich-underscores-russian-failure-in-fake-ethiopia.html

Excerpts from a remarkable and insightful treatise elaborated by the Russian Jewish Communist Historian and Philologist Isidor Saavich Katsnelson (A.X. Bulatovich – Hussar, Explorer, Monk); Katsnelson was a leading Egyptologist and Africanist who also contributed to the then nascent Meroitic Studies, the academic research about the last period of pre-Christian History of Ethiopia, i.e. Sudan, when Meroe (today´s Bagrawiyah, nearby Ad-Damer and Atbarah in Sudan).

Katznelson´s contributions hit the final nail on the coffin of the fallacious use of the great historical name of Ethiopia by the barbarous Abyssinian tribes who proved to be the worst pestilence in Africa´s History of Tyranny, Persecution, Racism, False Eschatology, Anti-human Conspiracy, and Genocide.

Katsnelson was greatly interested in the personal history and explorations, spiritual and metaphysical search, travels and pursuits of Bulatovich; much of what we know now of Bulatovish is due to Katznelson. The selection of Bulatovich´s excerpts translated from Russian to English was made by the translator of Bulatovich´s two books, Richard Seltzer. Herewith, I reproduce it integrally.

Katznelson´s analysis, like Bulatovich´s book, demonstrates how erroneous the Russian and Soviet East African policy has always been and how it worked at the detriment of Russia (or Soviet Union) itself.

19th article

Failed Russian Orthodox Plans for Monasticism in Abyssinia (Fake Ethiopia), Bulatovich and Menelik

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/failed-russian-orthodox-plans-for-monasticism-in-abyssinia-fake-ethiopia-bulatovich-and-menelik.html

A confidential letter sent by B. Chermerzin, charge d' affaires of the Russian Embassy in Abyssinia to A. A. Neratov, Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, on December 15, 1911. This text offers an insightful about Bulatovich´s later travel to Abyssinia whereby he had the ambition to establish a monastic order.

Despite the fact that the Russian Orthodox explorer, military officer and monk was accepted by the Abyssinian gangster and ruler Sahle Mariam (pseudo-royal nickname: Menelik) to heal him through use of Russian holy icons, the hidden conclave of the Amhara heretic, pseudo-Christian Satanists who rule the cursed country of tyranny and genocide, prevented Bulatovich from achieving his pious target, thus clearly demonstrating their alliance with the Anglo-French freemasons and their hatred of Christianity.

What was possible for a Russian monk to undertake in Romania, Albania, Greece, Palestine, and Egypt was absolutely out of the question in the pseudo-Christian state of Abyssinia.

The important document serves therefore as perfect refutation of the fallacy that Abyssinia (fallaciously and unlawfully re-baptized as Ethiopia) is a "Christian" country. The Amhara and Tigray Tewahedo (Monophysitic) Abyssinians are not Christian; under the coverage of a simulacrum of Christian heretic faith, an enormous number of anti-Christian traits and a deep-seated hatred of Egyptian Coptic Christianity, Russian Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism are the determinant factors of the incestuous Amhara society whereby fornication is overwhelming and the family concept does not exist.

The falsehood of the so-called "Christian Abyssinia" had been fabricated by Freemasonic and Zionist institutions of England, France and America in order to destroy African Islam, and consolidate the colonial control over all the subjugated and tyrannized African nations whose identity and existence have been targeted for extinction as part of the world´s most abominable genocide.

20th article

Russian Witness Bulatovich Shows the Need for Liberation of Oromia, Deportation of Gurage to Tigray

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/russian-witness-bulatovich-shows-the-need-for-liberation-of-oromia-deportation-of-gurage-to-tigray.html

A first part from Bulatovich´s second book titled "With the Armies of Menelik II" with focus on the Russian envoy's excursion "From Addis Ababa to Jimma". Throughout Bulatovich´s text is reflected the Abyssinian tyranny imposed on the Oromos little time before the Russian explorer´s travel. At the same time, Bulatovich makes clear that the treacherous and viciously anti-Oromo tribes of Gurage arrived to the South only following invasions and occupied their territory by right of conquest. The Amhara interlocutors of the tsarist envoy were naïve and idiotic enough to confess to Bulatovich their insightful about the Gurage´s original land in Tigray – something critical to bear in mind at the moment of Oromia´s liberation. The Gurage have no place in a free Oromia.

21st article

Bulatovich Shows that Oromos Need Aba Jefar's Mysticism and Piety, not an Alliance with Evil Amhara

http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/view/175438

The second part ("Jimma") from his second book titled "With the Armies of Menelik II". This excerpt offers a paradisiacal picture of the Oromo Kingdom of Jimma, and a magnificent portrait of the sublime mystic, the Oromo Moti (King) Aba Jefar. In striking contrast with all other words and sentences of his own text, Bulatovich insists on calling the noble king "half-savage". This shows the extent and the depth of the European colonial evilness, Anti-African prejudice and zero-degree tolerance for any non Christian. Without knowing it, Bulatovich proves that European colonialism was the World History's most terrorist, most antihuman, and most iniquitous political deed.

22nd article

Bulatovich: Noble Kaffas, Oromos, Sidamas vs. Evil Amhara, and the Forthcoming End of Abyssinia

http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/view/175810

The third part from his second book titled "With the Armies of Menelik II"; the part covers the Kingdom of "Kaffa". In this unit, there are many mistakes and misperceptions in non descriptive parts of Bulatovich´s text; the Kaffa are not Semitic and they never amalgamated with any Semitic tribes and peoples, who never inhabited Africa – with the exception of the Abyssinians. But the times of Bulatovich were characterized by a Pan-Semitic delusion of many Orientalists who acted not as free scholars dedicated to the search of Truth, but under full Freemasonic and Zionist guidance in order to deceive the global academic community and promote the political interests of the Freemasonic, Zionist, colonial powers, namely England and France.

Every effort undertaken by Bulatovich in order to associate Kaffa words to Abyssinian vocabulary is a failed attempt of etymology. It was due to Abyssinian misinformation, and to the aforementioned Pan-Semitic trend of those days. Useless to add that the term Hamito-Semitic languages simply does not exist; like the other, most recent, falsehood of ´Afro-Asiatic´ languages, it was created in order to promote the Pan-Semitic (Pan-Freemasonic and Pan-Zionist) fallacy and to subordinate the Hamitic and Kushitic families of nations and peoples to the Freemasonic – Zionist version of History.

In this part, Bulatovich offers a superb insightful into the last moments of the great African Kingdom of Kaffa which was destroyed in the evil process of colonial expansion, and due to the criminal alliance of the barbarous, alien and incestuous Amhara Abyssinians with the English and the French who provided the monstrous Amhara gangsters with the arms needed to exterminate the Kushitic African kingdoms of the Oromos, the Afars, the Sidamas, the Kaffas, and others. Through Bulatovich´s narrative, the noblesse and the genuine royalty of Chenito, last Kaffa King, appear in striking contrast with the lewd, vulgar and disreputable attitude, behaviour and mind of the non African Amhara and Tigray Abyssinians (although Bulatovich is relatively favorable to the latter due to the political interests he served).

The barbaric act of invasion and destruction of the Kaffa Kingdom is a sacrilege for which the Amhara and Tigray Abyssinians will pay dearly and up to extreme regret. But what awaits them is far worse that the genocide they appallingly and inhumanly applied to the Kaffa nation over the past 110 years.

The liberation of Kaffa, Sidama, Oromia, Ogaden, Afar Land and all the other subjugated and tyrannized Kushitic and Nilo-Saharan nations will herald the final and irrevocable dissolution of the incestuous Amhara society, thus putting an end to Africa´s most cannibalistic shame.

Ethiopia through Russian Eyes

An eye-witness account of the end of an era, 1896-98 consisting of two books by Alexander Bulatovich:

From Entotto to the River Baro (1897)

With the Armies of Menelik II (1900)

Translated by Richard Seltzer, seltzer@samizdat.com, www.samizdat.com

Copyright 1993 by Richard Seltzer

With the Armies of Menelik II

http://www.samizdat.com/armies.html

Journal of an expedition from Ethiopia to Lake Rudolf

By Alexander K. Bulatovich

With four diagrams, three maps, and 78 photographs by the author and Lieutenant Davydov; Saint Petersburg, "Artistic Press" Publishing House, 28 Angliyskiy St., 1900, 271 pages

Published with permission of the Military Science Committee of the Chief of Staff

Reissued in 1971 as part of the volume With the Armies of Menelik II, edited by I. S. Katsnelson of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Academy of Sciences of the U.S.S.R. "Science" Publishing House Chief Editorial Staff of Oriental Literature Moscow 1971.

Translated by Richard Seltzer

IV. Andrachi (January 8-22)

Andrachi is located at the confluence of the River Guma with the River Gichey, which below that town turns to the south and flows into the River Omo.

The town is at a height of about 1,800 meters above sea level. It is surrounded on all sides by high mountains. It is spread out picturesquely on several hills. The climate of the locale where Andrachi lies is very humid, due to frequent rain, abundant dew, and thick evening fog.

Andrachi, which was formerly the capital of the Kaffa kings, has now been made the residence of the Ras. The palace of the Kaffa king, erected on top of one of the highest hills, was burnt down on orders from Wolda Giyorgis. In its place now a new one now rises, which occupies a circular area, about 200 sagenes [426 meters] in diameter, enclosed from all sides by a high fence.

