Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1910-03-10
EXPERT WITH BOWS
WEAPONS OF LISSoo NATIVES
ON cHINA-BURMEsE BORDER.
Are Splendid Marksmen and Although
Cowardly Their Use of Poisoned
Arrows Makes Them For
midable as FoSs.

On the wild frontier between China
and British Burma is barbarous
tribe which has no civilized supervi-
sion. George Forrest, an English
traveller, thus describes the chief
weapon of these people:
II | had to suggest title for
book on the upper Salwin 1 should
call il 'Tho Land of the Crossbow,'
which Is the characteristic weapon of
the country and the Lissoo tribe
Every Lissoo with any pretensions
to chic possesses at least two of these
weapons-one for everyday use in
hunting and the other fo! war. The
little children play with miniature
crossbows. The men never leave their
nuts Tor any purpose wha, ever with
out their crossbows: Which, they go to
sleep the 'nulung' is hun. over their
headS. and when they die it is hung
owe hcir graves.
THE largest crossboTs lave n spau
o. tU!!y five feet, and require a pull OF
Iuiiy 80 pounds to string them. The
DOW Is made Of species Ui wild mul.
perry OF great toughness and neXi.
pility; the stock, some four feet long
In the war bows, is usually of wild
plum wood; The string is of plated
hemp and the trigger of bonr
The arrow, of 16 TO is inches. Is of
Spit bamboo, about four lines the
thickness of an ordinary knitting nee
Ole, hardened and pointed: the actual
point is bare for quarter To- one-third
OF an inch, then fer fully al inch the
arrow is stripped to half its thickness.
ana on that portion poison s placed.
This noison is invariablv dacoc.
ZION expressed from the tut ars of
sH"c'"s Ct a"onitun. which grows on
tose ranges a. m altitude cf 5000 TO
lo.ooo feet. The rOison is mixed with
RESIN. or son" vegetable gun. to the
cohsi-'cncr Of uut'y. and is then
sm"ared on TIE Totched pc'rt.
the feather is supplied by a strip
OF bamboo leaf folded into triangular
form and tied in a notch NJ the end
OF the arrow. with the point of the
an@le outward.
The reduction in thickness of The
arrow where the poison IS pIaccd
causes the point to break OF in tbe
Dndy or any one whom 1t strikes. and
as each carries enough poison to kill
horse wound is invariably fatal.
Free and immediate incisiCr IS the
usual remedy when wounded on
nmh or feShy part of the h"dv: but
at ChcnG-ka the uncle Of II" Lao-wo
chief showed us preparation which
rescmbled opium dross, and which he
said was an effective antidota.
with few exceptions tn, Lissoo
seemed to "s 10 be arrant towards.
but the crossbow and poison"d arrow
Is certainly most diabolica' weapon.
An arrow from war bow viii Dierce
deal board an inch thick IT 70 or
80 yards. Some of the Tsekcu natives
were SO expert that they could hit
mark four inches in diameter repeat-
edly at 60 to 80 Yards.
AS no one gees anywhere without
MS crossbow and bearskin Qriyer full
of poisoned arrows, and as every vii.
Iage Is at fcud with every cher vii.
lage. mutual suspicion is inevitable.
I'm open fight the Lssoo are usual.
ly careful to keep at a respe 'tful dis
tance from each other and behind OK
hide shields which protect the whole
body But II battle is rare. murder
and sudden death by ambush I'm the