160 ACROSS THE SUB-ARCTICS-OP CARA 
spear of somewhat peculiar design. It is in all about 
five feet long, and consists of a wooden handle termi- 
nated at one end by a slender barbed ivory or iron rod, 
sharply pointed. About half way up the handle, three 
pointed barbed ivory fingers are securely fastened. The 
handle is then fitted into a wooden socket, which is held 
in the hand, and from which the spear is thrown. It is 
claimed that by means of the wooden socket the spear 
can be thrown with greater precision than by the bare 
hand, to which it would adhere more or less. However 
that may be, an Eskimo can hurl his bird-spear a 
marvellously long distance, and with deadly effect. 
If the point of the spear misses the bird, one of the — 
side fingers is almost sure to pierce it, or catch it 
between the fingers and the spear handle. . | 
In this way, ptarmigan, ducks, and other land and sea 
fowls are obtained in considerable numbers. They are 
usually speared while sitting in flocks upon the snow or 
in the water, but they are also frequently killed in this 
way when on the wing. Sometimes the bow and arrow 
is used for bringing down the feathered game, but the 
spear is the instrument chiefly employed. 
Fish are caught both by spearing and with the hook. 
The latter is of the crudest design, and is used in 
trolling. <A troll consists of a heavy iron hook, fastened 
to the face of a small ivory disk, to which is attached 
a fine, strong line, made from plaited deer-skin sinews. 
Fish are not, however, caught so much with the hook 
as they are by the spear. Indeed, it is chiefly by means 
of the harpoon and spear that the Eskimo larder is 
supplied. The fish-spear is a kind of three-pronged 
barbed fork, fastened toa handle. It is used chiefly for 
