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Industrial and Social History Series By KATHARINE ELIZABETH DOPP, Ph. D.
The Extension Division of The University of Chicago. Author of "The Place of Industries in Elementary Education"
Book I. THE TREE-DWELLERS. THE AGE OF FEAR.
Illustrated with a map, 14 full-page and 46 text drawings in half-tone by HOWARD V. BROWN. Cloth. Square 12mo. 158 pages.
For the primary grades.
Book II. THE EARLY CAVE-MEN. THE AGE OF COMBAT.
Illustrated with a map, 16 full-page and 71 text drawings in half-tone by HOWARD V. BROWN. Cloth. Square 12mo. 183 pages.
For the primary grades.
Book III. THE LATER CAVE-MEN. THE AGE OF THE CHASE.
Illustrated with 27 full-page and 87 text drawings in half-tone by HOWARD V. BROWN. Cloth. Square 12mo. 197 pages.
For the primary grades.
Book IV. THE EARLY SEA PEOPLE. FIRST STEPS IN THE CONQUEST OF THE WATERS. Illustrated with 21 full-page and 117 text drawings in half-tone by HOWARD V. BROWN and KYOHEI INUKAI. Cloth. Square 12mo. 224 pages.
For the intermediate grades.
Other volumes, dealing with the early development of pastoral and agricultural life, the age of metals, travel, trade, and transportation, will follow.
TO The Children Who Are Asking for More About the Cave-Men I DEDICATE THIS BOOK
THE LATER CAVE-MEN
KATHARINE ELIZABETH DOPP
Lecturer in Education In the Extension Division of the University of Chicago
RAND McNALLY & COMPANY CHICAGO NEW YORK LONDON
Copyright, 1906 By KATHARINE ELIZABETH DOPP
Entered at Stationers' Hall Edition of 1928
Made in U. S. A.
* * * * *
The series, of which this is the third volume, is an attempt to meet a need that has been felt for several years by parents and physicians, as well as by teachers, supervisors, and others who are actively interested in educational and social progress. The need of practical activity, which for long ages constituted the entire education of mankind, is at last recognized by the elementary school. It has been introduced in many places and already results have been attained which demonstrate that it is possible to introduce practical activity in such a way as to afford the child a sound development—physically, intellectually, and morally—and at the same time equip him for efficient social service. The question that is perplexing educators at the present time is, therefore, not one regarding the value of practical activity, but rather one of ways and means by which practical activity can be harnessed to the educational work.
The discovery of the fact that steam is a force that can do work had to await the invention of machinery by means of which to apply the new force to industrial processes. The use of practical activity will likewise necessitate many changes in the educational machinery before its richest results are realized. Yet the conditions that attend the introduction of practical activity as a motive power in education are very different from those that attended the introduction of the use of steam. In the case of steam the problem was that of applying a new force to an old work. In the case of practical activity it is a question of restoring a factor which, from the earliest times until within the last two or three decades, has operated as a permanent educational force.
The situation that has recently deprived the child of the opportunity to participate in industrial processes is due, as is well known, to the rapid development of our industrial system. Since the removal of industrial processes from the home the public has awakened to the fact that the child is being deprived of one of the most potent educational influences, and efforts have already been made to restore the educational factor that was in danger of being lost. This is the significance of the educational movement at the present time.
As long as a simple organization of society prevailed, the school was not called upon to take up the practical work; but now society has become so complex that the use of practical activity is absolutely essential. Society to-day makes a greater demand than ever before upon each and all of its members for special skill and knowledge, as well as for breadth of view. These demands can be met only by such an improvement in educational facilities as corresponds to the increase in the social demand. Evidently the school must lay hold of all of the educational forces within its reach.
In the transitional movement it is not strange that new factors are being introduced without relation to the educational process as a whole. The isolation of manual training, sewing, and cooking from the physical, natural, and social sciences is justifiable only on the ground that the means of establishing more organic relations are not yet available. To continue such isolated activities after a way is found of harnessing them to the educational work is as foolish as to allow steam to expend itself in moving a locomotive up and down the tracks without regard to the destiny of the detached train.
This series is an attempt to facilitate the transitional movement in education which is now taking place by presenting educative materials in a form sufficiently flexible to be readily adapted to the needs of the school that has not yet been equipped for manual training, as well as to the needs of the one that has long recognized practical activity as an essential factor in its work. Since the experience of the race in industrial and social processes embodies, better than any other experiences of mankind, those things which at the same time appeal to the whole nature of the child and furnish him the means of interpreting the complex processes about him, this experience has been made the groundwork of the present series.
In order to gain cumulative results of value in explaining our own institutions, the materials used have been selected from the life of Aryan peoples. That we are not yet in possession of all the facts regarding the life of the early Aryans is not considered a sufficient reason for withholding from the child those facts that we have when they can be adapted to his use. Information regarding the early stages of Aryan life is meager. Enough has been established, however, to enable us to mark out the main lines of progress through the hunting, the fishing, the pastoral, and the agricultural stages, as well as to present the chief problems that confronted man in taking the first steps in the use of metals, and in the establishment of trade. Upon these lines, marked out by the geologist, the paleontologist, the archaeologist, and the anthropologist, the first numbers of this series are based.
A generalized view of the main steps in the early progress of the race, which it is thus possible to present, is all that is required for educational ends. Were it possible to present the subject in detail, it would be tedious and unprofitable to all save the specialist. To select from the monotony of the ages that which is most vital, to so present it as to enable the child to participate in the process by which the race has advanced, is a work more in keeping with the spirit of the age. To this end the presentation of the subject is made: First, by means of questions, which serve to develop the habit of making use of experience in new situations; second, by narrative, which is employed merely as a literary device for rendering the subject more available to the child; and third, by suggestions for practical activities that may be carried out in hours of work or play, in such a way as to direct into useful channels energy which when left undirected is apt to express itself in trivial if not in anti-social forms. No part of a book is more significant to the child than the illustrations. In preparing the illustrations for this series as great pains have been taken to furnish the child with ideas that will guide him in his practical activities as to illustrate the text itself.
Mr. Howard V. Brown, the artist who executed the drawings, has been aided in his search for authentic originals by the late J. W. Powell, director of the United States Bureau of Ethnology, Washington, D. C.; by Frederick J. V. Skiff, director of the Field Columbian Museum, Chicago, and by the author. Ethnological collections and the best illustrative works on ethnological subjects scattered throughout the country have been carefully searched for material. Many of the text illustrations of this volume are reproductions of originals found in the caves and rock shelters of France.
K. E. D.
October, 1906.
