cramped position in the palki,
and not a little discommoded by the jolting movements of the vehicle as
the men trudged over the rough ground, the girl consented with alacrity.
Thus lightened, the men stepped forward at a good pace--probably as fast
as the Guides, whose progress was of course limited by the marching
power of the infantry portion of the corps.

The march continued for several hours at a brisk rate. They skirted one
village by making a detour into the fields beside the road. When they
returned to the highway Ahmed noticed that the men were flagging; the
palki, even without its occupant, was no light weight to bearers who had
already carried it for many hours; and one of the men plucked up courage
to tell their hard taskmaster that his strength was failing. But Ahmed
could not venture to delay. In a fierce whisper he bade the man, who had
dropped his pole, bringing the party momentarily to a halt, to push on,
if he valued his life. The man obeyed with a groan, but the party had
not gone much further when the girl, who had hitherto endured the
fatigues and anxieties of the journey without a murmur, suddenly broke
down. She would have fallen from the horse but for Ahmed's arm, and when
he had carried her back to the palki he found that she had fainted. He
was utterly ignorant of what to do to restore her; nothing of the kind
had ever come within his experience before. But one of the men explained
that she must have water, and volunteered to go and find a brook; he had
a small lotah with him. Ahmed dared not trust him; the reasons for not
leaving the party himself were as cogent as ever; there was nothing for
it but that the whole party should leave the road and search for a
stream.

The girl recovered from her swoon before their search was rewarded. Then
she broke into a fit of weeping, which to Ahmed was almost as alarming.
But a draught from a brook they by and by discovered revived her, and
they returned to the road. The delay had cost them a good hour.

It was nearing daybreak when Ahmed heard the sound of trotting horses on
the road behind. He instantly ordered the bearers to make for a patch of
woodland bordering the roadside. He hoped that the horses might prove to
be those of the Guides, but it was necessary to prepare for the worst.
It was useless to attempt any deception in case the horsemen turned out
to be enemies and discovered him: his khaki uniform would betray him. If
he should pretend to h