16	THE LUSHEI  CLANS	ch. i
pursuit. The former were simple bamboo, spikes of various
lengths, while the latter were carefully smoothed bamboo
.spikes about six inches long, and no thicker than a knitting
needle; each sort was nicked so that it might break off after
entering the flesh. To a bare-footed foe these spikes form a
very serious obstacle, and even our troops have suffered from
them, the spikes being sometimes long enough to reach to a
man's knee.