noon
So they began the day cheerfully . As the morning wore on and they found no trace of the camp , they began to watch the canteen carefully . Gradually their thirst became so great that the desire for food was quite secondary to it and they made no attempt to hunt for a rabbit . They agreed toward noon to save the last few drops in the canteen until they could no longer do without it . Hour after hour they toiled in the blinding heat , the strange deep blue of the sky reflecting the brazen light of the desert . In their careful avoiding of the mountain where they had rested at sunset the night before , they gradually worked out into a wide barren space with dunes and rock heaps interchanging . `` This wo n't do at all , '' said Dewitt at last , wearily .