The Land of Foam

V. THE GOLDEN PLAIN

At the foot of a staircase, leading down from a hill at the southern end of the Island of Neb, stood a crowd of slaves chained to huge bronze rings hanging from the granite pillars that rose above the lower terrace. All the hundred and fourteen survivors of the flight were there and another forty Negroes and Nubians with savage faces and bodies criss-crossed with the scars of old wounds. The crowd languished long in the blazing sun waiting to learn their fate.

At last a man in white raiment, with the glitter of gold on his forehead, breast and on his black staff, appeared on the upper landing of the staircase. He walked slowly in the shade of two fans, carried by Nubian soldiers. Several other men, important officials, judging by their clothes, surrounded the Prince. This was Kabuefta, the Prince of the South.

The soldiers quickly drew a cordon around the slaves; a prison scribe, who accompanied the captives, stepped forward and prostrated himself before the Prince.

Kabuefta, calmly, never changing the expression on his immobile face, came down the stairs and advanced right up to the slaves. He cast a rapid, contemptuous glance over all those present. Turning to one of the officials he said something in careless tones, although there was a slight note of approval in his voice. The Prince of the South struck the ground with his staff, its bronze ferrule rang sharply on the stone pavement.

“All of you look at me and listen! Let those who do not understand the language of Quemt be led aside; they will get an explanation later.”

The soldiers hurriedly obeyed the order, taking away fifteen Negroes who did not understand the language.

Kabuefta spoke loudly and slowly, in the language of the people, carefully selecting his words. It was obvious that the Prince of the South frequently had occasion to speak to foreigners.

The Prince explained to the slaves-the matter in hand; he did not try to hide the fact that it meant death for many of them, but he promised liberty to the survivors. The majority of the captives expressed their agreement in exclamations of approval, the remainder kept a sullen silence, but nobody refused.

“Het!” continued Kabuefta, “so let it be.” Again his glance swept over the lean and dirty bodies. “I’ll order that you be fed nourishing food and are given an opportunity to bathe. The journey through the five cataracts of the Hapi is a hard one, it will be easier to travel in light boats. I will give orders for you to be freed if you swear you will make no attempt to escape…” Cries of joy interrupted his speech. He waited until they subsided and then continued: “In addition to the oath I give the following order: for every one that runs away ten of his best comrades will be flayed, sprinkled with salt and cast bound on to the sandy banks of the Land of Nub. Those who show cowardice when tackling the animal and run away will be subjected to horrible tortures; I have warned the inhabitants of the Land of Nub and under threat of punishment they will track down all runaways.”

The end of the Prince’s speech met with morose silence which Kabuefta paid no attention to as he again looked over the slaves. His experience helped him make a faultless choice.

“Come here, you,” said the Prince to Cavius. “You will be in charge of the trappers and the mediator between my hunters and your companions.”

Cavius made an unhurried bow to the Prince and his lips curved in a grim smile.

“You are selling us liberty at a high price, O Prince, but we are willing to buy It,” said the Etruscan and turned to his comrades. “The savage beast is no worse than the gold mines, and we have greater hope…”

Kabuefta left them and the slaves were returned to their prison. The Prince of the South kept his promise: the rebels were well fed; they were released from their chains and collars and twice a day were taken down to the Nile to bathe in coves fenced off to keep out the crocodiles. Two days later a hundred and fifty-four slaves were joined to a detachment of soldiers and hunters sailing upstream on light boats made of reeds.

The journey was a long one. The inhabitants of the Black Land reckoned four million cubits from the Gates of the South to the Sixth Cataract of the Nile. The river flowed almost in a straight line through Wawat and Yer-thet but in the Land of Kush, situated higher upstream, it made two wide bends, one to the west and the other to the east. (Kush — the name given by Egyptian geographers to the part of the Nile Valley between the Second and Fifth Cataracts; it included the ancient lands of Jam and Karoi. Yerthet was the province south of the Second Cataract, Wawat between the First and Second.)

The Lord of the Hunt was in a hurry: the journey would take two months; in nine weeks time the water would begin to rise and it would be more difficult to work their way upstream when the speed of the current increased. Then, again, it would only be possible to bring the huge animal in a heavy boat over the cataracts when the floods were at their highest. There would be but little time for the return journey.

Throughout the long journey the slaves were well fed and they felt strong and healthy, despite the hard work they did every day rowing the boats against a current that was especially swift at the cataracts.

They did not worry much about the hunt, that was still before them, since every man was certain that he would survive and gain his freedom. The contrast between the wild unknown lands through which they passed and the period of waiting in a black hole in anticipation of brutal punishment was too great for them. And the men now full of life and strong in mind and body worked with a will. The Lord of the Hunt was pleased with them and did not grudge them food — it was provided by all the towns and villages that lay on their way.

Immediately on leaving the Island of Neb, Pandion and his comrades saw the First Cataract of the Nile. The river was squeezed between rocky cliffs and its swift current broke into separate streams of seething white water, that roared and raged down the slope amongst a tangled mass of black rocks. Hundreds of years before Pandion’s time many thousands of slaves, working under the guidance of Tha-Quem’s most skilled engineers, had built canals through the granite rocks so that even the big warships could pass the cataract easily. The light boats of the hunting expedition did not find any great difficulty in passing the first or any of the other cataracts. The slaves stood up to the waist in water,’ pushing the light boats from one rock to another. Sometimes they had to carry the boats on their shoulders along convenient ledges cut on the banks by the floodwaters. Day after day the hunters made their way farther and farther southwards.

They passed a temple hewn out of living rock on the left bank of the — river. Pandion’s attention was drawn to four gigantic figures, each about thirty cubits high, standing in a niche. These gigantic statues of the conqueror, Pharaoh Ramses II, seemed to guard the entrance to the temple.

The expedition passed the Second Cataract which stretched the length of a whole day’s journey. Still higher up the river they came to the Island of Uronartu with the rapids of Semne; a fortress had been built there nine centuries before on water-eroded granite cliffs by the Pharaoh who conquered Nubia and had been given the name of “Repulse of the Savages.” (Senusret III (the legendary Sesostris) 1887–1849 B.C., a Pharaoh of the Xllth Dynasty (2000–1788), famous for his huge building works.)

The thick walls, twenty cubits high and built of sunbaked brick, were still in an excellent state of preservation; they were thoroughly overhauled every thirty years. On the cliffs there were stone tablets with inscriptions forbidding the Negroes to enter the Land of Tha-Quem.

The gloomy grey fortress with square turrets at the corners and several other turrets facing the river, with narrow staircases leading from the river through the rocks, rose high above the surrounding country, a symbol of the proud might of Quemt. None of the slaves, however, suspected that the great days of mighty Quemt were past, that a country that had been built up by the labour of countless slaves was being rent asunder by constant rebellions and that she was threatened by the growing strength of new peoples.

On their way they passed four other fortresses standing on rocky islands or cliffs on the river-bank. The boats then rounded an ox-bow in the river in the centre of which was situated the town of Hem-Aton, that had been built by the same heretic Pharaoh who had built the capital city amongst the ruins of which Pandion had found the statue of the mysterious girl. The inhabitants of the town were Egyptians who had either been exiled or had fled from the Black Land in times long past. At the end of the ox-bow the river turned at right angles, forced into its new course by high cliffs of dark sandstone. Here began the third narrow stretch of swift-flowing water almost a hundred thousand cubits in length which took the hunters four days to pass.

The fourth stretch of the Nile, above the city of Napata, capital of the kings of Nub, was still longer — it took five days to navigate it. A further delay of two days was caused by negotiations between the Lord of the Hunt and the rulers of Kush. At the Fourth Cataract the hunters were overtaken by three boats carrying Nubians, who were sent ahead to locate the rhinoceros.

