Notes on South African Hunting, 41 
The Thirst. 
what the next stage is ; that is as far as we got; 
but I do know that I never hope to see again 
such a sight as the glimpse I caught of Ayton’s 
eyes just before we reached water. Of course, 
mine were, I suppose, just as bad, but I re¬ 
member thinking, By God, he’s going mad,” 
so well. 
At last, about one o’clock, I saw a game 
path leading down to a vley some hundred 
yards away ; but we had passed so many vleys, 
and they had all been dry, that we hesitated 
before going to see. However, I determined 
to go down ; and I found water. It would be 
difficult to say accurately what I did. I fancy 
I gave a yell to Ayton, and then plunged my 
head into the beautiful clear pool and drank a 
little. Then I know I got up to see if the 
horses were coming, and I remember I had to 
turn my back to the pool to look in their 
direction. Whilst I was looking, I was seized 
with an irrepressible idea that water could not 
really be there, and I turned round to make 
sure it was there ! We had been two nights 
and a day-and-a-half ridinghard without water, 
and had covered about eighty miles or more of 