The courtyard is partitioned by lower fences into several separate plots, each of which (with the buildings found within it) has a special significance: reception rooms, or inner chambers, or rooms for household necessities. Several gates, of which some are considered the main ones, lead inside the palace.

A rather large courtyard lies behind the main gates. Here the Ras's leaders come daily and leave their mules. Only officials have the right to enter the courtyards which follow -- officers or those who come to the Ras on some business, or, finally, those who bring gifts. In the second courtyard there is only one building (I pitched my tent next to it. Earlier there was a cannon here which was taken away on my arrival.) The third courtyard, which is called Adebabay serves as a throne room. A tower is situated along the wall opposite from the entrance. It is two-stories tall, and the Ras sits on it in state during trials and ceremonial receptions. In the little courtyard after that one is located Aderash -- a large dining room of the Ras. Here on Sundays, Thursdays, and holidays, the Ras gives large dinners -- gybyr -- and entertains his officers and soldiers. The dining room with three doors, which can easily accommodate a thousand people, is somewhat like a large barn without windows. The walls are made of connected rings. Inside, a colonnade of thick posts supports a thatch roof. The alga -- the throne on which the Ras sits in state during ceremonial dinners -- stands near one of the walls, under a canopy made of white cotton cloth. Not far off are a large sofa (one and a half arshins [70 inches] high), and another small one (three-quarters of an arshin [21 inches] high) covered with carpets. The area where the sofas are located is separated from the rest of the premises by a white curtain, which is lowered when the Ras eats and raised when invited guests enter. The inner chambers of the Ras and his wife are located in the next courtyard beyond the Aderash. On both sides of the main courtyards are small courtyards, with buildings in them. These courtyards have economic significance, as for example: gymja-byet, the storerooms where the money and belongings of the Ras are kept; wot-byet, kitchens; injera-byet, bakeries; tej-byet, places for cooking honey; sega-byet, slaughterhouses; etc.

Doorkeepers, armed with long sticks stand at all the gates of the palace. Guards are posted around the elfinya (bedroom) at night.

Of the old palace, only the chapel of the Kaffa king was left whole. Near the palace of the Ras, it is sheltered in a grove of huge sycamores. It has now been turned into a church.

The slopes of the hill on which the palace was built are covered with cabins of soldiers of the Ras. On the neighboring hills rise the large houses of his leaders, likewise surrounded by the low cabins of their soldiers.

On the large area in front of the palace, a market assembles twice a week, to which the natives of the neighborhood throng. For bread from Jimma, they exchange coffee, which today constitutes the only wealth of the region.

It is very difficult to determine the number of inhabitants of the town, since Andrachi is nothing more than a permanent camp of the Abyssinians, not having in it a settled form of life. A local permanent population simply doesn't exist.

I stayed in Andrachi for 12 days, form January 8 to 22, 1898, waiting for the muster of the operational detachment.

The first three days we rested and stayed in bed after the journey. People slept almost all day and only in the evening, having dined, became animated: sat around a campfire and sang songs. I didn't see the Ras those days. By Abyssinian custom, it is considered a special courtesy not to disturb with invitations someone who has just arrived from a journey. Each day in the morning and in the evening the Ras sent to find out about my health; and, in turn, I sent my ashker to convey to the Ras my gratitude for his consideration and to ask about his health and that of his wife. For dinner and supper, an elfin ashker (page) of the Ras, Gomtes, brought several dishes prepared for me on orders of the Ras and marvelous tej (mead) in small decanters wrapped in a silk cloth. In the evening, they gave me durgo. A long file of women with baskets filled with bread, pitchers with honey, earthenware pots with sauce etc., came to my tent. One of the kitchen shums (leaders), bowing low, entered my tent and showing the gifts that had been brought, had those who were carrying them file before me. My ashkers took the durgo, and the bread, according to custom, had to be counted again. One of the baskets, covered with a red calico coverlet and chosen for its size, was usually stuffed with the most delicate injera (bread flat cakes), intended especially for me.

I spent these days plotting my route to Kaffa on a map and took solar observations.42 Several retainers of the Ras came to me to make my acquaintance. The deputy of Konta43 Beleta-Menota even appeared with gifts -- two chickens and some talers (silver rubles), which I, to his deep chagrin, refused. However, he brought the gifts not entirely unselfishly, counting on rich return gifts on my side, and from his first words began to ask me to give him a hat, a silk burnoose, a gun, a saber, etc. Not at all embarrassed by my refusals, he confidently said, "Well, if not now, bring them to me next time."

Incidentally, here's some information about Beleta-Menota. By birth, he is from the Konta tribe and fulfills there the duties of regent until the king comes of age. Neither in clothes nor in appearance did Menota differ from the average Abyssinian; only his eyes, which were wild, always moving, curious and narrower than those of Abyssinians, drew attention to him. He tried to conduct himself with dignity and in general noticeably imitated the Abyssinians, but naive curiosity and greedy begging betrayed the savage in him.

Beleta came to the Ras with tribute and after two days went back to his land. Before leaving, he came to say good-bye to me, and invited me to come to his place as a guest. "Come see me," he said. "I will give you a beautiful wife. I will slaughter for you my fattest bulls and rams."

I likewise became acquainted with the king of Kulo44 -- Haile Tsion. He is still a very young man, of large build, with regular facial features. He has the same savage, shifty eyes as Beleta-Menota, and, also like him, Tsion differs little in appearance from Abyssinians. On the death of his father in 1892, Haile Tsion fled with his mother to the neighboring land of the related Walamo tribe. Soon, however, he successfully returned there and expressed submission to the Ras, who confirmed him in his legal throne, on condition that he recognize the authority of the Ras and pay him tribute.

When Wolda Giyorgis erected his residence in Kulo, Haile Tsion was with him the whole time. The Ras christened him and stood as his godfather. Living at the court of Wolda Giyorgis, the king adopted Abyssinian customs and manners, studied the Holy Scripture and after several years, thanks to his aptitude, became a thoroughly educated Abyssinian aristocrat. During the Italian war, when the Ras went in a separate expedition against the Aussi Sultan, Haile Tsion stayed to govern the country. The people, thinking to take advantage of the absence of the Abyssinians, rebelled and forced their young king to take part in the uprising. On his return the Ras himself put down the uprising, and the people again expressed their submission. Not having been able to keep the country from the uprising, the king was shackled and sentenced to a fine of 10,000 talers.

Haile Tsion was very interested in everything European. He often visited me, asking about our way of life, and in turn willingly answered questions about what interested me about the life of his people, which up until this time was still very little known. Previous explorers (Massai, Antoine d'Abaddie) called all the tribes who inhabited the banks of the middle course of the Omo and who composed at one time several separate states -- Kulo, Konta, Kushya45, Walamo, Goma, and Gofa46 -- by the general name "Sidamo."47

As I already said above, up until the conquest by Abyssinians, those of these the states who populated the right bank of the River Omo were tributaries of Kaffa.

January 11. Sunday.

At dawn, I set out to church for mass. The church -- a large round building, covered with thatch -- was sheltered a few hundred paces from the palace, on a hill in a grove of huge sycamores. When I arrived there, the Ras was already inside, and the church was filled with people. It was dark inside. Only after a while did the eye become accustomed to the surrounding objects. High thick wooden columns supported the building. The altar was located on the eastern side, separated from the rest of the room by a bamboo partition, covered with a white curtain. There were three gates in the altar, one of which was the king's. There were no icons at all. Two priests and three deacons performed the religious service. One of the priests was a tall old man with a severe, handsome face, overgrown with a long white beard; the other, who was still a young man, was thin and short. Their robes were threadbare -- wretched silk chasubles, faded from age. The chasubles were worn above the same kind of silk shirts. Their feet were bare. Their heads were covered with large white muslin shawls, which draped over the shoulders and the back.

The deacons, 10-12 year old boys, were dressed just the same as the priests, only their heads were not covered. They all read together quickly (for the religious service they use the Geez language) and sang the exclamations and songs prescribed by regulation (14 of them in the whole mass). The tunes are very difficult to discern because of the continual transition from one tone to another. Those who were conducting the service stood in front of the altar several times to read the Gospel or to spread incense, in which case large censers, hung round with bells, rang pleasantly. When the time came for the consecration of the holy gifts, one of the deacons went out in front of the king's gates and, bowing in a characteristic pose to the altar and hanging his head low, began to ring a small copper handbell for a long time. Then the mourning began for the suffering and death of Christ. The melody of this mourning was amazingly sorrowful and sincere. I noticed that tears actually flowed from the eyes of the priests. After those who were conducting the holy service received the Eucharist, they brought the holy gifts for the Eucharist of those who had come to offer prayers. One of the priests carried the holy body on a large wooden disk, which was supported on the sides by two deacons; and another priest brought the holy blood in a glass chalice,48 over which a third deacon held an open parasol. First, the men took the Eucharist, then the priests went to the southern part of the temple, separated by a curtain, behind which stood the women, and having given them the Eucharist, returned to the altar. They first gave the holy body, which the priest broke off from the lamb with their fingers and placed in the mouths of those who were taking the Eucharist, and then from the imitation of the holy blood. At the end of the communion, prayers began, during which the priest and the deacons went out with crosses and censers to the chancel, and a choir of debtera49 sang prayers of praise.

