Why did Chew-chew tell the children stories about their
forefathers?
Why do we like to hear such stories?
Do you think that the later Cave-men will hunt in just the same way
that the early Cave-men did?
What change took place in the animals while the Cave-men were
learning to be good hunters? What change did the Cave-men have to
make in their hunting on account of this?
Of all the animals you know, which are the fastest runners? Can you
think how they became fast runners?
_Fleetfoot's Lessons_
When the men were at home, Fleetfoot liked to stay with them. He liked
to watch them make spears; he liked to watch them run races; he liked
to listen to the stories they told about the wild animals.
When the men went out to hunt, Fleetfoot wanted to go with them. But
he was a little boy, and had to stay at home. Sometimes he went with
his mother when she went to dig roots; sometimes he went with her to
gather twigs for baskets. But the safest place for little children was
not far from the fire. So Fleetfoot stayed at home nearly all the
time.
While the children played near the cave, Chew-chew broke fagots with a
stone ax. When she was ready to sit down, they all gathered around
her. They knew that that was one of the times when Chew-chew told
them stories.
[Illustration: _A stone ax._]
This time Chew-chew began with a story of the early Cave-men. She told
of animals that stood their ground and fought instead of running away.
She told about the strong spears and axes made to conquer the wild
beasts. She told of brave and daring deeds of the heroes of olden
times.
None of the animals feared man before he had fire. And for a long time
afterward none of them feared him without a torch. But the early
Cave-men made strong weapons after they had fire. They struck hard
blows with their stone axes, which the animals learned to fear.
Grass-eating animals feared beasts of prey long before the
Tree-dwellers lived. Wild horses learned to run fast by trying to
escape from packs of wolves. They learned to keep sentinels to watch
while the herd fed. All the grass-eating animals learned to do this.
The sentinels signaled at a sign of danger, and then the herd ran; and
so their enemies learned to hunt by following the chase.
When Chew-chew was tired of telling stories, she marked out a path for
a race. Then she showed the children how to get a fair start, by
standing abreast and holding a stick.
The children learned to keep in step until they reached the real
starting place. Then they dropped the stick and ran. And they all
clapped their hands and cheered the one who won the race.
[Illustration: "_Then Scarface threw, and all the horses took
fright._"]
After the children had raced a long time, they came back to Chew-chew
for another story. And this time she told them stories about the men
of their own clan. They often chased the animals from early morn until
noon. At first they got very tired when they went on a long chase. But
the more they practiced running, the better they hunted in the real
chase.
When the story was ended, the children climbed the cliff. Chew-chew
went with them and they all looked at the wild horses going up the
trail.
The horses had been to the river to drink and now they were going
away. They were following their leader up the trail which led to the
grassy plains.
Chew-chew knew where the men were lying in wait and she pointed out
the spot. The children looked just in time to see Straightshaft throw
his spear. Then Scarface threw, and all the horses took fright.
Up hill and down, through bushes and briars, the horses galloped away.
The Cave-men followed the wounded ones, hurling their spears as they
ran.
The chase was long and weary, and some of the wounded horses escaped.
But the men returned with many trophies and the women brought heavy
loads of meat.
The trophies the Cave-men prized the most were the heads of the wild
horses. They kept these trophies near the cave, and they thought that
they were charms. The Cave-men thought that the horses' heads would
bring more horses to the hunting grounds.
#THINGS TO DO#
_Tell a story about the age of combat. Tell a story about the age of
the chase. Draw a picture to illustrate each story._
_Show on your sand-map where the men were lying in wait for the
horses. Model the trail which the horses followed._
_What chasing game do you know how to play? Can you think how some
of these games first started?_
_Why do people not try to run as fast in a long race as in a short
one?_
_Model in clay something which you might name "The Age of Combat."_