146 IN THE LAND OF THE BORA. 



being so treated, begged the thief at least to 

 stealthily replace the missing article by night. 

 But he didn't ; nor did the police get any clue ; 

 and we finally left the place without it. This, 

 of course, put an end to any further prospects of 

 camping out. 



I cannot .honestly say I altogether regretted 

 the fact. Although Dalmatia is a climate where 

 one can well camp out till the end of November, 

 still one should have a tent with a double roof. 

 I had felt from the first that this was a great 

 omission in our outfit, and the misfortune with 

 the camp-beds was even worse. The fact is that 

 the trip was well planned enough, but our in- 

 tentions only served as paving-stones for the 

 realms below. I had proposed to start fairly 

 early in June, and the lost two months were 

 not to be made up. The fault was nobody's ; 

 the British public must be the first consideration 

 of those who live by the pen, and if the proofs of 

 " Gun, Bifle, and Hound " could not be corrected 

 by June, the writer thereof must possess his soul 

 in patience throughout July.* 



We might, of course, have gone on and visited 

 the remainder of Dalmatia by utilizing the hotels 



* By a singular coincidence, the author received this sheet 

 for revision at a time when he was again experiencing the 

 difficulty of combining the regular correction of proofs with 

 an out-of-the-way expedition. 



