30G THE HON KILLER. 



a hundred nights in the open air, sometimes secreted in 

 the corner of a clearing, sometimes following the moun- 

 tain-paths, always on foot, and crossing and re-crossing 

 running streams as though they were dry ravines. At the 

 same time, I had been badly fed, for although the Arabs 

 offered me every hospitality they could afford, yet I hardly 

 ever gave myself time to eat anything but cakes and dates, 

 while I quenched my thirst at the mountain brook, and in 

 addition to all this, whenever I was in the field, I was under 

 the influence of the most powerful emotions. It may be that 

 there are natures sufficiently rugged to stand such tests, but 

 for me, I returned to Guelma seriously ill. 



