Water Valley progress., 1902-08-02
ODD WEAPONS OF FILIpINos.
There IL Much Interesting Material
for the Collector of Curios to BE
Found Among Them.

Both the archaeologist and the col
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
dwellers of Mindahao. They are not
even members of the same race. The
Tagals and Visayas are fine types of
the Malay, while the Negrito is
Papuan, and 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, Enfields and
MINES. Still further in the interior
you find the handsome but inefficient
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
f1intlocks have been seen. Thus, the
whole history of firearms may be
found illustrated in these islands. The
Malay is a 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 tho same class as the
wurali or curare of the Guarinis of
Brazil. 1t 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 to
remain there for several days. 1t is
then taken out and dried carefully
in some place where insects cannot
get at it. AS it dries it assumes a
slight glaze, and is of reddish,
brownish, or greenish-brown tint.
1t retains it's deadly quality long
time. According to the natives, it
will kill ten years after it has been
poisoned by insertion in dead ami
NAL. For martial purposes the best
poison is secured by inserting the
creese in the body of a warrior, es-
pecially brave one. His blood is
said to be richer and stronger than
that of any other animal
All people who buy creese should
boil the blade in strong lye, and then
polish it until the metal has bright
surface. The Malay spear varies
from wooden pole, sharpened in
the fire, to staff at whose head is
fastened a small creese. In Samar,
formidable weapon is made by bind
ing a bolo to the end of a pole.
With this man sitting in a tree
can lop off the head of a person Is
feet below him. There are Malay
bows and arrows, but the few that
/ have seen are primitive and ineffi-
cient.
Warming Against Hawaii.
COmrade Will L. Eaton. 1941 s