There was no time to be lost, so the party rode out of the end of the wood nearest the river, and, as soon as they made their appearance, were received by a yell from the warriors, who dashed forward in the direction where they stood. The Major had directed that no one should fire, as he and Alexander did not wish that any blood should be shed unnecessarily. They therefore waved their hands, and turning their horses’ heads galloped off by the banks of the river, keeping in the tracks made by the waggons when they came up.
As soon as they had galloped a quarter of a mile, they pulled up, and turned their horses’ heads to reconnoitre. They perceived that the Matabili force was pursuing them at the utmost speed: but as they had no horsemen, that speed was of course insufficient to overtake the well-mounted party in advance. As soon as they were near, our party again galloped off and left them behind. Thus they continued for four or five miles, the Matabili force pursuing them, or rather following the tracks of the waggons, when they observed a belt of trees before them about a mile off; this the Major considered as a good screen to enable them to alter their course without being perceived by the enemy. They therefore galloped forward, and as soon as they were hidden by the trees, turned off in a direction by which they made certain to fall in with the track which the waggons had made on their departure during the night.
They had ridden about two miles, still concealed in the wood, when they had the satisfaction of perceiving the Matabili force still following at a rapid pace the tracks of the waggons on the river-side. Having watched them for half an hour, as they now considered that all was safe, they again continued their course, so as to fall in with the waggons.
“I think we are clear of them now,” said the Major; “they have evidently fallen into the trap proposed by that clever little fellow, Omrah.”
“He is a very intelligent boy,” observed Alexander, “and, travelling in this country, worth his weight in gold.”
“I wish Swinton would make him over to me,” said the Major; “but, Alexander, do you observe what a change there is already in the country?”
“I do indeed,” replied Alexander; “and all ahead of us it appears to be still more sterile and bare.”
“Yes, when you leave the rivers, you leave vegetation of all kinds almost. There is no regular rainy season at all here, Swinton says; we may expect occasional torrents of rain during three months, but they are very uncertain; the mountains attract the greater portion of the rain, and sometimes there will not be a shower on the plains for the whole year.”
“How far shall we have to travel before we fall in with water again?” inquired Alexander.
“Swinton says that there may be water in a river about sixty miles from where we started last night; if not, we shall have to proceed about thirty miles further, to the Gykoup or Vet River. After that we shall have to depend for many days upon the water we may find in the holes, which, as the season is now coming on, may probably be filled by the rain.”