LET US GO AFIELD 



penetrated the blubber and struck into the red meat 

 of the whale, death would certainly ensue eventually. 

 So, having delivered his shaft, he paddled back 

 home and waited until the dead whale came ashore 

 somewhere and some time. It would puzzle us to 

 duplicate his feat with the best of our modern rifles. 



A rather curious interest attaches to the knives 

 of savage peoples. Many sportsmen have collected 

 sets of the Philippine weapons, from barong and 

 bolo to kris and dagger. The coarse gray steel 

 of these great knives will take quite a good edge. 

 The nearest approach we have to these heavy blades 

 is the old Hudson Bay knife, with its wide, heavy 

 blade and stout handle, a weapon and tool com- 

 bined, which would weigh two or three pounds. 



Perhaps you have read that the Chinese will saw 

 or whittle toward himself and not away from him- 

 self while working wood. Some of the tribes of 

 the extreme northern parts of this continent are 

 curiously Oriental in their looks and in their habits. 

 All over the North you will find what is known as 

 the "crooked knife," a tool usually made of an old 

 file, with the end curved up, not used for cutting 

 or stabbing. This knife was always drawn toward 

 the user while whittling, and like all the Indian 

 knives, was sharpened only on one side, and not 

 with a double bevel. 



290 



