About noon
In the morning the Griquas parted company with them , on the plea that their oxen and horses were in too poor a condition to pass over the desert , and that they must make a direct course for the Val River and return by its banks . Our travelers gave them a good supply of ammunition , the only thing that they wished for , and the Griquas , yoking their oxen to the crazy old wagon , set off in a westerly direction . The route of the caravan was now directed more to the south-west , and they passed over an uninterrupted plain strewed with small land-tortoises , and covered with a profusion of the gayest flowers . About noon , after a sultry journey of nine hours , they fortunately arrived at a bog , in which they found a pool of most fetid water , which nothing but necessity could have compelled either them or the exhausted animals to drink . Near this pool in the desert they found several wild animals , and they obtained three gnoos for a supply of provision ; the little wood that they had in the wagon for fuel was all used up in cooking their supper . A heavy dew fell during the night , and in the morning , before the sun rose , they were enveloped in a thick fog . As the fog dispersed , they perceived herds of quaggas in all directions , but at a great distance .