| caption: |
strain of touring; heat; Namkia unbends |
| text: |
Touring the plateau was much better than sitting in Haflong, but it was still no picnic. The heat was killing, for the plateau inclined to be low and dry; there were no trees, the camps were miserable, and the move had so unsettled Namkia that he gave notice regularly every day. I could no more make him out than I could the rest of these inexplicable Zemi. But, under the pressure of common adversity, the ice was beginning to crack. One day in the middle of a long, hot march, as we sat down for a rest under the only shade-tree between Muchudui and Chenam, he unbent suddenly, and for the first time talked like a human being. I was so taken aback that I froze up myself, and he gave notice that evening as usual; but after that I was the richer by a good friend and a sterling interpreter. |
