Page 280 - Malay sketches

MALAY SKETCHES

impossible to see half a boat's length in any direc-
tion. The mist lifted and fell again at intervals all
through the night, and so dense was it that at one
time we lost our way, and at last discovered by a
snag that we had got the boat completely round
and were paddling up stream!
That discovery gave us rather a bad shock, for
we calculated that we had lost half an hour of pre-
cious time, and if we could make such a mistake
once it might occur again. It was possible because
we dared not have any light, and only smoked with
the utmost precaution.
I was so tired that about ten I could no
half-past
longer keep awake, and several times the wearied
boatmen dropped asleep over their paddles. We
were not at all certain of our whereabouts, but
some time after eleven o'clock we realised, by the
succession of watch-fires on the banks and the
numbers of men moving about, that we were getting
into the zone of danger. It seemed to me, dozing
and waking, that this lasted for a long time ; we
were getting callous of the people on the bank when
we found that no one seemed to observe us however
close we were forced to go.
I had told them to rouse me when we near
got
to Pasir Salak, for now, to our great surprise, it
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