306 THE SECRET OF SAHARA: KUFARA 



Hamdulillah, a dog ran out barking and figures loomed 

 in the shadows. "Friend," came the answer to Amar's 

 challenge. "No friend walks thus at night," said Yusuf 

 decidedly and to me, "Get ready your revolvers!" 

 But I had heard an English voice I Rushing forward, 

 unheeding of ungirdled barracan, of Moslem custom, of 

 anything in the world but that the hands of my own 

 countrymen could help as no other hands in the world, I 

 met a Camel Corps Patrol which the Frontier Districts 

 Administration had sent out to look for us ! 



I have absolutely no recollection of what I said to 

 the calm-eyed shadow in khaki who drew away from the 

 dark figures in close-rolled turbans and the precise, 

 double row of neatly barraked hejin, but, oh! the 

 efficiency of England! I have railed at her so often and 

 w^ith so much justice. I have run away from her powers- 

 that-be when I have wanted to penetrate to particularly 

 imauthorised and impossible places, but that night I 

 valued her as never before! In so few minutes the 

 situation changed. Did I relinquish my command or 

 was it unconsciously taken from me by Beneficent Khaki? 

 I do not know, but the retinue's grumbling sank to awed 

 silence at the power which had leaped to meet us. The 

 hamla were driven on to camp at a given place and the 

 swiftest hejin went back to Siwa, untiring through the 

 night, to fetch a doctor and car to Girba, only half a 

 day ahead. 



Fate had played against the kindness of an English 

 Governor then at Siwa, for the rescue party had camped 

 but a couple of hundred yards from our distressed dinner, 

 and she had lost, because the wandering dog had heralded 

 our approach. Otherwise we might have drifted on into 

 the night. 



Almost before I realised how life had changed I 

 found myself on a white trotting camel with a specially 



