The men, who had been much surprised at the length of my absence, were at first buoyed up with the hope that I had found water; but this hope had at last died away, and they knew not what to conjecture. They were all reduced to the last degree of weakness and want; indeed I myself was at this period suffering from the most distressing symptoms of thirst; not only was my mouth parched, burning, and devoid of moisture, but the senses of sight and hearing became much affected; I could scarcely recognise the voices of the rest; and when uncouth unnatural tones struck upon my ear it took me some time to collect my thoughts in order to understand what was said, somewhat in the way in which one is obliged to act when roused suddenly from a deep sleep. In the same manner my sight had become feeble and indistinct; but by far the most distressing sensation was that experienced upon rising up after having rested for a few moments. I then felt the blood rush violently to the head, and the feeling produced was as if it were driven by a forcing-pump through all my veins. LAST EFFORTS. Previously to starting again I gave the men orders, which I believed at the time would be, to some at least, the last. I did not attempt to hide from them the dangers which surrounded us; but stating these I represented that matters had now arrived at such a crisis that, in the event of any of them being unable to proceed, it would be wrong to expect the others to halt on their account; and I therefore called upon all to exert their utmost energies and boldly to make a last struggle for their lives. My intention, I told them, was to proceed slowly but steadily to the southward, and never once to halt until I dropped or reached water; even in the event of any being unable to keep up I warned them that I should not wait for them but still pursue a steady and undeviating course until water was found; but as soon as I had slaked my own thirst I would return and bring assistance to those who might have been unable to come on with me. PAINFUL MARCH.