Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1910-03-22
EXPERT WITH BOWS
WEAPONS OF LIssoo NATIVES
ON cHlNA-BURMESE BORDER.
Are Splendid Marksmen and Although
Cowardly Their Use Of Poisoned
Arrows Makes Them For
midable az Foes,


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:
IF | had to suggest title for a
book on the upper Salwin l should
call it The Land of the Crossbow,'
! which i3 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 for war. The
little children play with miniature
crossbows. The men never leave their
nuts for any purpose whatever with
out their crossbows; when they go to
sleep the 'nukung' is hung over their
h"ads. and when they die it is hung
owe" heir graves.
fhe largest crossbows have a span
OF fully five feet, and require a pull of
iuily 80 pounds to string them. The
DOW Is made Of a species of wild mul.
perry or great toughness and fiexi.
olnty; the stock, some four feet long
IN the war bows, is usually of wild
plum ~Sod; the string is of plated
hemp and the trigger of bone.
The arrow, of 16 to IS inches. ia of
split bamboo, about four times 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 for fully an inch the
arrow is stripped to half its thickness,
and on that portion poison is placed.
This poison is invariably a decoc-
non expressed from the tuEers of a
shec!es Of accnitum. which grows on
t3ose ranges at an altitude of 5000 to
lo.ooo feet. The noison is mixed with
RESIN or some vegetable gun. to the
consistency o! putty, and is then
smeared on the notched pc:nt.
Fhe feather is supplied by a strip
OF bamboo leaf folded into a triangular
form and tied in notch at the end
OF the arrow. with the point of the
aI@le outward
The reduction in thickness of the
arrow where the poison is placed
causes the point to break OF in the
body OF any one whom 1t strikes. and
AS each. carries enough poison to kill
horse wound is Invariably fatal.
rrce and immediate incision is the
usual remedy when wounded on
limb or feshy part of the body: but
al thenS'ka the uncle of the Lao-wo
chle! showed lis preparation which
res"mbled opium dross. and which he
SAID was an effective antido:e.
with few exceptions the Lissoo
seemed to - TO he arrant towards.
put the crossbow and poisoned arrow
is certainly most diabolicar weapon.
An arrow from war bow will pierce
a deal board an inch thick at 70 or
~ yards. Some Of the Tsekou natives
were so expert that they could hit n
mark four inches in diameter repeat.
edIy at so to 80 Yards.
"As no one gees anywhere without
mis- crossbow and bearskin culver full
OF poisoned arrows, and as every vii
lage Is at feud with every other vii
laGe, mutual suspicion is inevitable.
I'm open fight the Lissoo are usual.
~ careful to keep at a respectful 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
jungle are common"