noon
The talk drifted aimlessly , round and about from the western ranches to Flicker Alley and the London Music Halls , only to return in the end , as it naturally would , to the water hole at Rugged Rocks and our chances of finding lion . The discussion was lengthy on this point -- it always was . By the time the sun came , the expedition had entered the plain of the Rift Valley , and with the rising of the sun the thirst began . Toward noon we halted for a couple of hours to allow the worst of the heat to pass over , gave the horses and the porters a little of the water that was carried on one of the wagons , and then inspanned again and went on . As the horsemen took the road the Colonel outlined his plan . `` We 'll give the horses a good rest to-night , for we ought to make camp early , and then start hunting the first thing in the morning . We 've got enough horse-feed to last us three or four days if the water holds out that long .