Riverside settlements were fewer and farther apart than in Tha-Quem. The valley itself was much narrower and the cliffs that bounded the desert plateaux could be clearly discerned through the heat haze. Hundreds of crocodiles, some of them of enormous size, hid in the reed thickets or lay on the sand-banks exposing their greenish-black backs to the blazing sun. Several careless slaves and soldiers fell victims to the cunning attacks of the silent reptiles right before the eyes of their comrades.

There were large numbers of hippopotamuses in these waters. Pandion, the Etruscans and other slaves from the northern countries were already familiar with these ugly animals that bore in Egyptian the name of hie. The hippopotamuses did not show any fear of people nor did they attack them without cause so that the slaves were able to pass quite close to them. A large number of blue patches in front of the green wall of rushes ahead of them showed the resting places of the hippopotamuses in the wider parts of the valley, where the river spread into a broad, smooth-surfaced lake. The wet skin of the animals had a bluish tinge. The ungainly monsters watched the boats pass, holding above the water their strange blunt heads, that looked as though the snouts had been chopped off. Very often the animals held their square jowls under the water so that the yellow, muddy stream flowed over the dark mounds of foreheads surmounted by tiny protruding ears. The eyes of the hippopotamuses, situated on bumps on the head and giving them an expression of ferocity, gazed at the passing boats in stupid persistence.

In those places where the granite cliffs rose straight from the river-bed, forming cataracts and rapids, they came across deep holes between the crags filled with unruffled, transparent water. On one occasion, when the men were carrying the boats over a portage that ran along the edge of a granite cliff, they saw a huge hippopotamus walking along the bottom of one of these holes on his short stumpy legs. Under the water the bluish skin of the animal turned a deeper blue. Experienced Negroes explained to their comrades that the Me often walk along the beds of rivers in search of the roots of water-plants.

The river valley changed its direction for the last time — at a big, densely populated and fertile island it turned almost due south and only a short distance divided them from their goal.

The steep banks of the river grew lower, they were cut by wide, dry watercourses in which thick growths of thorny trees occurred. On the journey between the Fourth and Fifth Cataracts two boats overturned and eleven men, all of them poor swimmers, were drowned.

After passing the Fifth Cataract they met the first tributary of the Nile. The wide mouth of the River of Perfumes, a right tributary of the Nile, joined the main stream in an extensive jungle of reeds and papyri. An impassable green wail, up to twenty cubits in height, intersected by the zigzags of streams and backwaters, barred the entrance to the river. The banks of the Nile had now become separate, clearly defined ranges of hills, on which groves of trees were becoming more frequent; their thorny trunks were higher and the long dark ribbons of the groves ran far into the interior of an unknown and unpopulated land. The slopes of the hills bristled with clumps of coarse grass that rustled in the wind. The time was drawing near when they would have to pay for their journey in freedom, without chains and without prisons, and a suppressed alarm filled the hearts of the slaves.

(River of Perfumes — the Atbara, falling into the Nile from the East.)

Soon the terrible trial will begin: some will be saved at the cost of the blood and sufferings of their comrades, others will remain for ever in this unknown land, having made the supreme sacrifice. Such were Cavius’ thoughts as he cast an involuntary glance over his companions, trying to imagine what the future held in store.

As they sailed farther upstream, the country took on the character of a plain. Marshy banks framed the smooth surface of the water in a sharply defined line of dark grass that stretched away inland as far as the eye could reach. The star-shaped brushes of the papyrus plants hung over the river, breaking the monotonous line of the level banks. Grass-covered islets broke the stream into a labyrinth of narrow passages, where the deep water lay dark and mysterious between the green walls. In places where there was hard ground on the banks the travellers saw large patches of cracked, sun-baked clay bearing the footprints of many animals. Birds that looked like storks but were the height of a man amazed the slaves by their monstrous beaks. It looked to them as if the birds’ heads were surmounted by huge chests with the edges of the lids turned upwards. The monsters’ evil yellow eyes gleamed from under pendent orbits.

After passing the point where the River of Perfumes entered the Nile, they journeyed for two days along a stretch of the river straight as a spear-shaft until they saw the faint smoke of two signal fires on a ledge of the bank. Here they were awaited by the hunters and Nubian guides who had gone ahead; the signal told them that the beast had been found. That night a hundred and forty slaves escorted by ninety soldiers marched westwards from the river. Warm, heavy rain poured down on the heated soil. The humidity made the men dizzy, for they had long forgotten what rain was like under the permanently cloudless sky of Tha-Quem.

The hunters marched through coarse grass that grew waist-high, occasionally passing the black silhouettes of trees. Hyenas and jackals howled and barked on all sides, wild cats rent the air with their loud mewing and the raucous voices of night birds, calling to each other, had a particularly ominous sound. A new country, mysterious and indefinite in the darkness, opened up before the dwellers of Asia and the Northern Shores, a country teeming with life independent of man and unsubdued by him.

Ahead of them appeared a huge tree whose gigantic crown covered half the sky; its trunk was thicker than any of the big obelisks of the Black Land. The people made camp under this tree and there spent the night that was to be the last for many of them. Pandion could not get to sleep for a long time — he was excited by thoughts of the coming tight and lay listening to the sounds of the African plain lands.

Cavius sat by the camp-fire discussing plans of action for the next day with the hunters; then he, too, lay down with a heavy sigh as he looked over the restlessly dozing or sleepless figures of his comrades. He could not understand the carefree attitude of Kidogo who was calmly sleeping between Pandion and Remdus — throughout the journey the four friends had kept together. The Negro’s unconcern seemed to him the very highest degree of bravery which even he, a soldier who had many times faced death, could not lay claim to.

Morning came and the slaves were divided into three groups each headed by five hunters and two local guides. Every slave was provided with a long rope or thong with a noose at the end. Four men in each party carried a big net made of especially strong ropes, the mesh of which was a cubit across. Their task was to catch the monster with the ropes, entangle him in the nets and then bind his feet.

In complete silence they set out across the plain, each group at some distance from the others. The soldiers stretched out in a long line, arrows held to their bows as they did not trust the slaves. Before Pandion and his comrades stretched a level plain overgrown with grass more than waist high and dotted here and there by trees with umbrella-shaped crowns. (The African acacia and certain varieties of mimosa.)Their grey trunks spread out into branches almost from the roots, forming a huge funnel so that the trees looked like inverted cones while their transparent, dull green foliage seemed to be floating in the air.

Between the trees there were dark patches of tall, small-leaved shrubs, at times stretching along the scarcely perceptible depression of a temporary watercourse and at other times visible from the distance as a shapeless dark mass. Occasionally they came across trees with trunks of enormous thickness whose huge gnarled and knotted branches were covered with young leaves and bunches of white flowers. These massive trees stood out sharply in the plain, their far-spreading crowns casting huge patches of black shadow. Their fibrous bark had a metallic hue that looked like lead; their branches seemed to be cast from copper and the aroma spread by their flowers resembled that of almonds.

The sun turned the scarcely moving, coarse grass to gold over which the green lacework of the trees seemed to be floating in the air.

A row of black thin spears appeared above the grass — a group of antelopes — the oryx — showed their horns and disappeared behind a line of bushes. The grass was still rather scanty, patches of bare, cracked earth showed on all sides since the rains had only just begun. On their left appeared a grove of trees whose feather-like leaves resembled palms but their trunks opened out into two branches at the top, like the spread fingers of a hand, and on these, in turn, other branches grew.

(The baobab — a tree typical of the African savanna.)

