engeful Bedouins.
But somehow, as he swung between earth and heaven, the rope slipping
with almost uncomfortable rapidity through his fingers, he felt no fear,
only a joyous thrill which strongly resembled the boyish glee with
which, in his school-days, he had taken part in many midnight adventures
strictly hidden from the notice of the authorities.

His former proficiency in gymnastics and his natural love of climbing
stood him in good stead. He had never been addicted to nerves, had never
known what it was to experience any vertigo or attacks of giddiness when
exploring some dizzy height or negotiating some mountain ledge, and he
swung down the rope which was his only support as coolly as though he
were practising in a gymnasium, with no risk, did he fall, of being
dashed to death against the unfriendly rocks below.

In an incredibly short space of time he reached the ground, and after
giving three gentle tugs upon the rope--the preconceived signal that all
was well with him--he looked cautiously round him to take his bearings
before proceeding on his journey.

He stood now in a kind of rocky valley, ringed round with caves--whether
tombs or not he could not pretend to judge--but beyond the valley lay
the desert over which he must pass, and he lost no time in clambering
over the rooks and setting foot on the firm brown sand without.

By the aid of his small compass he located the direction in which the
well lay, and then, restoring it to his pocket and making certain that
the goat-skin water-bottle was firmly slung over his shoulder, he set
off at a brisk pace which should, if possible, shorten the time of his
absence from the Fort by a few precious moments at least.

He had never before been alone in the desert at night, and the
strangeness of it gripped him by the throat as he strode steadily
onwards. He could not believe, at first, that he was really alone. It
seemed incredible that in all that huge expanse of sand he should be the
only moving, living being, yet, though he knew that there _were_ living
creatures in the desert--jackals and other prowling things, and a whole
host of bats and tiny insects--they gave no sign of their presence, and
it seemed to him that he was the only live thing in a dead world....

Yet the air, as it blew gently round him, was soft and sweet. A group of
palm trees rustled deliciously as he passed by; and above his head the
big silver stars seemed to look down on him with a friend