118 WITH KITCHENEK IN THE SOUDAN round him. He heard an outburst of yells behind, and felt sure that the sheik he had wounded had told those who had rushed up which way he had fled. With loud shouts they poured over the crest, and there were joined by others running up from the camp. When Gregory paused for a moment after running for three or four hundred yards, he could hear no sound of footsteps behind him. Glancing round, he could not see white dresses in the darkness. Turning sharply off, he recrossed the crest of the hill, and keeping close to it, continued his flight until well past the ehd of the camp. The alarm had by this time spread everywhere, and a wild medley of shouts rose throughout the whole area of the encampment. He turned now and made for the spot where he had left Zaki and the horses. In flve minutes he reached it.

“ Is that you, my lord ? ” Zaki asked as he came up.

“ Yes, we must fly at once ! I was discovered, and had to kill—or at least badly wound—a sheik, and they are searching for me everywhere.”

“ I have saddled the horses and put the water-skins on them.”

“ That is well done, Zaki ; let us mount and be off at once. We will lead the horses; it is too dark to gallop among these bushes, and the sound of the hoofs might be heard. We will go quietly till we are well away.” Not another word was spoken till they had gone half a mile.

“ We will mount now, Zaki; the horses can see better than we. We will go at a walk. I dare not strike a light to look at the compass, but there are the stars. I do not see the north star, it must be hidden by the mist lower down; but the others give us the direction quite near enough to go by.

It is most unfortunate that the fellow who rushed against me was a sheik. I could see that by the outline of his robe.

If it had been a common man there would not have been any fuss over it. As it is, they will search for us high and low. I know he wasn’t killed on the spot, for he shouted after I