Hunting with the Bow and Arrow

he country where, without appearing to instruct, he was my teacher in the old, old art of the chase. I followed him into a new system of getting game. We shot rabbits, quail, and squirre

s indefatigable persistence. He never gave up when he knew a rabbit was in a clump of brush. Time meant nothing to him; he s

Then crouching behind a suitable bush as a blind, he would place the fingers of his right hand against his lips and, going through the act of kissing, he produced a plaintive squeak similar to that given by a rabbit caught by a hawk or in mortal distress. This he repeated with heartrending appeals until sudde

s we had five jackrabbits and one wildcat approach us. The cat came out of the forest, cautiously stepped nearer and sat upon a log in a br

g. They run around in a circle, stamp their feet, and make great demonstrations of anger, probably a

for no such humane motive; they are t

o bring squirrels down from the topmost branches of tall pi

ped and said, "The squirrel is scolding a fox." At first I said to him, "I don't believe you." Then he would say, "

rel has a different call, such that Ishi could say

wide, "Here comes a man!" There was no use going farther, the animals all kne

xtent that he spoke a half-dozen sentences to them. He knew the crow of the cock on sentinel duty when he signals to others; he knew the cry of wa

en his lips and sucking vigorously. This made a bleat such as a lamb

ll he studied the country for its formation of hills, ridges, valleys, canyons, brush and timber. He observed the direction of the prevailing winds, the position of the sun at daybreak and evening. He noted the water holes, game trails, "buck look-outs," deer beds, the nature of the feeding grounds,

in the creek, rubbed himself with the aromatic leaves of yerba buena, washed out his mouth, drank water, but ate no food. Dressed in a loin cloth, but without shirt, leggings or moccasins, he set out, b

ee you where you see one--so see it first! On the trail, it was a crime to speak. His warning note was a soft, low whistle or a hiss. As he walked, he placed every footfall with precise care; the most stealthy step I ever saw; he was used to it; lived by it. For every step he looked tw

the sun and his game. He drifted between the trees li

at a distance of ten or fifteen yards. But Ishi never tried this before me. Having located his quarry, he either shot, at suitable ran

hers run the deer past. In his country we saw old piles of rock covered with lichen and moss that were less than t

lie in wait near licks or springs to get

tter than encouraging misses. He was undoubtedly hampered by the presence of a novice, and unduly hastened by the white man's lack of time. His early death prevented our

th his arrows, I had him discharge several at a buck killed by our packer. Shooting at forty yards, one arrow w

, by the ambush method. Having pre-arranged the matter, the women appeared on the scene, cut up the meat, cooked part o

n the average hunting knife sold to sportsmen. Often in skinning rabbits he would make a small hole in the skin over the ab

it was a revelation of how easy this otherwise difficult process may be when one knows how. He tanned his

s, and feared nothing. He was to be let alone. The other was "all same pig." The black bear, when found, was surrounded by a dozen or more Indians who built fires, and discharging their arrows at his ope

shot him through the chest. With a roar the bear fell off the ledge and the Indian jumped after him. With a short-handled obsidian spear he thrust him through the heart. The skin of th

had smeared mud to make it dark in color. A light shaft is readily discerned by these birds, and I have often seen them dodge an a

he Indian bound his bow at the nocks with weasel fur; this effectually damped the vibration of the string, while the pass

d them. When he released the arrow, the bow rotated in his hand so that the string faced in the opposite direction

arrowheads and sinews, so that in

efore bracing it. The slightest moisture would deter him from shooting, unless absolutely necessary--he was so jealous of his tackle.

saw that the point was properly adjusted. In fact, he gave infinite attention to detail. With him, every shot must count. Besides

his tackle, care of his equipment, deliberation and form in his shooting were typical of him; in fact, he loved his bow as