Near Costea Amba and Imberta, the Geladas are very numerous, as they have neigbouring canyons to live in, and their great enemy, the leopard, has been nearly exterminated on the Shoa side of the Adabai.

Between Imberta and Sallela I was very interested to see three large lots of Geladas of all sizes. They have regular roads, and the people say that each troop always keeps its own path.

I had a most interesting conversation with the choum of Sallela regarding these Geladas. We were all watching a troop of about 70 on their way back to the cliffs, and they passed within a short distance of the village.

The rear of the troop was brought up by a very large male, lame on one hind leg, and the choum said he could remember it for many years, ever since it was a small one, and it was lame then. He thereupon commenced calling 'Baba, Baba,' and the old male stopped and gave the word of command to the others, and they all halted.

The choum then sent for a bit of bread, which he put on a stone about ten yards off from where we were sitting, and the old male came up slowly and took the bread, and sat down and commenced eating it, giving grunts of satisfaction as if he was saying "Thank you."

This Gelada when standing upright was over 4 feet 8 inches in height, and had a nearly black mane, and his fur was in beautiful condition, and not a bare spot about it.

This monkey did not come into the house and dine with the choum, but it still proved that this wild animal after seeing the same man daily for many years, had confidence in the choum, and I was not surprised that the villagers believed that he kept his big family in order, and had taught them to leave the growing crops alone.

Soon after leaving Sallela, a part of the country is come to which seems to me to be most uninteresting. The end of this uninteresting country finishes up with Chela lake, a large saucer-shaped depression surrounded by ranges of small hills, with a most pronounced rise to the south-south-west, over which the Adese Ababa road runs. In the rainy season, Chela lake must be at least seven miles long and two to three miles broad, and during the dry season shrinks to a mere puddle, so anyone passing it during the wettest season would mark on the map a big lake, while a traveller passing in the dry season would find a pond.

Here we had about the worst hailstorm I have ever experienced...the hailstones hurt terribly when they struck, and the barley fields were cut to pieces.

From the place we encamped above Chela lake, the road led all up hill over a more broken country, mostly grass valleys surrounded by high hills which were worthy of the name of mountains.

During the whole day's march we constantly passed batches of soldiers, some of them very civil, and others the reverse. We also passed many countrymen with supplies of all sorts, and many animals laden with firewood and timber for building purposes, showing already what a distance fuel for cooking purposes is brought to Adese Ababa.

The last ridge of mountains was arrived at, that divides the upper Shoan highlands from the lower level around Adese Ababa, and at last we got to the top of Baruck pass, and enjoyed the warm sun and shelter from the cold northwest wind.

We followed the main road down the pass to the open plains, and then finding it impossible to reach the capital by nightfall, we turned off to the right to the village of Tanquille, where Hailou ended up his journey with a final quarrel with the villagers. The choum of the village, seeing our cavalcade coming across the open land, rode away before we got there, Hailou giving chase. As the choum was riding a horse, and Hailou was only on a mule he could not overtake him.

Tanquille is a pleasant village, nearly surrounded by hills fairly well covered with big trees of sycamore fig, too big to cut up for firewood, and also juniper trees that are reserved for building purposes. The cattle disease in Shoa was still very bad, and nearly all the horned cattle at Tanquille were dead.

Food at Tanquille was very much dearer than at any other place I had as yet visited, and eggs, chickens, and butter were in great demand owing to the number of Italian prisoners at Adese Ababa.

The heavy rain falling on the tent made sleep impossible, and quite near our camp were the remains of several dead bullocks on which a number of hyenas were feeding, and their fighting and quarelling over the half-picked bones lasted for a long time.

[The author (Wylde) did not keep many notes of Addis Abeba and the road to Djibouti because he considered that the route was well known and had already been described in previously published books.]

We could see groups of soldiers' tents dotted over the landscape belonging to the men of the numerous military leaders of other districts that had come to pay their respects to the king, and through my glasses I could see a constant stream of people both mounted and on foot going and coming from the kings palace.