* * * * *
PAGE Dedication 7 Preface 8 Contents 12 Illustrations 13
THE LATER CAVE-MEN THE AGE OF THE CHASE
PAGE The Reindeer Start for their Summer Home 15 Chew-chew 20 Fleetfoot's Lessons 23 After the Chase 27 Why the Cave-men Made Changes in their Weapons 32 How the Cave-men Made Delicate Spear Points 36 The Return of the Bison 41 The First Bison Hunt of the Season 46 What Happened when the Children Played with Hot Stones 50 Why the Children Began to Eat Boiled Meat 54 The Nutting Season 56 Why Mothers Taught their Children the Boundary Lines 62 What Happened to Fleetfoot 65 How the Strangers Camped for the Night 69 Fleetfoot is Adopted by the Bison Clan 72 How the Cave-men Protected Themselves from the Cold 77 How the Children Played in Winter 81 Overtaken by a Storm 84 How Antler Happened to Invent Snowshoes 88 How Antler Made Snares 92 How Spears Were Changed into Harpoons 97 How the Cave-men Hunted with Harpoons 101 How the Cave-men Tested Fleetfoot and Flaker 105 Fleetfoot and Flaker See a Combat 109 What Happened when Fleetfoot and Flaker Hunted the Bison 111 What the Cave-men did for Flaker 115 How Flaker Learned to Make Weapons of Bone 118 How Flaker Invented the Saw 121 The Reindeer Dance 124 Fleetfoot Prepares for his Final Test 128 Fleetfoot Fasts and Prays 132 The Meeting of the Clans 139 What Happened when the Clans Found Fleetfoot 143 Fleetfoot's Return 147 Willow-grouse 150 How Fleetfoot and Willow-grouse Spent the Winter 153 How Willow-grouse Learned to Make Needles 157 How Flaker Became a Priest and a Medicine Man 161 How the Cave-men Learned to Boil and to Dry Foods 165 The New Home 168 How the Clans United to Hunt the Bison 173 How Things Were Made to Do the Work of Men 178 How the Cave-men Rewarded and Punished the Clansmen 182 Suggestions to Teachers 185
FULL PAGE
PAGE
"A feeling of awe came over them while they worked" Frontispiece
"Pigeon boiled meat and gave it to the men, and they all sounded her praises" 14
"The reindeer swam through the deep water and waded out to the opposite bank" 17
Chew-chew telling stories to Fleetfoot 21
"Then Scarface threw, and all the horses took fright" 25
"Chew-chew took her basket and started up the dry ravine" 29
"She took a flint point and scratched the men's arms until she made big scars" 31
"Straightshaft saw the herd at sunrise and made a sign to the men" 42
"At the close of the day there was not a little valley in the surrounding country that did not have a herd of two or three hundred bison" 45
"With a quick snort he turned and charged" 47
"Chew-chew tried to teach the children how to know the hissing sound" 53
"All the women and children went nutting" 57
The wild hogs were having a feast 59
"Mothers taught their children what the boundaries were" 63
"A big man caught him, and put him upon his shoulder" 67
"The tent was an old oak, which reached out long and low-spreading branches" 70
"Greybeard asked Fleetfoot to drop the hot stones in the water again" 76
"When the men saw the new garment they wondered how it was made" 79
"But many could find no protection, so they turned about and faced the storm" 87
"And so the Cave-men tested the boys in many different ways" 104
"Then their antlers crashed in a swift charge" 108
"They looked so much like wolves that they got very close before the bison threatened" 113
"What the Cave-men did for Flaker" 116
"People began to wander away from their old homes" 129
"It was the melting of this glacier which fed the little stream" 136
"Greybeard, now old and feeble, walked all the way to the spot" 171
After the bison hunt 181
TEXT
A reindeer 16
A stone ax 24
A stone knife 32
A laurel leaf 32
Laurel leaf-shaped spear point 32
A stone scraper 34
A shaft-straightener 35
A delicate spearhead 36
"When the Cave-men held the flint in the hand, the hand yielded to the light blow" 37
"While Scarface placed the punch he sang in low tones" 37
Straightshaft using a flaker 38
A flaker 39
An ibex 43
A bear's tooth awl 51
A scraper 73
A skin stretched on a frame 73
A hammer of reindeer horn 74
A cave-man's glove 80
A stone maul 89
Fur gloves 90
A snowshoe 91
"Then she set snares on the ground and fastened them to strong branches" 94
"Antler learned to protect the cord by running it through a hollow bone" 94
"So it ran along and nibbled the bait until its sharp teeth cut the cord" 95
A chisel-scraper 98
A barbed point 99
A harpoon 100
Chipper using a spear-noose 102
A Cave-man's carving of a "hamstrung" animal 114
A wedge or tent pin 119
The head of a javelin 120
A small antler 121
A knife with two blades, a saw, and a file, all in one 122
A Cave-man's dagger 123
A Cave-man's mortar stone 125
A drum 126
The engraving of a cave-bear 131
A stone borer 134
A necklace of fossil shells 139
A throwing-stick 145
An Irish deer 146
A fragment of a Cave-man's baton, engraved 147
A Cave-man's nose ornament 149
A Cave-man's baton, engraved 149
An Eskimo drawing of reindeer caught in snares 151
"A piece of sandstone for flattening seams" 152
A reindeer snare 152
Three views of a Cave-man's spearhead 154
"It was during this time that the Bison clan learned to use the throwing-stick" 155
Harpoons with several barbs 156
A bone awl 157
A bone pin 157
A large bone needle 157
A bone from which the Cave-men have sawed out slender rods for needles 158
A piece of sandstone used by the Cave-men in making needles 158
A flint comb used in rounding and polishing needles 158
A flint saw used in making needles of bone 158
A short needle of bone 159
A flint comb used in shredding fibers 159
A long fine needle of bone 159
Two views of a curved bone tool 160
A Cave-man's engraving of two herds of wild horses 162
A Cave-man's carving of horses' heads 163
A Cave-man's engraving of a reindeer 163
Harpoons of reindeer antler 166
A flint harpoon with one barb 167
A spoon-shaped stone 167
A baby's hood 169
"In summer he played in the basket cradle" 169
First step in coiled basketry 170
Second step in coiled basketry 170
Three rows of coiled work 170
A water basket 172
A Cave-man's engraving of a tent showing the interior structure 175
A Cave-man's engraving of a tent showing the exterior 175
A Cave-man's engraving of a tent with covering pulled one side so as to show the ends of the poles which support the roof 175
Framework showing the best kind of a tent made by the Cave-men 176
A tent pin 176
Handle of a Cave-man's hunting-knife with engraving 182
A hunter's tally 183
Fragment of Cave-man's baton 183
Engraving of a seal upon a bear's tooth 184
A Cave-man's hairpin, engraved 184
* * * * *
THE LATER CAVE-MEN
THE AGE OF THE CHASE
I
The Reindeer Start for their Summer Home
Every winter the reindeer came to the wooded hills where the Cave-men lived. No matter how deep the snow, they always found food. Sometimes they stretched their slender necks and ate moss from the trees. Again they scraped up the snow with their forefeet and found dry grass.
The reindeer liked cold weather. They liked the north wind that brought the snow. As soon as the snow began to melt, they started toward the mountains. In the high valleys among the mountains, there was snow all the year round.
One morning the Cave-men awoke and found the south wind blowing. All the people were glad; for they knew it would drive the winter away.
The reindeer sniffed the warm wind and knew it was time to go. Each leader signaled to his herd. And soon the wooded hills were dotted with small herds moving toward the ford.
Straightshaft saw what the reindeer were doing and he signaled the news to the men. Then the Cave-men gathered around Scarface, who was to lead them in the hunt.
The children had listened to all that was said about the great herd. They could scarcely wait to see it. Fleetfoot pulled his grandmother's hand and started up the cliff. Chew-chew wanted to see the herds meet at the reindeer ford. All the women wanted to see the great herd before it went away. So they all climbed the cliff where they could get a good view.
When the children saw a herd near the river, they clapped their hands and shouted. Then Chew-chew pointed out many herds and they all danced for joy.
The scattered herds were coming slowly down the little valleys. Each followed a handsome leader headed toward the ford.
"Look!" said Chew-chew as the leader of a herd plunged into the river.
The herd plunged too, for reindeer know it is best to follow their leader. The reindeer swam through the deep water and waded out to the opposite bank. Then the frightened creatures hurried on toward the well-known ford.
"Why did the reindeer jump into the river?" asked Fleetfoot of Chew-chew. Before she could answer Eagle-eye pointed to a big cave-bear. The cave-bear was going into a thicket when Fleetfoot heard his mother say, "Cave-bears and hyenas hide in the thickets. They lie in wait for the herds."
Scarface seemed to be lying in wait on some rocks by an evergreen tree. He had stopped on his way to the reindeer pass to see what had frightened the herd.
While the men were going to the pass, the reindeer were gathering at the ford. Several herds of two or three hundred each were already there. Other herds were coming. The flat sandy banks on one side of the river were already covered with reindeer. Soon the ford was filled, and the reindeer began to press up the narrow river valley.
When at last all the herds from the wooded hills were gathered at the ford, the handsomest leader of all stepped forth to lead the way. After looking around to see if an enemy was near, he started up the well-trodden trail through the narrow river valley.
Slowly the great herd began to move. To those watching from the cliff, it looked like a moving forest. Those in advance were soon out of sight, and were going toward the pass.
Meanwhile the men had reached the pass where the bravest ones hid at the farther end. There they waited to spear the reindeer, while others hid behind rocks near the entrance to drive the reindeer on.
While the women and children watched from the cliff a signal came from the men. It was a call for the women to come and carry the reindeer to the cave. The younger women went, but Chew-chew stayed and watched with the children.
At length the Cave-men returned. The men brought trophies and the women brought heavy loads of meat. They found Chew-chew and the children still watching from the cliff. There they all watched for a long, long time; for not until the sun was low down in the sky had the last of the reindeer left the ford.
THINGS TO DO
Model a large river valley with many little valleys in it. Show where the small herds were. Model the cliffs along the river and show the flat sandy banks on one side, and the narrow valley with steep sides on the other.
Find rocks and make the reindeer pass. Make the trail from the ford through the narrow valley to the pass.
Play the story this lesson tells.
Draw one of these pictures:— The reindeer stretched their slender necks and ate moss from the trees. The reindeer sniffed the warm wind and knew it was time to go. Fleetfoot pulled his grandmother's hand and started up the cliff. The cave-bears and hyenas hide in the thickets. Hunting at the reindeer pass.
