The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-09-12
SOME QUEER TRIBES.
SOUTH AMERICAN NATIVES WHO
FISH WITH BOW AND ARROW.

IN Matrimony.
From the Philadelphia Bulletin.
Twelve hundred miles from the mouth
OF the Orinoco river was as far as / ex-
tended my explorations toward the source
OF that great stream" said Ensign Roger
Welles, who has just returned to Washing.
ton, from the region mentioned. He is the
only white man that has penetrated thess
wilds, at all events since the days Of the
early Spaniards.
1.-THE Orinoco is one of the biggest rivers
in the world, as you may see by CHANGING al
the map of South America. 1t il dotted
all along the course with numerous small
islands, and its upper waters are INSTRUCTED
by many catsracts. During my long
| journey toward its source my canoe had
often been carried overland around impass>
able falls. By the time one reaches the Rio
Meta, which is the largest tributary of the
Orinoco, navigation is further Interfsred
with by the wild and savage Indians, who
Use poisoned arrows, 30 that traders who
buy and sell goods along the stream anchor
the sailing scows out 10 the middle of it at
night, keeping guard with rifles against
possible surprise.
In that part of the country and beyond
toward the interior, whittier l penetrated.
| Bakedness Ia the rule among the natives,
neither men nor women wearing anything
besides loin cloth of the most restricted d.
mensionE. Here is one Of the loin cloths,
which represents the hight of fashion as to
drees among thoce people. You see ii is but
a rectangular scrap OF beadwork fastened
by string. The beadwork, however, is
| very beautiful, being done in an exquisite
pattern. Two hundred miles beyond the
mouth Of the Rio Meta the Infrida river en-
ters the Orinoco. l started up that stream
with my canoe loaded with trlakets for ex-
change with the natives, who live in con-
dition of extreme savagery, although they
are amiably disposed and usually harmless.
They go entirely nude, save for the lotn
cloths, as | have described, and get their
subsistence by hunting and fishing, chiefly
the latter.
~ was much interested in their method
of taking fish by the use of the bow and
arrow. For this purpose they employ
arrows six feet IN length, made of reeds
tipped with iron. While canoe is padded
gently along in the shadows a marksman
stands ready with his arrow on the string
of his bow. AS soon as a large fish is seen
If the approach can he made within range,
the arrow is let fly, aud rarely fails TO strike
the prey. These Indians hunt with blow
guns made out of the young stalks Of GER
tain kind of palm, from which the pith is
removed. The arrows employed as projec-
tiles are simply splinters of reed, sharpened
at one end, the other end being wrapped
with enough silk cotton obtained from ans
other kind OF palm to fill up the bore of
the blowgun. The arrows are about ten
inches long and very light. They are
tipped with the famous aud deadly
'Woorarr poison. Used by one Of these
naked savages, the blowgun Is a weapon of
great accuracy and effectiveness, even a
small bird on tree being brought down by
skilled sharpshoOters with reasonable GER
taiuty at the first trial.
These primitive aborigines dwell in butts
buile Of palm leaves mostly. Each family
has Its little garden patch which is chiefly
devoted to raising the root from which cas-
sava ia made. They depend upon this root
almost entirely for food, apart from what
they get by hunting aud fishing. Ii is pre-
pared by grating, 20 begin with. The
crater employed is Of the most primitive
possible description, being simply a plank
with perforations, small, sharp pieces of
flint being inserted in the holes. Being re-
duced 10 q sort of meal by rubbing on this
Crater, the csssava is pressed to get the
water out of it, because the root is as
watery as the potato Then it ia sifted and
formed for cooking into what looks like an
enormous griddie cake two or three feet 10
diamster. The cake Is baked on a fiat
piece of earthenware Of corresponding size
IAN Indian with 90 Oh for weeks hunt
ing with no other food than a quantity Of
cassava prepared In this fashion. / my
self was obliged to live upon it almost
wholly for months. At frat l did not find
it pslatsDle, bus after q while I acquired
the taste and became quite fond Of it. The
chief trouble was that it was cooked on the
bare ground and always contained a CON
siderable percentage OF dirt. However, one
must not be too particular about ones diet
when travelling in the Winds. These savages
are quite clearly, SO far as bsthing is con-
cerned, but their habits Of living other wise
are not such to promote the virtue
which is next to godliness. SO far as the
virtue Of the women is concerned, / should
say it was of high order. Some of them
are fairly good looking and have excellent
figures, but their comefiness is nearly al
ways spoiled by badly decsyed teeth.
II assisted unintentionsliy in quite a ro-
nance on one occasion. When my canoe
was on the point of leaving native illage,
where we he'd been sojourning, young In
dian girl seemed to be considerably agitated,
and manifested an evident desire to accom-
pany me. My pilot, against my wish, per
mitted her to get aboard, AND she came
with us down the stream TO our next halt
ing place. Shortly after we made our next
pea auce in a canoe. having followed us 20
get back her daughter. whom she took
away with her. The pilot was very mel
Rncholy after this occurrence and subse-
quently confessed to me that he brought the
young lady away for the purpose of making
her his wife.
Matrimonial methods are extremely
simple among these natives When a
young man and a young woman wish to
marry they go TO housekeeping together,
aud that is ali there is of it. Often youth
of one village will WOO and win a maiden of
a village hundreds Of miles distant along
the river. As rule they seem to enjoy as
uninterrupted a domestic felicity as civil
ICED couples obtain. The Indians are gradu-
ally retiring toward the higher source Of
the Orinoco, because Of harsh and dishonest
treatment which they receive at the hands
of the white men and half.cBstes Of Vene-
zuela. They can never get fair prices for
the cassava which they produce and sell Co
the VeneZuelans. Cassava is an important
food OF the poorer classes all through Vene-
zuela, being ground by machines in fac
tories.
Among the curiosities which l obtained
from these savages are a number OF inter
esting musical instruments, such as reed
flutes and drums made out Of kind of
corkwood. intended 60 speak of the re-
markable pattern in which the beadwork of
the lOiD cloths Ia always made. This naf-