the bone to snap. My horse's feet were projected
towards the edge of the precipice, and in this way he supported the
fallen mule, who endeavoured to retain his hold with his chin and his
fore-legs. There we were--the mule's eyeballs almost starting out of his
head, and all his muscles quivering with the exertion. At last something
cracked: the staple in the back of my saddle gave way; off flew the
crupper, and I thought at first my horse's tail was gone with it. The
baggage-mule made one desperate scrambling effort, but it was of no use,
and down he went, over and over among the crashing bushes far beneath,
until at length he fell with a loud splash into the waters of the
stream. Some of the people hearing the noise made by the falling mule,
turned round and came back to see what was the matter; and, horse and
men, we all craned our necks over the edge to see what had become of our
companion. There he was in the river, with nothing but his head above
the water. With some difficulty we made our way down to the edge of the
torrent. The mule kept looking at us very quietly all the while till we
got close to him, when the muleteer proceeded to assist him by banging
him on the head with a great branch of a tree, upon which he took to
struggling and scrambling, and at last, to the surprise of all, came out
apparently unhurt, at least with no bones broken. The men looked him
over, walked him about, gave him a kick or two by way of asking him how
he was, and then placing his load upon him again, we pursued our
journey.

Before dark we arrived at Paramathia, and went straight to the house
where we had been so hospitably received before. We crawled up like so
many drowned rats into the upper rooms, where we were met by the whole
troop of ladies giggling, screaming, and talking, as if they had never
stopped since we left them a week before. When the baggage came to be
undone, alas! what a wreck was there! The coffee and the sugar and the
shirts had formed an amalgam; mud, shoes, and cambric handkerchiefs all
came out together; not a thing was dry. The only consolation was that
the beautiful illuminated manuscripts of Meteora had not participated in
this dirty deluge.

I was wet to the skin, and my boots were full of water. In this dilemma
I asked if our hosts could not lend me something to put on until some of
my own clothes could be dried. The ladies were full of pity and
compassion; but unfortunately all the men were from home,