This weapon is used for small game, as the cost of ammunition is too
great to spend it upon game as readily procured by this cheaper method.
The Indian is very expert in the use of the bow and arrow, and is able
to knock over a ptarmigan or crouching hare every time at 25 yards. The
force with which the arrow is projected is astonishing. I have seen a
ptarmigan rolled for many yards amid a perfect cloud of feathers when
struck by the arrow. It often tears the entire side out of the bird.
In former years the arrow did great execution among the deer in the
water or deep snow banks among which they floundered when driven into
them by the Indian who, on snowshoes, was able to travel where the deer
sank nearly out of sight.
[Illustration: FIG. 133.--Arrow, Nenenot.]
[Illustration: FIG. 134.--Arrow, Nenenot.]
[Illustration: FIG. 135.--Arrow, Nenenot.]
[Illustration: FIG. 136.--Arrow, Nenenot.]
Among the Indian boys it is yet a favorite amusement to shoot small
birds with the bow and arrow. Small crossbows also are used by children.
They have doubtless been made after those brought by some white man.
The children have great sport with these bows.
The spear, already referred to, for killing the swimming reindeer, is
shown in Fig. 137. The wooden shaft is 6 feet long, and the steel point,
which is made of a flat file beaten down to a quarter of an inch square,
is 11 inches long. It is set into the end of the shaft and fastened by a
whipping of sinew.
The weapon is held by the hand in a manner peculiar as well as
uncomfortable. The closed hand over the butt end of the weapon is so
placed as to have the fingers upward and the outside of the hand toward
the point, this rather awkward grasp enables the person to let go of the
weapon in case of threatened disaster resulting from a misdirected
thrust. The collection also contains three models of deer spears, Nos.
3205-3207. These are often also used as arrows to shoot at larger game
when the Indian is out hunting ptarmigan, hares, and rabbits. A hungry
wolverene or a famished wolf would prove troublesome to kill with the
blunt arrows. These models differ from the larger spear only in size.
[Illustration: FIG. 137.--Deer lance, Nenenot.]
[Illustration: FIG. 138.--White whale spear, Little Whale river.]
[Illustration: FIG. 139.--Point of white whale spear enlarged.]
The Little Whale river Indians use a peculiar spear for killing white
whales. (Figs. 138, 139). It is modeled after the Eskimo harpoon, but
has no "loose shaft," or rather, the fore shaft and loose shaft are in
one piece, and has a circular wooden disk fitted to the butt of the
shaft, which takes the place of the bladder float, and serves to impede
the motions of the animal when struck. Reindeer antler is substituted
for the ivory of the Eskimo weapon. The blades are of copper or iron and
riveted in. These spears are 8 or 10 feet long.
The snare (Fig. 140) forms one of the less important methods of
procuring these animals. It is of parchment made from the skin of the
reindeer cut into thin narrow thongs. Several of these strands, usually
three, are plaited together to form a layer; and of these layers three
are plaited together to form the snare line. It often is made, however,
of three single strands cut somewhat wider and creased so that they will
lie well when the three are plaited. The more strands the greater the
flexibility of the line, but as there must be a certain amount of
stiffness to hold it in position the many strands must be woven more
tightly together. The length varies from 10 to 20 feet, and at the end
is a loop formed by turning the strands back and splicing them. Through
the loop the other end is passed, and the noose is made.
[Illustration: FIG. 140.--Reindeer snare. Nenenot.]
When a herd of deer is discovered in a favorable locality the people of
the vicinity are informed and hasty preparations are made.
The effort is to cause the deer to pass through a narrow defile
containing bushes. The snares are then placed in position by tying the
free end of the line to a suitable tree and suspending the noose where
the heads or antlers will become entangled. Some are placed so that when
the foot is lifted the noose is carried along and tightens on it.
The people surround the animals, and at a given signal shout and create
the greatest din, to confuse the creatures, which plunge toward the
place where the snares are set. One or two hunters concealed in that
locality appear suddenly and further confuse the now panic-stricken
animals, which rush in every direction before their foes. They become
immeshed in the nooses and are held until their throats are cut or they
are choked by the cord.
It frequently happens that two deer will be caught in a single snare.
The Indians assert that it is a most ludicrous sight to witness two
sturdy bucks caught by the antlers in a single snare. They appear to
accuse each other of the misfortune, and struggle terribly to free
themselves. In the animals which are strangled by the noose the
congested blood distends the veins and renders the flesh very dark.
Previous to the general use of guns the snaring method was of greater
importance than at the present day. Even now the Indian does not lose
any opportunity of employing the snare.
Some of the snares are made of tanned skin, which is softer and is often
ornamented with strands of beads attached to the end of the line. Some
of them are colored red, with a mixture of vermilion and hematite
earths, thinned with water.