noon
But as Pat no longer suffered from hunger , he complacently accepted the return of the double load . Then all moved forward . Pat jogged out of the canyon , turning to the right on the desert , and moved rapidly north in the shadow of the hills . He held to his stride , and toward noon , rounding a giant ridge projecting into the desert from the hills , he saw ahead on his right , perhaps two miles distant across a basin , the mouth of another canyon . Evidently his master saw it also , and obviously it contained danger , for he jerked Pat down to a walk . Almost instantly he knew that the danger was real , for the man , sounding a sharp command to the others , brought him to a full stop . Then followed an excited discussion , and , when it ended , Pat , gripped in vague uneasiness , found himself urged forward at top speed .