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The sleeping bearers turned and muttered in their sleep, a distant lion ceased its roaring and departed to its own place, an alert-minded cock crew somewhere, and our donkeys rose and began to pull at their tether-ropes. As yet, however, it was quite dark. Hans crept up to me; I saw his wrinkled, yellow face in the light of the watch-fire. "I smell the dawn," he said and vanished again.
The syces and my friends were holding hard to the tether-ropes, which were now at their full stretch. It was a most critical moment. Had they let go, the horses would have been swept away to form a meal for the alligators.
We could take our horses, our fishing-tackle, our guns, our pannikins, and our tether-ropes; we must have plenty of powder and shot, and then we shall be nice and independent. If you'd draw out, sir, what you please from the bank, I'll bring what I've got with me. I've no doubt I shall make a first- rate digger, and we'll come back again with our fortunes made."
Everything was cleanly smeared with coloured clay. On the walls hung sabres, hunting-whips, nets for birds, fishing-nets, guns, elaborately carved powder-horns, gilded bits for horses, and tether-ropes with silver plates. The small window had round dull panes, through which it was impossible to see except by opening the one moveable one. Around the windows and doors red bands were painted.
Tether-ropes should be so attached to the neck of the animal as not to slip and choke him, and the picket-pins never be left on the ropes except when in the ground, as, in the event of a stampede, they are very likely to swing around and injure the animals.
Continuing for fifteen miles, we reached a deserted well called Wearing's; it was about 200 feet deep, and after joining all the tether-ropes, girths, bridle reins, halters, etc., we managed to get up a bucket full, but after all our trouble it was quite salt.
"We shall have more strength to haul you up afterwards." While he was speaking, he let down the tether-ropes. I fastened the water-melons to them. "You will excuse us, Andrew," said Stanley, "if we satisfy our thirst before getting you up. You know from experience what it is." Not waiting for my reply, their heads were in the melons, I suspected, before many seconds had passed.
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