This was the first battle of Serbraxos, which, though it contained nothing decisive, had flill two very material consequences, as it so daunted the spirits of the Begemder horse, that many chiefs of that country withdrew their troops, and went home, whilst such discord was sown among the leaders, that I believe they never sincerely trusted one another afterwards; Gusho and Ayabdar, in particular, were known to correspond with the king daily.
On the morrow after the battle, three messengers arrived from Gusho, Powussen, and Ayabdar, and each had a separate audience of the King and Ras before whom they all three severally declared, that their mailers desired to continue in allegiance to him their king, Tecla Haimanout, but under this condition only, that Ras Michael should be sent to his government of Tigré, never more to return. They endeavoured to persuade the king also to take the sense of his army, the majority of which, they asserted, were ready to abandon him. If Michael should agree to return to Tigré, they offered to carry the king to Gondar, place him in his palace, and allow him to choose his own ministers, and govern for the future after his own ideas. This, indeed, was the universal wish, and I did not see what Ras Michael could; have done, had he adopted it; but fear, or gratitude, or both, restrained the young king from such a measure; and the messengers left him after a plain declaration, That they had, endeavoured all in their power to save him, and he must. now abide the consequences, for they washed their hands of them.
The rains were now become more frequent, and an epidemical fever had shewn itself in the rebel army on the
