. The coast Indians of southern Alaska and northern British Columbia. Indians of North America; Indians of North America. 300 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1888. Yery thin light paddles were used, and if the Indian could get near enough the sleeping animal was harpooned. The common custom was, however, to hunt in parties. An otter being sighted was surroumled by canoes in a very large but .gradually lessening circle, advantage being taken of the necessity of the animal to come to the surface to breathe, when it would be shot with arrows or harpooned from the nearest canoe. The Tlingit and Haida w
. The coast Indians of southern Alaska and northern British Columbia. Indians of North America; Indians of North America. 300 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1888. Yery thin light paddles were used, and if the Indian could get near enough the sleeping animal was harpooned. The common custom was, however, to hunt in parties. An otter being sighted was surroumled by canoes in a very large but .gradually lessening circle, advantage being taken of the necessity of the animal to come to the surface to breathe, when it would be shot with arrows or harpooned from the nearest canoe. The Tlingit and Haida were not so expert as the Aleut, because their canoes were not so well adapted to the exposure at sea. In recent years the few remaining sea-otters have been hunted with fire-arms. The Indians are poor marksmen, and under the excitement of firing the Instant the otter rises many accidents to their own number have hap- pened, particularly to those on opposite sides of the circle. By a curious rule the otter, and all other game, belongs to the one who first wounds it, no matter who kills it. As the otter floats when killed, the same skill is not required as in seal hunting, but so scarce have they become now, that not more than forty or fifty are killed in a season throughout the northern coast Indian region. Seals.—Seals are hunted in practically the same way as just de- scribed, but from the fact that on account of their bodies not floating it is necessary to harpoon them before they sink, the percentage of loss is very large, although they are more abundant than the otter. The Indians rely to a great extent on shooting them in very shallow water or on rocky ledges near shore. On shore the Indians are very poor still-hunters, and luck and abun- dance of game are large elements in their success. Fur-bearing animals, such as bear, lynx, land otter, beaver, etc., are generally trapi)ed, al- though shot whenever, chance offers. Breech-loading arms are not allowed to be sold to the
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade189, booksubjectindiansofnorthamerica
