El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1914-08-15

I rawhide. A mail coat of this sort,
which fastened al the back, could De
carried conveniently when not in use,
being rolled up in small compass
Another kind Of armOr coat worn by
the Alaskan Eskimo was composed OF
I long strips Of whalebOne, arranged YER
ucally and sewn together through per-
fOratiOns along their edges. This
weapon-proof cuirass. which extended
from neck TO midthigh. had the advant-
age Of being very elastic II had straps
( that passed over the shoulders, and
was tied at the back
Yet another kind OF armOr worn by
the Eskimo was a hoop armOr, com
posed Of heavy bands Of sea lion skin
or Walrus hide. 1t pore a curious,
! though clumsy, resemblance to the
/ banded mali Of the middle ages In
Europe. At Cape Prince Of Wales iron
armor plates have been dug up in
marsh. and similar plates Of copper
have been found on st. Lawrence is
! land-the latter a locality much used
l in early days as an entrepOt for trade,
and to which the Chuckhis from PlOver
/ Bay and elsewhere along the Siberian
/ coast came every year for traffic with
/ the Alaskan Eskimo.
J In the National museums collection
are two coats Of Alaskan mail which
were originally derived from the
! Chuckhis, IL is presumed They have
; the form Of n waistcOat. fastened with
D
| and one Of them is plated over its en-
/ tire front with Chinese and japanese
| coins.
Masks of Southwest Indians.
The aboriginal helmets were in many
/ instances Of grOtesque construction,
I sometimes Of huge size. bearing carven
! representations OF alarming looking
/ animals, and evidently designed TO IN
! spire fear in the breast Of an enemy
As often as not they were as much
I masks as helmets Even to this day
/ they survive as masks among the indi-
| ans Of the northwest coast, beng
! carved out Of drfftwOOd as a rule and
among the Pueblos of New Mexico and
Arizona they figure conspicuously IN
J religious ceremOnials-
I'D TO the time Of the Introduction OF
firearms. shields We're in well nigh
universal use among savage tribes OF
America. Usually they were made Of
{ thick rawhide, preferably butIalo or
elk Sometimes, as among the virginia
indians. they were Of wood. The Nav
ajOs made shields of cedar rods tas-
tened together with cords. In New
Mexico they were sometimes construct
ed OF small laths interviewer with cords
in such a way as to shut up like fans
to be carried under the arm The
I typical Sioux shield was of the skin
of q buffalo's neck. hardened with glue
from the hOofs Of the same animal.
Most Of the tribes covered the shield
Win dressed OuNh6EAA uENNA eA+N4 Al
a fanciful manner.
In ancient Mexico armor was highly
developed. The mobiles Wore breast
plates OF quilted cotton, over which
was a thick cotton coat. fastened be
hind and decorated with feathers OF the
color Of the company's uniform This
afforded an arrow proof protection,
supplemented as it was by arm guards
and leg guards Of wood covered with
leather or gold plate and trimmed with
feathers ArmOr Of reeds or hide
served the common soldiers
Fighting Men OF the Toltees-
Among she fighting men Of the Toll
tees. the body armor Of an officer was
Of double cloth padded with cotton and
reaching tc the ankles. The private
soldier painted the upper part Of his
body to represent armor, but from
waist 10 knee he was protected by a
cotton wadded- kilt Along the coast
Of Mexico shells Of tOrtoises were used
for shields. inlaid with gold. silver and
copper Sometimes the Aztec common
soldier wore a cuirass Of woven grass
coated with india rubber.
The Tarascos of MichOacan wore he'll
met, coat. leggins and armlets. all OF
wood. covered with gold or copper plate
so neatly that the suit had all the ap-