word was uttered as the
caravan moved forward, the dull sound of human feet treading the baked
earth alone broke the silence. On and on they trudged; the sun, as he
rose, got hotter and hotter, striking down with intense force on their
heads. Ned marched alongside Sayd. The latter had two favoured
followers--young Hassan, partly of Arab birth, who acted as his
gun-bearer; and a huge negro, a freed man, Sambroko by name, possessed
of prodigious strength and courage. These two had followed their
master's example, and supplied themselves with gourds of water, two of
which the negro carried slung round his neck.

For some hours the caravan proceeded as rapidly as at first. It was
hoped that a stream would be found soon after noon, where Abdullah
promised to halt to give the men the rest they so much needed; but noon
was passed, already the sun was in their eyes, and no stream was seen.
To halt now would be to lose precious time. With parched lips and
starting eyeballs the men pushed on, and, instead of songs and jokes,
cries and groans were heard on every side. Now a weary pagazi sank
down, declaring that he could carry his load no longer; now another and
another followed his example. In vain the Arab leaders urged them to
rise with threats and curses, using the points of their spears. The
hapless men staggered on, then dropping their loads attempted to fly.
Two were shot dead as a warning to the rest, and their masters
distributed their loads among the others who appeared better able to
carry them, but, ere long, others sinking down, stretched themselves on
the ground and were left to die in the desert. Time would have been
lost in attempting to carry them.

"Is this the way you Arabs treat your followers?" asked Ned, who felt
indignant at the apparent cruelty of the chiefs.

"They are but slaves," answered Sayd in a careless tone. "Necessity has
no law; let us go forward, or their fate may be ours."

"Onwards, onwards!" was the cry. The chiefs shouted to their people to
keep together, for already many were straggling behind. They had
started, feeling confident that by their numbers all difficulties would
be overcome, but had they mustered ten thousand men the same fate by
which they were now threatened might have overtaken them. Even young
Hassan, generally so joyous and dauntless, began to complain; but
Sambroko took him by the arm and helped him along, every now and then
applying his water-bottle to hi