23.9 Thou art alone, no guide with thee, nor troop behind thee. Didst thou not meet the Marmar? He makes thee
24.1 pass: thou must decide on departing, and knowest not the road. Anxiety seizes thee, thy hair bristles up:
24.2 thy soul places itself in thy hand: thy way is full of rocks and rolling stones, no practicable passage; the road is obstructed by
24.3 hollies, nopals,[460] aloes and bushes called “dog-wolf's [pg 331] shoes.” On one side is the precipice, on the other rises the vertical wall of the mountain.
24.4 Thou must advance going down. Thy car strikes the wall and thy horses are startled by the rebound:
24.5 they stop at the bottom of the harness; thy reins are precipitated and left behind; all fall down, thou passest on.
24.6 The horses break the pole and move it out of the path; you cannot think of refastening them, cannot repair
24.7 them. The seats are precipitated from their places; the horses refuse to be loaded with them. Thy heart fails thee. Thou beginnest to
24.8 reel; the sky is clear: thirst torments thee: the enemy is behind thee, thou beginnest to quake;
25.1 a thorny bush hinders thee; thou placest it aside; the horses wound themselves.