Show how Eagle-eye loaded a reindeer upon her back. Model Eagle-eye in clay so as to show how she carried the reindeer.
II
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
If you have read the story of "The Early Cave-men," tell how the cave that was flooded was made.
Can you think of any other way in which a cave might be made?
If you have ever seen a shallow hole in a cliff, see if you can find out how it was made. If such a hole was made in a very soft rock what would happen to it? What would happen to a hole made in a hard rock?
See if you can find a piece of limestone. What do we use limestone for?
If we wanted a house of limestone, what would we do to get it? When the Cave-men wanted a limestone house, what did they do?
Chew-chew
Chew-chew was the oldest woman in the cave at the Fork of the River. She was not as strong as she once had been; but she was still able to lead the women in their work. Her sons' wives carried the heaviest burdens, but Chew-chew still carried heavy loads.
Chew-chew was the wisest woman in the cave. When the other women did not know what to do, they always asked Chew-chew. The bravest men were always glad to get Chew-chew's advice. The children thought nobody could tell such stories as Chew-chew told.
Chew-chew and all of her children belonged to the Horse clan. All the children in those days took the clan name of their mother. Chew-chew's sons had captured wives from the Reindeer clan. And so the children in Chew-chew's cave belonged to the Reindeer clan. It thus happened that in every cave there were people of different clans. But since Chew-chew was the oldest woman in the cave, we shall call the people at the Fork of the River by the name of the Horse clan.
Chew-chew often told the children about her first home. She told them about the cave near the River of Snow, which was much like the cave which sheltered them. She told them about the wide shelving rocks which were like the ones above their cave. And she told how frightened her people were the day a rock fell near the mouth of their cave.
No one knew at the time what made the rock fall. No one knew there was no need of being afraid. Some one said that the god of the cliff was angry and that he had pushed the rock down. Everybody believed the story. So nobody dared go near the cave.
But the Cave-men needed a shelter. So they offered gifts to the god of the cliffs. When they thought he was satisfied, they all went back to the cave. And after a while they used the big rock as a table for their work.
Chew-chew wanted the children to grow to be brave and wise. So she told them stories of the bravest and wisest people of her clan. She told them stories about their grandfathers who were the heroes of the olden times. And Fleetfoot never grew tired of hearing about the wonderful things which his grandfathers did.
And so Chew-chew taught the children all she thought they ought to know. And they looked into her eyes and listened to all that she said.
THINGS TO DO
If there are cliffs or shelving rocks near by, go and see them. Find places where you think caves may form. Find out why it is that the rocks shelve. Why does a shelving rock sometimes break and fall to the ground?
Model the cliffs which you find. Model a cave which is formed in a cliff.
Tell a story which you think Chew-chew might have told to the children.
Play one of these plays:— Chew-chew telling stories to the children. What the people did when the rock fell near the mouth of the cave.
Draw a picture of something which you have played.
III
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
Why did Chew-chew tell the children stories about their forefathers?
Why do we like to hear such stories?
Do you think that the later Cave-men will hunt in just the same way that the early Cave-men did?
What change took place in the animals while the Cave-men were learning to be good hunters? What change did the Cave-men have to make in their hunting on account of this?
Of all the animals you know, which are the fastest runners? Can you think how they became fast runners?
Fleetfoot's Lessons
When the men were at home, Fleetfoot liked to stay with them. He liked to watch them make spears; he liked to watch them run races; he liked to listen to the stories they told about the wild animals.
When the men went out to hunt, Fleetfoot wanted to go with them. But he was a little boy, and had to stay at home. Sometimes he went with his mother when she went to dig roots; sometimes he went with her to gather twigs for baskets. But the safest place for little children was not far from the fire. So Fleetfoot stayed at home nearly all the time.
While the children played near the cave, Chew-chew broke fagots with a stone ax. When she was ready to sit down, they all gathered around her. They knew that that was one of the times when Chew-chew told them stories.
This time Chew-chew began with a story of the early Cave-men. She told of animals that stood their ground and fought instead of running away. She told about the strong spears and axes made to conquer the wild beasts. She told of brave and daring deeds of the heroes of olden times.
None of the animals feared man before he had fire. And for a long time afterward none of them feared him without a torch. But the early Cave-men made strong weapons after they had fire. They struck hard blows with their stone axes, which the animals learned to fear.
Grass-eating animals feared beasts of prey long before the Tree-dwellers lived. Wild horses learned to run fast by trying to escape from packs of wolves. They learned to keep sentinels to watch while the herd fed. All the grass-eating animals learned to do this. The sentinels signaled at a sign of danger, and then the herd ran; and so their enemies learned to hunt by following the chase.
When Chew-chew was tired of telling stories, she marked out a path for a race. Then she showed the children how to get a fair start, by standing abreast and holding a stick.
The children learned to keep in step until they reached the real starting place. Then they dropped the stick and ran. And they all clapped their hands and cheered the one who won the race.
After the children had raced a long time, they came back to Chew-chew for another story. And this time she told them stories about the men of their own clan. They often chased the animals from early morn until noon. At first they got very tired when they went on a long chase. But the more they practiced running, the better they hunted in the real chase.
When the story was ended, the children climbed the cliff. Chew-chew went with them and they all looked at the wild horses going up the trail.
The horses had been to the river to drink and now they were going away. They were following their leader up the trail which led to the grassy plains.
Chew-chew knew where the men were lying in wait and she pointed out the spot. The children looked just in time to see Straightshaft throw his spear. Then Scarface threw, and all the horses took fright.
Up hill and down, through bushes and briars, the horses galloped away. The Cave-men followed the wounded ones, hurling their spears as they ran.
The chase was long and weary, and some of the wounded horses escaped. But the men returned with many trophies and the women brought heavy loads of meat.
The trophies the Cave-men prized the most were the heads of the wild horses. They kept these trophies near the cave, and they thought that they were charms. The Cave-men thought that the horses' heads would bring more horses to the hunting grounds.
THINGS TO DO
Tell a story about the age of combat. Tell a story about the age of the chase. Draw a picture to illustrate each story.
Show on your sand-map where the men were lying in wait for the horses. Model the trail which the horses followed.
What chasing game do you know how to play? Can you think how some of these games first started?
Why do people not try to run as fast in a long race as in a short one?
Model in clay something which you might name "The Age of Combat."
IV
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
How do you feel after you have had a long, hard chase?
What does your mother tell you to do when you come in dripping with sweat?
How do you think the Cave-men learned to take care of themselves?
When they were lame and stiff, do you think they would know what made them so? Think of as many things as you can that they might do to make themselves feel better.
After the Chase
When the long, hard chase was over, the Cave-men were tired and dripping with sweat. All but Scarface threw themselves upon the cold ground to rest.
It was Scarface who blew the whistle which called the women to the spot. It was he who guarded the carcasses until the women came. And while the women skinned the horses he sat on a log to rest.
It was sunset when they reached the cave. All joined in a feast upon horse flesh, then they slept until break of day. It was then that the men groaned with pain. Their muscles ached, and they were so lame that they could scarcely move. Scarface alone of all the men was not suffering with pain.
Perhaps you can tell what made the men lame. None of the Cave-men knew. Everybody thought that an angry god was trying to punish them.
And so the men tried to drive the god away by raising fearful shouts. Then they asked Chew-chew's advice, and Chew-chew took her basket and started up the dry ravine. There she found bitter roots which she gathered and carried home.
No one knew at that time how to steep roots, for people had not learned how to boil. So Chew-chew chopped the roots with a stone chopper and laid them upon hot stones. And while the men breathed the bitter fumes, Chew-chew threatened the angry god and commanded him to go away.
In a few days the men were well and it was almost time to go hunting again. Straightshaft feared the angry god. He talked with the men and they wondered why it was that Scarface escaped. They looked at his deep scar which a tiger's claw had made. And then they looked at the trophies of Scarface which he wore about his neck.
Every Cave-man admired the deep scar of the bravest man in the clan. Every man wished that he, too, could show such a scar as that. And the men began to wonder if the scar was a kind of a charm.
The more the men talked about the scar, the more they wanted scars. They talked with Chew-chew about it, and at last decided to let her make scars.
So Chew-chew muttered prayers to the gods, and asked them not to hurt the Cave-men. Then she took a flint point and scratched the men's arms until she made big scars.
Years afterward, when people made scars, they stained them with all sorts of things. Sometimes they stained the scars with juices of plants, and sometimes they colored them with paints.
