THE FOLK-LITERATURE OF THE GALLA

83

by Gobana. Then the dervishes withdrew to the Sudan, and the Galla allies of Gobana mas-
sacred the fugitives, especially their Galla compatriots, natives of Qiellem and Sibu, who
had helped the strangers to enter Wallaga. However, Ras Gobana, in order to avoid the
prolongation of this barbarous carnage, ordered his auxiliary troops to bring to him as
prisoners all fugitives who yielded, and forbade the killing and the cutting of the genitals
of these defenceless prisoners. These orders caused great discontent among the Galla
soldiers of Moroda; Moroda himself did not execute this proclamation of Gobana. A re-
bellion of the Galla auxiliary troops threatened. However, Gobana prevented the rebel-
lion by an energetic action. He surrounded the Galla troops with his Amara soldiers;
then called the chiefs of the Galla to a meeting. When an officer of the Lieqa Naqamte ap-
peared at the meeting, riding a horse whose bridle was adorned with the genitals of the
prisoners, Gobana, as soon as he saw him, flung at him the wooden stool on which he had
been sitting. Alluding to this fact, a Galla minstrel sang the following song:

Gobannd glrma gige
Goband qdba rdgga
Morin Diddressa gute
Morin ag^cca rdgga
Arabd duta'diemu
30 garrl motl Amdrd
Gote santdma bule
ag^slf nu wamdni
5 Wdmbarln bird bule
afiqfna nu dandni
dbo Gote'bbd Iggu
ururukdffmd harre
atl yd '"nkakdnne
ole tiql nutti rindni
drffnkakdnni kaku
35 qawe gar tokko mukd
Arabd "mbaqu g$tte
abbdn qaweo qabe
10 imbaqatdni
and '"nqabatln male
Goband lima Dancl
and giddl^nqabare
Mori ~lma Bak ar re
gangd gar tokko harre
garadd^bba Talasl
40 abbdn yabd yd ydbe
Aramnl Tuqaydmna
and "yydbatln male
15 Goband tuqdmu dlde
sammd gar tokko girbl
butu tullu kanarrds
kdn uffate huff ate
gar sicca dufu giru
and "nuffatln male
Darro mandard gudddda
45 ands giddl "nqabare
Tullu Wdrqie nanngse
motl gar tokko ffomo
20 utu sagdld bule
abbdn mod yd moe
Arabd dilll gode
anl^mmoanl male
ndma dildba gode
kdn moml giddl "nqabare
Gobandn bdsa base
50 mze Disokd wamare
namnl sambo qaratu
mr'e "kka \bd dardnure
25 buna qardta male
Amdrd gdsi bu ’e
namnl dilalarinbafnl
Gdlla dugdd dqbre
Gobie^lml Wdddgo
irrdn gade gaccise