The Days of a Man 1882 



in utter I therefore sat down on "the Hippopotamus," a 

 darkness i ar g e c i av bank in an open chamber, blew out my 

 candle, and prepared to wait for the rest to come up. 

 Meanwhile, however, it was very dark and very 

 quiet, and I went to sleep, awaking just as the last 

 light disappeared around a bend. 



I at once rushed after my friends, but very soon 

 discovered that without light or sound it is im- 

 possible to maintain direction. The plan often sug- 

 gested of following one side steadily in and out of 

 the passages until you come to the end was wholly 

 impracticable, for I was upwards of three miles from 

 the entrance, and many unexplored side chambers 

 diverge on the way. So, choosing a comparatively 

 open place, I felt about on the floor until I found the 

 track of a woman's shoe, which indicated that the 

 party had passed that spot, and the direction in 

 which they had gone. I then determined to stay 

 right there until I could be rescued. It was damp 

 and cold a minor matter of course, when one is 

 young and occasional droppings of water sounded 

 unusually loud, not having to compete with any- 

 thing else. 



Rescue As the others knew I had walked on ahead, they 

 naturally thought I had gone out; not finding me, 

 however, some said that my interest in Botany had 

 led me to roam about for a while, but luncheon or 

 surely dinner would bring me back to the hotel. 

 Fortunately one or two persons, especially Mr. W. W. 

 Woollen, a business man, were not satisfied with this 

 argument. So when I failed to come in for the 

 midday meal, he insisted on sending three guides 

 back to the cave with food and brandy. Along 

 about four o'clock, therefore, I heard a noise and 



C 244 3 



