The Baris never take prisoners, and should they meet him,
which would be most probable, his death was certain.
On the following morning I ordered an advance towards the north side of
the plain, where I had observed a line of zareebas upon elevated ground
that commanded a view of the plain and the base of the mountain that we
had attacked yesterday.
On arrival upon the higher ground, I found the country perfectly flat
and completely covered with heavy crops of ripe dhurra, in which the
zareebas were concealed, with the exception of the tops of the huts.
Drums were beating and horns blowing in all these stockades.
I had a suspicion that the Baris might have stationed sharp-shooters in
ambush among the high dhurra. I therefore directed a couple of rockets
through the corn. The rush of these unknown projectiles produced a great
effect, as they burst through the stockade, and buzzed and whizzed about
the huts within the defence. An eight-pound shell from the gun now
crashed through the stockade and went howling along through the dense
fields of dhurra, until it exploded about 500 yards in the rear.
The bugle immediately sounded the advance with the bayonet, and the
troops made a rush forward through the corn and captured the stockade.
