032 FISHING-NETS AND BASKETS. 



thickly with poison, and notched, so as easily to break off — a 

 most deadly weapon. Their arrows for shooting fish are 

 armed with iron heads, while smaller arrows are used for 

 shooting small game. These alone have feathers at the base, 

 generally from the wings of the macaw. They are secured 

 spirally, forming thus a little screw on the base of the arrow, 

 causing it to revolve rapidly, and assisting to keep it in a 

 direct course. 



They employ also several sorts of hand-nets for catching 

 fish : one is very similar to the folding nets of entomologists, 

 and another is like a landing net. Rods and lines are gener- 

 ally used by them. They also catch fish by means of a small 

 conical-shaped wicker basket. The larger end is completely 

 open. Into this, which is placed in a current, the fish enter, 

 and swimming rapidly on, jam themselves into the narrow 

 end, where, unable to turn, they are completely secured. 

 They also use large cylindrical baskets, with reversed cones in 

 the mouth like those of lobster-pots, but of much greater 

 size. 



Fish are also caught by means of weirs. These are well 

 built, supported by strong posts. They are formed when the 

 water is low. As the water rises, the fish, keeping by the 

 sides of the stream, are guided by the side wings "of the weir 

 into its narrow opening, out of which they cannot make their 

 way. Not only fish, but turtles find their way into these 

 weirs, and sometimes electric eels — as also those dreaded fish, 

 the piranhas. The Indian gets the fish out by diving into 

 the weir armed with a small hand-net, and sometimes with a 

 knife. He first endeavours, however, to learn whether any of 

 his foes are within, and gets them out first. Another kind of 

 weir is formed on a still larger scale, generally beneath cata- 



