THE BAEI POISON THE STREAMS. 363 
was astir at the rattle of the drum in the morning, 
and marched the whole day, except the three hottest 
hours, which were spent under shady trees. Dur- 
ing the march the colours led the way, no one 
was allowed to precede them, and a complete cor- 
don of armed Toorkees surrounded the moving mass 
and kept order. In this way we proceeded across 
country at a smart pace, allowing no straggling, but 
making many halts. Sometimes, at several fields' 
distance, or outside their palisaded huts, or under 
trees, knots of the people watched us. A favourite 
position with them was to stand on one leg, resting 
the foot of the other leg against the standing limb 
above the knee. A spear balanced them more firmly, 
but the posture would be most uncomfortable to a 
European. We passed through one body of the men, 
and they showed no fear till they saw our white faces, 
when they ran wildly away. While halting to drink 
and refresh at a stream, after I had quenched my 
thirst, seeing some large branches of the Euphorbia 
antiquorum placed in the water with stones over 
them, I inquired what could be the cause of the 
branches being so placed, when they replied, " Oh ! 
have you drunk of the water? that plant has been 
placed there to poison it." The Toorkees laughed 
when told that I had been drinking heartily, but as 
the stream ran as clear as crystal I had no hesitation 
in partaking of it again, and felt no bad effects. The 
natives preferred digging holes in the sand of the 
stream, and drinking from them. The Bari are no 
doubt a dangerous people. We had two porters 
wounded by their arrows, of which they carry num- 
bers, and they showed such a front on the occasion 