One of the debtera, who had a high voice, sang, apparently improvising, and the choir continued the refrain, hitting copper rattles50 in time, and another debtera, sitting on the ground, accompanied him, striking a long drum with his palms. Little by little, the slow tempo of the song began to speed up, the singers became more and more inspired, the beating of the drum became more frequent and stronger, the rattles were silenced, and hand clapping resounded in rhythm. The group of singers, who at first had been motionless, began to wave. The inspiration turned to ecstasy. The singers squatted in time to the song. Some went out to the middle of the church with their staffs, which were as long as a man is tall and which they had leaned on during the holy service, and began a holy dance. The dancers rose up on tip-toe, dropped down in time to the song, again rose up, and stretching out their hands, moved smoothly. Their eyes, turned toward heaven, sparkled... The inspiration reached the extreme limit and was transmitted to the crowd; even the calm, severe face of an old priest became animated; and he, too, began to squat in time to the singing... Finally the choir stopped. A priest read a prayer. One of the debtera began to quickly go around among those who were praying and to assign them, in groups, a saint to whom they would pray. In this manner, he went around among those who were praying several times, until all the saints had been enumerated. Then on the reading of the concluding "Our Father," all kissed the cross and left the church. The holy service made an indelible impression on me.

The dark church, which was similar to a barn, the wretched beggarly conditions, but there was such ecstasy, such strength of faith among these black Christians. Such sincere prayer, such deep and touching feeling shines in the faces of people whole-heartedly devoted to their religion!... Imagination involuntarily carried me to the first centuries of Christianity...

I sat on a mule and, surrounded by a crowd of my servants, slowly went home. It was a marvelous, quiet morning. The sun shone brightly. Trees were in blossom and filled the clear thin mountain air with perfumes. So beautiful were the huge mountains which surrounded us, and which were lost in the clear-clear blue sky!...

No sooner did I return home than Gomtes came and asked me in the name of the Ras to come to the great dinner and to lend him my folding table, chair, and dining set. I answered that I accepted the invitation with pleasure, but I asked that he not trouble about obtaining European conveniences for me, since I know the customs of the country and was used to them. At nine o'clock, the agafari (gentleman-in-waiting) came for me, and I ceremoniously set out to the aderash (dining room), accompanied by all my ashkers with rifles on their backs. When I entered the dining room, the curtain had already been lowered. The Ras sat on his divan and washed his hands. Beside him on the carpet to one side sat Dajazmatch Balay, and on the other side a chair was prepared for me. The Ras was surrounded by his closest servants. Behind the divan stood Ilma, the chief sword-bearer of the Ras -- a handsome Galla of enormous build, with a thick black beard. Opposite, picturesquely leaning against columns which supported the roof, Azzaj Gebra (the Ras' marshal of the court) and several agafari (leaders of guards) made themselves comfortable, having artistically draped themselves in their white shammas. They held little whips in their hands -- as an emblem of of power during receptions. In front of the Ras and in front of me were placed two large baskets, covered with red calico cloth. A file of cooks, dressed in shirts clasped at the waist, carried in a great number of earthenware pots of various sizes, with foods. The chief cook, a rather beautiful woman, dressed more neatly than the others, with silver ear-rings and a silver necklace on the neck, removed the cloth from our baskets. The Asalafi of the Ras (a special post which in translation means "he who serves the food") dropped down on his knees in front of the basket and, having tasted each dish brought to him by the cook, began to take them out on chunks of injera and place them before the Ras. The Asalafi, a strikingly handsome young man of the pure Semitic type, is a descendant of a Tigrean family: he was raised at the court of the Ras and, probably, will receive some more important appointment, i.e., a company or a regiment.

For me, the Ras prepared a special dinner, which, in his opinion, should satisfy the taste of a European. Here is the menu: 1) fried chicken, 2) thin slices of meat fried in a pan, 3) beef ribs grilled on hot coals, 4) afilye51 -- an Abyssinian national dish, 5) meat that was scraped and boiled in butter, and 6) soft-boiled eggs.

With an air of great importance, Gomtes, page of the Ras, carried these dishes in small enameled cups, hiding them under his skirt, in order that some evil eye not spot them. He placed them before me on a basket. I was hungry and, to the great satisfaction of the Ras, I ate everything with great appetite: both the boiled and the fried meat, and the soft-boiled eggs, and the rest.

When we had eaten half our dinner, other honored guests began to be admitted behind the curtain -- commanders of regiments and senior officers. Finally, they gave us coffee in miniature china cups without handles and then opened the doors, through which an endless file of other guests began to enter. They appeared decorously, not hurrying, having wrapped their clothes around their waist and legs. Holding the free end in their left hand, they gracefully dropped to the floor, distributing themselves in tight circles around baskets, on which were laid in piles breadless lat-cakes of injera (some slices of it were soaked in a pepper sauce). Soon the dining hall was filled with a motley crowd of banqueters. Above each circle of diners, one of the servants, leaning over from the weight, held a large piece of beef. They passed to everyone a long knife mounted in ivory. Having selected a piece of meat, each, in order, sliced it and ate, very adroitly slicing pieces at their very teeth by a motion of the knife from below upward that was so fast that I positively did not understand how their lips and teeth remained in tact.

A line of wine servers adroitly gave the banqueters huge horn goblets of mead through the whole room. A traveling singer appeared, and standing in the middle of the room, sang heroic songs and improvisations in honor of the Ras, with the accompaniment of an instrument similar to a violin52.

Zelepukin was among those who were invited. They had him sit near the divan of the Ras. In front of him stood the basket from which I had eaten before. But, regarding the black foreigners skeptically, he only distrustfully glanced at the dishes placed before him, not touching them at all. With his thickset build and muscularity, Zelepukin produced a strong impression on the Abyssinians. In particular, the Ras took a liking to him, calling him nothing other than zokon or "elephant." Looking on Zelepukin with unconcealed pleasure, the Ras asked me if all the soldiers in Russia were such fine fellows as this. It is necessary to mention that the Abyssinians formed a rather unflattering opinion of European soldiers from their acquaintance with the Italians -- namely that they are all feeble and weak.

As soon as the first set of diners had satisfied themselves, they got up on at signal from the agafari and left. In their place, their immediately appeared another set, and after it a third, and, finally, a fourth. The Ras himself and his honored guests continued sitting in their places the whole time, carrying on pleasant conversation among themselves and draining small decanters of tej (mead) one after another. They also served red wine -- "Bordeaux" -- as the Ras called it -- and a local vodka distilled from mead.

Conversations for the most part touched on military matters and hunts. The Ras and his military comrades remembered "by-gone days and battles, where side-by-side they fought with sabers."53 With captivated interest I heard about the battle at Embabo in 1886, during the war with the Gojjam Negus. Not holding out against the first onslaught of the Gojjam, Menelik's whole army fled, and only the Emperor himself, then still a king, stayed calmly in his position on a high hill. Suddenly, he opened up on the Gojjam with the only 200 rifles he had at that time, with such a murderous fire that they wavered. At that moment, Ras Gobana, who had just arrived in time, attacked the Gojjam from behind, and the enemy turned in flight. The Ras personally took 40 men prisoner. I heard about the Aussi campaign of 1895, and about the attack of the Danakils in the Battle at the Awash River. That day so many Danakils died, that the Abyssinians, having pitched camp for the night on the very field of the battle, fastened the tent ropes to bodies. They also told about the horrible return of the Ras's detachment from this campaign, marching at a run, but not from the enemy, rather from terrible Awash fevers, which every day claimed masses of victims.

The Ras also asked me about our army and about methods of conducting war. As I already mentioned before, the Abyssinians had formed a very unflattering opinion of European armies. In their eyes, European armies although disciplined, were in the highest degree just a stationary mass, and in battle their whole action consisted exclusively of gun-fire. I found it necessary to refute that opinion with regard to the Russians. That astonished him.

"We attack with bayonets on "Hurrah!"; and the cavalry, likewise, with sabers," I told the Ras.

"I thought," he noted in reply, "that 'foreigners' only fire their guns; but if you attack with side-arms in hand, that means that you are truly good soldiers."

He asked me, among other things, about whether we drink tej in our country and whether we put on feasts like they do.

I told him that among us, in the distant past, almost all was rather similar to their style of life now. I told him about Saint Vladimir, about his feasts, the baptism, about his answer to the Mohammedan ambassadors: "The joy of Russia is drinking."54 The Ras liked my story so much that he soon retold it to his retinue, who unanimously decided that Russians, truly, must be true Christians.

Only at two o'clock in the afternoon did we leave the dinner which we had sat down to at 9 o'clock in the morning.

January 12

The regiment (2,000 men) of Fitaurari Imama arrived in Andrachi. Previously, they had been stationed in the far regions of Dime and Melo, on the left bank of the River Omo. The Ras invited me to watch the arrival of the regiment. We made ourselves comfortable on a tower in the adebabay (law court), looking out for the appearance of the army on the road. Finally, on the summit of the mountain opposite us a detachment appeared which stretched four columns along the narrow path bordered on each side by thick bushes. It slowly drew nearer, gaudily displaying a great number of flags, snow-white shammas of the soldiers, and weapons and armor shining in the sun.

