two o'clock
Kiouni , resuming his rapid gait , soon descended the lower spurs of the Vindhias , and towards noon they passed by the village of Kallenger , on the Cani , one of the branches of the Ganges . The guide avoided inhabited places , thinking it safer to keep the open country , which lies along the first depressions of the basin of the great river . Allahabad was now only twelve miles to the northeast They stopped under a clump of bananas , the fruit of which , as healthy as bread and as succulent as cream , was eaten and appreciated . At two o'clock the guide entered a thick forest which extended several miles . He preferred to travel under cover of the woods . They had not as yet had any unpleasant encounters , and the journey seemed on the point of being successfully accomplished , when the elephant , becoming restless , suddenly stopped . It was then four o'clock .