166 RIFLE AND SPEAR WITH THE RAJPOOTS. 



about in ungainly fashion, unaccustomed to a load being- 

 hung between his legs ; whilst the wretched ayah, pitching 

 from side to side, shrieked for help in an interesting assort- 

 ment of dialects. We rescued her with some difficulty, and 

 she then declared the camel dangerously vicious, and started 

 to walk. 'Phis obliged Santan to go on foot ; so she had 

 her revenge, for he has a rooted objection to using his own 

 legs when any others are available. 



Rahman had Alan's horse, and rode after me to Maira. 

 The track led in and out of a series of ravines, so we could 

 only go slowly, but it was some hours before the baggage 

 and servants arrived. Fortunately we had sent the tents 

 off early ; so they came up first, and with the assistance of 

 the camel-men we set to work to pitch them. The servants 

 and other camels did not arrive till past seven, with a pitiful 

 story of how they had been wrongly directed, and got 

 trapped in a precipitous cul-de-sac, up and down which they 

 had wandered, unable to find an outlet. 



There was only one spot available for a camp, and the 

 earth, or rather sandy rock, grew a sort of creeping thistle 

 which shed its prickles in a most disagreeable fashion. For 

 days our bedding, carpets, and everything in the tents, 

 bristled with sharp little spikes. 



We remained at Maira for four days, but had very in- 

 different sport. The ground around is ruled like a copy- 

 book with chasms. If one could imagine the ocean dining a 