Through a telescope, Wolda Giyorgis recognized the majority of the officers and many soldiers, and not even the slightest details of their dress and equipment escaped the notice of the alert eye of this military-leader. Frequently, he even seemed to know the mules and horses. The Ras expressed his impressions in characteristic exclamations, "There is so-and-so," he quickly said. "Look, the gray mule which I gave him last year seems to be exhausted... There so and so has ribbons on his head. Truly, he has killed an elephant." And so on.

Going down from the mountain and crossing a stream which flows at the base of the hill on which sits the court of the Ras, the detachment went to the square in front of the palace, forming a front in two lines. In the first line -- behind the leader, all the mounted troops stood in several ranks (2-4); all the infantry stood about 25 paces behind them. The regiment stopped in front of the gates. the mounted troops dismounted. Servants and younger soldiers took the mules and horses; all the rest quickly and loudly ran into the adebabay and formed a front 4-5 ranks deep in the room in front of the tower of the Ras. The first row consisted of all the officers and distinguished soldiers of the lower ranks.

This army presented a remarkably beautiful spectacle! You could see in each soldier his awareness of his own dignity and pride. How manly were the expressions on the faces of these warriors hardened in battle! How natural and majestic was their bearing!...

These barefoot men, dressed in white linen trousers, wore rich silk shirts and gold-embroidered multi-colored velvet lemds (cloaks) or lemds made of the skins of lions, leopards, snow leopards, or, finally, of long-haired rams. The shields of many were decorated with silver. Those who had killed elephants displayed on their heads green, yellow, and red ribbons. Others, who had killed Danakils in the Aussi campaign, displayed on their heads little silver crows -- kalecha -- military distinctions or silver helmets with silver chains hanging in the face. Several officers had their heads wrapped in ribbon cut from a lion's mane -- this amfara55 corresponds to our order of George. For the act of picking up wounded in battle, many have sabers with silver tips. For having killed some of the enemy, others have sabers with silver rings.

When the regiment had formed up, the commander, Fitaurari Imam, calmly and with deep awareness of his own dignity, appeared in front of the regiment, with his senior officers. From the tower resounded the greeting of the Ras: "Endyet Sonobatatchukh!" The fitaurari and the whole regiment in answer bowed low: like one man, they laid their rifles in front of themselves and going down on one knee, bent their heads to the very ground and lightly, quickly rose up again. In this bow, you sensed not humility before an unlimited ruler, but rather devotion to their beloved leader. After the first bow, the commander of the regiment made several steps forward and on the second greeting of the Ras he answered with the same kind of bow. Finally, when he came close to the tower itself, there followed yet another greeting and a third bow, and the official part of the welcome ended.

Troops mingled with those they had met. Old friends and acquaintances found one another and kissed one another three times. It produced quite an impression, as if an entire compact crowd were kissing. The Ras went into the aderash (dining room), where a feast had been laid out for the arriving troops, just the same as that described by me above.

Fitaurari Imam represents a characteristic type of Abyssinian leader. He is still young, remarkably handsome, energetic, well-known for selfless courage and adored by his people. As a 14-year-old boy he found himself at the court of the Ras, and having made himself the Ras's elfin ashker (page), accompanied him on all this campaigns. At first, he only followed behind the mule of the Ras, carrying a Psalter or a saber or a goblet for water. When he was older, he got himself a spear and began to take part in battles himself. Finally, they gave him a gun and ten cartridges; and from that time his military career began. Soon the Ras made Imam his agafari (gentleman in attendance)) and commander of his person guard, and several years ago promoted him to the rank of fitaurari. Imam received as a command about 300 soldiers, several hundred guns and several thousand cartridges; and for the feeding of the detachment he received one of the outlying districts. From this moment, he was permitted to recruit for himself whatever size detachment he deemed he was in a position to maintain. Of the 300 men in his command, Imam selected the most capable and outstanding men and made them leaders of a thousand, leaders of a hundred, and leaders of fifty men, dividing the remaining soldiers among them; and he let them fill their units as they wished. At the present time, his regiment has grown from 300 men to 2,000.

The formation of the detachment of Imam as described by me is the prototype of the origin of all Abyssinian units.

January 13

I spent the morning with the Ras, examining a map of the theater of future military action. The Ras received me in the courtyard of his elfinya (inner chambers) under a small awning, resting against a fence and covered with straw. This place was the favorite working office of the Ras. From there one had a wonderful view of the mountains surrounding Andrachi. When I entered, the Ras was occupied with current business with his secretary Aloka-Melke and sitting on a divan, dictated some document to him. Aloka-Melke is a handsome young man, who some years ago was a deacon. Having settled himself on the floor, he quickly wrote on a paper placed on his knee. The scratch of his reed pen resounded almost uninterrupted. From time to time, he dipped it in an inkwell, made from a cartridge case, which was placed between the toes of his right foot. When the document was finished, the secretary moved away, and the Ras and I were left alone. I spread out on the floor a map I had obtained which was marked in Abyssinian, and we began to consider it. Recognizing where Andrachi and Addis Ababa were located, the Ras himself oriented the map and tried to determine for himself the relative distances between points that interested him and to understand the concept of "degree" which was the completely unknown to him -- meeryg as the Emperor Menelik calls it. The Ras showered me with questions. How far was Lake Rudolf? How many degrees? How great is the distance from the line of operation of Dajazmatch Tesemma? Where is the second degree? Why did these two degrees appear so big? From where are they calculated? It was necessary to deliver a lecture on the spherical shape of the Earth, to explain the concept of the Equator, the latitude of the place where we were, etc.

"Why is there neither words nor rivers there where we will go?" the Ras asked me.

I answered that this place still hadn't been explored. The Ras shook his head and thought. Really, a difficult problem lay ahead: he had been ordered to subdue and annex to Abyssinia the huge territory which lies among Kaffa, Lake Albert and Lake Rudolf from 2o north latitude, and, while doing this, to opposing any other force which might have a similar intention. The region which the Ras had to conquer was completely unknown to Abyssinians. They only had information related to the region that is closest to Kaffa and to the Shuro tribe which lives there. It remained a complete riddle to them what territory the Shuro occupied, who their neighbors were, whether there were any neighbors, and, finally, what kind of country lies beyond the borders of this tribe, and whether it is rich in bread grain.

Provisions for the troops could only be supplied by way of requisition, i.e. by the doubtful capabilities of a completely unknown regions. In view of the large numbers of the corps that was setting out on the campaign and their shortage of lifting power, it seemed unthinkable that they could bring enough provisions with them, all the more so since there wasn't enough time to prepare for the campaign and to reconnoiter the theater of action. Due to political considerations, The Emperor Menelik, demanded that the Ras complete the task given to him this very year, and there were only five months left before the rainy season.

16,000 men were supposed to go in the expeditionary corps. Of those, 10,500 regular soldiers had guns; the rest -- volunteers from Galla and other tribes -- had only spears.56

One part of this army was posted at the center of the Ras's domain, another at its outskirts. All soldiers received provisions from the location in which they were stationed, and the commanders of units were at the same time both administrators and chief justices in their regions. In the interior provinces, which were completely pacified, soldiers were allotted plots of land and several enslaved natives. In time of peace, they dwelled on their allotments and made a living from them. In the outlying districts, which were not yet pacified, the system of military settlements was inapplicable, all the more so because the troops were almost always under arms and in raids against neighboring lands. They lived in fortified camps. Native leaders obtained the necessary quantity of provisions for them, gathering them from their tribesmen, under threat of requisition in case the quantity was insufficient.

In monetary and material prosperity, the outlying units were quite equal with the ones in the interior. Each soldier received annually from the treasury of the Ras from 5 to 15 talers to purchase a donkey, horse, or mule. The amount depended on the merit of the warrior. Each also received one outer garment -- a shamma -- and linen for two pairs of trousers.

Five of the regiments were called waruari and were considered the Emperor's troops. The rest were the Ras' own troops. In each of these regiments, part of the soldiers were mounted and part were on foot. The more well-to-do soldiers and those who had already served for some time bought themselves a horse or a mule. The young soldiers and also the poor ones did not have them. The troops were not subdivided by type of weapon. The origin of the waruari is interesting. On the accession of Menelik to the throne of Shoa, eleven-year-old Wolda Giyorgis went to serve the Negus as his elfin ashker (page). He accompanied Menelik on all his campaigns and soon made himself one of Menelik's favorites. Ras Makonnen, cousin and great friend of Wolda Giyorgis, had the same kind of job. Together they endured all the burdens of their position: they froze at the entrance to Menelik's tent; they were happy when one of the senior men let them drink from a half-drunk decanter of tej or to eat what was left of the meat.

In 1870, it was reported to the emperor that three young soldiers who had formerly served King Tewodros had arrived and wanted to join his army. Menelik gave the order to invite them in. Pondering over who he should assign them to, he asked Wolda Giyorgis who, at that time, was blowing on the campfire in front of him.

"Well, Wolda Giyorgis, advise me -- who should I give them to?"

"Give them to me," he answered.

These three soldiers were the nucleus of that 15,000 man corps which the Ras now commands.

