Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1902-07-16
ODD WEAPONS OF FILIpINos.
There Il Much InterestIns Material
for the Collector Of Curios to BE
Found Among Them.

DotA OA4S a4<AdOOASS5i Sc Ill - -
Iector have noble harvest-feld of
curious weapons of the chase and war
in the Philippines. The archipelago is
not uniformly civilized, but consists
of layers of social strata ranging from
the educated well-bred man of Manila
to the naked Gaudanes and tree
jewellers of Mindanao. They are not
even members of the same race. The
Tagals and Visayas are fine types OF
the Malay, while the Negrito is
Papuan, ana the Aeta is brother OF
the Aino of Japan, and belongs to some
ancient hairy race, which once held
sway in this part of the world, says
the New York Post.
All the men use weapons, and like to
get the best they can, but with warning
races, especially hunters and hunted
the lower ones are compelled to use
those which they are able to make
themselves. Around the big cities may
be found modern rifles, such as the
Mauser, the Krag-Jorgensen, and the
Wincester. Further inland you run
across old Springfelds, Enfelds and
MINES. Still further in the interior
y
Spanish muskets of the latter part of
the eighteenth century, and Lieut.. Col.
Sargent captured a couple of Tower
muskets from some insurgents. At
| the fishing ports on the north of Luzon
and on the east coast of Mindanoa
| hintlocks have been seen. Thus, the
whole history of firearms may be
| found illustrated in these islands. The
| Malay is born fighter, and believes in
| fighting in close quarters. There is
something of the old Berserker about
him. His ideal warrior is man who
strips himself to the buff, oils his
body with cocoanut oil, and with a
sword in one hand and knife in the
other, runs into the ranks of his foes
to kill or be killed.
Frequently the blades are orna
mented. The Moros like to have a
sentence of the Koran Inscribed upon
theirs, while the heather of Min
danao prefer to color the channels
an ugly red, so as to suggest the
idea of dried blood. The poison they
employ is not the same class as the
wuraE or curare of the Guarinis OF
Brazil. It is a toxin obtained from
decomposing blood. For purposes
Of the chase, the sword or knife is
inserted in the dead body of any
warm-blooded animal, and allowed tt
remain there for several days. It i:
then taken out and dried carefully
in some place where insects canno
get at it. AS it dries it assumes
slight glaze, and is of a reddish
brownish, or greenish-brown tint
1t retains it's deadly quality Ion.
time. According to the natives, i
will kill ten years after it has beer
poisoned by insertion in a dead ami
NAL. For martial purposes the bes
poison is secured by inserting tn
creese in the body of a warrior, es
pecially a brave one. His blood i
said to be richer and stronger thar
that of any other animal.
All people buy creese shout,
boil the blade in strong I've, and the
polish it until the metal has a brigh
surface. The Malay spear varie
from wooden pole, sharpened i
the fire, to a staff at whose head i
fastened a small creese. In Samar:
formidable weapon is made by bind
ing bolo to the end of pole
With this man sitting in a tire
can lop off the head of a person 1
feet below him. There are Maia
bows and arrows, but the few tina
I have seen are primitive and ineff
cient.