When awakened, he hastily dressed, buckled on his sword and revolver,
and taking a double-barrelled gun in his hand he endeavoured to follow
the troops, but mistook the direction, and lost his way in the dark.
We arrived at the open valley of Belinian at day-break, but native
scouts had already given the alarm of our approach. There were some
hundred villages situated in the vale and on the heights along the base
of the mountain; but at this season only the tops of the huts were
visible above the high dhurra, which was just ripened, although the
general harvest had not yet commenced.
There is no covert so much in favour of native warfare as the high
dhurra, which perfectly conceals their movements, at the same time that
it is easily passed through at speed.
The Bari drums were beating throughout the country, and their horns were
sounding in all directions. Clearing the way with skirmishers, we
marched along a good path for about four miles parallel with the base of
the mountain, until we arrived at a plain or bottom, which bore the
marks of cattle-hoofs in great numbers.