Wolda Giyorgis quickly promoted his first soldiers to commanders of fifty men, obtained for each of them a leopard skin for battle dress, asking his older relatives for them, and let his subordinates recruit their own half-companies. Soon about 20 men were assembled. Money obtained in raids was used to acquire pack mules, which, on the march, carried provisions of the entire detachment and the tent of the commander. The newly formed unit began to occupy a separate bivouac, marked by this tent.

Little by little, the number of soldiers of Wolda Giyorgis increased, and his property and fame grew. Distinguishing himself with outstanding courage and enterprise, he could also elicit these qualities from his men. Thanks to rare talents as a regimental commander, Wolda Giyorgis created from his soldiers, who were still almost children, such fine fellows that during the war with Wollo they were the talk of the whole detachment of the Negus. A day did not pass without them participating in a raid and without one of them returning to camp with trophies taken from the enemy. Menelik took notice of the feats of these daring fellows. Once, talking about the ever more famous soldiers of Wolda Giyorgis, the Emperor said: "These are not mucha (unfledged youths) but waruari (spear throwers)." And he kept affirming this name for them. As a reward for his feats, Wolda Giyorgis received a small portion of land, thanks to which he was able to increase his small detachment.

In 1883, Menelik named Wolda Giyorgis chief agafari and elfin-askalakay-ishaka -- head of the elfin ashkers (pages) and of the personal guard of the negus, and then made him gerazmatch (lieutenant colonel).

In 1887, Wolda Giyorgis was promoted to dajazmatch (full general) and received independent control of the region of Limu. At this time he already had five regiments with a total strength of about 3,000 men, which were considered soldiers of the Negus and were called, as before, waruari. The units newly formed after Wolda Giyorgis was named governor-general of Limu consisted of troops of the Ras himself and became called byet lyjog (children of the house).

At the time of the announcement of the mobilization, the troops were at the places where they were stationed. Because of this, several units were 400-500 vests [300-375 miles] from the town of Andrachi, which was the mustering point for the whole detachment. The mobilization order was sent from Addis Ababa at the end of November and could be received by the farthest units no sooner than after 16-20 days, that is in the middle of December. The troops were supposed to assemble in Andrachi in the middle of January. Consequently, they had at their disposal only one month for muster and concentration, and remote units, in this short interval of time had to allow not less than 15 days just to get to the mustering point. However, despite the mass of difficulties, the whole 15,000 man detachment was already at muster by January 15, and January 24 was set as the departure day. It was decided to use the nine days (from January 15 to 24) to rest the animals of the units that had come a long way and to organize the feast that is customary before a campaign.

The order of the Ras which announced this mobilization is interesting. I will present it in translation. It begins with the customary introduction to all orders that are announced nationwide: "Listen! Listen! Listen! Whoever does not listen is an enemy of the Lord and of the Mother of God! Listen! Whoever does not listen is an enemy of the Lord and of the church! Listen! Whoever does not listen is an enemy of Menelik! Warriors! I am setting out on a campaign against the Shankala (Negroes). All of you, assemble on the first on the Holiday of the Baptism in Andrachi. Whoever is late will not go on the campaign and will miss this unique opportunity to win fame and get livestock and prisoners."

Soon after town criers had announced this order in all bazaars and in all the places where troops were stationed, first individual soldiers from interior regions, who made a living from allotted parcels of land, began to gather at the mustering point. Then the farther units began to come. Natives also responded to the call and assembled, as said above, in the number of about 5,000 volunteers.

By the designated date, the mobilization and the concentration of the detachment was completed. Now it only remained to the Ras to set in motion the 16,000-man force which was dependent on him in order to carry out the mission that was assigned to him. The assignment was dreadful, because of the absolutely unknown conditions which he would have to take into consideration and the responsibility to his state and to the people who followed him which the Ras took on himself.

Wolda Giyorgis was aware of all of that but did not show the least hesitation or indecisiveness. At the end of our conversation, he, in saying good-bye, told me, " It's a difficult task ahead of us, but I set my hopes on the God of Menelik who will help me. To strengthen the throne of Menelik (na Menelik alga), I will use all my strength; and with joy I will sacrifice my life."

These words clearly express the determination of the head of the detachment and how he looked at the expedition. The subordinates of the Ras regarded the campaign in a way that was not far from that.

Feeling an innate love for war and having full faith in their leader, they dutifully gathered under his flag and were ready to set out on the campaign, but it was noticeable that the soldiers were worried about the unknown conditions in which they would have to operate. The troops felt that there lay before them something more difficult than the usual raids.

"Where are we going?" There was no simple answer to this question which all were concerned about, and rumor excelled at finding every possible answer. The soldiers were startled by the large transport of cartridges (about 10-16 mules per regiment). My presence in the detachment also troubled them, arousing many rumors.

"It's a bad sign that a frenj (foreigner) goes with us," said some.

"In the south they say there are Europeans. We will be led to fight against them," observed others.

"The English took land from the frenj and took away his wife and children. He complained to Menelik, and Menelik ordered the Ras to go punish the English and to return to the frenj what was taken away from him. Only they say that this is very far. In that place there are people who are like dogs. It will be bad for us to go so far," added others.

The soldiers of the Ras beset my men with questions which in their opinion should have been known for a certainty -- where we are going and for how long, etc. When my ashkers answered that they themselves knew nothing, the soldiers observed, "Sure, for you it's good! You will go straight home. But how hard it is for us..."

The soldiers held onto such hearsay very stubbornly. As for the officers, while they did not believe all this gossip, they did foresee a long campaign and difficulties, and showed ill-will toward the expedition. The aim of the campaign -- to go to some distant region which was unknown to anyone -- seemed quite pointless to them. All the more so because in the immediate neighborhood there was still an abundance of forage and land rich in food-stuffs.

The Ras knew about both the rumors that were going around among the soldiers and also the frame of mind of the officers. He listened tactfully to these rumors and countered them by starting new favorable rumors, for example that in one of the lands where they were going there are horses and cattle. He tried to influence the officers through his closest supporters who gathered in a military council where he impressed on them his way of thinking.

January 14

In the morning, the Ras had to hold trial court in the adebabay, and I received an invitation to attend. The Ras sat in the tower, and a place was prepared for me beside him on the carpet. Below, on the square, sat two judges -- the "right" and "left" judges, and a group of leaders, several priests and scholars, debtera. In front, facing the Ras stood a crowd of people. Here were the litigants and witnesses and simple spectators.

The first matter heard was essentially administrative in character. A local judge and the leader of a small detachment which had settled in his district disputed the competence and right of the court over local residents in matters regarding administrative infringements of the law. The litigants got very angry and argued endlessly, citing decrees of the Ras which had been published at various times. The judges showed great interest in the debate: apparently, the resolution of the question being examined infringed on their interests. The Ras silently and patiently listened. He already, for a long time, knew the main point and all the evidence brought by the parties, but he didn't interfere with the debate, at this time looking through a telescope at the neighboring mountains. Finally, the disputes began to abate; the evidence of the one and the other side ran out. No one convinced anyone, and all awaited the decision of the Ras, which he decreed in a clear and brief formulation. The litigants bowed to the ground to the Ras. The next defendant was accused of having sold his military prisoner, under the guise of a gift. The crime was obviously proven. The guilty party was subject to the death penalty, but the Ras did not have the right by his own authority to impose that sentence because the criminal was an Abyssinian. The Ras ordered him put in chains and sent to Menelik.

"Ass!" he concluded his resolution. "He only needed three talers for a slave, and as if he does not understand now all Europe is watching Ethiopia..."

The third case before the Ras was a Kaffa accused of murdering an Abyssinian with a fishing line. The criminal was interrogated through an interpreter, and Kaffa officials took part in the trial. The murder was committed by two Kaffas, who fell by surprise on an unarmed Abyssinian. But one of the malefactors escaped from the place of confinement. The remaining one asserted that it was not he who killed the Abyssinian, but rather the man who fled, who before this had succeeded in bribing the chief judge. The judge, against whom the criminal brought the charge of accepting a bribe, was present. He stood right beside the Kaffa and energetically protested.

"He lies!" he said. "I didn't do that!"

He did," he said. "What will you stake on it that you don't lie?"

"Your head!" answered the judge.

Thus, the matter took quite a new turn. A new investigation would be necessary. This was entrusted to one of the Abyssinian judges together with the Kaffa katamarash. After the investigation, one of the accused would be subject to the death penalty.57

Then several more, somewhat less interesting cases were examined. Last one of the priests of the town of Andrachi who was accused of blasphemy appeared before the court. He asserted that the Holy Trinity consists of nine persons and did not yield to any arguments of the pastors, and finally they accused him, before the Ras, of heresy. The court sentenced him to fifty lashes with the jiraf (whip). They took the priest off to the bazaar and, after forty strokes on the kettledrum, delivered his punishment. I, by this time, had already taken leave of the Ras and was in my room at court. My ashkers were keenly interested in the outcome of the punishment, which as often fatal; and even took bets among themselves: would the convict survive the flogging or not? They took off the outer clothing and the shirt from the convict, placed him with his stomach on the ground, and began to carry out the sentence. The hands and feet of the priest were tied with ropes, which the executioners pulled. The kettledrummers performed the duty of executioners. The lashes were delivered with a long, thick belt whip with a short whip-handle. They beat him with wide, infrequent strokes, which the officer designated for this counted. With each stroke of the whip, a noise resounded that was like a pistol shot. The convict endured the punishment very patiently, and those who had bet on his death lost. After the flogging, they lifted the priest, dressed him and, supporting him under the arms, took him home. His back was completely blood-stained.

