fall, or the numbers of the animals and reptiles on
which they feed. But more important still are those connected with their
barbarous, but sacred, rites and ceremonials.

CHAPTER XVIII

PREPARATIONS FOR THE RETURN JOURNEY

Had I known how long our stay in the North was to be, I should have taken
the opportunity of further studying the natives and their habits, and
should certainly have visited them in their wild homes in the unknown
portion of Kimberley. As it was I daily expected a message asking me to
start in search of the missing men, and held myself in readiness
accordingly. Our small caravan, now further reduced by the death of
Czar--a sad loss, for he was one of my old friends, and one of the
staunchest camels I have known (together we had seen many a tough bit of
work); he fell down a steep gully at night, poor old beast, and so
injured himself that he died almost immediately--was increased by the
purchase of three horses, with which I intended to carry out my plan of
search; since, however, it was never instituted, I need not explain its
nature. It sufficiently accounts for the presence of horses in the
caravan with which the return journey was made.

As time dragged on it became clear that the missing men could no longer
be living, and since there were two search parties already in the field,
I felt that I was only wasting time by staying longer in idleness. We
were too far off to make any search except by a protracted expedition,
and, since I was morally sure of the men's death, I did not feel called
upon to expose my party to the risks of the desert when no useful object
could be accomplished. Had the intervening country been unknown I should
have been quite ready to start forth, for in that case, whatever the
result of the search, I should have felt rewarded for any losses
incurred, by the knowledge that we had been the means of opening up a
further tract of an unexplored region. As it was we should only have
followed a route previously traversed by Warburton, from which, unless
we achieved the melancholy satisfaction of finding the scene of the
disaster, no useful results could follow. I determined, therefore, to
leave the search to those who could best afford the time and expense, and
set about planning our return to Coolgardie. We had four routes open to
us--either the road to Derby and thence by steamer: the road to Derby and
thence along the coastal telegraph line: the way we had come: