92 HOSTILITY OF THE BARI TRIBE . [chap. ii. 
the flesh, which loses its fibre, and drops away like 
jelly, after severe inflammation and swelling. The 
arrows are barbed with diabolical ingenuity ; some are 
arranged with poisoned heads that fit into sockets ; 
these detach from the arrow on an attempt to withdraw 
them; thus the barbed blade, thickly smeared with 
poison, remains in the wound, and before it can be cut 
out the poison is absorbed by the system. Fortunately 
the natives are bad archers. The bows are invariably 
made of the male bamboo, and are kept perpetually 
strung ; they are exceedingly stiff, but not very elastic, 
and the arrows are devoid of feathers, being simple 
reeds or other light wood, about three feet long, and 
slightly knobbed at the base as a hold for the finger 
and thumb ; the string is never drawn with the two 
fore-fingers, as in most countries, but is simply pulled 
by holding the arrow between the middle joint of the 
fore-finger and the thumb. A stiff bow drawn in this 
manner has very little power; accordingly the extreme 
range seldom exceeds a hundred and ten yards. 
The Bari tribe are very hostile, and are considered 
to be about the worst of the White Nile. They have 
been so often defeated by the traders’ parties in the 
immediate neighbourhood of Gondokoro, that they are 
on their best behaviour, while within half a mile of 
the station; but it is not at all uncommon to be 