January 15.

The last troops that the Ras was waiting for arrived -- the regiment of Fitaurari Damti, who were stationed the farthest away, namely in the lands of Aro, Bako, and Shangama, on the slopes facing Lake Stephanie. The meeting of the troops was exactly the same as what I described above, and then followed a dinner which I attended.

Fitaurari Damti is still a young man. He began his service, like Fitaurari Imam, as elfin ashker (page) of the Ras. He now already has the rank of fitaurari and commands a regiment which made an excellent impression on me. A large part of his soldiers are adorned with military armor obtained for distinguished services. Among the officers, there were typical veterans. Quite incredible stories were told about one of them, Aba-Ilma, stories that I could only with difficulty have believed if I had not heard them from Aba-Ilma himself, and also from other people who are worthy of confidence -- for example, from the commander-in-chief. (Subsequently, I became very friendly with him and came to know his absolutely truthful character.)

Aba-Ilma is a representative of an interesting, obsolescent type of Abyssinian warrior from the time of Emperor Tewodros. He is a gray, lean, muscular old man, with a remarkably lively temperament, who doesn't know fatigue, is always happy, who encourages his comrades. He has waged war his whole life; and if you were to gather all the blood he has shed, he could, I believe, swim in it. But there is not a trace of cruelty in him. Aba-Ilma is pure of heart, simple, and naive like a child.

Aba Ilma is from the Agau tribe. His father ruled an insignificant principality in the neighborhood of Tigre, and was, at the accession to the throne of the Emperor Yohannes, one of the feudal lords who had revolted and taken the side of Yohannes. In one of the battles, Aba-Ilma -- then still a young man -- was wounded with a spear. This happened when, after charging at his opponent, he threw a javelin at him, but missed, and turned his horse back in order to gallop away. The spear hit him in the neck, somewhat to the left of the spine, came out his mouth, cut through his tongue, and broke three upper front teeth... Aba-Ilma fell from his horse, but was not lost: with quick action, he pulled the spear from the wound and at the very moment when his opponent having dismounted, intended to finish him off, Aba-Ilma, with a pistol shot put him in his place. A comrade of the dead man rushed on horseback to the rescue. Ilma lay still, and as soon as the enemy drew close, inflicted a serious wound on his leg with a saber stroke. Finally, he fell senseless; soldiers, having recognized him as son of the prince, took Ilma prisoner; and, in spite of the serious wound, put him in shackles. When he recovered, Ilma went into service for Menelik, took part in all his wars, and was repeatedly wounded, including once when a bullet passed right through his chest.

Aba-Ilma is a passionate hunter and killed many elephants. While hunting, quite improbable adventures happened to him. For example, pursued by a wounded elephant, he with a saber cut off a piece of its trunk. When that elephant turned back, with a second stroke Ilma cut off a piece of its tail.

Aba-Ilma has been rewarded with all the distinctions attainable at his rank. He has a lemd (a cape for the shoulders, made of a lion's mane), and a silver shield, and silver gilded manacles, worn on the arms from the hands to the elbows; and gold ear-rings in both ears, and silk ribbons to decorate the head, and a silver head-dress (kalecha) of filigree work, similar to a crown.

After dinner, I received as guests Abyssinian officers and natives who came in order to become acquainted with me. Among them was the first high official of the Kaffa king -- a retired katamarash. He limped from a recent injury and, long before reaching my tent, taking off his rags, which covered his emaciated body, he bowed low.

I called him into my tent and, through an interpreter, asked him about the Kaffa way of life before the land was conquered. But I learned little from him. Parting with him, I gave him several talers. This touched the old man so much that he fell on the ground. And (it must have been as a sign of gratitude), he hit himself in the chest for a long time.

January 16.

Today, they held another large dinner, one of those which Abyssinian military leaders hold to entertain their troops before setting out on a campaign. These dinners bear a special military imprint and are very lively. Veterans, with some embellishment, reminisce about by-gone battles, tell about outstanding feats and so forth. Tej (mead) flows in rivers. At the end of the dinner, the lifting of spirits attains its highest level. One after the other, the banqueters jump up and, hoarsely crying out, enumerate the feats they have performed and vow fidelity to their leader.58 "I am a killer!" cries out some soldier with foam in his mouth. He seizes a saber by the hilt. His eyes wander wildly; he shakes all over nervously and seems positively insane. "I repelled a spear in battle! I repelled two spears in battle! I repelled three spears in battle! I killed in the Aussi campaign, and in Tigre and among the Negroes. I killed everywhere where I waged war! I am your slave, your dog! With you I will conquer! With you I will die! I am Kaytimir! (His personal name)." And in conclusion, he bows to the ground to the Ras.

The talking subsides. All listen tensely: one person follows another to deliver fokyr. Only the commander-in-chief keeps his composure and each time quietly utters, "Name a guarantor." The person vowing fidelity finds himself a guarantor among his comrades and, having received a large goblet of mead, sits at his place.

From the Gimiro tribe, which borders on Kaffa, a deputation arrived in Andrachi, consisting of the prince of this tribe, the chief priest and three elders. They brought ivory to the Ras as a gift and asked him to take them under his protection. The Ras showed much kindness to them, gave them presents, and let them go home.

Before leaving, they came to me to have a look at white people. Entering my tent, they looked at me and my things with childlike pleasure and curiosity. These savages were very original in the bright red cloaks bestowed on them, worn on the naked body, and the red bandages worn on the head.

I asked them if they had ever seen white men before. They answered no, and added that they had heard that last year white men, from where they didn't know, had entered the neighboring land. They had pitched a sparkling silver tent and the following day vanished without a trace.59

From the point of view of geography and hydrography, the Gimiro knew very little about the territory neighboring them. They had not heard of the existence of a large river (Omo), about which we then assumed that it flows to the west, to the Sobat, passing Lake Rudolf. They also knew nothing about this large lake, but talked about some other lake -- Bosho, into which flow the streams of their country.

I also asked them about their way of life, and with one question made them very embarrassed. Wanting to find out if they practiced polygamy, I asked the priest how many wives he had. The priest looked at me suspiciously, evidently at a loss for understanding why I needed to know this and perhaps suspecting that I wanted to demand them for myself as a gift. He slowly answered, "As many as God sends."

At parting, I gave them several talers. In gratitude, they kissed the ground and hit themselves in the chest with their palms. Leaving, they crowded at the exit to the tent, as if expecting something more from me. It seemed that they wanted to see how one got fire by hand (matches) -- a wonder about which they, correctly, had heard from the Kaffa. To their fascination, mixed with terror, I showed them this trick, and they left completely satisfied.

January 17.

I visited Nagada-Ras Vadym-Aganokh60 He lives 10 versts [7 miles] from the town of Andrachi, in Bonga, what used to be the second capital of the Kaffa king.

The Nagada-Ras is a young, very energetic and lively man and belongs to that class of smart dealers that is coming into being in Abyssinia, who present a complete contrast to the type of leading Abyssinian personality which has dominated up until now. These "new men" have become acquainted with Europeans, and have adopted from them many good things, learned their energy, their openness in address, not considering it necessary, as people of the old stamp, to strike an important pose and shorten their speech to the minimum etc. in order to maintain their authority. I encountered such people mainly among the merchant class, but noticed the same tendency also in other strata of the population. The Emperor Menelik himself and his foremost associates belong to this new type.

I sent my foot servants ahead, and myself went on horseback accompanied by two mounted ashkers. I sat on a horse for the first time since my bout of rheumatism. Having rested for those days, Defar (my horse) left my fellow travellers far behind me. At full gallop, we jumped off steep banks and again clambered up rising slopes and at a wide gallop rashed across plains... Thick bushes, completely covered with flowers grew along both sides of the road. The multi-colored tents of the assembled troops appeared in all the clearings.

My ashkers and all the soldiers of the Nagada-Ras were in formation to meet me near the house; and he himself went to the gates to greet me, wearing his parade clothes as a sign of special respect to his guest. His home is located on the site of the burnt-down palace of the king of Kaffa. From the previous building there remained only a palisade made of enormous trunks of palm trees and, sticking up from the high grass, several charred ends of columns which had supported the roof of the palace. The dwelling of the Nagada-Ras was built in the Abyssinian manner: inside a court, enclosed by a high palisade, rises a large house (aderash) intended for receptions, and several other buildings, such as the bedroom of the host, the kitchen, etc. Behind the palisade, around the perimeter, several groups of low cabins took shelter. The soldiers of the Nagada-Ras live in those cabins. The court was full of merchants who had come on business with their leader. Here were Kaffa, Gallas and Abyssinians. The Kaffa and Gallas were sharply contrasted in their appearance from the Abyssinians. As Mohammedans, they wore turbans on their heads; and on their necks they wore long beads. Vandym-Aganokh led me into the aderash, which was this time covered with carpets and filled with the smoke of incense. There behind a cane partition, sat his elderly mother, who had recently become a nun, and his eighteen-year-old wife. His wife was very shy and hung her head low and only at the end of the dinner did she decide to now and then glance at me in curiosity.