It was here that the hunters had seen the rhinoceroses on the previous day and, making a sign to the slaves to stay where they were, crawled cautiously towards the grove, and peered amongst the trees where it was dark after the bright sunlight outside. There were no animals there and the hunters led the slaves towards a dry watercourse densely overgrown with bushes. Here there was a spring which the rhinoceroses had turned into a mud-hole where they lay during the hottest hours of the day. The hunters came to an open space around which were three of the big umbrella-headed acacias. They were still about two thousand cubits from the dry watercourse when one of the Nubian guides at the head of the party stopped and threw out his arms in a signal to halt. It became so silent that the humming of insects could be plainly heard. Kidogo touched Pandion on the shoulder — he pointed to one side where Pandion saw something under the low, thorny trees that looked like two smooth blocks of stone. These were the awe-inspiring animals of the southern plains. At first the animals did not notice the hunters and continued lying on the ground with their backs towards them. The animals did not seem very big to Pandion, and one of them, a female, was much smaller than the other. The slaves did not know that the hunters, hoping for a generous reward, had picked out an exceptionally large male rhinoceros of the light-skinned variety* that was much bigger than its southern relatives, was higher in the shoulder, had a wide square jowl and light grey skin. The hunters decided to change the plan of attack so that the female would not intervene and spoil the hunt.

(In former times the white rhinoceros was considerably more common in Northern Sudan.)

The Lord of the Hunt and the Captain of the escort troops climbed up a tree, cursing the long thorns on its trunk. The soldiers hid behind bushes. The slaves joined forces in a single group, spread out in several lines and, together with the hunters, rushed across the open plain with deafening shouts, waving their ropes and giving themselves courage by shouting their war-cries. The two animals jumped to their feet with amazing speed. The huge male stood still for a second, his eyes fixed on the people approaching him, but the female, more frightened than he, ran away to one side. This was what the hunters had counted on and they ran swiftly away to the right to cut her off from her companion.

From the tree-top the Lord of the Hunt could see the gigantic body of the immobile rhinoceros, the black curve of ears peeked forward and separated by the high hill-like crown of the animal’s head. Behind his ears rose the high hump of its massive withers and in front of them gleamed the sharp end of its horn. It seemed to the Egyptian that the animal’s tiny eyes were looking down at the ground with a stupid and even offended look in them.

A minute later the rhinoceros turned and the Egyptian saw its long head, awkwardly curved in the middle, the steep slope of its withers, the ridge of bones protruding on its rump, its legs as thick as tree-trunks and its little tail sticking up in a warlike manner.

The huge shining horn, no less than two cubits long, situated on the animal’s nose, was very thick at the root and sharply pointed at the tip. Behind it was another horn, smaller than the first, also sharp, with a round wide base..

The hearts of the people running towards the rhinoceros beat furiously — close at hand it seemed a most fearful monster. The gigantic body was no less than eight cubits in length and its powerful withers towered a good four cubits above the ground. The rhinoceros snorted so loudly that every man heard it and then hurled itself at the oncoming people. With an agility unbelievable in so great a body the massive animal was an instant later in the middle of the crowd. Nobody had time to lift a rope. Pandion found himself some distance from the massive animal that rushed past like a whirlwind. He just had time to notice the animal’s distended nostrils surrounded by folds of skin, a torn right ear and flanks covered with little hillocks like growths of lichen. After that everything was mixed up in Pandion’s head. A shrill scream rang out across the plain, an awkwardly twisted human figure flew through the air. The rhinoceros made a wide path through the crowd of slaves and dashed past them into the open plain, leaving several prostrated bodies behind him, turned, and again hurled himself at the unfortunate people. This time human figures hung on to the rapidly moving mass of flesh. But the monster was made up of solid muscles and thick bones and clothed in a skin as hard as armour-plating and the men flew off in different directions. Again the rhinoceros began stamping the doomed slaves underfoot, crushing them and goring them with its horn. Pandion, who had run forward together with the others, was stopped by a dull, heavy blow and found himself on all fours. Wailing groans and piercing shrieks swept across the field and the air was filled with clouds of dust. The Lord of the Hunt, who had been shouting from his tree-top to encourage the slaves, was now silent as he looked in confusion at the battle. Not a single rope had been fastened to the animal and already some thirty men lay dead or wounded. The soldiers, pale and trembling, took cover behind the trees, praying to the gods of Tha-Quem for salvation. For the third time the rhinoceros attacked the people and although they gave way before him he managed to gore Remdus, the younger Etruscan, with his horn. With abrupt snorts the animal dashed furiously amongst the people, goring them and trampling them underfoot. Foam flew from the animal’s nostrils; his tiny eyes gleamed with rage.

With a furious howl Cavius hurled himself at the monster but his rope slipped off the horn; the Etruscan himself flew aside, bleeding — the rough hide of the rhinoceros had torn the skin from his shoulder and chest.

Cavius got to his feet with difficulty, roaring in helpless fury. Scared by the strength of the rhinoceros the people staggered back from him, the less brave of them Sliding behind the backs of their comrades.

It seemed that little more was required to make them scatter in all directions, abandoning their hopes of liberty.

Again the rhinoceros turned to attack the people, again the air was filled with howls. Kidogo stepped forward. The Negro’s nostrils were distended; he was filled with that fire of battle that is born of mortal d-anger when a man forgets everything except the necessity to fight, to fight for life. Leaping aside from the awful horn that threatened certain death, Kidogo ran after the animal and seized hold of its tail. Pandion, recovering from the terrible shaking he had received, picked up a net that was lying on the ground. At that moment he realized that he should be ahead of his comrades whose bodies had shielded him when he lay stupefied on the grass. Some faint memories flitted through his mind — the glade in Crete, the dangerous games with the bull. The rhinoceros was not much like a bull, but Pandion decided to use the same methods. Throwing the rolled-up net over his shoulder, he rushed at the rhinoceros. The animal had come to a halt, was pawing the ground with its hind-legs, churning up clouds of dust, and had thrown Kidogo far away. Two Libyans, understanding Pandion’s plan, attracted the animal’s attention to one side and, with a single bound, he reached the animal and pressed closely to its side. The rhinoceros turned like lightning, its rough hide tearing Pandion’s skin. Pandion felt a terrific pain, but, forgetting all else, hung on to the animal’s ear. In the way he had seen it done in Crete, Pandion threw his body across that of the animal and landed on his broad back. The rhinoceros twisted and turned. Pandion hung on for all he was worth. If I can only hold on, was” the one thought that repeated itself in his brain.

And Pandion held on for the number of seconds necessary to throw the net over the animal’s head. The horns protruded through the mesh of the net and Pandion was filled with wild joy, but instantly he became blind to his surroundings and lost consciousness. Something cracked, a heavy weight fell on him and everything went dark before his eyes.

In the heat of battle Pandion had not noticed that Kidogo had again caught hold of the animal’s tail and that ten Libyans and six Amu had seized the net he had flung over the animal’s head. In his effort to throw off ‘the people the rhinoceros had rolled over on to one side breaking the arm and collar-bone of the young Hellene who fell heavily to the ground. The people took immediate advantage of the monster’s fall. With loud shouts the slaves fell on the rhinoceros, a second net enveloped its head and two nooses were made fast on a hind-leg and one on a foreleg.. The animal’s snorting developed into a deep roar; it rolled over on to the left side, then on to its back, crushing people’s bones under its heavy weight. It seemed that there was no limit to the animal’s strength. Six times it rose to its feet, got mixed up in the ropes and rolled over on to its back again, killing more than fifty men. Still the ropes and thongs on its legs increased in number and the hunters drew’ the strong nooses tight. Three nets enveloped the animal from head to foot. Soon a crowd of people, bleeding, sweating and covered in dirt, lay on the madly struggling rhinoceros. The animal’s hide, covered with human blood, ‘had become slippery, the men’s crooked fingers would not hold, but still the ropes were drawn tighter and tighter. Even those who had been crushed by the animal’s heavy weight in its last effort to free itself clung to the ropes with the rigid grip of death. ‘

The hunters came up to the recumbent animal with fresh ropes, bound all four tree-like legs and tied its head to its forelegs by ropes passed behind the horn.

The terrible battle was over.

The panic-stricken people gradually came to their senses; the muscles of their lacerated bodies began to twitch as though they were in a fever and black patches floated before their unseeing eyes.

