﻿ABORIGINAL 
  CHIPPED 
  STONE 
  IMPLEMENTS 
  OF 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  75 
  

  

  FISHING 
  AND 
  STONE 
  NET 
  SINKERS 
  

  

  One 
  very 
  important 
  article 
  in 
  the 
  food 
  of 
  the 
  American 
  aborigines 
  

   was 
  fish. 
  The 
  accounts 
  which 
  early 
  travelers 
  and 
  colonists 
  give 
  of 
  

   the 
  abundance 
  of 
  all 
  descriptions 
  of 
  fishes 
  in 
  lakes 
  and 
  rivers, 
  seem 
  

   wonderful 
  now, 
  when 
  we 
  are 
  trying 
  to 
  restore 
  them 
  to 
  some 
  degree 
  

   of 
  their 
  early 
  condition, 
  and 
  yet 
  they 
  are 
  harmonious 
  and 
  well 
  sup- 
  

   ported. 
  The 
  only 
  difficulty 
  the 
  Indian 
  had 
  was 
  to 
  preserve 
  and 
  store 
  

   up 
  this 
  abundant 
  supply 
  for 
  hours 
  of 
  need. 
  In 
  Canada 
  and 
  New 
  

   York, 
  eels 
  were 
  taken 
  in 
  vast 
  numbers, 
  and 
  were 
  easily 
  preserved 
  by 
  

   smoking. 
  It 
  does 
  not 
  appear 
  that 
  this 
  was 
  usual 
  with 
  fish 
  of 
  other 
  

   kinds. 
  Salt 
  they 
  did 
  not 
  use, 
  and 
  it 
  was 
  distasteful 
  to 
  them. 
  The 
  

   Iroquois 
  now 
  ascribe 
  their 
  degeneracy 
  and 
  lack 
  of 
  manly 
  vigor, 
  to 
  

   using 
  salt 
  meat, 
  instead 
  of 
  obtaining 
  all 
  its 
  fresh 
  juices, 
  as 
  their 
  

   ancestors 
  did. 
  

  

  It 
  becomes 
  a 
  matter 
  of 
  interest 
  to 
  know 
  how 
  they 
  took 
  the 
  fish 
  

   which 
  swarmed 
  in 
  every 
  stream, 
  for 
  certain 
  relics 
  have 
  direct 
  refer- 
  

   ence 
  to 
  this. 
  In 
  doing 
  so, 
  however, 
  bare 
  allusion 
  will 
  be 
  made 
  to 
  

   harpooning, 
  for 
  the 
  harpoon 
  of 
  colonial 
  times 
  was 
  made 
  of 
  bone 
  or 
  

   horn, 
  and 
  sometimes 
  of 
  wood 
  and 
  iron, 
  thus 
  lying 
  outside 
  of 
  those 
  

   chipped 
  stone 
  implements 
  to 
  which 
  this 
  paper 
  relates. 
  Only 
  inci- 
  

   dentally 
  will 
  angling 
  be 
  touched 
  upon, 
  for 
  the 
  same 
  reason. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  account 
  of 
  Champlain's 
  voyages, 
  that 
  great 
  discoverer 
  told 
  

   of 
  Huron 
  customs. 
  * 
  The 
  men 
  make 
  the 
  nets 
  to 
  capture 
  fish 
  in 
  

   summer 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  in 
  winter, 
  when 
  they 
  generally 
  fish, 
  reaching 
  their 
  

   prey 
  even 
  below 
  the 
  ice, 
  either 
  with 
  the 
  line 
  or 
  the 
  seine.' 
  This 
  winter 
  

   fishing 
  was 
  described 
  by 
  others 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  Champlain, 
  but 
  he 
  mentions 
  

   the 
  fact 
  which 
  is 
  of 
  importance 
  here, 
  that 
  the 
  net 
  ' 
  sinks 
  to 
  the 
  bottom 
  

   of 
  the 
  water 
  by 
  means 
  of 
  certain 
  small 
  stones 
  attached 
  to 
  the 
  end.' 
  

   While 
  Sagard 
  describes 
  the 
  making 
  of 
  Huron 
  nets 
  and 
  their 
  use, 
  he 
  

   says 
  nothing 
  of 
  these 
  weights, 
  for 
  the 
  one 
  was 
  a 
  necessity 
  of 
  the 
  other. 
  

   He 
  does, 
  however, 
  allude 
  to 
  one 
  fact 
  in 
  angHng, 
  which 
  is 
  important 
  

   if 
  we 
  substitute 
  the 
  curved 
  and 
  slender 
  stone 
  drill 
  for 
  the 
  piece 
  of 
  

   bone. 
  He 
  said, 
  ' 
  We 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  bellies 
  of 
  several 
  large 
  fishes, 
  

   hooks 
  made 
  of 
  a 
  piece 
  of 
  wood 
  and 
  a 
  bone, 
  so 
  placed 
  as 
  to 
  form 
  a 
  

   hook, 
  and 
  very 
  neatly 
  bound 
  together 
  with 
  hemip.' 
  A 
  figure 
  has 
  

   been 
  given 
  of 
  a 
  New 
  York 
  stone 
  perforator, 
  suitable 
  for 
  this 
  use. 
  The 
  

  

  