We continued our march down the path that led to the Ghebbi, and halted at a stone quarry where some labourers were at work blasting a white limestone rock, and some Arab and Indian masons were dressing stone. They told me that they also received their rations from the king, and that they were saving nearly all their pay.

GENERAL ALBERTONE
While at Adese-Ababa, I spent the greater part of my time with the Italian officers, who were most kind to me, and General Albertone, and had hours upon hours of conversation regarding the battle of Adowa. That battle was fought and refought over and over again, and I used to be very amused how excited we all used to get and how the earth was dug up with sticks explaining the different episodes, and the amount of paper we spoilt in drawing plans.

A lot of visitors called, mostly Italian officers. They were all looking healthy and in good condition. As they had received new clothes, they were neat and tidy.

ATSE MENELIK
I had many interviews with King Menelek. I was asked by him to publish in the Manchester Guardian, a copy of the treaty that he had entered into with the Italians, and thanks to the proprietors of that paper, they were the first to give the public a more correct account of what had been done in Abyssinia than had ever appeared before.

No one who has ever had any dealings with King Menelek can doubt that he has many good points, and is making an advancement and strengthening his coutry by adopting modern inventions, which if used in a peaceful manner will greatly benefit his country. There is no saying what he may do, as he is capable of turning into one of the best potentates that Africa has ever produced, and the concluding years of his life may be marked with the greatest benefits to his subjects and humanity in general.

TO HARER
The country between Adese-Ababa and the coast of the Gulf of Aden has been so often described and written about that it now seems to be one of the best known of the modern routes into Africa. When I first went over it, it was a mere track winding across the highlands, and each merchant or traveller took the path that he thought best. Now a telephone wire has been put up which serves as a landmark and guide, and the road has broadened out and a great many of the overhanging bushes and trees have been cut down so it is impossible to miss the path.

This road carries by far the largest quantity of produce that leaves or goes into the country, but still nothing has been done to facilitate the traffic; there is not a shelter or rest-house along the whole route, and every one has to encamp in the open. In other countries the merchants are protected and patronised, but in Abyssinia it is the reverse, and they are looked down upon.

Perhaps the most charming parts of the whole journey are through the Counni and Koloubie forests in Harar province, now rapidly being destroyed by burning the giant Natal yellow pines and other trees that grow so luxiuriantly in this perfect climate.

The fertility of the Harar province is well known, and a big book might be written on its history and its great natural resources. Among the districts of Abyssinia that I know, I place it as third; the other two that are better are Yejju and Abbi Addi.

RAS MEKONNEN
On two occasions that I was at Harar I have seen a good deal of the Abyssinians' most enlightened representative, Ras Merconen, who is a most courteous and polished man. He is spoken of most highly by everyone, and I have to thank him for going out of his way to help me. He has the reputation of being a good diplomatist and a brave and cautious general, and able to handle large numbers of troops, and also being a good and humane administrator.

Ras Merconen has been to Italy, and has therefore seen something of the outside world, and although he has had to fight the Italians, he seems to be on a most perfectly friendly footing with them.

I waited at Harar until Ras Merconen furnished me with a copy of the treaty entered into between Abyssinia and Italy, and then I left for the coast.

I arrived at Bir Caboba, where the Italian Red Cross Mission had made a station to aid the prisoners on their return to the coast.

Note on Schimper and the Azmari:- Schimper accompanied Wylde halfway to Djibouti, but then a wandering minstrel sang some "uncomplimentary verses" about him and what would happen to him if he went to the coast. This made him nervous to continue with Wylde, so he returned to Addis Abeba, where he was arrested and given a beating for helping the Italians at Adowa. [He was a secretary with the Italian intelligence department, and was with General Baratieri at Adowa]

Incidentally, his father, the senior Schimper, was a noted German botanist who is credited with introducing the potato to Ethiopia in 1861.