INTERIOR OF AFRICA. 1 77 
apprehend that I should perish of thirst. To relieve the burning 
pain in my mouth and throat, I chewed the leaves of different 
shrubs, but found them all bitter, and of no service to me. 
A little before sunset, having reached the top of a gentle rising, 
I climbed a high tree, from the topmost branches of which I 
cast a melancholy look over the barren Wilderness, but without 
discovering the most distant trace of a human dwelling. The 
same dismal uniformity of shrubs and sand every where present- 
ed itself, and the horizon was as level and uninterrupted as that 
of the sea.. 
Descending from the tree, I found my horse devouring the 
stubble and brushwood with great avidity ; and as I was now 
too faint to attempt walking, and my horse too much fatigued 
to carry me, I thought it but an act of humanity, and perhaps 
the last I should ever have it in my power to perform, to take 
off his bridle and let him shift for himself; in doing which I 
was suddenly affected with sickness and giddiness ; and falling 
upon the sand, felt as if the hour of death was fast approach- 
ing. " Here then, (thought I,) after a short but ineffectual 
" struggle, terminate all my hopes of being useful in my day 
" and generation : here must the short span of my life come to 
" an end/' — I cast (as I believed) a last look on the surround- 
ing scene, and whilst I reflected on the awful change that 
was about to take place, this world with its enjoyments seemed 
to vanish from my recollection. Nature, however, at length 
resumed its functions ; and on recovering my senses, I found 
myself stretched upon the sand, with the bridle still in my 
hand, and the sun just sinking behind the trees. I now sum- 
A a 
