Warfare, Hunting, and Fishing 385 



is placed under the opposite side, and the stone is turned over with 

 the foot. 



The most effective fishing-device is a large throw net made cor- 

 nucopia shape. The large net is open and weighted with many sinkers 

 of lead. The man throws the net with a full arm sweeping motion, 

 so that it spreads to its full extent, and all the sinkers strike the water 

 at the same time. The splash causes all the fish inside the circle to 

 dart inward, and as it sinks, the net settles over them. The fisherman 

 draws in the cord attached to the small end, causing the sinkers to 

 drag along to the bottom until directly beneath him, when their weight 

 closes the net. It requires much skill and practice to throw this net 

 properly, but once the art is mastered, the fisherman is very successful. 



Blanket fishing similar to that in use by the neighboring Igorot 

 is found here. A large blanket is weighed down with stones, and is 

 placed in the river. After one or two hours have elapsed, a number 

 of men form a wide circle around it. Often they drag between them 

 a rope to which many corn husks are attached. As they advance to- 

 ward the blanket, they turn the larger stones with their feet so that 

 any fish hiding beneath them will be frightened away. The circle of 

 men and corn husks causes the fish to go toward the blanket, and 

 finally to take refuge under the stones piled upon it. When the blanket 

 is reached, the men seize the corners and lift it out of the water on 

 to the bank, where the stones are thrown out and the fish secured. 

 A somewhat similar idea is found in the lama. Quantities of leaf 

 branches are sunk into a still pool, and are left for a few days until 

 the fish have come to use them as a hiding-place. A number of men 

 make a close fence of bamboo sticks about them, then go inside, 

 throw out the branches, and catch the fish with their hands or with 

 the nets. Streams are often diverted from their course, for a time, 

 and then returned, leaving the fish in the artificial channels stranded. 



A curious method of fishing was seen in the Ikmin river. A hook 

 was fastened in the end of a bamboo pole, and close to this a minnow 

 was attached to a short line, to act as a lure. When the other fish ap- 

 proached the captive, the pole was jerked sharply, in an attempt to 

 snag them. On one occasion the writer saw fifty fish taken by this 

 method in less than an hour. 



Short lines attached to sticks are often baited, and are set along 

 the embankments of the flooded rice-fields. Small fish spears with 

 detachable heads are also used in the rice lands, as well as in the 

 clear pools. The only occasion when the bow and arrow is used in 

 this region is when the rice fields are flooded. At such times a short 



