CHAPTER XII. 



Methods Employed by the Indian — Introduction of the Steel-Trap 



— Discovery of the Castoreum Bait — Systematically Exter- 

 minating THE Beaver— The " Beaver Eater " and other Enemies 



— Hunters' Stories. 



The Indian in his primitive state could scarcely with justice be 

 called a ' ' beaver hunter, ' ' though in the efibrt to procure food and 

 clothing, he doubtlessly destroyed many of these animals. The ac- 

 counts of the life and habits of the North American Indian vary so 

 much, that many facts have to be considered which reflect only side- 

 lights on the stories, and as testimon}', add no more than circum- 

 stantial evidence. Think for a moment of the means the Indian 

 employed to kill or capture his quarr}^ and then compare the crude- 

 ness of these, with the cunning awakened in the beaver when the 

 most ingenious snares of the white man were used. Aboriginal 

 tribes the world over have left as types of their native ingenuity, 

 the arms they invented for use in warfare or the chase. The 

 " Boomerang " suggests to the mind the distinct type of the Austral 

 negro, and the Patagonian w^ith his "Bulla" is widely separated 

 from the Polynesian with his war clubs and war paddles. The na- 

 tive weapons of the North American Indian were undoubtedly his 

 arrow, spear, and tomahawk, the first two were used mostly in hunt- 

 ing, while the last was the indispensable weapon in war, and the 

 most typical of the race if taken together with the scalping knife. 

 The arrow and spear, when in the most perfect state for use, were 

 tipped with horn, which lent itself to nice manipulation even if it 

 could only be fashioned by the beaver-tooth chisel, and flint tips also 

 were very extensively used. Armed with these, the Indian was 

 prepared to meet the demands of his household, but would never 



