On the 21st, at ten o’clock in the morning, we halted. The burning east wind which was beginning to blow rendered the heat insufferable, and the scorching sand found its way into our eyes, in spite of the precautions which we took to exclude it. We pitched our tents, and tepid water was distributed, which we thought delicious though it had little effect in quenching our thirst; after we had drunk it, we stretched ourselves on the sand to repose. Notwithstanding all the precautions I had taken, the heat was so intense and my thirst so tormenting, that I found if impossible to get any sleep; my throat was on fire and my tongue clave to the roof of my mouth. I lay as if expiring on the sand, waiting with the greatest impatience for the moment when we were to have our next supply of water; I thought of nothing but water—rivers, streams, rivulets, were the only ideas that presented themselves to my mind during this burning fever; in my impatience I cursed my companions, the country, the camels, and for anything I know the sun himself, who did not make sufficient speed to reach the horizon. The spot where we were encamped was frightfully arid, there was not a single leaf to refresh the eye, and nature presented her most terrific aspect. The camels scattered over the plain, the profound solitude, the silence of the desert, produced painful impressions, which it is difficult to describe; the poor animals, exhausted with fatigue, were lying near the tents, with their heads between their legs, quietly waiting for the signal of departure; it was given at last. At half past four Sidi-Aly who had undertaken to provide our rations, threw a few handfuls of dokhnou into a large calabash, and poured water upon it; he then mixed the whole with his hands, thrusting his arms in up to the elbows—a sight which would have disgusted any one less hungry than ourselves, for water was so precious that old Aly’s hands had not been washed for many days. Though the beverage was luke-warm, and very dirty, we drank heartily of it, and with the greatest delight.