272 
BURY WATER. 
mg that we were in the same predicament we had 
been in before, and with as little prospect of accom- 
plishing our object. Having but little time for de- 
liberation, I at once ordered the overseer and man 
to take the horses back to the water, and give them 
two days rest there, and then to rejoin us again on 
the third, whilst I and the native boy would remain 
with the dray, until their return. The natives also 
remained with us for the first night ; but finding 
we still continued in camp, they left on the follow- 
ing morning, which I was sorry for, as I hoped one 
would have been induced to go with us to the Great 
Bight. 
On the fifth of January, the overseer and man re- 
turned with the horses ; but so little had they bene- 
fited by their two days rest, that upon being yoked 
up, and put to the dray, they would not move it. 
We were obliged, therefore, to unload once more, 
and lighten the load by burying a cask of water, and 
giving another to the horses. After this, we suc- 
ceeded in getting them along, with the remainder, 
to the undulating plains ; and here we halted for 
the night, after a stage of only seven miles, but one, 
which, short as it was, had nearly worn out the 
draught horses. Here we dug a large hole, and 
buried twenty-two gallons of water, for my own 
horse, and that of the black boy, on our return ; and 
as I determined to take a man with me, with a pack- 
horse, nine gallons more were buried apart from the 
other, for them, so that when the man got his cask 
