they met death.
Both lay close to each other, both had skulls crushed from behind,
lacerated shoulders, and gnawed spines. Kali assumed that when the
"wobo" or lion appeared before them in the moonlight they fell on their
faces before it and began to entreat it that it should spare their
lives. But the terrible beast killed both, and afterwards, having
appeased its hunger, scented water and tore the bags to pieces.

"God punished them," Stas said, "and the Wahimas should be convinced
that the wicked Mzimu is incapable of rescuing any one."

And Kali added:

"God punished them, but we have no water."

"Far ahead of us in the east I saw mountains. There must be water
there."

"Kali sees them also, but it is many, many days to them."

A moment of silence followed.

"Master," spoke out Kali, "let the 'Good Mzimu'--let the 'bibi' beg the
Great Spirit for rain or for a river."

Stas left him, making no reply. But before the tent he saw Nell's
little figure; the shouts and yells had awakened her some time before.

"What has happened, Stas?" she asked, running up to him.

And he placed his hand on her little head and solemnly said:

"Nell, pray to God for water; otherwise we all shall perish."

So the little maiden upraised her pale little face and, fastening her
eyes on the moon's silvery shield, began to implore for succor Him who
in heaven causes the stars to revolve and on earth tempers the wind for
the shorn lamb.

After a sleepless, noisy, and anxious night the sun rolled upon the
horizon suddenly, as it always does under the equator, and a bright day
followed. On the grass there was not a drop of dew; on the sky not a
cloudlet. Stas ordered the guards to assemble the men and delivered a
short speech to them. He declared to them that it was impossible to
return to the river now, for they of course well knew that they were
separated from it by five days' and nights' journey. But on the other
hand no one knew whether there was not water in the opposite direction.
Perhaps even not far away they would find some stream, some rivulet or
slough. Trees, indeed, could not be seen, but it often happens upon
open plains where the strong gale carries away the seeds, trees do not
grow even at the water-side. Yesterday they saw some big antelopes and
a few ostriches running towards the east, which was a sign that yonder
there must be some watering place, and in view of this whoever is not a
fool and whoever has in his