They gave us an excellent dinner, and the hospitable civilized host entertained me not only with local mead, but also wine and absinth ("abusent" he called it), and even liqueur. He gave all my men enough to drink to get them dead drunk, and when I went back, they ran in front of my horse, not letting me outdistance them. They cried out heroic recitatives, fired their guns, etc. Two of them -- Ambyrbyr and Aulale -- even fought, arguing which of them was braver.

January 18

I received the Ras at my place and showed him how to develop photographs. He was especially interested in the moment when the figures of people known to him (whose pictures were taken) begin to appear and to become clear on the white plate.

January 19

Ras Wolda Giyorgis introduced me to his wife -- Woyzaro Eshimabet. Because of ill health, she had been unable to receive me earlier. The reception took place in the elfin -- the bedroom of the Ras -- and was very ceremonial. The elfin is a large round building about 15 arshins [12 yards] in diameter and 8 arshins [6 yards] in height. The walls are coated with clay and whitened. The floor is covered with carpet and strewn with freshly picked fragrant grass. Inside, a series of high thick hewn posts support the roof. The rafters and concentric bamboo hoops, with the attached-to-them bamboo foundations of the roof, are wound with multi-colored calico cloth. There are two doors to the house which are located diametrically opposite one another. There are no windows. In the middle of one wall stands a high bed under white bed curtains, alongside which stands a small divan, and in line with that was placed a chair for me. At the opposite wall is another small divan. That's all the furniture. In line with the bed, there rises a bamboo partition. On the walls are displayed guns and sabers of the Ras, several shields and his library, which consists of books on spiritual subjects, each of which, in a large leather case, hangs on a strap on a separate peg.

The Ras and his wife sat beside one another on the low divan near the bed. Woyzaro Eshimabet is already aging, but she is still a rather beautiful woman. The color of her skin shone strikingly for an Abyssinian woman. She was very richly dressed, and all of her absolutely glittered with the brilliance of a mass of gold and silver. Her black silk burnoose, draped over a colorful silk blouse, was richly embroidered with gold. On her head, she wore a silver diadem, hung round with silver chains and spangles. On her ears, she had large gold earrings, and on her hands rings.61

Behind her, with their arms around one another, stood several maids of honor -- pretty Galla and Abyssinian girls, dressed in white blouses which extend down to their heels and tied around the waist with sashes. Here were also several little pages, and near the door, turned away from his mistress, not daring to look at her, stood the agafari who had led me there. Behind the partition were the rest of the female staff of the elfin, and through cracks there sparkled several curious eyes. These others included two daughters of the Ras from his first wife, two daughters of Eshimabet from her first husband and also two daughters of the Ras and Eshimabet.62

Having shaken hands with the hostess, European style, I sat on the chair opposite her; and interrupted with long pauses, the ceremonial conversation began: "How are you? How do you like our country?" etc.

The Ras very much wanted to have a portrait of his wife, so I sent for my photographic equipment. But the Woyzaro flatly refused to go out into the courtyard, saying that she was afraid of the sun, and I was forced to take her picture inside the room, having opened wide both doors.

The appearance of the equipment put an end to the solemn ceremonialness of the reception. The Ras sprang out of his place, dragged out from behind the partition four young women who were hiding there and sat them beside his wife. He was such a likeable bustler at that moment! How much he, apparently, wanted the portrait of his beloved wife to come out as well as possible! He ran from her to the apparatus, and then again to her, this time adjusting the decoration on her head, that time smoothing out the wrinkles in her clothes. Finally, the procedure of taking the picture was finished. The former boring stiffness and coldness did not return. The young ladies did not go back behind the partition. We, sitting at a small decanter of white tej (mead), conversed enjoyably until evening.

No sooner did I return home when, in the name of Eshimabet and the other women, ashkers came and brought me several baskets with the most delicate injera and several large jugs of aged mead. In reply to this, I sent them my last bottle of champagne. In the evening, as usual, I developed the photographs I took during the day, wrote in my journal, and chatted with Zelepukin. We lay -- I on my bed and he on a tarpaulin on the floor, and, lending ear to the unusual animation which prevailed in the camp of the Ras, we reminisced about our distant homeland...

Having raised high the flaps of our tent, we admired the marvelous picture of Andrachi around us. On these nights, no sooner did it become dark than in the cloudless sky there appeared a myriad of stars. And against the black background of mountains which surround the city, these innumerable little stars burned, shining much more brightly. Those were the soldiers' campfires which burned at their bivouacs... On all sides resounded songs, accompanied by sparse, but uninterrupted gun-fire, with which those who were feasting expressed their warlike frame of mind. The falling bullets sometimes buzzed over our own tent.

My ashkers kept up with the soldiers of the Ras. Having dined and drunk their portion of mead, they sat around the campfire and struck up songs. For the most part, these were military improvisations, and their contents amounted to praise of themselves and of their master. Liban sang in his clear, beautiful voice, and the chorus joined in the monotonous refrain, "Gedau! Berekhanyau!" ("Killer, killer, tramp of the desert!"). One of the ashkers, in a form of accompaniment, beat in time with his palms on an empty water tin. Women's voices joined in the chorus. The longer it went on, the more lively became the merriment. Finally, someone jumped up with a loaded gun in his hands and cried out a full self-praising recitative, a fokyr, at the end of which he fired into the sky. Comrades calmed the warrior who had lost his self-control, telling him: "Don't burn ("ayzokh")! Don't burn! Everything that you say is true!" And the interrupted singing continued. Military songs were mixed with satirical ones, sometimes very clever. Then they struck up merry dance songs. Men and women at the cheerful refrain "Chi-chi-ko! Chi-chi-ko!" portrayed rather unambiguous pantomimes and this black "flirt" provoked outbursts of laughter.

The excitement which had seized Andrachi was aroused by the upcoming war. The Abyssinians got themselves ready for it as if for the most joyous festive occasion. It was evident that craving for military exploits entered the flesh and blood of this people and that in spite of all the troubles and deprivations they had experienced in previous wars, the Abyssinians, although they foresaw great burdens, still worshipped war. The Abyssinian connects his idea of war with glory and spoils. He dreams about having killed several enemies, returning home, proud of his success. His wife would smear the hero's head with oil; and friends and relatives would hold a feast for him. He would let his hair grow long and braid it in plaits -- the irrefutable sign of his valor. And how great would be the joy of his whole family, if moreover he brought home a fat cow or a female prisoner who would fetch water and go into the forest for firewood, or a captive boy who until he grew up and became a solider himself, would carry for him his rifle and shield and pasture his mule...

January 20.

In the morning, I again took pictures of the Ras's whole family -- this time with better success. Today the shipment of meal that I had long awaited arrived from Jimma. It was supposed to serve as the basis of my food supply, which I hoped to replenish on the march. Altogether there were about 50-60 poods [1800-2160 pounds) of meal, and that could be enough for the whole detachment for 30 days, figuring two pounds of meal per day per person.

In addition to the meal, Aba Jefar sent me a cow as a gift. It turned out that on my first bivouac from Jimma, when I was going to Kaffa, the local chief was ordered to give me durgo, and since he for some reason did not do this, he was fined one cow, which was now sent to me as if in compensation for the losses I had suffered!...

The departure of the detachment was set for January 24. I decided to leave a little earlier, namely January 21, in order to freely make as exact a map of Kaffa as possible. The interpreter Gebra and the Kaffa Kata-Maguda (assistant of the Katamarash) were assigned to accompany me.

We made preparations in the evening and on the following morning my transport set out. I stayed in Andrachi until noon, printing the photographs I had taken in the elfin the day before. The Ras's whole family took an active part in this. Woyzaro Eshimabet fixed the prints; her stepdaughter then placed them in the bath. Even the permanent staff of the elfin -- a stern monk (a former colonel who had taken orders at the death of his wife0 and another young monk (from a sect of celibates) got excited and crowded around the bath with curiosity. By eleven o'clock, the printing was done. Woyzaro Eshimabet treated me to lunch; and after long farewells, I finally set out. I spent the night in Bonga at the house of the Nagada-Ras.

Footnotes to Armies

B: = Bulatovich, author

K: = Katsnelson, editor of Russian reprint

S: = Seltzer, translator

42 B: This work involved great difficulties. Each time, as soon as I got ready to take observations, I was surrounded by a crowd of curious people, whom my ashkers only managed to chase away with difficulty. In addition, the weather did not favor this work. I don't know if it was chance or if it is a common phenomenon at this time of year, but every day the sky, which had been clear after the morning fog dissipated, was covered with clouds at noon.

43 K: Konta is one of the tribes of western Sidamo (Ometo) who live in the region of the middle course of the River Omo.

44 K: Kulo is one of the tribes of the western Sidamo.

45 K: Kusho, more exactly Kucha, is one of the tribes of the western Sidamo. The region where they settled is the right bank of the middle course of the River Omo.

46 K: Gofa is one of the tribes of the western Sidamo, who live in the region of Konta, to the south of the River Omo, in the area of its confluence with the Irakhino River.

47 B: I do not know how correct it is to have given them the name "Sidamo", since that name is completely unknown to the people themselves. By type, the Sidamo resemble Kaffa and Abyssinians, but in them there is an inconspicuous presence of Semitic blood, as in the Kaffa. Moreover, the difference between the Sidamo and the Abyssinians in the shape of their eyes and their expression is striking. Both the Kulo and the Konta consider themselves as having come originally from the region of Dembea in Gojjam, which is populated by the Agau tribe, who likewise differ from the other Abyssinian tribes and also, apparently, from strangers of Semitic blood. The Sidamo are a very intelligent, capable and hardworking people, who worship war. They are very brave, but cruel and bloodthirsty.

Killing in war among them has been elevated to a cult, and he who returns from a raid without tangible evidence of his victory is subjected to general scorn like a coward. The women are also very warlike; they accompany their husbands to war and during battle encourage the fighters, carrying to them jugs with intoxicating beer.

The Sidamo culture stands at a relatively high level of development. Agriculture, cattle-raising and bee-keeping thrive here. They mine iron, from which they fashion steel and iron spears, daggers, ploughs, etc. They also get a lot of cotton, from which they make cloth which is well known in Ethiopia for its durability and good quality. The clothing of the Sidamo does not differ from the clothing of the other non-Abyssinian tribes. Their armament consists of metal spears of the most diverse shape, a dagger at the waist and a large round shield.

They believe in God who abides in heaven and whom they call Tos (a word from the same root as Deontos in the Kaffa language). They also worship many other secret spirits on whom their well-being depends. They know the names of Christ ("Krystos"), Mary ("Mayram"), George the Victor ("Giyorgis"), and together with this the Devil ("Satana"), etc. They don't ponder over the nature of God, and don't try to express to themselves the relationship of Him to those beings in which they incidentally believe. From their point of view, those are superfluous details, the knowledge of which is necessary only for magi who have remarkable significance. The priest-magi know medicine for illness, and also know those who have caused calamities and the means to propitiate them. They also know how to arrange to avoid misfortune. You just have to bring the priest enough gifts and a sacrificial animal, which, having thrown it down on its right side, he slaughters in a sacred grove... They collect the blood of the sacrificial animal in a cup and drink it, having mixed it with ashes beforehand. By examining the internal organs, the priest tells fortunes or gives advice or demands another sacrifice if the first seemed insufficient for the god.

Among the Sidamo, the conception of life after death is very vague. They same that a man who had good qualities during life will be good also after death, and that one with wicked qualities will be bad.

When someone dies, the accepted practice is to celebrate a funeral feast, at which, as a sign of mourning, the relatives smear their heads with mud, dress in their oldest clothes, tear out their hair, and scratch their faces with their fingernails until they bleed. The dead, wrapped in cloth and palm branches, are buried in deep graves, at the bottom of which, under one of the sides, they dig out caves where they place ivory and various ornaments which belonged to the deceased. The death of a prominent person is usually accompanied with bloodshed. Often the favorite wife of the deceased kills herself; and the relatives, assuming that the cause of death was the "evil eye" of some evil-wisher, set out to find the enemy. Sometimes the priest points this person out or, if he does not know him, they determine who it is by the following rather original method. They set an ambush on a major road. The first man who falls into this ambush is proven to be the sought for evil-wisher of the deceased and is killed. The relatives of the murdered man take revenge in turn, and bloody clan fighting arises.

The family life of the Sidamo is very similar to that of the Gallas and the Kaffa: they have polygamy; wives are bought and are slaves to their husbands. Boys are circumcised. the form of government is monarchy. The throne is inherited by the eldest son. They have a council of elders -- representatives of clans who reside in the state. This council helps the king in government affairs and in administering justice. The king receives special respect. On meeting him, his subjects throw themselves on the ground with the words "Mokua ganda," which means "For you, I will bury myself alive," to which he replies, "Mokua pyata," which means, "Don't bury yourself."

48 B: For the Eucharist they do not use wine, but rather ground, dried grapes mixed with water. It is brought from Gojjam or Harrar. Several churches, however, grow vineyards themselves.

49 B: At each church there live many clergy: several priests, deacons, and monks, and finally, debtera, i.e., student-scribes. These are people who are preparing themselves for an ecclesiastical vocation, but, for various reasons, have not taken holy orders. Debtera lead a worldly life, but belong to the clergy. They teach children in church schools, busy themselves with copying books, and sing during the holy service. Among them are found people who are in the highest degree well-read and, from the Abyssinian point of view, educated. One of the debtera, who enjoys great respect among his comrades and parishioners, is designated by a ras to manage the church in which he lives, and the church property.

50 B: These rattles consist of a handle to which are attached two parallel copper plates, joined above at a pivot. On the pivot are put copper rings, which, striking the plates of the instrument when it is shaken, produce a very pleasant sound.

51 B: Afilye is prepared in the following manner. The back leg of a ram is freed from the tibia and shin bone; the meat is cut in long thin strips which hanging on the end of the bone form a kind of flower cluster. Then the meat is dipped for several minutes in a boiling sauce, made from butter, pea meal, red pepper and other spices -- and the dish is ready.

52 B: This instrument is called masanko. Made in the shape of a rhombus, it is trimmed with leather; and one of its corners is furnished with a thin long end. There is only one string on the masanko, on which they play with a bow.

Singers, as far as I was convinced, have mastered this instrument to perfection. The musical taste of the Abyssinians is quite different from ours. European music produces no effect on them, and they do not like it. They prefer their own songs, with a tune which, for the most part, is elusive to our ears, with endless trills, and changing from note to note. For the expression of great feeling, the singer must sing, unnaturally, through the nose, and add hoarse guttural sounds.

53 S: Bulatovich is quoting the concluding lines from the poem "Song of Prophetic Oleg" by Alexander Pushkin (1822) –

"The company feasts on the shore;

The warriors recall by-gone days

And battles where side-by-side they fought with sabers."

54 S: According to legend, Saint Vladimir (c.956-1016), the prince of Kiev, received ambassadors from all the major religions before deciding that his nation should convert en masse to Orthodox Christianity. Moslems forbade drinking alcoholic beverages; so Vladimir replied to their ambassadors that it would be counter to the Russian spirit to refrain from drinking.

55 B: Lemd, amfara, saber with silver decoration, silver shield, kalecha -- are the same as our orders with swords. A saber decorated with gold is a rather rare distinction, given only to senior officers and generals and corresponding to our gold weapon.

56 B: The regular units taking part in the expedition (in my further account, I will refer to them by regiments), and the places where they were stationed before the campaign are as follows:

1. Regiment Atyrsye 1000 men land of Kuchya

2. " " Faris 800 men " " Koshya

3. " " Gabro Mariam 800 men " " Konta

4. " " Chabude 800 men " " " "

5. " " Ubye 600 men " " Gofa

6. " " Imam 2000 men " " Melo and Dime

7. " " Damti 1000 men " " Banko, Ara, & Shangama

8. " " Dubye 500 men " " Kulo

9. " " Alemnekha 500 men " " " "

10." " Andarge 300 men " " " "

11." " Zamadyanekha 600 men " " " "

12. Wolda Tensaye 600 men " " Limu

13. Zavanog

(personal guard of Ras) 500 men The strength of the regiments is approximate. The number of guns was 10,449.

57 B: The way they conduct lawsuits is interesting. The litigants warrant the rightness of their claim with property, and, in more important matters, even with their life. The formula of this guarantee is as follows: "I accuse so-and-so of such-and-such! Now, say what you will stake on the fact that this is not so? I give one measure of honey! (two measures or three, and so forth)." The cost of one measure of honey equals about a taler. The value of a guarantee depends on the importance of the matter. If the judge finds that it is too little, then he himself indicates a larger size. Then the law-suit proper begins.

They bring in the evidence, call witnesses, etc. The losing side, in addition to a fine for the use of the person who won the suit, still pays to the court the monetary warrant, which goes for the use of the court.

58 B: In Abyssinian, this is known as fokyr. Victors in battle cry out in almost the same expression when an enemy falls at their hands and also when they notify their leaders of their victory.

59 B: These white men could not be any other than Bottego and his comrades. And since the Gimiro knew so little about them -- knowing only of their trip -- I could conclude that the Gimiro inhabit a small area somewhere to the side of the movement of the Italian expedition; otherwise they would have had more accurate information about it. On the other hand, I concluded that in the neighborhood of the Gimiro there should be either a tribe quite alien to them -- both by customs and by language -- or a wide uninhabited zone.

This assumption was later confirmed: to the southwest of the Gimiro there is an uninhabited, low-lying valley of the Joba River, and to the southeast live the Negro tribes of Shuro, etc.

60 B: Nagada-Ras is the head of the merchants. In Abyssinia, all merchants are subject to several nagada-rases, and Vadym Aganokh is one of them. All the merchants who live in the lands of Ras Wolda Giyorgis are under his leadership.

61 B: Woyzaro Eshimabet is a sister of Empress Taitu. Wolda Giyorgis is her third husband. She married him several years ago in a church ceremony. She is a very intelligent woman, educated in the Abyssinian manner. The Ras worships her. Like all noble Abyssinian women, she is very pampered.

62 B: The eldest daughter of the Ras and two daughters of his wife had gone off with their husbands. The second daughter of the Ras was widowed. Her husband, Dajazmatch Andarge, was killed in the Aussi campaign in 1896.

Note

Picture: The favorite wife of the last King of Kaffa

From: http://www.samizdat.com/bulatovichphotos/plates/Favorite%20wife%20of%20the%20King%20of%20Kaffa.jpg