his masters,
were too mixed and painful to admit of accurate description. He sprang
to his feet, and pushed the woman, a buxom person of about thirty, from
him.

"Well, I never!" he gasped, whereupon probably thinking that he was only
coy, she embraced him again.

"Be off with you! Get away, you minx!" he shouted, waving the wooden
spoon, with which he was eating his breakfast, up and down before the
lady's face. "Beg your pardon, gentlemen, I am sure I haven't encouraged
her. Oh, Lord! she's coming for me again. Hold her, Mr. Holly! please
hold her! I can't stand it; I can't, indeed. This has never happened to
me before, gentlemen, never. There's nothing against my character," and
here he broke off, and ran as hard as he could go down the cave, and for
once I saw the Amahagger laugh. As for the woman, however, she did
not laugh. On the contrary, she seemed to bristle with fury, which the
mockery of the other women about only served to intensify. She stood
there literally snarling and shaking with indignation, and, seeing her,
I wished Job's scruples had been at Jericho, forming a shrewd guess that
his admirable behaviour had endangered our throats. Nor, as the sequel
shows, was I wrong.

The lady having retreated, Job returned in a great state of nervousness,
and keeping his weather eye fixed upon every woman who came near him. I
took an opportunity to explain to our hosts that Job was a married man,
and had had very unhappy experiences in his domestic relations, which
accounted for his presence here and his terror at the sight of women,
but my remarks were received in grim silence, it being evident that our
retainer's behaviour was considered as a slight to the "household"
at large, although the women, after the manner of some of their most
civilised sisters, made merry at the rebuff of their companion.

After breakfast we took a walk and inspected the Amahagger herds, and
also their cultivated lands. They have two breeds of cattle, one large
and angular, with no horns, but yielding beautiful milk; and the other,
a red breed, very small and fat, excellent for meat, but of no value for
milking purposes. This last breed closely resembles the Norfolk red-pole
strain, only it has horns which generally curve forward over the head,
sometimes to such an extent that they have to be cut to prevent them
from growing into the bones of the skull. The goats are long-haired, and
are used for eating only, at least I never saw th