1??S. THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 301 



strument like an oar. This last is about twenty feet 

 long, four or five inches broad, and about half an 

 inch thick. Each edge, for about two-thirds of its 

 length (the other third being its handle), is set with 

 sharp bone-teeth, about two inches long. Herrings 

 and sardines and such other small fish as come in 

 shoals, are attacked with this instrument ; which is 

 struck into the shoal, and the fish are caught either 

 upon or between the teeth. Their hooks are made 

 of bone and wood, and rather inartificially ; but the 

 harpoon, with which they strike the whales and lesser 

 sea animals, shews a great reach of contrivance. It 

 is composed of a piece of bone, cut into two barbs, 

 in which is fixed the oval blade of a large muscle 

 shell, in which is the point of the instrument. To 

 this are fastened about two or three fathoms of rope; 

 and to throw this harpoon, they use a shaft of about 

 twelve or fifteen feet long, to which the line or rope 

 is made fast ; and to one end of which the harpoon 

 is fixed, so as to separate from the shaft, and leave 

 it floating upon the water as a buoy, when the animal 

 darts away with the harpoon. 



We can say nothing as to the manner of their catch- 

 ing or killing land animals, unless we may suppose 

 that they shoot the smaller sorts with their arrows, 

 and engage bears, or wolves and foxes, with their 

 spears. They have, indeed, several nets, which are 

 probably applied to that purpose * ; as they frequently 

 throw them over their heads, to shew their use, when 

 they brought them to us for sale. They also, some- 

 times decoy animals, by covering themselves with a 

 skin, and running about upon all fours, which they 

 do very nimbly, as appeared from the specimens of 

 their skill, which they exhibited to us, making a kind 

 of noise or neighing at the same time ; and, on these 



* One of the methods of catching the sea- otter, when ashore, 

 in Kamtschatka, is with nets. See Cox's Russian Discoveries, 

 p. 13. 4to. Edition. 