The Cave-men thought they could protect themselves by scars, and by all sorts of charms. So they kept on making scars, and they hunted for all sorts of charms.
But no matter how many charms they wore, they often were lame and stiff. Some one must have noticed that they were more apt to be lame after sitting on the cold ground while they were warm. For after a while the custom grew of never sitting on the bare ground while they were warm.
THINGS TO DO
Draw or paint a pattern which you think the Cave-men might have tattooed upon their arms. Where do we put the pictures which we make?
Find and name as many roots and herbs as you can that are used as medicines.
What animals have you seen eating herbs?
What mistakes did the Cave-men make when they tried to cure themselves?
V
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
What way can you use a spear besides thrusting it with one or both hands?
What changes do you think the Cave-men made in their spearheads when they began to throw spears? What changes do you think they made in the shafts?
How do you think the Cave-men made straight shafts for their spears? What do we do with wood when we wish to bend it?
Why the Cave-men made Changes in their Weapons
While the Cave-men were resting from the hunt, they did a great many things. They practiced running; they hunted for stuff to make new weapons; they worked upon their weapons and trophies; they learned new hunting dances. No matter what they did, they always asked their gods to help.
All the later Cave-men learned to make light spears and javelins. The clumsy spear which served Strongarm so well was not what Scarface needed. But in the days of the early Cave-men the heavy spear was a good weapon. Strongarm cared as much for his spear as you do for your dog. It was like a friend in time of need. Few animals could withstand Strongarm's blow when he grasped his spear in one or both hands and lunged forward with all his might. His spear was a powerful weapon. But Strongarm lived in the age of combat when people fought animals at close range.
The later Cave-men did not make light spears and javelins all at once. They began by throwing heavy spears. Chew-chew could tell of many a hunter who lost his life throwing a spear. Sometimes it was because the spear was too heavy to throw with enough force. Sometimes it was because the shaft was crooked and the spear did not go to the right spot.
When the Cave-men practiced throwing, they did not stand still and throw. They took aim and threw as they ran. That was the kind of practice they needed for the real chase.
The mark, too, was a moving mark. It was made of a bundle of branches, or an old skin stuffed with leaves. While one man dragged it by a long cord, the others ran after it, throwing their spears.
A Cave-man could wound an animal with a spear, but he could not give a deadly blow. There was always danger of the wounded animal turning upon the hunter. A skilled hunter with a good spear ran little risk in throwing it. But not all the Cave-men had enough skill. Not all of the Cave-men made good enough weapons to be thrown with a sure aim.
And so the Cave-men learned new ways of making and using spears. Perhaps they did not want to do it. But they had to do it or die. So you see why the men and boys spent most of their time in learning to follow the chase. Even the women and girls learned to hunt and to make all sorts of weapons.
Long before Scarface lived the Cave-men began to make lighter spears. The straighter they made the shaft, the easier it was to hit the mark. And so the Cave-men began to vie with one another in making the straightest and smoothest shafts.
When they cut the sticks for the shafts the Cave-men made gifts to the wood-gods, and asked for the straightest and toughest branches that grew on the trees. Then they cut the branches carefully and carried them home to the cave. There they peeled them from butt to tip and smoothed them with stone scrapers. Sometimes they rubbed them with fat and laid them away to dry. It was hard work to make a crooked stick straight. But the Cave-men tried many ways and at last they learned to make as beautiful shafts as ever have been made.
When the Cave-men pulled the shaft back and forth on the sandstone, they made deep grooves in it. We have found pieces of grooved sandstone that the later Cave-men used. Sometimes they would clamp a crooked stick between a grooved piece of sandstone and a flat bone. Then they would pull and twist, and pull and twist, and pull and twist that stick back and forth until the crooked place was made straight.
When Scarface was very old he made a shaft-straightener of a piece of reindeer horn. He carved the head of the reindeer upon it, and made a hole for the shaft. Then he thrust the crooked stick through the hole and turned the shaft-straightener round and round as we turn a wrench, until he straightened the shaft.
THINGS TO DO
See if you can find a good branch for a shaft. If you have a right to cut the branch, see if you can make it into a shaft.
Find a stone which you can use for a scraper. What else can you use as a scraper?
If you do not care to make a shaft, make something else out of the stick which you straighten.
Name the things which you have at home or at school made of wood.
Make a collection of the different kinds of wood which you know.
Which of these are soft wood? What do we use soft wood for? Which are hard? What do we use hard wood for?
VI.
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
Can you think why the Cave-men used stone for their spear points and knives before they used bone or horn?
What tools did the Cave-men need in making flint spear points?
Why did the Cave-men have to learn to strike gentle blows in making their weapons? Can you think of any way of removing little pieces of flint besides striking them off?
How the Cave-men made Delicate Spear Points
Perhaps you have seen very beautiful Indian arrows. Perhaps you have wished you could make such arrows yourself. The later Cave-men first made such weapons and no people since have ever been able to make more beautiful ones.
The early Cave-men did not need such beautiful spear points. Rough points of flint and heavy stone axes were the weapons they needed most. It was not until the Age of the Chase that people shaped stone into beautiful forms.
Scarface always used flakes of flint for the points of spears and javelins. But in earlier times, people did not know how to strike off flakes of flint. They put the flint on a hard rock and struck it with a heavy blow. They smashed the flint, for the hard rock did not yield. They had not learned to let the flint break in its own way.
When the Cave-men held the flint in the hand, the hand yielded to the light blow. The flint broke in its own way. But the sharp edges cut the men's hands. So they covered the palms of their hands with rawhide and kept from getting hurt. When they worked in this way, they had no trouble in striking off flakes for spear points and knives.
When the men worked on their flint points, Fleetfoot liked to play near the workshop. He liked to watch Straightshaft strike off flakes with a hammer-stone and punch. He liked to listen to the song that Scarface and Straightshaft sang.
Scarface and Straightshaft always sang when they worked with the hammer-stone and punch. While Scarface placed the punch he sang in low tones. And when he was ready for Straightshaft to strike, he sang so as to let him know. Then Straightshaft took up the song and marked the time for each blow.
The men always sang when they worked together. If one man stopped when it was his turn to sing, the other did not know what to do. Besides marking the time, the song helped the men to measure the force of each blow. It helped them to strike off tiny flakes so as not to break the point. So, at length, the Cave-men began to think that the song they sang was a charm.
While the men struck off large flint flakes, Fleetfoot played not far away. He played while they hafted long narrow flakes for knives, but when they began to chip spearheads, he came and watched them at their work. He listened to the song of Scarface and Straightshaft, while they shaped a fine spearhead.
At length the spearhead was ready for the finishing touches. So Straightshaft dropped his hammer-stone and picked up a queer little tool. He called it a flaker, and he used it to press off tiny flakes from the beautiful point.
When Straightshaft had finished, he dropped the flaker and Fleetfoot picked it up. And he asked Straightshaft if he might use it to press off little flakes.
Straightshaft let him try, but Fleetfoot was not strong enough to press off hard flint flakes. So he listened to the story that Scarface told of the young man who first made a flaker.
Holding up a little bone flaker, Scarface turned to the men and said: "When I was a boy, no one pressed off flakes of flint. No one had a flaker. We hammered off flint flakes.
"One summer when there were plenty of salmon, the neighboring clans had a great feast. Nimble-finger came. I saw him. I heard him speak. The third day of the feast I saw him flake flint."
As Scarface went on he told how Nimble-finger invented the flaker. He did it one day when he was making a bone handle for a knife. When he was scraping a bone with a flint scraper he happened to press off a flint flake.
Nimble-finger did not know how it happened. He tried again and again. At last he pressed off another flake; and this time he knew that he did it by pressing the point of the bone against one edge of the flint.
Nimble-finger never finished that bone-handled hunting knife. But he showed the people how to make a flaker. He became an inventor; for he gave the world a tool it had never had before.
When the people returned from the feast many forgot about the flaker. Others longed for delicate spear points like those Nimble-finger made. So, at length, they tried to make flakers of their own. Some tried to make them of wood; but the wood was too soft to break the stone. Others tried to make them of ivory; but ivory was too hard to get a hold. At length all the Cave-men made flakers of antler and bone, for they were hard enough to break the stone and soft enough to get a hold.
When Scarface finished, Fleetfoot began to talk about Nimble-finger. He asked Scarface, "Where does Nimble-finger live? Does he always come to the great feasts?"
