The farmer and mechanic., 1915-10-26
ONE MILLION RED MEN
The Wild Indians of Brazil and How The Government
Plans To Civze Them

the lips is now colGrcd t. tie v-ou,-
en-. When girl is eight vea~s ola -
sulalI mole IS made in her lower lin
Win a hard pointed stick. and 4 |
1,iug Is put IN 10 l-cep III, hole open. |
,n ,rroln ume to time the plug used is !
iai sei ana larger until at lest it :. |
I,ef ~ nnon as n'g around as i tumblc,, he
up Hnaily becoming a mere ring Of
SKIN around the wood. I1he Botoculog
aiSo use ear plugs, AMI these ~.
sometimes of the size of 2 nankjn
ring or larger. There are many rf
.hcse plugs among the exhibits of
.ie Natlonai Museum. Some that
| measured are disks Of a light wood
three inches in diameter. Tr.y ara
almost as big around as = ri.It lin
cup.
The third and fourth families 10
Whlch the Brazilian Indians belong are
the Caribs and the Araw2ks. The
Carlbs Inhabited the islands Of the
ltarrlbean sea. They are supposed TO
nave originated in the plains Of Goyaz
ana Matte Crosse and from there 10
nave Travelled ncrthward. The Ara
"ahS We're originally most numerous
along the lower Amazon, but they
We're also spread over central Brazil
the Caribs wore ferccious and war
, Ilke. IheX We're cannibals. ard Co
! lufnbus described them as such. The
color OF the Caribs is that Of copper
, but ii varies in tho different tribes
| They have long black hair and fea
l tures somewhat like the Chinese. The
: people pull out all the hair Oh their
2 bodies except that on the head. In
! some cases this is 50 even to the eye
brOVS.
/. The Aravaks were physically TN
= equal To the Earibs, bet they wc~e
q
n rlOuS kinds and working in stone and
4 gold. Their tribes were scattero !
t throughout Brazil, and they reached
: TO the Caribbean and most Of the West
V Indies Islands. Their chief descend
ants of today are found in the Guiana.
although some Of tho tribes here come
. | from them.
= During my visit to the museum
e have seen relics Of most of the Bra
J. lillian tribes and models typical of tn,
\ most famous of them They hay,
J. plaster figures here of the BotCcudo
10 with the blocks Of wood in their lip
20 and also the civilized Tacunas, VIII
70 make most beautiful hammoCks .
n grass cloth embroidered with feathers
# The Tacunas live along the Amazo
\, and they used poisoned arrows as
I means Of defense. The museum ha
"A many blOWpipes, such as are used t
in shoot these arrows. The pipes ar
IN about an inch in diameter and fror
q ten to twelve feet in length. They ar
a made Of a hard wood, which is spl
at and then followed out. After that tn
~. parts are glued together and wrappe
as with rattan SO that they are perfect
os alright. The arrows are about foo
% lone, and as thick as a dGrning needl
-, They are as sharp needle. On til
-. blunt end of the arrow is a wrappin
a Of cotton so made that it fits into
~ hole in the blowpipe. I am told tn;
~ the Indians can blow these arrows
sc S a distance Of fifty feet or more. TT
- poison is put on the point and sOm'
70 times it covers the upper part of tt
- arrow. 1t is deadly.
Many Of the Indian tribes use the:
larrows not only for fighting, but II
20. the killing Of birds and other gam
III They have one kind of poison WhiC
re causes almost instant death if it ge
OF into the blood. 1t attacks the, nerv
ny of motion and produces paralysis
u the breathings organs. AT the san
ms time it has no bad effect upon the u
OF of the flesh Of the animal as food. tt
pl- BotocudoS have very fine arrows wink
OF they carry in quivers. A single quiv
$50 will hold a dozen arrows, each or e
iey size of knitting needle. The India
me use spears Of bamboo tipped wi
In heads of bone or stone and for han
ay. tO-hand fights they have clubs
ing wood In the ends Of the clubs tn
ms put the teeth of animals. The spea
my are sometimes tipped with tee
one diDDed in poison
av Most Of the Brazilian Indians a
m skilled in trapping and hunting. 7
IS museum has many fish traps made
uth them. These ere so formed that t
tie fish can swim in, but cannot get o.
Many fish are taken by poisoning t
nal water. For this a vine called t
IN limbo is used. 1t is brbuised a
ON thrown into the waters OF creek
are pool, which are SO affected that t
Es- fish under the surface are stupehed
hey suffocated They rise to the top a
the are easily caught Fish are q
eat speared by torch light and are Kill
n by these poisoned arrows from bi