The Jennings daily record., 1902-07-25
G)oa,,d Bring, Death
0UadYv Weapons Of Savaoes Ossndsd BY
8oidisys.
SUCH weapons as do not involve
the use of explosives savage races
have from ancient days been very
inventive. Ever since the time

when the Samoese twin divinities
spit great rock in two for the purpose
OF fashioning stone clubs for the giants
Of those days. the Samoans have been well
skilled in the art of making and using
heavy clubs. Long before bayonets came
INTO general use in European warfare the
idea of gun and spear in one was elab-
Grated in the form of the Dyak's sum-
pftan, which We shall presently describe.
1t is even probable that before the sword
was well developed as a weapon in Eng
land the Polynesian savage had brought
his sharks teeth blades to perfection.
Considering, then. that the weapons Of
savagery are of no mean order, and COM
pare well in ingenuity with similar instru-
ments Of offense and defense in the pres
ent day, they may have fair claim to
consideration
Most remarkable, and perhaps most
deadly. of all savage weapons is the sum-
pitan of Borneo, mentioned above. 1t is
extraordinary that the DyakS. barbarous
and uncultured as they are. should have
anticipated the idea of our rife and bay
onet, 1t is not known how many centuries
before the secret of gunpowder was dis
covered. Their s'.:: Is blow-pipe of hard.
light wood some eight or ten feet in
length and abount an inch indiameter. and
their bayonet is kind of broad, sharp
edged and pointed Spearhead. This is
bound to the mead of the blow-gun by
means of strong rattan or brass wire
and it is so arranged that it does not in
terfere with the fight of the darts.
This at first glance is a deadly weapon
at close quarters in the hands of a dash
ing warrior like the Dyak: but it is even
more effective at a distance, for the little
arrows made from the spicules of the
sago palm are tipped with the poison of
the upas tree. The arrows are so small
that they nfiict only puncture like that
of pin prick: but by virtue Of the poi
son many man has died five minutes
after being hit. This fact. coupled with
the marvellous delicacy of construction
and consequent accuracy of the surrlptian
in the hands of the experienced Dvak
TarksInan makes it d most formidable
weapon.
In the attack led by johnson in 1880
against the Dyaks of the Interior he lost
upward OF thirty men under the fatal fire
of these weapons. and not one of them
showed any wound more dangerous-look-
ing than mere pin prick of the skin
The advantage that this wea pom has even
over the rife is that in the defense foliage
Dyak marKs-ran may he concealed and
PICK off his enemy without betrayins his
whereabouts either by sound of re-
port, by flash smoke. Altogether. il re-
qulres very intrepid solcier to face the
silent and deadly sumptian. Warfare by
poisoned missiles is nowhere so perfect as
in Borneo but various savage races do
what they can in the art The Fans use
small poisoned arrow. which they dis
charge with a crossbow, but. though the
poison is Very deadly. it is neither so
carefully made nor capable of such ac-
curacy Of aim as the sumptian arrow or
the Dyaks.
Indeed. 1t is so blunt that it frequently
hits without penetrating the skin The
savage tribes of Guiana also poison
known as wourali on their arrows which
are not only muitibarbed with the tail OF
the singing ray. but have cunninsly de-
tachabic points. The Maoris of New Yea
land and many Po,ynesian tribes having
no poison which they can use for the pur-
rose, adopt the next best thing ana tin
their spears and darts with hardwood
from the trunk oi the ponga. or tree fern.
the beauty of this wood. from the savage
warrior's point of view, beirg that it is Of
highly irrltant nature and sets up fes-
teIlng in wounds very quickly
Next to blow-suns provided with bay
onets or otherwise, come those savage
weapons which are designed TO pierce.
saw. iacerate and inhict wounds almost
beyond healing. For these savage man
is indebted to nature, who has placed
within the mouth of the shark such a set
of formidable incisors that the weapon
maker could scarcely fail to notice and
Apply them in his art The two jaws of a
fun grown shark usually contain about
300 teeth, large and small. so that the
Pacific islander, who can kill a shark
whenever he happens to want one. can
lind ample material for swords and clubs
particularly apt at the manufacture OF
weapons edged with sharks teeth.
He is not content with the somewhat
hiunt and heavy ideas of many Poiyne-
sian peoples. who swing great clubs. and
depend upon the knockdown blow He
has a keen sense OF the pleasure of in
fiicting pai: on the foe, and likes to put
a very fine point on the death dealing ex-
ceilence of his weapon; indeed one might
say, rather. thousand fine points for il
is his custom to Serrate the cutting edges
of swords, maces and spears with rows
of rurderous sharks teeth each one of
which is SO sharp as to make the weapon
dangerous even to handle for the pur-
poses of examination. 1t appears that
some of the swords of the kingsmill ISL
anders are quite works Of art, one, of
which the Rev. J. G.. Wood gives a de-
scription, having no less than four blades
on one handle-one central blade and
three auxiliary. On each blade there are
four distinct rows of sharks teeth, MAX
ing in all over four hundred formidable,
sharp points carefully graduated in re-
gard to size. The shifting and saving
power of these fourfod swords was so
great that they We're never used for |
thrusting. and from this fact were bare
OF teeth for several inches toward the !
point.
But these warlike savages had another
weapon which could infiict the most ter
rible thrust wounds. and that was the
shark 's-tooth spear. This is made OF
light wood. is from twelve to fifteen feet
in length and is furnished with serrated
teeth Tor nearly ten feet from the point
TO make 1t still more formidable there
are side fms or small auxiliary blades
sticking out at intervals of two or three
1eet; these also are bristlng with teeth
All these weapons-SwordS. spears and
maces-are used principally with saw
Ing motion. which, especially when the
combatants are almost naked is par !
tlcularly ehicacious. and yet it is aston
fshing in what skillful way the Kings
mill islander wills defend himself in a
combat with these murderous things; in !
deed. he frequently comes off without n |
scratch. In Samoa also the shark 6 tooth !