To the child's questions Scarface replied, "While Nimble-finger was still a young man he went far away. For many years he lived far north in a cave beside the River of Stones. But years have come and gone since then. If he still lives, he is an old man; but of that I know not."
THINGS TO DO
If you can find a piece of flint strike off a flake with a hammer-stone. Strike off a flake with an angular stone. Strike off a flake by using a hammer and punch.
Sort out the flakes that are good for knives. Put handles on them. Sort out the flakes that are good for making into spearheads. See if you can strike off tiny flakes until the large flake looks like a spearhead.
Find something which you can use as a flaker. When you have made one, see if you can use it.
Make a collection of stones which you can chip or flake. Tell all you know about each of those stones.
Think of Scarface as he was telling the story. Draw the picture.
VII
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
What do our horses and cattle eat? Where do we get their food? What do wild cattle and horses eat? See if you can find out whether wild cattle or horses have ever lived in a place where the ground is covered with snow part of the year.
Did you ever see cattle pawing the ground? Did you ever see horses pawing the ground? Did you ever see them paw the snow?
See if you can find out something about the great herds of bison that used to live in this country. What has become of them?
Can you think why bison live in herds? What officers does a herd of bison have? Can you think how the officers of a herd of bison are chosen?
The Return of the Bison
Ever since the reindeer went away the Cave-men had been looking for the return of the bison. Each summer the herds came up the valley to feed on green grass and tender shoots. Each winter they went to the forests of the lowlands where they found shelter from the cold.
The snow was now gone from the wooded hills and the days were warm again. The dingy brown coats of the hillsides were changing to the palest green. The buds were beginning to swell. Everything seemed to say that summer was coming.
Each day the Cave-men watched for signs of the coming of the great herd. Each night they danced the bison dance and tried to make the bison come.
One morning Straightshaft climbed the cliff and looked far up and down the valley. Looking north he could see the River of Stones with high cliffs on one or both banks. He could see dense forests of evergreen that grew on the low banks. He could see hills and valleys beyond the cliffs where many wild animals lived.
Looking south, near at hand, was the Fork of the River where Little River joined the River of Stones. Here the cliffs were not very high; farther down, they became lower, and at last there were no cliffs. The edge of the lowland forest where the bison wintered could be seen far away. Grassy lowlands near the forests stretched farther than the eye could see. It was here that the bison and cattle found the best winter pastures. It was in the lowland forests that they found shelter from the cold.
Straightshaft looked toward the lowlands, hoping to see a bison. Mammoths were feeding not far away, and beyond were woolly rhinoceroses. But there was not one bison.
As Straightshaft watched the second day, chamois and ibexes played on the hills. Herds of horses came from the grassy uplands and returned after drinking at the ford. But no sign of a bison yet appeared.
The third day Straightshaft saw a black spot in the distance. It was far down on the river trail. As he watched, it became larger and larger. And then Straightshaft knew that it was a bison coming in advance of the great herd.
The morning of the fourth day the great herd came. A powerful bison led the way. Strong sentinels guarded either side. The herd followed blindly, galloping eight or ten abreast.
Straightshaft saw the herd at sunrise and made a sign to the men. Those who saw it passed it along, and soon all the people had seen the sign. Then everybody climbed up a hill or a high cliff and watched the coming of the bison.
Nearer and nearer the great herd came, like a sea of tossing manes and horns. The earth trembled beneath their tread and the air was filled with their bellowing.
When the bison reached the ford, the foremost creatures stopped to drink. But the solid mass, pressing on from the rear, crowded them up the river. Soon the ford was packed with struggling beasts. Some tried to escape by swimming up the river. Others swam down the stream. And still the solid mass from the rear kept crowding on and on.
At length the herd divided. One part followed the river trail, while the other went up the narrow valley. Whenever a herd reached a branching valley, a big bison led off a small herd. This happened many a time. And at the close of the day there was not a little valley in the surrounding country that did not have a herd of two or three hundred bison.
THINGS TO DO
Play you are a herd of bison, and show how the herd marched. Show how it divided. Show how you think it would come together again.
Show in your sand-box where Straightshaft stood while he watched. Show the trails the bison followed.
Think of the herd as it galloped up the river trail. Draw the picture.
Make such a sign as you think Straightshaft made.
Plan a bison dance.
VIII
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
If you were to hunt bison, what would you want to know about them?
In what ways can bison notice signs of danger? In what ways can they help one another?
Watch animals, and see if they give signs to one another.
What weapons do you think the Cave-men would take when they went to hunt the bison? How could the Cave-men help one another in hunting? How might one man hinder the others?
The First Bison Hunt of the Season
And now the great herd of bison had come, and the Cave-men were eager to hunt them. While they were getting ready to start they kept up this merry song:—
The bison have come; The bison have come; Now for the chase! Now for the chase! Bring axes and spears; Bring axes and spears; Now for the chase! Now for the chase!
When Scarface climbed the cliff he saw three herds of bison. The first was feeding in an open space; the second was on a hillside, and the third was in a narrow valley close by a deep and hidden ravine. This was a place where the Cave-men liked to hunt. So they agreed to follow Scarface through the hidden ravine.
Scarface led the way, and all the men followed. Not a leaf rustled beneath their tread. Not a twig broke as they crept up the side of the deep ravine and looked out at the herd.
Everybody wanted to get the yearlings or young cows, for their flesh was tender and sweet. But the cows and young bison were in the center of the herd. They were guarded by the sentinels, whose flesh was hard and tough.
And so the Cave-men wondered how to get a young bison. They wondered if the vigilant leader was more than a match for them. They watched his signals, and saw fresh sentinels take the places of the hungry ones. They noticed how quickly the bison obeyed every signal the leader gave.
At last the Cave-men decided to attack the leader first. They waited till he was not more than a stone's throw away. Then Scarface gave the signal and the men made a bold attack.
Straightshaft hurled his spear with all his might, then turned to give place to the others. The leader was taken by surprise. The men had crept up so quietly that not till the spear whizzed through the air did he suspect danger.
With a quick snort he turned and charged. Straightshaft ran, but the others met the charge. They hurled their spears and dealt heavy blows with their stone axes.
Before the leader could give the alarm he lay stretched out on the ground. The sentinels looked for a signal. Meanwhile the cows and yearlings tried to make their escape.
Then each of several sentinels tried to lead. But the frightened herd did not know which one to follow. Some of the bison rushed one way and some rushed another. Then there was a general stampede. They gored one another with their sharp horns. They trampled one another under their feet. They were too frightened to know what they were doing.
It was then that the Cave-men singled out the young bison. When they had secured them for their prize, they started toward the cave, singing—
To-day we went hunting. We crept up the ravine; We surprised the leader of the bison. He made a charge upon us— We have his horns for a headdress. We killed many a young bison; We have plenty of tender meat.
Perhaps one of the sentinels became leader of the herd that very day. Perhaps several battles were fought to see which sentinel was the strongest. For bison never follow a leader that is not stronger and wiser than themselves.
THINGS TO DO
Show in your sand-box where each of the three herds was feeding.
Make a plan for hunting the herd that was feeding in an open space.
Draw one of these pictures:— The Cave-men creeping up the banks of the steep ravine. The charge of the leader. The stampede. Deciding which bison shall be leader of the herd.
Make a song to sing in getting ready to hunt the way you have planned. Make a song to sing on your return.
Model a large, strong bison.
IX
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
Watch water when it is boiling, and see if you can tell what happens.
Why would it be harder for people to learn to boil than to roast?
What kind of dishes did the Cave-men have? What would happen to them if they were put over the fire?
What does your mother do, when she wants to find out whether the flatiron is hot enough to iron?
When the Cave-men first learned to boil water, do you think they would think of boiling food? What might make them think of boiling food?
What Happened when the Children Played with Hot Stones
Again the Cave-men went out to hunt. Again the women went out to gather roots and berries. Only Chew-chew and the children were left near the cave.
Chew-chew was curing the skins which the women had brought home. Some of them were stretched out on the ground. Others were stretched on frames. Many of these were ready to be rolled up and put away.
While the skins were drying, Chew-chew had time for other work. She wanted to finish her basket, and so the splints must be put to soak.
At a sign from Chew-chew, Fleetfoot went to the river for a bag of water. While he was gone, Chew-chew began to make a place to put it. She dug a shallow hole in the ground and lined it with a skin.
When Fleetfoot came back they patted down the skin. Then they poured the water into the skin-lined hole, and put the splints to soak.
While Chew-chew worked at her basket, Fleetfoot played near at hand. Often he came to his grandmother's side and talked about many things.
