8 S.M ITllSiiM-W M ISCl'!!, I, ANIvOrS COI. MICTIONS \'()I.. 56 



to salmon, which is the staple fish food. Greyling, a kind of trout, 

 is also caught in the mountain streams, and is prized as a delicacy. 



The caribou, or Alaskan reindeer, is the staple winter food. Dur- 

 ing the fall, when a run of caribou is expected, two long rail fences 

 are built converging into a corral. Snares are placed in the fence 

 about fifty yards apart and also thickly interspersed in the corral 

 space where the herd is driven. The Indians line up at the 

 entrance and shoot with their arrows those that try to escape. Some 

 are caught in the fence snares, but most are captured in the corral. 

 The snare consists of a loop of strong braided moose-skin rope, the 

 end tied to a loose log, the loop being held in place by small strings 

 of caribou-skin that break easily. It is set in a natural opening 

 through which it is presumed the animal will try to pass. As the 

 caribou jumps through the loop the strings break, the loop tightens, 

 and, thus caught, he tries to run, dragging the loose log after him, 

 which soon exhausts him. If tied to something firm the rope breaks 

 too readily : hence a loose log is preferred. 



Moose are usually stalked and shot with bow and arrow, aim being 

 taken behind the shoulder ; but sometimes the dogs get a moose at 

 bay and the Indians attack him with pikes. In the springtime the 

 moose can be caught with snares set in a creek, the dogs chasing 

 him down the creek into a snare. The Indians say that a moose- 

 once shot with an arrow never escapes, as they sometimes do after 

 being shot with a gun, for, though they may run for some time, they 

 will finally succumb and be caught. 



A pike or spear is nearly always used in hunting bears. The hun- 

 ter attracts the bear by making a raven-like noise, causing the bear, 

 as the Indians say, to think the raven has discovered a dead moose. 

 They also further explain that the big bears only would come, as 

 the little bears would not know what the croaking meant. As the 

 bear approaches the Indian holds the spear in position, facing the 

 bear as it draws nearer to him, and as the bear springs the Indian' 

 sticks the spear intf^ its throat at the top of the breast-bone, at the 

 same time shoving tlic handle of the pole into the ground, thus 

 causing the bear to spear himself with his own weight. Sometimes 

 three men hunt in this manner, two of them attacking the boar on 

 either side as it rushes forward. The meat of the young bear killed 

 in the fall, when they feed on huckleberries, is considered a great 

 luxury. 



(■rouse, ]-)tarmigan, ducks, rabbits, owls, hawks, and rithcr small 

 game are killed witli a dull, round-pointed arrow, sharp-pointed' 

 arrows being used only for big game. 



