THE EVOLUTION OF THE ARROW 
85 
however, be occasionally seen where the barbs are beginning 
to appear but traces of the bulbous shape still remain. These 
lateral barbs were evidently suggested by some of the many 
thorny-stemmed plants which flourish in the bush in which 
the hunter spent most of his life. 
Improvements in many directions have doubtless been 
tried, but our record only contains those which have stood 
the test of time and survived to the present day. 
Wooden Arrow-head mimetic op Acacia Thorn, but with 
incipient Barbs. Kikuyu . 1 
We next come to the iron point. This must of course 
be always detachable, as an arrow entirely made of iron would 
be too heavy, and, further, the native has to be economical 
with his iron if he has to fashion it himself, and especially 
if he has to smelt it. 
The most primitive type is a simple iron thorn, and such 
a point is still sometimes seen in Kavirondo and Nandi, but 
rarely. It is never made bulbous as the wooden points are, 
which shows that the makers had shaken themselves adrift 
Wooden Arrow-head with well-marked Barbs mimetic op a 
Thorny Branch. Kavirondo. 
from the tradition of the natural thorn and speedily discovered 
that it was not necessary for strength. Most of these simple 
iron points are, however, barbed ; the barbs undoubtedly 
began by being mimics of natural thorns, but in the hands of 
a skilled workman the barbs often develop to an extravagant 
extent, particularly in the centre of the African Continent, 
for use in war. 
Many of the Mombuttu and Zandih arrows are barbed to 
a ridiculous extent and in a very varied manner. 
In the quiver of one of the pygmies there will be found 
arrows fashioned out of a simple palm midrib and others 
