noon
Some of them went off down the bank shouting for the canoes that had gone on , and others made their way to the fire ; but Mr. Hume and Muata took a spell at the levers , heedless of the noise made , and under their powerful arms the boat was soon far out in the waste of waters -- safe , at any rate , for that night . After an hour or so Muata was sent forward as look-out , and with his jackal by his side , apparently aiding him in his task , he showed such eyes for the night that they kept on safely till the morning , when the sail was hoisted , and by breakfast-time they judged they had covered about forty miles -- quite enough for safety . They ran the Okapi in among the islands which still stretched away as far as they could see , and made fast , to eat and to sleep . The noon heat woke them . They sat up under the awning and talked of the great drive , of Muata 's escape , and of his wonderful luck in finding them -- though he made out that there was nothing strange about it , since from the woods he had seen the preparations for the hunt , and had , too , made out the Okapi in the dusk . For the rest , his jackal had scented out the white man 's lair , and all he , the chief , had to do was to upset the canoe of the Arab . `` That was no great work for Muata -- the otter , the water-wolf , '' he said .