At last the frantically beating hearts grew calmer; here and there sighs of relief were to be heard, for the people had begun to realize that death had passed them by. Cavius, covered with bloody mud, rose staggering to his feet; Kidogo, trembling all over, but already smiling, came up to him. The smile, however, immediately left the Negro’s greying face when he found that Pandion was not amongst the living.

Seventy-three men had survived, the remainder had either been killed or had received mortal wounds. The Etruscan and Kidogo sought for Pandion amongst the dead in the down-trodden grass, found his body and carried it into the shade. Cavius examined him carefully but could not find any mortal injuries. Remdus was dead; the fiery leader of the Amu had also perished and the brave Libyan Akhmi, his chest crushed, lay dying.

While the slaves were counting their losses and carrying the dying to the shade of the trees, the soldiers brought a huge wooden platform from the river — the bottom of the cage that had been prepared for the rhinoceros; they rolled the body of the bound monster on to it and dragged it to the river on rollers.

Cavius went up to the Lord of the Hunt.

“Order them to help us carry away the wounded,” he said, pointing to the soldiers.

“What do you want to do with them?” asked the Lord of the Hunt, looking with involuntary admiration at the mighty Etruscan, smeared with blood and dust, whose face was all stern grief.

“We’ll take them back down the river: perhaps some of them will live as far as Tha-Quem and its skilled physicians,” answered Cavius, gloomily.

“Who told you that you will return to Tha-Quem?” the Lord of the Hunt interrupted him.

The Etruscan shuddered and stepped back a pace.

“Was the Prince of the South lying to us, then? Are we not free?” shouted Cavius.

“No, the Prince did not lie to you, despised one — you are free!” With these words the Lord of the Hunt held but a small papyrus scroll to the Etruscan. “Here’s his ordinance.”

With great care Cavius took the precious document that made free men of the slaves…

“If that’s so, then why…” he began.

“Be silent,” snapped the Lord of the Hunt haughtily, “and listen to me. You’re free here,” the Lord of the Hunt stressed the last word. “You may go wherever you please — there, there and there,” his hand pointed to the west, east and south, “but not to Tha-Quem or to Nub that is under our rule. If you disobey you’ll again become slaves. I presume,” he added in brutal tones, “that when you’ve thought matters over you’ll return and fall to the feet of our ruler and suffer what fate has predestined for you as servants of the Chosen ‘People of the Black Land.”

Cavius took two steps forward. His eyes gleamed. He stretched out his hand to one of the soldiers who was looking in perplexity at the Lord of the Hunt, and with a bold gesture pulled the short sword from his belt. The Etruscan raised the flashing weapon point upwards, kissed it and spoke quickly in his own language, which nobody could understand.

“I swear by the Supreme God of Lightning, I swear by the God of Death whose name I bear, that despite all the evil deeds of this accursed people I will return alive to the land of my birth. I swear that from this hour I shall not rest until I sail to the shores of Tha-Quem with a strong army to take payment in full for all the evil that has been done.”

Cavius waved his hand over the field where the bodies lay scattered and then with great force hurled the sword to his feet. The sword sank deep into the earth. The Etruscan turned sharply round and walked off towards his comrades but suddenly turned back.

“I ask you only one thing,” he said to the Lord of the Hunt who was going off with the last of the soldiers. “Order them to leave us a few spears, knives and bows. We have to protect our wounded.”

The Lord of the Hunt nodded his head without speaking and disappeared behind the bushes, making his way to the river by the broad path made by the platform on which the rhinoceros had been dragged away.

Cavius told his comrades what had been said. Cries of wrath, muttered curses and helpless threats mingled with the plaintive moans of the dying.

“We’ll think about what we’re going to do later on,” shouted Cavius. “The first thing we have to decide is what to do with the wounded. It’s a long way to the river, we’re tired and can’t carry them that far. Let us rest a little and then fifty men can go to the river and twenty will remain here on guard — there are many wild beasts about.” Cavius pointed to the spotted backs of hyenas flashing through the long grass, attracted by the smell of blood. Huge birds with long, bare necks circled round the field, landed and then flew off again.

The dry earth, burned by the sun, gave off waves of heat, the network of sunspots under the trees trembled very slightly and the cries of wild doves sounded mournful in the hot silence. The fever of battle had passed, wounds and knocks were beginning to ache, grazed skin began to burn and fester.

The death of Remdus had been a heavy blow to Cavius — the youngster had been the one link with the Etruscan’s distant homeland. Now that link was broken.

Kidogo, forgetting his own wounds, sat over Pandion. The young Hellene had apparently received some internal injury and did not return to consciousness. He was breathing, however, his breath coming through his parched lips in a scarcely audible whistle. Several times Kidogo looked at his comrades lying in the shade, then jumped to his feet and called for volunteers to go to the river for water for the wounded.

Groaning involuntarily, the men rose to their feet. Immediately they felt an intolerable thirst that stung and burned their throats. If they, the survivors, were so much in need of water, what must be the sufferings of the wounded who were silent only because they had not strength enough to groan. It was no less than two hours fast walking to the river if they went in a straight line.

Suddenly the sound of voices came from beyond the bushes — a party of soldiers, about fifty of them, carrying vessels with water and food, appeared in the glade. There were no Egyptians amongst them, only Nubians and Negroes had come, led by two guides.

The soldiers stopped talking as soon as they saw the battlefield. They made their way to the tree under which Cavius was standing and, without a word, placed at his feet earthen and wooden vessels, a dozen spears, six bows with full quivers, four heavy knives and four small hippopotamus-hide shields studded with brass plates. The thirsty men threw themselves madly at the water jars. Kidogo seized one of the heavy knives and said he would kill anybody who touched the water. They began hurriedly pouring water from two of the vessels into the parched mouths of the wounded after which the others were allowed to drink. The soldiers went away without saying a single word.

Amongst the slaves there were two men skilled in the treatment of wounds and they, together with Cavius, set about bandaging their comrades’ injuries. Pandion’s broken bones were set and put in splints of hard bark and bound with strips torn from his own loin-cloth. When he removed Pandion’s loin-cloth, Kidogo saw the brightly shining stone that was hidden in the folds of the cloth. The Negro hid it carefully, believing it to be a magic amulet.

Two other wounded had to be put in splints, one of them a Libyan with a broken arm, and the other a slim, muscular Negro, who lay helpless with his leg broken below the knee. The condition of the others was apparently hopeless, since the terrible horn of the rhinoceros had gored them deeply, injuring them internally. Some of them had been crushed under the tremendous weight of the animal or under its tree-trunk legs.

Before Cavius had time enough to treat all the wounded, the dark silhouette of a man hurrying towards the scene of the battle appeared in the yellow grass. This was one of those local inhabitants who had guided the soldiers with the food arid water and had now returned of his own accord.

Breathing heavily from the exertion of his rapid journey he approached Cavius with his hands outstretched, palms upwards. The Etruscan recognized this as a sign of friendship and answered with the same gesture. The guide then squatted on his heels in the shade of the tree and, leaning on his long spear, began to talk rapidly, pointing towards the river and to the south. His listeners, however, were at a loss: the Nubian did not know more than ten words of the language of Tha-Quem while Cavius did not understand a single word of what the Nubian was saying. Amongst the slaves, however, they found interpreters.

It turned out that the guide had dropped back from the party of soldiers and had returned in order to help the slaves find their way. The Nubian told them that the liberated slaves were driven out of the districts subordinate to Tha-Quem so that it would be dangerous for them to return to the river — they might be enslaved again. The guide advised Cavius to journey to the west where they would soon come to a big, dry valley. They must travel southwards through this valley for four days until they met peaceful nomad herdsmen.

