| caption: |
Chapter Twelve. Towards Unknown Country |
| caption: |
attack of malaria; setting off on 10th November on punitive expedition |
| text: |
The 10th of November was the day fixed for assembling in Mokokchung. Mills said we would probably start on one of the following days, and that meant leaving Wakching four days (108) earlier. Hardly had I begun my preparations when I suddenly went down with fever. Living so long out of the danger-zone in Wakching, I had been careless enough not to take any prophylactics in the malaria-infested villages of Oting and Longkhai. Could there have been a more inconvenient time for such an attack? At first I thought it would only be a light bout, and brushed the whole thing aside, but the fever mounted steadily and my head became muzzy. In the intervals when I could think clearly, I worried that I would not be able to arrive at Mokokchung in time, and that the long-hoped-for expedition into unexplored territory would start without me. It was a miserable situation, and I cursed my negligence -- and the malaria-infested Longkhai and Oting. Luckily I had atebrin with me, which is far more effective than quinine. I dosed myself heavily, and the results were excellent. I was free of fever on the fifth day. |