At length Chew-chew, holding up a skin, turned to Fleetfoot and said, "Do you know what animal wore this skin?"
"One of the reindeer we saw at the ford," quickly responded Fleetfoot.
"Where have all the reindeer gone?" was Chew-chew's next question.
"To the cave of the Big Bear of the mountains," came the prompt answer.
While Chew-chew and Fleetfoot talked the children played near the cave. Pigeon was playing with stones which she had gathered and tossed into the fire. In trying to get them out again she burned her fingers, and began to cry.
When Chew-chew saw what had happened, she told Fleetfoot to play with Pigeon. And Fleetfoot played with Pigeon, and he showed her how to lift hot stones without getting burned.
The children played and carried hot stones with tongs made of sticks. They ran back and forth between rows of skins until Pigeon dropped a hot stone into the hole.
No sooner had Pigeon dropped the stone than she screamed, "A snake! a snake!" And she ran to her grandmother and sobbed, while she hid her face in her chubby arm.
Chew-chew thought that a snake was crawling about. Fleetfoot helped her look under all the skins. They looked for some time, but they found no trace of a snake.
Then Chew-chew asked Pigeon to tell her all about it. And Pigeon said, "A big snake hissed and made me drop the stone."
Just then Fleetfoot dropped a hot stone and something went "s-s-s-s-s-s."
Pigeon screamed again, but a hearty laugh from Chew-chew showed there was nothing to fear. Chew-chew knew that the hissing sound was not the hiss of a snake. It was the sizzling of the water when it touched the hot stone.
And so Chew-chew tried to teach the children how to know the hissing sound. She picked up hot stones and dropped them into the water. Each time a stone was dropped, the hissing sound was heard; and the children learned to know the sound, and they were no longer afraid.
As Chew-chew kept on dropping the hot stones, she did not notice all that happened. She thought only of teaching the children, so that they would not be afraid. But at last such a strange thing happened, that even Chew-chew was afraid.
The water no longer was still. It kept moving like the angry water in the rapids of the river. A thin mist began to rise, and a strange voice came from the water, saying:—
"Bubble, bubble, bubble; Bubble, bubble, bubble."
At the sound Chew-chew was filled with fear. She was afraid the gods were angry. She looked about for an offering, and found a piece of bison meat. She dropped the meat into the water, hoping to appease the angry god.
The bubbling ceased, but Chew-chew was still afraid. So she called the children together, and took them into the cave.
When the men and women came home that night, Chew-chew told them what had happened. They went to the spot and saw the meat, which they thought the god had left. Then they listened in silence as Chew-chew told them the story again and again.
THINGS TO DO
Choose some one for each of the parts and dramatize the story.
Draw pictures which will show what happened.
See if you can boil water by dropping hot stones into it.
Show in your sand-box how the skins were stretched out, and how the skin-lined hole was made.
X
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
What do you think Chew-chew might learn by dropping the meat into the hot water?
What kind of boiling-pots did people first use?
Why didn't they hang their boiling-pots over the fire?
Why the Children Began to Eat Boiled Meat
The more Chew-chew thought about the bubbling sound, the more she wanted to hear it again. She wondered what the god wanted to say, and if he was asking for food. She wondered if she could make friends with him by giving him something to eat.
Chew-chew talked with Eagle-eye and at length they tried to make friends with the god. They prepared a place for the water by making a skin-lined hole. Eagle-eye poured the water into the hole, while Chew-chew dropped in a piece of meat. Then they looked and listened for a sign, but no sign was made. They tried it again and again, but still there was no sign.
At length Chew-chew thought of the hot stones she had dropped when she heard the voice. So she and Eagle-eye heated stones and dropped them into the water. As they did it they muttered prayers to the gods and asked them to protect the Cave-men.
Before the women had dropped many stones, the children crowded around. Nobody was frightened this time when the hissing sound was heard. But their eyes opened wide when the water began to bubble.
Chew-chew dropped the meat into the water as an offering to the god. Everybody watched as she dropped the meat. Everybody breathed more freely when the bubbling ceased. And Chew-chew said, "The god is pleased with the offering of meat."
Many times after that Chew-chew dropped hot stones into the water, and offered meat to the god. But when she did it she never thought that she was cooking meat. She thought she was helping the Cave-men by winning the favor of the god.
Sometimes when the children were hungry, Chew-chew let them tear off strips of partly boiled meat. Sometimes she let them drink the broth from bone dippers and horns.
The children liked to eat the boiled meat and to drink the rich broth. But they always thought the meat and broth were what the god had left.
THINGS TO DO
Make tongs out of sticks and see if you can lift small objects with them.
Watch water when it boils, and tell where the steam comes from.
Where does it go? Hold a cold plate over the steam and see what happens. Where do the drops of water on the plate come from?
When water stands in the open air, what becomes of part of it?
Why do we hang clothes out on the clothes-line to dry?
What becomes of the water that was in the clothes?
Tell what you think happens just as clouds form. See if you can do something that will show what happens at the time.
What happens to the clouds just as it begins to rain?
XI
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
Why would the grass-eating animals go from place to place during the summer? What do you think the Cave-men would do when the herds went away?
At what season of the year are nuts fit to gather? Is there any place near by where you have a right to go nutting?
What animals eat nuts? What animals store nuts? Do you think the Cave-men would gather many nuts?
The Nutting Season
Summer passed as summers had passed before. When the bison went to the higher lands, the Cave-men followed them. When they started toward their winter pastures, the Cave-men came home.
It was the nutting season when they returned. All the beech, walnut, and butternut trees were heavily laden that year. The ground underneath their branches was nearly covered with nuts. Slender hazel bushes bent under their heavy loads.
Wild hogs and bears had begun to harvest the nuts before the Cave-men returned. Each day they went to the trees and ate the nuts that had fallen. When Eagle-eye saw what they were doing, she said, "Bring your bags and baskets and come. If we do not look out the hogs will get the best of the nuts this year."
Then all the women and children went nutting. They gathered the nuts that lay upon the ground and put them in their baskets. Some climbed trees and shook the branches until they got a shower of nuts; others took their digging sticks and beat the heavily laden branches.
The children had a feast that day. They sat down under the trees and cracked all the nuts they could eat. They gathered handfuls and helped their mothers fill baskets and skin bags. They climbed the trees and they laughed and played all day long.
When the women first came to the trees, they heard the wild hogs in the distance. Once a big hog came up and tried to eat the nuts out of a basket. But Eagle-eye chased him with a big stick and drove him away from the spot.
When Eagle-eye was coming back from the chase, she saw other trees heavily laden. She called to the women, and they came to the spot and forgot all about the nuts they had gathered.
It was Chew-chew who first thought of the pile of nuts they had left on the ground. It was she who ran to the trees and found the wild hogs having a feast.
Chew-chew struck one of the hogs with her digging stick. He was munching the nuts she had gathered. He turned away and she struck another; then the first hog came back.
Chew-chew soon found that unless she had help the hogs would eat all the nuts, for as fast as she drove one hog away another one came back. Chew-chew screamed for help and the women came with their digging-sticks.
The women drove the hogs away, but they returned again and again. And so the women learned to keep a close watch while they were gathering nuts. But in spite of all their trouble, they had a good time that day.
It was not until they were starting home that they found that a serious thing had happened. They did not know all about it then, and some of them never knew.
It was all about Fleetfoot. When Eagle-eye looked for him, he was nowhere to be seen. At first she thought he was with Chew-chew, but Chew-chew had not seen him since morn.
Fleetfoot had played near his mother nearly all day. He had cracked nuts; he had climbed trees; he had mimicked the squirrels; he had scattered burrs in the rabbits' paths, and he had done all sorts of things.
But now Fleetfoot was lost, and everybody began to hunt for him. Eagle-eye found the stones he had left only a short time before. She found his tracks and followed them until they crossed the boundary of the hunting ground. There she lost all trace of him. She called, but the "caw-caw" of a crow was the only answer.
The men heard her call, and came to join in the search. But in spite of all they could do, they did not find the child.
And so the Cave-men thought they would never see Fleetfoot again. They thought he had lost his way in the forest and had been killed by a cave-bear. For a few days they mourned for the child, then they spoke no more of him.
THINGS TO DO
Tell a story of what happened one time when you went nutting.
Name all the nuts you can that grow on trees. Name those that grow on bushes. Where do peanuts grow?
Dramatize this story.
Draw a picture of the part you like the best.
XII
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
Why do people put up such signs as "Keep off," "Do not trespass"?
Why do people build fences around their land?