“You will give them this,” said the Nubian, taking out of a sheet, that was thrown across his shoulder, a kind of symbol made of red twigs, bent and plaited into a special shape, “then they will receive you hospitably and will give you asses to carry the wounded. Still farther to the south is the country of a rich and peaceful people, who hate Quemt. There the wounded can be healed. The farther you go to the south the more water you will find and the rains will be more frequent. You will always find water in the dry watercourse that you will follow if you dig a hole two cubits deep…”

The Nubian rose to his feet, in a hurry to go; Cavius wanted to thank him but suddenly they were approached by one of the Asian slaves with a long, tangled and dirty beard and a mass of uncombed hair on his head.

“Why do you advise us to go to the west and the south? Our home’s there.” And the Asian pointed to the east, in the direction of the river.

The Nubian stared fixedly at the speaker and then answered slowly, pausing after each word:

“If you cross the river, you will find a waterless stony desert in the east. If you cross the desert and the high mountains, you will reach the shores of the sea where Tha-Quem rules. If you are able to cross the sea, on the other side, it is said, there is a desert still more terrible. In the mountains and along the River of Perfumes there live tribes that provide slaves for Tha-Quem in exchange for weapons. Think it over for yourself!”

“Is there no road to the north?” asked one of the Libyans in wheedling tones.

“Two days journey to the north begins an endless desert: at first it is dry clay and stones and beyond them there is sand. How will you go that way and for what? It may be that there are roads and sources of water there, but I do not know them. I have told you of the easiest road, the one I know well…” Indicating with a gesture that the talk was at an end the Nubian left the shade of the tree.

Cavius followed him, placed his arm round his shoulders and began to thank him, mixing Egyptian and Etruscan words; then he called an interpreter.

“I have nothing I can give, I have nothing myself except..” the Etruscan touched his dirty loin-cloth, “… but I shall always keep you in my heart.”

“I want no payment for my help, I, too, follow the dictates of my heart,” answered the Nubian with a smile. “Who of us that have known the oppression of Tha-Quem would not help you brave men who have gained your liberty at such a terrible price?! Look here, you take my advice and keep the symbol I gave you… I’ll tell you something else: there’s a water-hole to your right, about two thousand cubits from here, but you had better go away today, before nightfall. Good-bye, bold foreigner, my greetings to your comrades. I must hurry.”

The guide disappeared and Cavius, wrapped in thought, looked long after him.

No, they could not leave today and abandon their dying comrades to be torn to pieces by the hyenas. If there were water nearby that would be all the more reason for staying where they were.

Cavius returned to his comrades who were discussing what was to be done next. Since they had quenched their thirst and eaten, the men had become cooler in their judgement and were carefully weighing up the next move.

It was clear to all of them that it would be impossible to go north — they had to get away from the river as quickly as possible, but opinions were divided on the question of whether to go south or east.

The Asians, who constituted almost a half of the survivors, did not want to go deeper into the Land of the Black People and insisted on travelling eastwards. The Nubians said that in three, weeks they could reach the shores of the narrow sea that divided Nubia from Asia and the Asians were ready to attempt another journey through the desert to get home more quickly.

Cavius had been taken captive during an armed expedition. He had a family in his native land, and he hesitated: the possibility of a speedy return home was very tempting. His shortest way would be through Quemt, floating downstream in a boat until they reached the sea; but as an experienced soldier, who had spent much of his life wandering, he realized that a small group of people, lost in a strange land, especially in a desert, where every water-hole was known, could only survive by a miracle. So far the Etruscan had not met with any miracles in his life and did not have much faith in them.:

Kidogo, who had left Pandion in order to take part in the, council, now put in his word. It turned out that Kidogo was the son of a potter and came from a rich and numerous tribe living on the seacoast that forms the western boundary of the Land of the Black People. Here the dry land was indented by a huge bay called the Southern Horn…(The Gulf of Guinea.) Kidogo did not know the road home from Nubia: he had been taken captive on the edge of the Great Desert when he was on his way to Quemt, impelled by a passionate desire to see for himself the miracles of craftsmanship performed in that country. The Negro, however, believed that his homeland could not be very far to the south-west from the scene of the recent battle. Kidogo assured the others that they could learn the right road from that tribe to which the Nubian guide had advised them to go. Kidogo promised hospitality to all his comrades if they reached the country where his people lived; he then told Cavius that in his childhood he had heard that people like him and Pandion had sailed from the northern seas to visit his country. After Cavius had weighed everything up he advised his comrades to take the advice of the Nubian guide and journey to the south, for Kidogo’s words made the unknown Land of the Black People seem less hostile to him. The sea there was free, was not under the rule of the hated Tha-Quem and would provide the road by which they could return to their homes. The Etruscan trusted the sea more than he did the desert. The Asians protested and would not agree but the Libyans supported Cavius, to say nothing of the Negroes — all of them were prepared to journey to the south and the west: there lay the road to their homes.

The Asians maintained that they did not know how the nomads would treat them, and especially how they would be received by that numerous tribe the guide had spoken of; they said that the symbol the guide had given Cavius might be a trap and that they would again be made slaves.

It was then that the Negro who lay with a broken leg attracted attention to himself by snouts and gestures. Hurriedly, swallowing his words and spluttering, he said something, trying to smile and frequently beating his breast. From that impassioned speech, from that flood of unknown words, Cavius understood that the Negro came from that tribe the guide advised them to try to reach with the aid of the nomad herdsmen, and that he was avowing the peacefulness of his people. Then Cavius made his decision and took the side of the Negroes and Libyans; he spoke against the Asians who continued to insist on their plan. The sun was already sinking and they had to think about water and a bivouac for the night, so Cavius advised them to wait until morning. Although they all wanted to get away from that terrible glade, strewn with their dead, they had to stay there in order not to cause the dying unnecessary suffering by-moving them. Ten men went to the water-hole indicated by the Nubian and returned with jars full of warm, brackish water that smelled of clay. On the advice of the Negroes a fence of thorn branches was built between the trees to ward off the attacks of the hyenas. On the side facing the glade, three fires were built. Three men remained to watch the wounded and ten men with spears sat by the fires. In those parts night falls quickly. The clouds were still visible in the west when, from the north and the east, there came rolling a wave of darkness, that drowned the tops of the trees, lighting the countless lamps of the stars above them. Very soon Cavius, who was unacquainted with southern countries, understood why the guide had advised them to leave this place as soon as possible. The howling of the jackals filled the air and from all sides came the hysterical laughing of the hyenas. It seemed that hundreds of the animals had come running from all directions to devour not only the dead but the living as well. There was a fearful racket on the glade, grunting, the cracking of bones and sounds of gnawing. The sickly-sweet smell of bodies decomposing in the heat spread rapidly over the earth.

The men shouted, threw clots of earth and stones, ran out with flaming brands, but it was all in vain — the number of carrion seekers steadily increased.

Suddenly a dull rattling sound came from beyond the thorn barrier followed by a thunderous roar that seemed to roll along the ground and shake the earth. The animals feeding on the glade fell silent. The men who had been sleeping awoke and jumped to their feet; in the silence that ensued the wounded groaned more loudly. The roar drew nearer to them, a low sound of terrible strength that seemed to come from a huge trumpet. An indistinct silhouette with a huge head appeared beside the end tree — an enormous lion was approaching the frightened men and behind it slunk the sinuous shape of a lioness. Spears were turned in the direction of the animals, their bronze tips shining faintly in the dull flames of the fires. At the risk of firing the dry grass the men shouted and threw burning brands at the lions. The stupefied animals stopped in their tracks, then ran off to the glade. The men stood with their spears ready, for — a long time, but the lions did not attack.

