ABYSSINIA, an empire in eastern Africa. The ruler, styled Negus Negusti, or King of Kings, is Menelek II, who after the death of Johannes II in battle with the dervishes overcame his rivals and established himself on the throne in 1889 by the aid of arms furnished by the Italians. He had entered into a treaty with Italy, signed at Ucciali on May 2, 1889, at the beginning of the struggle, while he was still only King of Shoa, and this treaty was confirmed in October of that year. The Italian version gave to Italy a protectorate over the Empire of Abyssinia, otherwise called Ethiopia. Menelek denied that the treaty conferred such right. The relations between him and the Italians became strained on account of his refusal to recognize the protectorate, and his denouncement of the treaty in 1893 led to a rupture. In 1895 the Italians occupied Tigre, the northern kingdom, and advanced into Amhara; but after the forces of Ras Mangascia, King of Tigre, had been driven out by the Italians, Menelek marched into the north with a large army from Shoa, surprised the Italian garrisons, surrounded the main body of Gen. Baratieri's army near Adowa, and well-nigh destroyed it in a general engagement fought on March 1, 1896. Through the friendly intervention of Russia a treaty of peace was concluded on Oct. 26, 1896, at Adis Abeba. By this treaty Menelek recognized as Italian possessions all territories lying north of the Mareb, Balesa, and Muni rivers, and Italy recognized the absolute independence of Abyssinia and the dominion of Menelek over all territories south of that line. The government of Abyssinia, or Ethiopia, is of a feudal character. The kingdom of Tigre in the northeast, the adjoining province of Lasta, the central kingdom of Amhara, Gojam next to it, and the powerful kingdom of Shoa in the south make up Abyssinia proper, the dependencies of which extend into Somaliland as far as Harrar and embrace a large part of the country of the Gallas. The port of Massowah, formerly disputed between Abyssinia and Egypt, has been annexed by Italy with the other dependencies to the north of the Abyssinian plateau and a part of the highland district in the northeastern part of Tigre. The area of the empire is estimated at 150,000 square miles, and the population at 3,500,000. The Abyssinians once followed Jewish rites, and still practice some of them, but since the fourth century they have been Christians of the Alexandrian rite. The head of their Church, called the abuna, is a Copt selected and consecrated by the Patriarch of Alexandria. There are about 12,000 monks, presided over by a native ecclesiastic, called the echegeh, and these and the priests instruct a select portion of the

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youth in grammar, poetry, religious ceremonial, and song. The judicial magistrates are the governors, chiefs, and landed aristocracy. The people raise cattle, sheep, and goats, and cultivate the land to a limited extent. Cotton, coffee, the indigo plant, the sugar cane, the date palm, and the vine grow wild. There are extensive forests abounding in valuable woods. The principal exports, sent mostly through Massowah, are skins, ivory, butter, gums, and mules. Besides the forces of the feudal chiefs, the Negus has a trained army of enlisted men armed with modern rifles.

The climate is varied, producing the fruits of all zones, for Abyssinia is composed of a succession of table-lands rising from 4,000 to 8,000 feet in height, intersected with deep valleys and ravines. In the lower plateaus rice, sugar cane, indigo, and other tropical products grow wild; in the more temperate regions vines and nearly every species of European fruits and vegetables are found in great luxuriance; while the loftiest plains are suited to the cultivation of barley and some native species of grain. The southern districts are the natural home of the coffee tree. The principal crop is doura, from which the Abyssinians make a great part of their food. The banana is the principal fruit eaten by the natives. There are excellent breeds of horses and mules in the country. The mineral wealth of Abyssinia is unquestionable, and the lack of expert labor has been the obstacle to the production and manufacture of the useful metals. The sale of gold is forbidden by law. It is forbidden also to traffic in ivory, though elephants are numerous.

The ruling caste is of the Hebrew race, formed of successive immigrations from Palestine. The Jewish religion was established in Ethiopia by Menelek, son of Solomon and Makeda, or Nicaula, the Queen of Sheba. King Solomon provided his favorite son, when he went to join his mother, with a guard of 12,000 Israelitish soldiers, with whose aid, after Makeda's death, he founded the Solomonian dynasty of Ethiopian emperors. Jerusalem became from that time the center of pious pilgrimages of the Abyssinian people. An important Jewish immigration took place during the first captivity, and another during the reign of Salmanasar. These exiles became rapidly acclimatized and absorbed in the bulk of the Ethiopian nation. A last exodus followed after the destruction of the Temple, but these later comers have remained to the present day outside the pale of Abyssinian society, maintaining their ghettos in the province of Samen, where they follow metal working and remain faithful to their ancient creed. The Ethiopians, on the other hand, embraced Christianity at