nd he'll only keep to his regular pace. His load's too heavy.
We must run half of it away."

"What! Waste that water? No."

"But it seems so heavy."

"He wouldn't go a bit faster if you poured away nearly all."

"I'm afraid not," groaned Chris. "What can we do? I say, I wonder how
far it is to camp. Can you guess, Ned?"

The boy shook his head.

"It must be," continued Chris, as he rode on, wrenching right round in
his saddle, and trusting to his mustang to follow the back trail, "just
as far as the mule would walk from the time we started till daybreak
this morning. Hours and hours and hours, all going so slowly, for we
should have been woke up if they had broken into a fast trot. I'm
afraid we must spill out some of the water."

"But I tell you that this slow wretch wouldn't go a bit faster. He's
walking now just at the same rate as when the barrels were empty."

Chris felt that these were the words of truth, and remained silent. He
would have gone behind the animal and bullied or urged it forward with
blows, in spite of his late words, but he felt confident that the result
would only be a stubborn fit, kicking or perhaps lying down.

A short time before the boy had felt in the highest glee. Success had
attended their effort, and there seemed to be nothing else to do but
hurry back to the fainting sufferers with the life-giving fluid and
receive their thanks and praise, while now, in addition to the bitter
despair and misery, there was a fresh sensation which he connected then
with a feeling of sinking that made him gaze piteously at his companion,
but only to be struck with his sunken eyes and agonised aspect.

"Don't look like that, Ned," he said. "Why, you're worse than I am."

"I can't help it. I feel quite ill. We shall never get back to them in
time. Father looked as if he wouldn't be able to get up again."

"So did my father. I never saw him look so dreadful before. He must be
in an awful state, or else he'd have been able to take something from
the medicine-chest to help him hold out longer. But there, it's of no
use to give way like this. We must get back to camp with this water.
Do you hear? We must!"

"Yes," said Ned mournfully. "We must.--Chris."

"Yes?"

"If I fall off my nag and can't get up again--"

"Oh, don't talk like that. It's idiotic."

"I can't help it. If I fall over and lie still on the sand, I want you
to promise me something."

"Then I shan't," cri