The Camel Was Now Secured By A Rope Passed Round
The Body Beneath The Forelegs, And The Cloths Of The Arabs Were
Wrapped Around The Cord To Prevent It From Cutting The Skin.
This
being arranged, I took a double turn of the rope round a tree, as
thick as a man's
Thigh, that grew in a cleft of the rock where we
stood, and throwing the honey axe to Taher Noor, I told him to
cut away the bushes that supported the camel, and I would lower
it gently down to the shelf by the water's edge. In a few minutes
the bushes were cut away, and the camel, roaring with fright,
swung in mid-air. Taher Noor held on to the rope, while I slacked
off the line from the tree, and lowered both man and beast safely
to the shelf, about seventy feet below. The camel was unhurt, and
the Arabs were delighted; two other men now descended. We threw
them down a quantity of dry wood to make a fire, and, as they
were well off for meat, we left them prisoners upon the ledge of
rock with the profoundly deep river before them, walled in by
abrupt precipices upon either side.* It was nearly dark, and,
having to find my way to the camp among dangerous ravines, I rode
fast ahead of my men to discover a ford, and to reach home before
complete darkness should increase the danger. Tetel was as
sure-footed and as nimble as a cat, but we very nearly ended our
days together, as the bank of a precipice gave way while we were
skirting the edge.
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