NOMADS OF THE LONG BOW HOLMBERG 



43 



days. There were nine camps between the starting 

 point and the objective, which means that on days 

 when movement took place approximately 10 

 miles were covered. It is difficult, however, to 

 make any generalizations as to the amount of 

 travel done by a band, since so much depends on 

 the food supply in the area. Some camps may be 

 abandoned within a few days' time, while others 

 may be occupied for more than 6 months. I visited 

 some 50 sites that had been variously occupied and 

 abandoned during the past 20 years. 



The amount of band travel, however, cannot be 

 taken as a measure of the amount of travel done by 

 individual hunters or by family groups. Hunters 

 may cover as many as 40 mdes a day in their quest 

 for game, and when nuclear families are away 

 from the band on hunting and gathering expedi- 

 tions, they, too, may travel great distances in a 

 single day. I have made trips with a man, his wife, 

 and young chdd when we walked as many as 25 

 miles in a single day. 



When on the move, men cooperate with the 

 women in carrying the family burdens, which are 

 packed in carrying baskets woven from the green 

 leaves of the motacu palm. These baskets are 

 carried on the back, being suspended from the 

 head (women) or shoulders (men) by a tumpline of 

 liana. 



Considerable weight may be transported by 

 these methods. The average pack for a man or 

 woman runs around 60 or 70 pounds. When 

 meat is being transported in from the forest, I have 

 seen a man carry up to 200 pounds on his back for 

 a distance of 10 miles without exhibiting a great 

 deal of fatigue. When the Siriono are traveling 

 or carrying burdens, however, brief halts are usu- 

 ally made about every 2 hours for purposes of 

 resting. 



Young children are carried by the mother in a 

 sling which is slung around her shoulder. The 

 baby sits in the sling with its legs astride her hip. 

 When marching in the forest a man may some- 

 times relieve a woman in carrying the children, 

 but he will never enter camp carrying "female 

 possessions." 



On the march the men, with their bows and 

 arrows over their shoulders, go ahead of the 

 women. If game is sighted they temporarily drop 

 their loads and give chase. By the time the next 

 camping place is reached, they have generally 

 killed some animals for the evening meal. 



In walking over the narrow paths, the Indians 

 march in single file and walk with the toes pointed 

 inward at an angle of about 45° to prevent sticks 

 and thorns from bruising the tender skin between 

 their toes. Because of this habit, the Siriono have 

 become a really pigeon-toed people. 



Although no type of watercraft is manufactured 

 or used, rivers, swamps, and streams offer little 

 hindrance to travel except during the rainy 

 season, when most of the country becomes one 

 continuous body of water. But as already noted, 

 little movement takes place at this time. Even in 

 the dry season, however, there are brooks, streams, 

 and swamps to cross in every day's travel. Since 

 the bodies of waters are low at this season most of 

 them can just be walked through, but if the water 

 is found deeper than the height of one's head other 

 means of crossing must be resorted to. 



The most common method of crossing a deep 

 stream is to fell a tree from one bank to the other. 

 If the stream is fairly wide, a tree may be felled 

 from either bank. If this does not prove feasible, 

 a heavy liana may be tied to trees on both banks — 

 one individual swims across with the liana — and 

 the people pass from one side to the other by 

 going hand over hand along the liana, the body 

 being buoyed up by the water. It is interesting to 

 note that D'Orbigny (1835-47, vol. 4, pp. 343-344) 

 first called our attention to this method of crossing 

 the rivers more than a hundred years ago. When 

 crossing streams or rivers, burdens are generally 

 placed on the head to keep them dry, and the 

 children are carried astraddle on the shoulders. 



A great many streams become stagnant during 

 the dry season, and are covered with a dense 

 blanket of water grass. These growths are usually 

 so thick that one can walk quickly over their tops 

 without sinking into the water below. But for 

 aid in crossing such streams saplings or bamboos 

 are sometimes laid on top of the grass so as to 

 make a temporary bridge. 



When all other methods prove to be of no avail 

 in crossing a river or a stream, swimming is 

 resorted to. The Siriono are excellent swimmers. 

 They swim with a crawl stroke, as well as "dog 

 fashion." In spite of the abundance of palometas 

 and alligators, every child of 8 knows how to swim. 



Finally, it should be mentioned that in crossing 

 deep rivers or streams, people usually cover their 

 genitals with one hand so as to protect them from 

 the palometas which infest all of these waters. 



