Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1879-10-29
DIR. Carver on Archery.

''l ou see, said DIR. Carver, as he de
posted whole sheaf of brightly feathered
arrows on table, took off his umbrageous
felt, and drew up chair. 81 must be
shooting something or other all the time.
If it isn't Winchester it's bow and ar
row. Pretty, they are. But most too
fine Fancy things, these arrows, for
handsome young ladies to shoot on grass
plats at straw targets Now, an Indian ar
row is-a good bit lOngcr-maybe thirty-two
inches-and when a Sioux draws it chock
UP TO the bow il fairly huns when he lets
it fly An Indian arrow has grooves cut in
it behind the barb, that is to say the ones
they use in hunting, 50 that the blood can
flow, otherwise wood would spoil and
swell The fighting arrows are nas.y
things. The barb is so put on the shaft
that when it hits you the steel, or old hoop
iron, stays in the flesh when you 20 to pull
out the arrow. Dear sakesl what ugly
wounds have seen them make IN In
dian boy begins to handle a light how when
he toddes, maybe al four or five years.
His bow is taller than he is. lie sho Is at
most anything around the camp When he
is twelve he uses sharp arrows. \ boy must
Now, white man who takes an Indian
bow for the first time has all he can do to
bend it. Ii wants some strength, but more
knack. The bow is made straight. When
it is strung, the cord, even when in tension,
almost touches the bow. 1t is thick, some
four and a half to five feet long-that is
their hunting bow-and has extra stiiIening
by having sinews pasted on it. have seen
We-shessa- -nas-ka, that's the Long Man,
and he was the best of the Ogala Sioux,
Kill an antelope with his arrow at one hun
dred and twenty-five measured yards. We
shessa-has s-ka was nearly seven feet tall,
and good Indian. On horseback, broad
side to buffalo, have more than once
known that Indian to send an arrow through
a biz cow. The arrow bung ont on the
other side The bow for horseback and for
war is trifie shorter and maybe stifIer
You do not draw the arrow t. the eye, but
catch aim as ! do when shooting from the
hip. That can only be acquired by long
practice. The string is drawn by the clutch
of the whole fingers. The long man could
shoot an arrow in the air out OF sight, and
so can | (the Doctor pointed to an arrow
buried up to the. feather in the ceiling of
the Office, his own peculiar Ornamcnia,ion
of the Forest and Stream sanctum). |
think that in couple Of months could get
into perfect practice, for l used To hold my
own with any Indian on the plains. Some
times after had been shooting with my
Winchester, an Indian would come up and
show his bow, and tell me his bow was
muchee good; hut then | used TO take his
own bow and beat him at it. ''To pass
away the time when | was at the Brooklyn
Driving Park, bought me an English bow
ald arrows of HOlbertOn, and soon got in
to the trick of it, | hit blocks of wood
thrown INTO the air quite as often rs miss
ed them. The English bows and arrows
are fancy. but good. | would rather have
an old Sioux one, made of hickory or ash,
but the boss bow ever owned was made Of
buffalo ribs. An Indian carries his quiver
of arrows over his right shoulder, so that
he can ret his arrows quickly. When he has
discharged one arrow Ohe Doctor pro-
nounces arrow witha single letter; he calls
it an X. with the sane motion rs lac uses
in pulling the string he clutches another ar
row. If he shoots one hundred yaIds he
has three or four arrows in the air, all going
at the same time It's great fun shooting
at bird with long tail that flies over the
prairie. Knock out his ia and his steering
apparatus is gone. | have knocked the
tail out of many a one, and so caught him
in MY hands when ne tumbled. So here
Talking about these thirgs just makes me
long to be back again on the plains. New
York is mighty good place, and | have
made lots of friends; but somehow | want
horse, and a big field with miles on miles
before me TO gallop over, and buffalo just
showing on the divide" And here DR..
Carver shut his eyes and seemed lost Tor a
while in the visions of rolling prairies in the
far-Off Western wilderness.