NELSON] USE OF BOLAS—BIRD IMFOUNDING 135 
distance, he swings the balls around his head once or twice and casts 
them, aiming a little in front of the flock. When the balls leave the 
hand they are close together, the cords trail behind, and they travel 
so swiftly that it is difficult to follow their flight with the eye. As they 
begin to lose their impetus they acquire a gyrating motion, and spread 
apart until at their highest point they stand out to the full extent of 
the cords in a circle four or five feet in diameter; they seem to hang 
thus for a moment, then, if nothing has been encountered, turn and drop 
to the earth, While in the air the cords do not appear to interfere 
with each other, but when the sling reaches the ground the cords will 
be found to be interwoven in a perfect network of entanglement; if a 
bird is struck it is enwrapped by the cords and its wings so hampered 
that it falls helpless. 
Tt is curious to note the quickness with which this implement 
changes its course if one of the balls encounters any obstruction. At 
Cape Wankarem | saw the Chukchi capture many eider ducks by its 
aid, and frequently saw one of the extended balls or its cord touch a 
duck, when the other balls appeared as if endowed with intelligence; 
their course was rapidly changed, and the bird enwrapped as com- 
pletely as if it had been struck squarely by the sling. Owing to the 
space covered by these. implements they are very effective when cast 
among a flock of birds. They are used mostly on low points over which 
waterfowl fly at certain hours of the day. ; 
The Eskimo of the Yukon delta and the low country to the southward 
make drives of waterfowl on the marshes during August, when the old 
birds have molted their wing-feathers and the young are still unable 
to fly. Salmon nets are arran ged by means of stout braces and stakes _ 
to form a pound with wings on one side; the people form a long line 
across the marsh and, by shouting and striking the eround with sticks 
as they advance, drive the birds before them toward the pound. As they 
approach it, the line of people converge until they reach the wings, and 
the birds, thus inclosed, are driven in and killed with sticks. Thou- 
sands of downy young are thus slaughtered and thrown away, while 
uniaks are filled with the larger or adult birds. One of the fur traders 
told me that he witnessed a drive of this kind where about a ton of 
young birds were killed and thrown aside, while several umiaks were 
loaded with the larger birds, among which were many varieties of ducks 
and geese. These drives and the constant egg gathering that is prac- 
ticed every spring are having their effect in rapidly diminishing the 
number of waterfowl] in this district. 
SEAL SPEARS 
The ordinary types of weapons used for spearing seals from a kaiak 
vary from 4 to 4} feet in length. They have a light wooden shaft, 
- rounded or slightly oval in cross section, of about the same size from 
butt to point, with a long, rounded head of bone or ivory having a 