Those whose turn it was to rest had not had time to fall asleep before the air was again rent by the thunderous roar of a lion, followed by a second and a third. No less than three lions were wandering round the camp and the lioness, who had appeared earlier, made a fourth. The men realized that the low, carelessly built barrier was unpardonable neglect on their part. Four men with spears stood ready to repel any possible attack from behind, while the six other spearmen remained standing by the fires. Nobody slept any more. The men armed themselves with whatever they could and sat or stood staring into the darkness. Another roar rent the air and an enormous lion with a sand-coloured mane appeared near the end fire. The flickering flames of the fire made the huge beast seem still bigger and his eyes, fixed on the people, radiated a green gleam. By sheer bad luck one of the northern Asians, inexperienced in hunting, stood nearby with a bow. Frightened by the animal’s roar, he sent an arrow straight into its face. The roar broke off with a drawn-out moan, that turned to a hoarse cough and then ceased.

“Look out!” came the desperate cry of one of the Nubians.

The lion’s body whirled through the air; with a single bound the animal crossed the line of fires and landed between the people. It was not easy to cause confusion amongst the conquerors of the white rhinoceros — spears stopped the lion, biting into his flanks and chest while four arrows pierced his sinuous body. Two spear-shafts broke with a dry crack under the heavy blows of the lion’s paws and at that moment three tall Negroes, projecting themselves with round shields, thrust their heavy knives into the beast’s chest… The lion howled long and plaintively and the _men, covered with his blood, jumped back.

A momentary silence was broken by deafening shouts of victory that rolled across the plain. The body of the dead lion was thrown down in front of the fires and the men set about binding the injuries of two freshly wounded, who were still trembling with the fever of battle.

The lions wandered round the encampment until sunrise, roaring furiously from time to time, but they made no further attacks.

With the dawn of a new day, that came with blinding suddenness, five of the badly wounded men died. Another seven were found to have died during the night — in the excitement of the scuffle with the lion nobody had noticed when it occurred. Akhnii was still breathing, his grey lips moving faintly from time to time.

Pandion lay with his eyes open, his breast rose and fell with calm, regular breathing. Kidogo bent over him and was horrified to discover that his friend could not see him. But when he brought water Pandion drank it immediately and slowly closed his eyes.

After a breakfast from the remnants of yesterday’s food Cavius proposed to start out. The Asians had come to an agreement amongst themselves during the night and objected. They shouted that in a country where there were so many beasts of prey they must inevitably perish; they must hurry to escape from this diabolical plain and the desert was safer and better known to them. No matter how much Cavius and the Negroes tried to persuade them they remained resolute.

“Very well, do as you please,” said the Etruscan with determination. “I’m going south with Kidogo. Let those who want to go with us come here, those who want to go east, over there to the left.”

A group of black and bronze-coloured bodies immediately formed around the Etruscan — the Negroes, Libyans and Nubians were with him, altogether thirty-seven men, not counting Pandion and the Negro with the broken leg who had raised himself on one elbow and was listening intently to what was going on.

Thirty-two men went to the left and stood with their heads stubbornly bowed.

The weapons and vessels for water were divided equally between the two groups so that the Asians would not be able to blame their comrades for a possible failure.

As soon as the things had been shared out, the long-bearded leader of the Asians led his people away to the east, towards the river, as though their affection for their comrades might shake their determination. Those who remained stood for a long time looking after those who had parted from them on the threshold of liberty, then with sighs of sadness set about their own affairs.

Cavius and Kidogo examined Pandion and the wounded Negro and carried them over to another thin-branched tree. When they tried to lift Akhmi, a howl escaped the Libyan’s throat and the last breath of life left the body of that bold fighter for freedom.

Cavius advised the Libyans to lift the dead man on to a tree and tie him securely with ropes. This was immediately done although they knew that the body would be torn to pieces by carrion birds; nevertheless it seemed less repulsive than leaving him as food for the foul hyenas.

In silence, without a single word, Cavius and Kidogo cut a number of branches.

“What are you doing?” asked one of the tall Negroes, approaching the Etruscan.

“Litters. Kidogo and I will carry him.” Cavius pointed to Pandion. “And you will carry him,” he pointed to the Negro with his leg in splints. “The Libyan will be able to walk without help with his arm in a sling.”

“We’ll all carry the man who was the first to jump on to the rhinoceros,” answered the Negro, turning to his companions. “That brave man saved us all. How can we forget it? Wait a bit, we can make better litters.”

Four Negroes set to work with great skill making litters. They were soon ready — the many ropes left lying on the scene of the battle with the rhinoceros were plaited between long poles which were kept rigid by double struts’ between them. In the centre of the struts they placed little cushions made of hard bark and covered with a piece of lion’s skin. The Negro with the broken leg watched them at work, smiling joyously, his dark eyes filled with an expression of loyalty.

The wounded men were placed on the litters and everything was ready for the departure. The Negroes stood in pairs by the litters, lifted them high to the full length of their arms, and fixed the little cushions firmly on their heads. The litter-bearers started out first, marching easily and in step.

Thus it was that Pandion set out on his journey without having recovered consciousness. Two Nubians and a Negro, armed with spears and a bow, undertook to act as guides; they went ahead and the other thirty men followed in single file behind the litters. The end of the procession was brought up by another three armed men, two with spears and one with a bow. The travellers passed round the edge of the open glade westwards, trying not to look at the remains of their comrades and carrying with them a bitter memory of guilt at not having been able to shield them from the nocturnal depredations of the carrion eaters.

Shortly after their midday halt they reached a wide dry watercourse that even from a distance was visible on account of the lines of bushes that edged it and stood out clearly against the yellow grass of the plain.

The watercourse took them due south and they continued without further halts until sundown. That day they did not have to dig for water — a small spring sent its waters to the surface through a crack between two blocks of coarse-grained, friable stone; but they had to work hard preparing their camp and encircling it with a wall of thorn-bushes. That night they all slept soundly, not in the least troubled by the distant roars of lions and hyenas prowling in the darkness.

The second and third days passed quietly. Only once did they see the black mass of a rhinoceros plodding through the grass with lowered head. In their confusion the men stood still — their recent experience was still fresh in their memories. The travellers lay down in the grass. The rhinoceros raised its head and again, as at that terrible moment, they saw its curved ears set wide apart, with the tip of the horn rising between them. The folds of its thick skin encircled its shoulders and hung down in rolls to its heavy legs that were hidden by the grass. The massive animal stood still and then turned and continued on its way in the former direction.

They frequently came across small herds of yellowish-grey antelopes which the hunters brought down with their arrows; they made excellent and tasty food. On the fourth day the watercourse widened out and then disappeared; the yellow clay earth gave way to strange, bright red soil* that covered the crushed granite in a thin layer. Rounded granite hills formed dark patches on that tiresome red plain. The grass had gone, its place was taken by hard leaves that stuck out of the ground like bunches of sharp narrow sword-blades.** The guides made a wide detour of patches of this strange plant with leaves whose edges were as sharp as razors.

(* Laterite — a red, ferrous soil, found in southern countries, the product of the erosion of igneous rocks. ** Sansevieria — a strange plant found in dry laterite deposits)

The red plain spread out in front of them, clouds of dust, all the same size, rose into pillars and shut out the glare of the sun. The heat was overwhelming but the travellers kept going, fearing that this waterless plain might prove very extensive. The watercourse with its subterranean stream of water was far behind them. Who knew when they would find the water that is so essential to man in this country!

From the summit of one of the granite hills they noticed that ahead of them lay a line of something golden — apparently the red soil came to an end there and the grassy plain began again. This proved to be true and shadows had only lengthened by a half after the midday halt when the travellers were already marching over rustling grass, shorter than before, but much thicker. To one side of their road they saw a huge green cloud, that seemed to be floating in the air over the blue-green patch of its own shadow — the mighty “guest tree” was inviting them to rest in the shade of its branches. The guides turned towards the tree. The tired travellers hastened their steps and soon the litters were standing in the shade beside a tree-trunk, that was divided by longitudinal depressions into separate rounded ribs.

