Mr. Palgrave was told to remain, Mr. Rassam and his
companions to go; a certain sum of money was allowed for presents;
letters for the governors of the Soudan were obtained; and, our
necessary stores and outfit being purchased; we returned to Massowah,
where we arrived on the 25th of September.
There we heard that messengers had arrived from the prisoners; that
they had been taken to Aden by a man-of-war; and that they had
verbally reported, that far from having been released, hand-chains
had been added to the captives' previous fetters. As we could not
find anybody to accompany us through the Soudan (on account of its
unhealthiness at that time of the year) before the middle of October,
we thought it advisable to proceed at once to Aden, in order to
gain correct information from the captives' letters, as to their
actual condition, and to confer with the Political Resident of that
station, as to the expediency of complying with the Emperor's
requests, under the totally different aspect matters now presented.
Although Captain Cameron, in several of his former communications,
had repeatedly insisted that on no account we should enter Abyssinia,
in the note just received he implored us to come up at once, as our
declining to do so would prove of the utmost danger to the prisoners.
The Political Resident, therefore, taking into consideration Captain
Cameron's earnest appeal for Mr.
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