548 BULLETIN UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 



ure to a limited space of the edge of tlie stierd. During ihe operation, 

 tlie rock is partially inwrapped iu a piece of buckskin for becter mauip- 

 uiatiou, its fiat side resting against the fleshy part of the thumb of the 

 left hand, only the edge to be worked being leftexposed (Fig. 3). The tool 

 is worked with the right hand, while the lower part of the handle, usually 

 ornamented, is held between the arm and the body so as to guide the 

 instrument with a steady hand. The main movements are shown at a, 

 h, and o of Fig. 4. With the movement as illustrated at a, larger flakes 

 are detached, and the rock is roughly shaped into the desired form ; 

 while with the movement shown at b long flakes are broken, which fre- 

 quently reach the middle of the sherd, producing the ridge of the points 

 or knives; and, with movement illustrated at c, the smaller chips of the 

 cuttiiig-edge are worked. The work proceeds from the point, the more 

 fragile part of the weapon toward the stronger end, as illustrated by the 

 unfinished borer, the form of which, as frequently found, is shown by 

 dotted lines. To work out the barbs and the projections of the arrow- 

 or spear-points (Fig. 5), a bone needle is used, as pictured in natural 

 size in Fig. 7, about 4 to 5 inches long, without a shaft. The movements 

 are those as illustrated at h and c. 



II. — STRAIGHTENING OF THE ARROW-SHAFT. 



On the coast of California and Oregon especially, the common willow 

 was used for shafting the arrow of the aborigines, although any other 

 tough straight twig may have supplied the want. The arrow of these 

 tribes is usually about 2^ feet long; the shaft is worked round to a 

 diameter of about j\ of an inch, and tapers slightly toward the ends, 

 to one of which is fastened the point, while the other one is winged with 

 the guiding-feathers. The aboriginal warrior was well aware of the ad- 

 vantage of a straight arrow-shaft over a crooked one, and when there- 

 fore nature did not provide the desired perfection, ingenuity was resorted 

 to by which it was attained. The way it was accomplished 1 learned 

 from living witnesses and by the many implements found which were 

 used for the purpose of straightening the arrow-shaft. 



The twigs were cut into the proper length, worked by scraping into 

 the desired thickness, and were left to dry in the shade. When partially 

 dry, such bends and crooked parts which resisted the common practice of 

 straightening were subjected to the action of the arrow-straightener. This 

 utensil is made of steatite, a rock that well resists the destructive power 

 of the tire to which it is subjected during the process of straightening the 

 shafts, and retains the heat long. It is usually oval in shape, and slopes 

 toward both ends and sides, ending in a flat base, upon which it rests 

 when iu use. Across its ridge passes a groove (sometimes two and even 

 three), corresponding in its width to the thickness of the arrow-shaft, 

 while the depth varies often to twice its width, according to the service 

 it rendered, by which the grooves are deepened and at its edge even 

 enlarged. The size varies from the (me illustrated to about 5 inches in 