A number of the Negroes formed a living ladder up which others climbed to reach the huge branches of the tree. Shouts of triumph from above told the others that they had not been mistaken in their assumptions: the tree-trunk, some fifteen cubits in diameter, was hollow and contained water from the recent rains. The jars were filled with cool dark-coloured water. The Negroes threw down some of the fruits of the tree, long fruits, as big as a man’s head and tapering to a point at each end. Under its thin, hard skin, the fruit contained a floury yellow substance, sour-sweet in taste, that was very refreshing to the dry mouths of the travellers. Kidogo broke open two of the fruits, took out a number of small seeds, crushed and mixed them with a small quantity of water and started feeding Pandion with them.

To the joy of the Negro the young Hellene ate with good appetite and for the first time that day raised his head in an effort to look round (during the march, when he lay on the litter, Pandion’s face was usually kept covered with big leaves plucked from bushes near the water-holes). With an effort Pandion stretched out his hands to Kidogo and his weak fingers pressed the Negro’s hand. But there was something dull and pitiful in the young Hellene’s eyes.

Kidogo was very excited and asked his young friend how he felt, but got no answer. The wounded man’s eyes again closed as though the feeble spark of returning life had tired him beyond all measure. Kidogo left his friend in peace and hurried to tell Cavius the good news. Cavius, who had grown still more morose since the day of the awful battle, went over to the litter and sat down, peering into his friend’s face. By placing his hand on Pandion’s breast he tried to judge the strength of his heart-beats.

While he was sitting by Pandion, one of the Nubians, who had climbed to the top of the tree to survey the surrounding land, let out a loud shout. He called out that far ahead of them, almost on the horizon, he could see the dark lines of fences of thorn-bushes such as the nomad herdsmen build to protect their cattle from predatory animals.

It was decided, to spend the night under the tree and set out at dawn in order to reach the nomad encampment early in the day. By sundown the whole sky was overcast with heavy clouds; the starless night was unusually quiet and dark; the velvet darkness was so intense that they could not see a hand held before the face.

Very soon zigzag shafts of lightning made a ring round the whole sky and peals of thunder came rolling from afar. The lightning flashes grew in number, hundreds of fiery snakes twisted across the sky like the huge dry branches of some gigantic tree. The roar of the thunder deafened them and the lightning blinded those who sought to leave their refuge. From a great distance came a noise that steadily increased to a fierce roar. This was an approaching wall of violent rain. The tree shook as an entire ocean of water poured down from the heavens. Cascades of cool rain beat on the earth with an awful noise and a lake formed around the tree that hid its thick roots. In the light of the solid walls of fire that alternated with absolute darkness it seemed that the whole plain would be flooded by the great mass of rainwater that kept pouring down on it. The flashes of lightning, however, soon stopped, the rain died down and a starlit sky spread over the plain; a slight breeze brought with it the odours of grasses and flowers invisible in the darkness. The Libyans and the Etruscan were dumbfounded at a storm which seemed like a terrible catastrophe to them, but the Negroes laughed gleefully, telling them that it was an ordinary shower, such as are common in the rainy season, and not a very heavy one at that. Cavius could only shake his head, telling himself that if such rains were considered ordinary in these parts they were likely to meet with many strange adventures in the Land of the Black People.

And he guessed right.

Next day their journey was suddenly interrupted by the barking of dogs. Long thorn hedges appeared through the mist, caused by the evaporation of the previous day’s rain-water, and behind the hedges they saw the low huts of the herdsmen.

A crowd of men wearing leather aprons surrounded the travellers. Their high-cheekboned faces were inscrutable, their narrow eyes looked with suspicion at the Egyptian weapons carried by the former slaves. The symbol they had received from the Nubian, however, produced a most favourable impression. Out of the crowd stepped five men wearing black and white feathers, their hair dressed high on their heads and held in place by plaited twigs with green leaves.

The Nubians could understand the language of the nomads and soon the newcomers were seated sipping sour milk within a close circle of listeners. The Nubian slaves told their story. Interrupting each other they jumped up and down in their excitement and their tale was greeted by a chorus of exclamations of astonishment. The feather-bedecked chieftains merely slapped their thighs.

The nomads provided six guides and ten asses to help the strangers on their way. The guides were to take the travellers some seven days journey to the south-west to the big village of a settled tribe that stood on the banks of a river that always contained water.

The litters were remade and fixed to four asses, the other animals carried water, sour milk and hard cheese in strong leather bags. As the men now had no loads to carry, they could make longer journeys, covering no less than a hundred and twenty thousand cubits a day.

Day followed day. The endless plain lay under the broiling sun, at times silent and languid in the heat, at others swept by winds that made the grass billow like the waves of the sea. The travellers penetrated farther and farther into the wild lands of the south where there were countless herds of savage beasts. Their unaccustomed eyes did not at first notice herds of animals that flashed by in the tall grass — only their backs could be seen above the grass or sometimes their horns, short and curved, long and straight or twisted into a spiral. Later they learned to distinguish the different kinds — the long-antlered oryx, the reddish bull antelope, heavy and short in the body, the hairy gnu, with its ugly humped nose, and the long-eared antelopes, no bigger than a small calf, that danced on their hind-legs under the trees. (The gerenuk or Waller’s antelope — a long-necked animal that stands on its hind-legs to reach the leaves of the trees on which it feeds.)

Coarse, hard-stemmed grass, the height of a man, waved round them on all sides like a boundless field of corn. This expanse of grass, turned golden in the sunlight, was broken by patches of fresh green along the wadies and holes that were now filled with water. The blue and purple spurs of mountains piled up beyond the horizon cut deep into the grassy plain.

At times the trees grew close together, forming a darker island in the yellow grass, then again they would be scattered far from each other like a flock of frightened birds. They were mostly the umbrella-shaped trees that had so astonished Cavius when he first made the acquaintance of the golden plain — their thorny trunks spread upwards and outwards from the roots to form a funnel so that they looked like inverted cones. Some of the trees had thicker and shorter trunks that also divided into a huge number of branches — the thick, dark foliage of these latter looked like green domes. The palms were visible from a great distance on account of their double, forked branches with the dishevelled, knife-like feathery leaves bunched at the ends of them.

As the days passed Cavius noticed that the Negroes and the Nubians who had been so clumsy and slow-witted in Tha-Quem and on the Great River had now become stronger, more resolute and confident in themselves. And although his authority as leader was still undisputed, he began to lose confidence in himself in this strange land with laws of life that he could not understand.

The Libyans who had shown themselves so well in the desert were helpless here. They were afraid of the grassy plain, inhabited by thousands of animals; they imagined countless dangers in the grass and thought they were threatened with unknowable calamities at every step.

It was certainly no easy road to travel. They came across growths of grass with heads containing millions of needle-like thorns* that penetrated the skin, causing great pain and suppuration. During the hottest hours of the day many of the beasts of prey lay hidden under the trees. The lithe spotted body of a leopard would sometimes appear out of a patch of black shadow that looked like a cave amongst the brightly sunlit tufts of grass.

With astonishing agility the Negroes stalked the red antelopes and there was always an abundance of their succulent and tasty meat so that former slaves grew strong from the nourishing food. When a herd of enormous grey-black bulls** with long horns curving downwards appeared in the distance, the Negroes sounded the alarm and the whole party sought cover amongst the trees to escape the most terrible animal that inhabits the African plains.

(* The thorny heads of ascanite grass.

**The African buffalo.)

The guides had apparently misjudged the distance: the travellers had been on their way for nine days and there was still no sign of any human habitation. The Libyan’s arm had healed. The Negro with the broken leg had so far recovered as to sit up in his litter and at night he hopped and crawled around the fire to the delight of his companions who shared the joy of his convalescence. Only Pandion still lay silent and indifferent, although Kidogo and Cavius forced him to take more nourishment.

This being the period of the rains, the abundant life of the plains was at its peak.