Do you think the Cave-men could hunt wherever they chose?
Why did each clan have its own hunting ground? What kind of boundaries did the hunting grounds have? Why was it not safe to go on the land of a stranger?
Why did mothers teach their children the boundary lines?
What do you think some mothers mean when they tell their children that the "Bogie-man" will get them?
Why Mothers Taught their Children the Boundary Lines
Each day brought so many hard things to do that most of the Cave-men forgot Fleetfoot. But his mother and grandmother did not forget him. They often thought of the boy they had lost.
Other mothers were afraid they might lose their children. So they tried to keep them from running away. Most of all, they tried to keep them from running across the boundary line.
When Pigeon tried to run away, Eagle-eye would say, "The cave-bear will get you." Mothers tried all sorts of ways to keep their children from danger.
Each clan had its own hunting ground. The people who lived together shared it, but no one else was allowed to hunt on the land. It was not even safe to cross the land of a stranger. Sometimes the Cave-men had to do it. Sometimes they had to call upon their neighbors for help. But since there were people who had lost their lives when trying to cross the land of strangers, the Cave-men learned to use signs to show what they wanted. They carved pictures upon sticks, which told what we might tell in a letter.
When a stranger carried a message-stick, it was safe for him to do his errand. People knew what he wanted and why he came, so they let him go on his way unharmed. But when a stranger had no message-stick, his life was not safe in a strange land.
And so people learned to stay on their own lands and mothers taught their children what the boundaries were. They taught the children to name them over and over again. They taught them to know how the boundaries looked.
For a long time Pigeon had to tell her mother each day the boundaries of the hunting grounds. She would stand on the cliff and point north to the narrow valley, then south to Little River. Then she pointed to a high ridge of hills toward the east and west to the River of Stones.
While Pigeon was so small that Eagle-eye had to take her by the hand, her mother took her to the boundaries. Eagle-eye had taught her so well that she knew them as soon as she saw them.
Perhaps you have heard the story told about mothers who taught their children the boundary lines. It is told that mothers used to be so anxious to have their children remember the boundaries that they whipped them at each one. Then the story is told that in later times instead of beating the children, people let them beat the boundaries. Some day you may be able to learn more about the strange customs of beating the boundary lines.
THINGS TO DO
Mark out in your sand-box the boundary lines of the hunting ground of the Horse clan. Show a good place for another hunting ground.
Ask some one to read you the story, "The Goblins will get you if you don't watch out." What do you think the story means?
Climb a hill, or look out of a high window, and see if you can find land which at one time was a good hunting ground.
See if you can make a message-stick.
XIII
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
What do you think had happened to Fleetfoot?
If strangers found him, what do you think they would do with him?
What Happened to Fleetfoot
Perhaps you have been wondering what happened to Fleetfoot. Perhaps you would like to know how he happened to wander away from his clan.
It happened in this way. He cracked all the nuts he could eat; he climbed trees; he threw sticks and stones; he watched the wild hogs eating nuts; he listened to the whistle which Scarface blew to call the men to the hunt. He wished that he could blow the whistle and hunt with the men.
Then a rabbit hopped across his path and stopped and looked at him. How Fleetfoot longed to catch the rabbit and to hold him in his hands! He stood perfectly still; he could hear himself breathe; he tried to breathe more quietly, for he did not want to frighten the rabbit.
The rabbit started. How Fleetfoot wished he would go down the path where he had scattered burrs! But the rabbit took another path and Fleetfoot ran to catch him. He was almost sure he could lay his hands on the rabbit's stumpy white tail.
The rabbit was too quick for him, yet Fleetfoot did not give up. He started on a hard chase and forgot about everything else. Up hill and down the rabbit ran and Fleetfoot followed after. Not until the rabbit was out of sight did Fleetfoot give up the chase. Then he stopped and rested a while and tried to get his breath.
While Fleetfoot was resting he looked at the squirrels which were chattering in the trees. He watched them hold nuts with their forepaws while they gnawed through the shells. He listened to their chattering and then he wandered on.
Fleetfoot did not know that he had crossed the narrow valley. He did not know that he had wandered into a strange land. He thought nothing about where he was until some time had passed. But after a while everything seemed still, and Fleetfoot began to feel lonesome. And so he turned around to go back to the women and children.
Fleetfoot walked and walked, but he did not find them. He called, but no answer came. So he wandered on and on.
Soon Fleetfoot knew he was in a spot he had never seen before. Everything seemed strange. He looked this way and that; but he could not tell which way to go. And so the lost child wandered farther and farther away from home.
He was choking down a sob when he caught sight of some women with packs upon their backs. Fleetfoot thought he had found his people going home with their loads of nuts. He ran and called to his mother.
A strange woman stopped and looked at the child. Then she gave a signal to her clan.
Fleetfoot was within reach of the strange woman before he saw his mistake. He tried to run away. But he could not do it. A big man caught him and lifted him up and put him upon his shoulder. Strange men, women, and children crowded around and stared into his face.
Bighorn asked him where he lived; but Fleetfoot was too frightened to speak. He remembered the stories Chew-chew had told about strange clans. He wondered what the strangers would do. How he wished he were safe at home!
But poor Fleetfoot did not see his home again for many long years. He was in a strange land, and soon he was traveling with the strangers far away from his home.
A woman, whose name was Antler, took charge of Fleetfoot. She took him by the hand until he was too tired to walk. Then she carried him until they came to the place where they camped for the night.
THINGS TO DO
Choose some one for each of the parts and see if you can act out this story. Draw pictures to illustrate the story.
Name the wild animals you can find in your neighborhood. Notice what they eat. Do they help or harm the people near where they live?
Model one of these animals in clay.
XIV
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
What kind of a shelter do you think the people will have for the night?
Think of as many easy ways as you can of making a shelter out of trees.
How the Strangers Camped for the Night
The camping place was an old one. It had been used many times. The strange clan always used it on their way to and from the lowland plains. It was under a big oak tree, and near a spring of fresh water.
When the strangers reached the camp, Greybeard took charge of Fleetfoot. The women quickly unloaded their packs, and began to build a tent.
It did not take long to make the tent, for it was almost ready-made. It was an old oak, which reached out long and low-spreading branches. The branches had been bent to the ground many times, and now they nearly touched it. So all that the women had to do was to fasten the ends firmly. They did it by rolling a stone over the end of a branch, and sometimes they tied the end of a branch to a peg which they had driven in the ground.
All the Cave-men made such tents in the summer when they were away from the caves. When the branches were not thick enough for a shelter, the women broke saplings and leaned them against the tree.
While Chipper worked at a spearhead, the other men were moving about. Bighorn feared that Fleetfoot's clan might follow their tracks.
Long after Fleetfoot fell asleep, the strangers talked quietly. They held their ears close to the ground and listened. They went and looked at Fleetfoot, now fast asleep. Then they all sat down by the fire.
At length the men turned to Greybeard. And Greybeard spoke to them and said, "When I was young my clan lived in a cave near Sweet Briar River. Every year, in the salmon season, the neighboring clans met at the rapids. The Horse clan came from the Fork of the River, where the Sweet Briar joins the River of Stones. They may live there still. This boy may belong to them."
"Do you think they will follow us?" asked Bighorn.
Greybeard looked up, but did not speak. He seemed to be trying to think. At length he turned to the men and said, "Sleep until the moon sets; I'll watch and wake you."
So the Cave-men went to the tent and slept while Greybeard kept watch. Not a sound escaped his ear that night. Not a leaf rustled that he did not hear. Not a twig broke, as wild animals passed, but that he found out what it meant.
As Greybeard watched in the moonlight he heard many a familiar sound. Now he heard the roar of a tiger, and again the "hoo-hoo" of an owl; now the howling of hyenas, and again an eagle's scream.
Among all these sounds Greybeard heard nothing that seemed to come from the lost child's clan. But when the moon was set he roused the people, and under cover of the darkness they hurried toward home.
They let Fleetfoot sleep, for fear he might answer if he were called. And so the child slept while he was hurried away through the darkness. At daybreak, when he awoke, he found himself in a new home.
THINGS TO DO
See if there is a tree in your neighborhood that could be made into such a tent as the Cave-men made.
Find a thick branch and make such a tent in your sand-box.
Draw one of these pictures:— The council of the clan before going to sleep. Greybeard watching in the moonlight. Hurrying home under cover of the darkness. Fleetfoot awakes and finds himself in his new home.
Act out part of this story and let some one guess what it is.
Write as many calls of the birds as you know. Model one of the birds in clay. If you know its nest, model that.
