The upper surface of the bar being smooth in dry weather, the soles of the shoes should be damped; the ground about the bar should consist of sand, and the exercises be cautiously performed. [Illustration: _Plate XIV_ _Page 57._ Balancing.] POSITION AND ACTION IN BALANCING. In this exercise, the head should be held up, the body erect, the shoulders back, the arms extended, the hands shut, and the feet turned outwards. At first, the balancer may be assisted along the bar; but he must gradually receive less and less aid, till at last the assistant only remains by his side. The pole may be mounted either from the ground or from the riding position on the beam. In the latter case, the balancer may raise the right foot, place it flat on the beam, with the heel near the upper part of the thigh, and rise on the point of the foot, carrying the weight of the body before him. (Plate XIV. fig. 1.) In this case, the beam must not be touched with the hands; the left leg must hang perpendicularly, with the toe towards the ground, and the arms be stretched forward. After keeping the balance for some minutes in this position, he must stretch the left leg out before him, place his heel on the middle of the beam, with the toe well turned outward, and transfer the weight of the body from the point of the right foot to the left heel--(Plate XIV. fig. 2). These steps he must perform alternately, till he reaches the end of the beam. TURNS IN BALANCING. When the balancer is able to walk firmly and in good position along the bar, and to spring off whenever he may lose his balance, he may attempt to turn round, first at the broad, then at the narrow end, and to return. He may next try to go backward. In accomplishing this, it is no longer the heel, but the tip of the toes, which receives the weight; the leg which hangs being stretched backward, with the hip, knee, and heel forming a right angle, till the toes, by a transverse motion, are so placed on the middle of the beam, that the balancer can safely transfer to them the whole weight of the body. To acquire the art of passing an obstacle placed laterally, two balancers may pass each other thus:--They must hold one another fast by the arms, advance breast to breast, place each his right foot close forward to that of his comrade, across the bar (Plate XIV. fig. 3), and turn completely round each other, by each stepping with his left foot round the right one of the other, as in Plate XIV. fig. 4. To acquire the art of passing an obstacle placed inferiorly, a large stone may be laid upon the bar, or a stick may be held before the balancer, about the height of the knee. (Plate XIV. fig. 5.)