Millions of insects sang and hummed noisily in the grass; brightly-hued birds flashed like blue, yellow, emerald-green and black-velvet apparitions through the tangle of gnarled grey branches. The resonant cries of diminutive bustards became more and more frequent in the heat of the day — “mac-har, mac-har,” they cried.

For the first time in his life Cavius saw the giants of Africa close at hand.

Noiselessly and serenely the huge grey bulk of the elephants was frequently to be seen sailing over the grass, their leathery ears extended like sails in the direction of the travellers and the brilliant white of their tusks contrasting sharply with the snaky black trunks that waved above them. Cavius liked the look of the elephants, the calm wisdom of their behaviour made them so different from the fussy antelopes, the malicious rhinoceroses and the lithesome beasts of prey that seemed like coiled springs. On several occasions the men had an opportunity to observe the majestic beasts at rest: the herd stood closely packed in the shade of the trees. The huge old bull elephants bowed their domed heads, heavy with great tusks, while the cows, whose heads were flatter, held them high as they stood sleeping. Once they came across a lonely old bull. The giant was standing fast asleep in the sun. He had apparently dozed off in the shade but the sun had moved on in its course and the old elephant, deep in slumber, did not feel the heat. Cavius stood still for some time admiring the mighty giant of the plains.

The elephant stood like a statue, its hind-legs somewhat apart. The lowered trunk was coiled, the tiny eyes closed and the thin tail hung over the sloping rump. The thick curved tusks projected menacingly in front of him, their points far apart on either side.

In places where trees were scanty, they saw animals of strange shape. Their long legs carried short bodies with steeply sloping backs, the forelegs being much longer than the hinds. From their massive shoulders and broad chests stretched an extremely long neck, which sloped forward, surmounted by a very small head with short horns and tubular ears — giraffes that travelled in groups from five up to a hundred. A big herd of giraffes in the open plain was a sight never to be forgotten: it was as though a forest of trees, inclined in one direction by the strength of the wind, was moving from place to place in the bright sunlight, casting patches of fantastic shadow as it went. The giraffes would move at times at a trot, at times they galloped with a peculiar gait, bending their forelegs under them and stretching their hinds out far behind. The bright yellow network of fine lines on their skins, separated by big irregular black patehes, was so much like the shadows cast by the trees that the animals were quite invisible under them. Carefully they plucked leaves from the branches with their lips, eating their fill, without any show of greed, their big sensitive ears turning from side to side.

A long line of their necks was frequently to be seen above the waving sea of tall grass — they moved slowly, their heads with their flashing black eyes held proudly at a height of ten cubits from the ground.

The restrained movements of the giraffes were so beautiful that the harmless animals called forth involuntary admiration.

Through the thick wall of grass the travellers sometimes heard the malicious snorts of a rhinoceros but they had already learned how to avoid this short-sighted animal and the possibility of meeting the monster no longer filled the former slaves with fear.

The travellers marched in single file, treading in each other’s footsteps, only their spears and the tops of their heads, shielded from the sun by rags and leaves, being visible above the grass on either side of the narrow lane. The monotonous grassy plain stretched away on all sides, seemingly endless. Grass and the burning sky followed the travellers by day, grass came to them in their dreams at night and they began to feel that they were lost for ever in that stifling, rustling, never-ending-vegetation. Not until the tenth day did they see ahead of them a ridge of rocks over which spread a bluish haze. Ascending the rocks the travellers found themselves on a stony plateau overgrown with bushes and leafless trees whose branches stretched up towards the sky like outstretched arms. (Euphorbia candelabrum — a plant related to the European euphorbia but outwardly resembling a cactus.) Their trunks and branches were of the same venomous green colour; the trees looked like round brushes, the bristles trimmed on top, placed on short poles. Growths of these trees gave off a sharp, acrid smell, their fragile branches were easily broken by the wind and from the places where they snapped off there flowed abundant sap like thick milk, that congealed quickly into long grey drops. The guides hurried through these thickets since they believed that if the wind grew fresher it might blow down these strange trees and crush anybody near them.

The plain began again beyond the thickets, but this time it was undulating country with fresh, green grass. When the travellers reached the summit of a hill, they were unexpectedly confronted by wide expanses of tilled land stretching right up to a dense forest of high trees. In an opening deep in the forest a large group of conical huts occupied a low hill, surrounded by a massive stockade. Heavy gates, built of irregular logs and decorated with garlands of lions’ skulls hanging from the. top, stared straight at the newcomers.

Tall, stern-looking warriors came out of the gates to meet the group of former slaves slowly climbing the hill. The local inhabitants resembled Nubians except that their skin was of a somewhat lighter bronze colour.

The warriors carried spears with huge heads like short swords and big shields decorated with a black and white ornament. War clubs of ebony, very hard and heavy, hung from their giraffe-hide girdles.

The view from the hill-top was very picturesque. Out of the golden grass of the plain rose the abundant emerald-green vegetation of the river-banks between which flashed the blue ribbon of the river. Bushes surmounted by fluffy pink balls were vaguely trembling; bunches of yellow and white flowers hung down from the trees.

Preliminary talks between the natives and the newcomers lasted a long time. The Negro with the broken leg, who had said he belonged to this people, served as interpreter. With the aid of a stick he hobbled over to the warriors, making a sign to his companions to remain behind.

Cavius, the Negro with the broken leg, Kidogo, one of the Nubians and one of the nomad guides were allowed. to enter the gates and were taken to the house of the chief.

Those who remained without the gates waited with impatience, tormented by uncertainty. Only Pandion was motionless and apathetic as he lay on the litter that had been removed from the pack animals. It seemed to them all that a long time had elapsed before the Etruscan reappeared in the gateway accompanied by a crowd of men, women and children. The inhabitants of the village smiled in welcoming manner, waving broad leaves and speaking incomprehensible but friendly-sounding words.

The gates were opened and the former slaves passed between rows of big houses whose mud walls, built in the form of a circle, were surmounted by steep conical roofs thatched with coarse grass.

On an open space under two trees stood an especially big house with the roof extending over the entrance. Here the chiefs had gathered to meet the newcomers. Almost all the inhabitants of the village crowded round them, excited by the unusual events of the day.

At the request of the paramount chief the Negro with the broken leg again told the story of the terrible rhinoceros hunt, frequently pointing to Pandion who still lay motionless on his litter.

With appropriate exclamations the villagers expressed their delight, amazement and horror at this unbelievable act performed by orders of the terrible Pharaoh of Tha-Quem.

The paramount chief rose and addressed his people in a language unknown to the newcomers. He was answered by shouts of approval. Then the chief walked over to the waiting travellers, waved his hand in a circle embracing the whole village and bowed his head.

Through the interpreter Cavius thanked the chief and his people for their hospitality. That evening the newcomers were invited to a feast to be held in honour of their arrival.

A crowd of villagers surrounded Pandion’s litter. The men gazed at him with respect, the women with sympathy. A girl in a blue mantle walked boldly out of the crowd and bent over the young Hellene. After his lengthy sojourn in the hot, sunny lands of Tha-Quem and Nub, Pandion differed from his companions only in the somewhat lighter shade of his skin which now had a golden tone. His hair, however, had grown long and its tangled and matted curls, together with the clear-cut features of his thin face, betrayed him as a foreigner.

The girl, moved by pity for the handsome, helpless young hero lying on the litter, cautiously stretched out her hand and pushed back a lock of hair that had fallen on Pandion’s forehead.

The heavy eyelids slowly opened showing eyes of a golden colour, such as she had never before seen, and a slight shudder passed over the girl. The eyes of the stranger did not see her, his dull glance was fixed on the branches that waved above him.

“Iruma!” the girl’s friends called to her.

Cavius and Kidogo came up, lifted the litter and carried their wounded friend away, but the girl remained standing; with eyes lowered, she stood as motionless and impassive as the young Hellene who had attracted her attention.