XV
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
How do you think Fleetfoot felt the first few days he was with the strange clan?
What do you think he will learn of them? What do you think he can teach them?
Fleetfoot is Adopted by the Bison Clan
For a few days Fleetfoot missed his mother and Chew-chew more than he could tell. He missed little Pigeon, too. He missed the people he had always seen. But he said very little about them.
It was Greybeard who told him that he was now living with the Bison clan. Not all of the people belonged to that clan, but there were more of that clan than of any other. And so they were known as the Bison clan.
At first Fleetfoot was afraid of the men and large boys. Most of all he was afraid of Bighorn, for it was Bighorn who captured him.
But before one moon had passed, he was adopted by the Bison clan. And soon after that, he began to feel at home. Greybeard told him stories, and gave him little spears. Antler was kind to him, and the children were always ready to play.
Fleetfoot liked to play with the children. He liked to play with Flaker best of all. Flaker was Antler's child, and he was about the size of Fleetfoot.
As the days became cold, the women worked upon skins. There was not a smooth spot near the cave which was not covered with a skin. Fleetfoot watched Antler as she cut little slits in the edges. He helped stretch the skins out on the ground and drive little pegs through the slits. He watched her stretch a skin on a frame and put it near the fire.
Antler scraped a skin until the fat was off, and the inner skin was removed. Then she roughened it by scraping it crosswise, so as to make it flexible.
When Fleetfoot saw Antler roll the skins in a loose roll, he asked if she was going to chew them. Antler smiled as she asked Fleetfoot how his mother softened skins.
Fleetfoot showed how his mother did it. And he told Antler about Chew-chew. He told her that Chew-chew got her name because she learned to chew the skins.
While Antler and Fleetfoot were talking, all the women and children gathered around. They wanted to see what they were doing, and to hear what Fleetfoot said.
Then Antler said to the women and children, "These skins are ready to soften. Come, join hands and show Fleetfoot how we soften hard skins."
What a noisy time they had for a little while! Each group wanted to finish first. Some of them stamped the skins, and kept time by singing. Others pounded the skins with their hands, and still others pounded with hammers of reindeer horn.
They had such a merry time that Fleetfoot could not keep still. He was soon stamping and singing as well as any one.
When the skins were softened, Antler told Fleetfoot that once her people chewed the skins. But since they had found an easier way, they chewed only the edges they wished to sew.
And so Fleetfoot began to learn lessons of the Bison clan. But once he was the teacher. It was when he showed Flaker what happened the day Pigeon played with hot stones. Flaker told his mother, and Antler told Greybeard. And then Greybeard asked Fleetfoot to drop the hot stones in the water again.
All the Cave-men gathered around to see what Fleetfoot did. When the steam began to rise from the water, they stepped back. But when they saw that the child was not afraid, they came forward cautiously.
When the water began to bubble, they were all filled with fear. They looked upon Fleetfoot in silence. They called him a wonderful child.
THINGS TO DO
Tell a story about dressing skins. Draw pictures which will show all that is done in dressing the skin.
Dramatize the part of the story that tells what Fleetfoot taught the Bison clan. Draw a picture of it.
Make a song that people might sing in stamping upon the skins.
Make a song to sing while beating the skins.
XVI
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
What kind of clothes do you wear in winter? What do you think the Cave-men wore? Can you think how they learned to fit skins to their bodies? What part of an animal's skin could they use for sleeves? What part could they use for leggings?
How do you think they learned to make mittens and gloves?
How many ways do you know of fastening garments? Which of these do we use? Which of these do you think the Cave-men used?
What did they use instead of a needle? What kind of thread did they have?
How the Cave-men Protected Themselves from the Cold
One morning Fleetfoot started out of the cave, but a cold wind drove him back. Snow had fallen during the night, and the air had grown very cold. It was not fit for a bare-backed boy to go out on such a day. So Fleetfoot stayed in the cave all day long.
All the Cave-men stayed in the cave nearly all the day. Once Chipper went out and found fresh tracks. He followed the tracks until he came within close range of a reindeer. But his bare arms shook with the cold, and he missed his aim.
The next day was bitterly cold. The river was frozen almost into silence. Only the ripples of the swiftest currents laughed aloud at the frost. The snow was deep on the hillsides. It was deeper in the valleys, and the narrow ravines were almost filled with snow.
The third day was still very cold and everybody was hungry and cross. The children were crying for food, and since Antler had nothing to give them, she was trying to get them to play.
At length the children began to take turns at playing they were cave-bears. Now it was Fleetfoot's turn to be the bear, and when Antler saw him she laughed.
The Cave-men looked up in surprise. Everybody was so hungry and cross it seemed strange to hear any one laugh. But Antler really was laughing.
Fleetfoot had found a cave-bear's skin on a ledge in the cave. He had wrapped it around him so that he looked like a little cave-bear. The children kept calling him "little bear," and he was trying to act like one.
Soon all the people were laughing. They forgot, for the time, how hungry they were. And the next day they had meat, for it was warm enough to go hunting.
Many times after that the children played cave-bear. Many times the people laughed when they saw the children dressed in cave-bears' skins. Once when Antler looked at them, she got an idea about making clothes.
When Antler took a large skin and wrapped it around her, Fleetfoot thought that she was going to play "bear." But Antler was not playing. She was thinking of the cold days when the children had no food. She was thinking that if she could make a warm dress, perhaps she could go out in the bitter cold.
Antler talked with Birdcatcher about it, and Birdcatcher helped her fit the skin. Birdcatcher fitted the skin of the head over Antler's head so as to make a warm hood. Then she run a cord through the slits along the edges and tied the ends under Antler's chin.
Antler fastened the skin down the front with buckles. She covered her arms with the skin of the forelegs. She cut off the skin that hung below the knees, and afterward used it to make a pair of leggings.
When the garment was fitted, Antler took it off. Then the women sat down and worked until it was done. They punched holes through the edges with a bone awl. Then they threaded the sinew through the holes in an "over-and-over seam."
When the men saw the new garment, they wondered how it was made. So Antler and Birdcatcher showed them how it was done, and helped them to make warm garments of their own.
And so all the Cave-men soon had warm garments of fur. Sometimes they fastened them with buckles, and sometimes they used bone pins. They made long leggings of soft skins, and moccasins for their feet.
Perhaps you can think how they learned to make mittens and gloves. We know that they had warm mittens and gloves, for we have found pictures they made of them. When they dressed in their warm fur garments, the Cave-men did not fear the cold. If they wanted food, they put on their garments and went wherever they pleased.
THINGS TO DO
If you can get a small skin, fit it to a doll the way you think the Cave-men fitted skins to their bodies. If you cannot get a skin, cut a piece of cloth so as to make it the shape of a skin, and show how the new suit was made.
Find as many things as you can that you can use for pins, buttons, and buckles.
Find as many ways as you can of sewing a simple seam. When you go to a museum notice how the seams are sewed. Why do you think people invented new stitches? Visit a shoemaker and notice how he sews.
Draw one of these pictures:— The cold wind drives Fleetfoot into the cave. Playing "Cave-bear."
XVII
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
How do you think the children played in the winter? What do you play in the winter?
How do you think the Cave-men would hunt when there was only a light fall of snow?
How would they hunt when the snow was deep?
How would they hunt when there was a hard crust on the snow?
How the Children Played in Winter
When the children saw their fathers and mothers go out of doors, they, too, wanted to go. But they had no warm clothing, so their mothers tried to keep them in doors.
Sometimes Fleetfoot and Flaker teased to go out and play in the snow. And when the days were warm enough, Antler let them go out and play. But on very cold days they had to stay in the cave.
The children had good times in the cave. They played many animal games. They played they were grown men and women, and they made believe do all sorts of work. They peeked out of the cave many times each day. They heard their fathers and mothers talk. And they listened to Greybeard's stories.
And so the children always knew what the men and women were doing. After a heavy fall of snow, they knew they would trap the animals in the drifts. When a hard crust formed, they knew they would dig pitfalls.
Antler often wished that the children might play out doors every day. Greybeard wanted the boys to learn to make pitfalls and traps. But neither Antler nor Greybeard had thought of making clothing for little children.
The day Antler thought of making clothes for the boys, was the day they ran away to the pitfall. It was soon after Chipper came to the cave and said that two reindeer were in the pit.
When the boys heard what Chipper said, they were playing they were Bighorn and Chipper. They had tied the skins of wolves' heads over their heads, and they let the rest of the skins hang down as if they were capes. |
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