about three
o’clock in the afternoon
This pass , or port as it is called in South Africa , had been strongly fortified , for on either side of it were the ruins of towers . Moreover , at its crest it was so narrow and steep-sided that a few men posted there , even if they were armed only with bows and arrows , could hold an attacking force in check for a considerable time . Beyond it , after the hill was descended , a bush-clad plain dotted with kopjes and isolated granite pillars formed of boulders piled one upon another , rolled away for many miles . Mr. Clifford and Benita had started upon their mad journey about three o'clock in the afternoon , and when the sun began to set they found themselves upon this plain fifteen or sixteen miles from Bambatse , of which they had long lost sight , for it lay beyond the intervening hills . Near to them was a kopje , where they had outspanned by a spring of water when on their recent journey , and since they did not dare to travel in the dark , here they determined to off-saddle , for round this spring was good grass for the horses . As it chanced , they came upon some hartebeeste here which were trekking down to drink , but although they would have been glad of meat , they were afraid to shoot , fearing lest they should attract attention ; nor for the same reason did they like to light a fire . So having knee-haltered the horses in such fashion that they could not wander far , and turned them loose to feed , they sat down under a tree , and made some sort of a meal off the biltong and cooked corn which they had brought with them .