The sun., 1903-10-18
SOME INDIAN GAME TRAPS.
MODELS TO SHOW THE SKILL or
a VANISHING TRIBE. |


An Interesting Group At the Natural HIS
tory Museum. Made With the Help
Of . kwakultl Indian brought From
vancOuver-One Way 10 Catch Eagles.
An interesting group OF models which has
engaged the attention Of w. Orchard. tus
laboratory worker Of the chronological de:
partment of the Museum of Natural His
tory. since last winter will soon take it's place
among the exhibits Of that departments
1t comprises twenty y-three pieces, each q
complete miniature model OF a fish or ani-
! NAL trap used by the Kwakuitl Indians
on the northern shore Of Vancouver Island,
The Kwakuitls are now a part Of the van.
ishing frontier. The old traps can be
found here and there, but in a few years
the last one will be gone, and there will b.
no one who can remember their use. The
museum. therefore. brought one of the
tribe to New York last winter to give the
necess, ry information for the constructions
of the models. a."
This was George Hunt, who had hunted.
trapped and fished all his life by the Old
methods. The presence of this member Of
LIlt duCltHl tIlJc Ill ANcW 1OIh AOt XIV" P0A -
pose of preserving the last record OF the oid
life Of his people for civilization was in ttSeh
somewhat picturesque episode in museum
exploration. fd'ra -
He stayed no longer then was absolutely
necessary. New York was a dream q
horror to him. As soon as they would ~ !!
him he hit the trail for Vancouver Island.
where he is now collecting for the museum,
The models are interesting as showing
how a primitive tribe gained its living
through unknown prehistoric periods.
Some one once said that to the North Amer-
can Indian are due only three first cinss
inventons-the bow and arrow, the 'birchE
bark canoe and the Navajo blanket He
would change his mind could he see the
invention displayed in these traps. 'i'1, :
In the taking OF the salmon, for instance
extremely ingenious devices were EN-.
ployed One model represents waterfall
with a basket made of cedar saphnss.
stretched clear across the stream, about
half way down the fall -.
The fall is ls feet high. The salmon
swimming up stream in shoals at the spawn
ing season would leap this fall by thousands.
! landing on a ledge near the top. About
one in three, however would fall bac ok and
be caught in the big basket suspended1or
their reception.
Another trap was an oblong basket, g
feet wide and u long, made OF ceda1
withes and tied together with stout ropes
made Of cedar bark. Swimming up stream,
the fish found their way naturally into tho
mouth of the basket, which had pointed
sticks, sharply inclined inward, that made
the final opening very small and dinCulC
to get out of. Wandering about inside,
the fish, would find their way into pockets
A variation of this trap was rail fence
set up in the stream, forming a corral
with the accompanying submerged poe keta:
The ingenuity with which the mouths OF
these traps are constructed to make II
easy for the fish to get in and hard for them
| to get out is very interesting. :, Ar. q"
Another sort of trap was made by con-
structing stone pockets In the stream.
! One model shows the river full OF these
stone enclosures, from bank to bank, IN
every possible combination OF shape and
| position. No fish could escape laundering
into one or another Of them as it went VI,
Sometimes the Indians would build .
stout dam Of logs, forming pool at, "
Above, on the bank. an Indian watched.
with a big stone in his hand. 80.
When the pool filed up with fish he would
dash the stone among them. Alarmed
by the disturbance, it was perfectly natural
for the frightened fish to scurry down
instant Plunging back they went straight
into the mouth Of stone corral IN;
genio,lsly placed where they could not fall
| to swim into IL.
Another model shows a weir, two SUBJ
marine walls Of rock spreading out fanwlss
and narrowing to a point At the point
a canoe is anchored and an Indian standing
in II scooped up the fish in his broad. baggy
net. fastened on a paddle-like frame. a.
they poured through the narrow opening: -
The wild animal traps are all varieties. Das
n deer in the direction Of platform Of logs.
When he stepped upon this ne liberated
| a delicately poised sapling. which new up
| and caught him in a moose. Many dinerene
bear and deer traps were variations OF THIS
| principle. -,
shn mites of logs, with rocks piled on top.
The bait hung Just out OF reach, compelled
the hear to lie down and reach In with his.
nav to grasp it. With the first jerk the
logs and rocks came down upon him with
sufficient force to crush hm 70 deanh. :.
The beaver trap was also deadfall placed
in the shallow part Of the beaver run. A
beaver will always climb over an obstruc.
tion in the water instead OF going under IL.
When he started to climb over the logA
cleverly arranged for his destruetson. % h$
liberated the upper one ana Iouho hHnsoa
pinned between the two. !, =
One of the most interesting models shows
both a salmon and an eagle trap. They
arranged pockets Of rock on tho beach,
haitins them with broken clans. Tho
salmon swarmed into the pockets to feed
on the clans, and the tide, going out. left
them stranded in the pockets.
H. one side OF this beach u q Ledge OF rock
with O natural cave Ovor the mouth Of
this cave, the Indian hung veil Of seeweed. i.
behind which he took his station: on ae
When the eagle swooped down 70 The
bait, the indian reached out from behind
his his screen, caught the bird b. its two leg:
with his right hand, pulled It IN, g1aspsd'
it's beak with his left hand and cracked II
skull with his teeth. 1t was an operation
which, in that confined space, demanded
speed, skill and pluck, and the Indian Who ;
could kill the king Of birds IN this encounee
was good man in the tribe.
nRESnEN POLICE. :,