being borne along into the dead heart of the rock we knew not
whither, but I was getting used to eerie sensations by this time, and by
now was pretty well prepared for anything. So I lay still, and listened
to the tramp, tramp of the bearers and the rushing of the water, and
tried to believe that I was enjoying myself. Presently the men set up
the melancholy little chant that I had heard on the first night when we
were captured in the whaleboat, and the effect produced by their voices
was very curious, and quite indescribable. After a while the air began
to get exceedingly thick and heavy, so much so, indeed, that I felt as
though I were going to choke, till at length the litter took a sharp
turn, then another and another, and the sound of the running water
ceased. After this the air was fresher again, but the turns were
continuous, and to me, blindfolded as I was, most bewildering. I tried
to keep a map of them in my mind in case it might ever be necessary
for us to try and escape by this route, but, needless to say, failed
utterly. Another half-hour or so passed, and then suddenly I became
aware that we were once more in the open air. I could see the light
through my bandage and feel its freshness on my face. A few more minutes
and the caravan halted, and I heard Billali order Ustane to remove her
bandage and undo ours. Without waiting for her attentions I got the knot
of mine loose, and looked out.

As I anticipated, we had passed right through the precipice, and were
now on the farther side, and immediately beneath its beetling face. The
first thing I noticed was that the cliff is not nearly so high here, not
so high I should say by five hundred feet, which proved that the bed of
the lake, or rather of the vast ancient crater in which we stood, was
much above the level of the surrounding plain. For the rest, we found
ourselves in a huge rock-surrounded cup, not unlike that of the first
place where we had sojourned, only ten times the size. Indeed, I could
only just make out the frowning line of the opposite cliffs. A great
portion of the plain thus enclosed by nature was cultivated, and fenced
in with walls of stone placed there to keep the cattle and goats, of
which there were large herds about, from breaking into the gardens.
Here and there rose great grass mounds, and some miles away towards the
centre I thought that I could see the outline of colossal ruins. I had
no time to observe anything more at the moment, f