Chap. IV. 
i^ETTING TURTLES. 
261 
animal descends with it towards the bottom, leaving the 
shaft floating on the surface. This being 
done the sportsman paddles in his mon- 
taria to the place, and gently draws the 
animal by the twine, humouring it by 
giving it the rein when it plunges, until 
it is brought again near the surface, when 
he strikes it with a second arrow. With 
the increased hold given by the two cords 
he has then no difficulty in landing his 
game. 
By mid-day the men had shot about a 
score of nearly full-grown turtles. Car- 
dozo then gave orders to spread the net. 
The spongy, swampy nature of the banks 
made it impossible to work the net so as 
to draw the booty ashore ; another method 
was therefore adopted. The net was taken 
by two Indians and extended in a curve 
at one extremity of the oval-shaped pool, 
holding it when they had done so by the 
perpendicular rods fixed at each end ; its 
breadth was about equal to the depth of 
the water, its shotted side therefore rested 
on the bottom, w^hilst the floats buoyed it 
up on the surface, so that the whole, when 
the ends were brought together, would 
form a complete trap. The rest of the 
party then spread themselves around the 
swamp at the opposite end of the pool 
and began to beat, with stout poles, the thick tufts 
4 
Arrow used in 
turtle shooting. 
