150 THE EMPTY QUARTER

pastures—in abundance too. And the children of the Oryx
we will catch alive for you that you may take them to your
countiy even as the Christian did last year—I had told him
that Mr. Thomas had secured live specimens to bring home,
and of the present of a pair of animals which years ago
Ibn Sa'ud had sent to King George. And I will guide you
among the dunes that you may shoot them yourself. Yes,
have no fear, we shall see them in plenty—if God wills.
They follow the pastures—the food of the camel is their food
—whether on sand or steppe, though they prefer the steppe
if the grazing is good. Yet the sands are their refuge from
man and danger. This place was indeed full of them and the
wild-cat too and foxes in plenty, but this eight years'

drought------!

We descended the slope as the sun began to set and rejoined
our companions for the breaking of the fast. With three
waterless days behind us and at least three more to come
there was much talk of a long march on the morrow, but we
had spoken of such things so often only to break down either
when it came to making an early start or to marching
through a whole afternoon that I did not pay much atten-
tion to their words. This time, however, they had meant
what they said, and it was only 3.30 a.m. when I was woken
by shouts announcing the readiness of our morning supper.
Immediately afterwards I set to work as usual on my journal
and collections, but they demanded my tent, which, with my
approval, was removed from over my head as I sat at my
tasks. By 4.30 the baggage train had actually moved off
under the guidance of Salim, who shared with 3Ali the mono-
poly of the great secret of the sands. It was still dark, of
course, and the air cold and crisp without wind. Indeed the
conditions were almost wintry again and the thermometer
had registered a TniniTrmm of less than 34°. I continued my
work with a pot of tea to warm me up, while the party
left behind with me huddled over the fire drinking cofiee till
prayer-time, when they wrapped themselves in their mantles
to sleep till sunrise. It was nearly 8 a.m. before we started
and the day remained deliciously cool throughout with a
maximum temperature of 68°. A north wind started lightly