Page:Don Coronado through Kansas.djvu/171

- 160 ARROW SHOT THROUGH BUFFALO. neck of the arrow made to fit the stria;:? of the bow. The bow is made from hickory or ash, both of which are natural to Kansas. Both smooth and shell- bark /kiiekory, either of which is ideal material for bows, are common. Of course bows were made ac- cording to the fancy of each son of the prairie, but all desired one of accuracy and one which would carry a long distance. The average length was four feet. The wood was frequently rubbed with deer brains to make it elastic and less liable to sphnter when ten- sion was great. The skin was carefully selected gut of a deer which was cleansed, and while pliable was drawn through the hand, then twisted, then passed through a series of holes made in a piece of bone to get it down to the required sige. Of course each individual decorated the part grasped by the hand to suit his taste. The important and rarely understood point is, how far will a bow shoot? Here is what Un- cle Sam says: "With reference to the penetration of the arrow, much depends on the bow. I have exam- ined a bow belonging to Long Soldier, a Sioux hunter of magnificent physique, who formerly dwelt at the now abandoned agency of Grand River, North Dakota. The stringof this bow I could scarcely pull at full ar- row length, even when standing on the bow and pull- ing the string with main strength. This was per- haps the strongest bow used in the Sioux camp. The report was current, and doubted by none, that Long Soldier had often shot arrows entirely through the body of the buffalo. In this case it is to be of course understood that the arrow encountered no large bones. Bows and arrows were used long after the,