about noon
It was an awful time ; first because I knew that sooner or later they would kill me , and in the next place , because I was driven pretty nearly mad by the flies and things that settled on my face . Of course I could not brush them away , and all that I could do was to shake my head , and they did not seem to mind that . It seems ridiculous that , after seeing one 's friends killed and knowing that one is going to be killed oneself , one should worry over flies , but I can tell you I went nearly out of my mind with irritation at the tickling of their feet . It seemed to me that I was there for ages , though I knew by the height of the sun that it was only about noon . The thirst , too , was fearful , and I made up my mind that the sooner they came and killed me the better . I found myself talking all sorts of nonsense , and I do think that I should have gone out of my mind before the day was over . When first I heard your voice I thought it must be a dream , like some of the other ideas that came into my mind .