After a night in the village, Hinchcliff set out to find his way back to the river by a different route, avoiding the woods and endeavouring to follow a faintly-marked horse-track over the grassy hills. This procedure nearly led him into a difficulty far more serious than that of losing his way in a luxuriant forest, for he missed his road and got on to one where there was no sign of a stream, and where the pools had nothing but dry mud to offer him, so that he went all the afternoon and night without tasting a drop of water. He woke before daybreak, almost delirious, and set off at the best pace he could contrive for some low-lying land, which he had failed to notice overnight. All at once a strongly built Indian started up from the ground fifty yards in front of him, and, after one look at him, began to flee down the hill. "Stop! I want you; I want water," shouted Hinchcliff. The fleeing figure turned its head as though straining to catch the words, but still ran on. Then the thirsting man grew desperate, and, determined to make the man help him to find water, raised his gun and pretended to take aim at him. Immediately the fugitive stopped. "Water!" shouted Hinchcliff. "I have lost my way, and am dying of thirst." The Indian appeared to reflect for a moment, and at last made towards his pursuer, disengaging a large water-gourd from his belt as he walked. "What made you run away?" panted the Englishman, when he had emptied the gourd at one draught. "I saw your gun and I was frightened. We do not like firearms, Señor; and here in the lowlands we seldom see white men.--You have lost your way, you say?" "Yes; I want to reach the river." "I am going that way and will show you it; it is but a few miles. But first, with your permission, I will finish what I was doing when I caught sight of you." He sat down, and from a round wooden box, began to cover his fingers liberally with a lard-like substance which he proceeded to rub over his face, shoulders, breast, arms, and waist. "I have been much indoors, lately; sick," he explained; "and the insects trouble me greatly. They will not sting through this ointment. Some of our more ignorant people use mud instead; but I--I have lived in towns at times; I am more learned."