Evening capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1888-1893, 1893-03-04
HUNTING WITH BlOWGUNS.
savages of Guiana Who Use Queer Weapons
| With Poisoned Arrows.

Savages of Guiana Who Use Queer Weapons
With Poisoned Arrows.
The blowpipes used by the savages
of Guiana for shooting poisoned
arrows are very wonderful weapons
indeed. The climate of this equatorial
region, being both very hot and very
moist, produces a vegetation of
astonishing luxuriance. The forests
are commonly ankle deep in water
for mile after mile, and consequently
the animals found there mostly in.
habit the trees. Monkeys are exceed
ingly numerous. For killing these
tree dwelling creatures the blow,
gun is the best possible instrument.
1t is made from a peculiar kind of
reed, and although II OF 10 feet in
length its weight is only II pounds.
1t is provided, like a rifle, with a
fore sight and a back sight, the latter
being made of the teeth of small
beast called the acouchi.
The natives are most careful re-.
specting the straightness of their
blowguns and never allow them to
lean against anything lest they
should be warped. The arrows are
made from the leaf ribs of a kind of
palm, made to fit the bore of the gun
by a wrapping of wild cotton fas-
tened with a fiber of silk grass.
Great art is required to put on the
cotton properly. The arrow is about
10 inches long, no thicker than a
crow quill, and at one end is brought
to a point as sharp as a needle by
scraping it between the keen edged
sawlike teeth of the pirai fish. One
half of a parai jaw is always sus-
pended to quiver.
The vegetable poison used for en-.
venoming the arrows is called ecu
rarl." 1t is extremely powerful and
will kill a man within few minutes
when introduced into the circulation
by an arrow point, though it is harm
less when swallowed. 1t is very diff
hcult to procure the strongest ecu.
rarl" from the natives, who are most
unwilling topart with it. The arrow
heads are kept carefully separate
from the shafts as a precaution
against accidents, the savages them.
selves being very much afraid of the
poisons which they employ. The Sc.
cret of preparing the poison is handed
down by the medicine men from gen.
Grafton to generation, and the com.
mon people are not permitted to
know it. W
First must be sought the curari
vine, which is closely allied to the
tree which furnishes strychnine and
TO the upas tree, from which tba
Dyaks of Borneo get the poison for
thelr arrows, When the poison max
er has found the curari, he looks for
TWO dubious plants, the stems of
which yield a glutinous iuice An
other vegetable ingredient is the hit.
'er roo1' commonly used by these
savages in poisoning water for the
purpose of catching fish.
10 the mixture composed of tbAsa
elements the medicine man adds two
Kinds OF venomous ants and tbe moi
sol son fangs of deadly species of snakes
Inc whole is allowed to simmer over
nre, the snakes fangs and the ans
oeing pounded and thrown INTO the q
pot The boiling is continued nnt;i
the poison is reduced to tbioi, Iio
Drown sirup, Finally a few arroV,ra, A
are dipped experimentally in tba NV;
son, and its effect is tried upon SOM M.
animal or bird. If satisfactory Oo tbe
poison Is poured into a snbar;oaI ,
eartnenware pot, in which il is la.
carefully covered with leaves - ~ ~
crude air and moisture Wasb;n1, h on
ton Star. ashng'