ation of this unmurmuring sea, the deep silence of the wastes with
the deep silence of the waters.

Never before had Mrs. Armine known such a desolation, never had she
imagined such a silence as that which lay around their camp, which
brooded over this desert, which brooded over the greenish grey waters of
this vast lake which was like a sea.

She spoke, and her voice seemed to be taken at once as its prey by the
silence. Even her thought seemed to be seized by it, and to be conveyed
away from her like a living thing whose destiny it was to be slain. She
felt paltry, helpless, unmeaning, in the midst of this arid breast of
Nature, which was pale as the leper is pale. She felt chilled, even
almost sexless, as if all her powers, all her passions and her desires,
had been grasped by the silence, as if they were soon to be taken for
ever from her. Never before had anything that was neither human nor
connected in any way with humanity's efforts and wishes made such a
terrific impression upon her.

She hid this impression from Nigel.

The long camel-ride had slightly fatigued her, despite the great
strength of body which she had been given by Egypt. She busied herself
in the usual way of a woman arrived from a journey, changed her gown,
bathed in a collapsible bath made of India rubber, put eau de Cologne on
her forehead, arranged her hair before a mirror pinned to the sloping
canvas. But all the time that she did these things she was listening to
the enormous silence, was feeling it like a weight, was shrinking, or
trying to shrink away from its outstretched, determined arms. From
without came sometimes sounds of voices that presented themselves to her
ears as shadows, skeletons, spectres, present themselves to the eyes.
Was that really Ibrahim? Was that Nigel speaking, laughing? And that
long stream of words, did it flow from Hamza's throat? Or were those
shadows outside, with voices of shadows, trying to hold intercourse with
shadows? Presently tea was ready, and she came out into the waste.

They were at a considerable distance from the lake, looking down on it
from the slight elevation of a gigantic slope of sand, which rose
gradually behind them till in the distance it seemed to touch the
stooping grey of the low horizon. Everywhere white and yellowish white
melted into grey and greenish grey. The only vegetation was a great maze
of tamarisk bushes, which stretched from the flat sand-plain on their
left to the verg