The Country Was Perfectly Open, Being A Succession Of
Fine Downs Of Low Grass, With Few Trees, Where Any Attack Against Our
Guns Would Have Been Madness.
In the evening we arrived at two small deserted villages; these, like
most in the Bari country, were circular, and surrounded by a live and
impenetrable fence of euphorbia, having only one entrance.
The traders'
people camped in one, while I took up my quarters in the other. The sun
had sunk, and the night being pitch dark, we had a glorious fire, around
which we placed our angareps opposite the narrow entrance of the camp,
about ten yards distant. I stationed Richarn as sentry outside the
gateway, as he was the most dependable of my men, and I thought it
extremely probable that we might be attacked during the night: three
other sentries I placed on guard at various stations. Dinner being
concluded, Mrs. Baker lay down on her angarep for the night. I drew the
balls from a double No. 10 smooth bore, and loaded with cartridge
containing each twenty large-mould shot (about a hundred to the pound);
putting this under my pillow I went to sleep. Hardly had I begun to
rest, when my men woke me, saying that the camp was surrounded by
natives. Upon inquiry I found this to be correct; it was so dark that
they could not be seen without stooping to the ground and looking along
the surface. I ordered the sentries not to fire unless hostilities
should commence on the side of the natives, and in no case to draw
trigger without a challenge.
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