Poison Arrows

[Capt. Hamp Cox]

Have any of you run across other information similar to this in a reputable source?


From a Sweetwater, TX (Home of the annual Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup) Online Newspaper

"One of the most interesting of the Indians' relationship with rattlesnakes was their widespread use of the venom for poison arrows. The use of rattlesnake venom on weapons was extensively practiced in the Southwest and West (probably because they received firearms later than the Eastern tribes), and there were a number of unusual methods of making the weapons.

"One of the most common was to provoke rattlers to strike the liver of a deer, or a cow, or sometimes even the liver of a deceased Indian. After the liver had absorbed enough venom it was allowed to putrefy and then the arrows points were dipped in the gooey mess.

"Some tribes would not only use rattlers, but also tease scorpions, centipedes, and tarantulas to strike the liver. Other tribes mashed up rattler heads along with tarantulas and poison-ivy leaves. The Yavapai Indians mixed rattler venom with spiders, centipedes, bees, and walnut leaves while the Yuma dried and powdered rattler heads, and then mixed the powder with clotted blood and red ants.

"The Catawba tribe preceded the Vietcong by centuries with their use of poisoned sticks or splints that they placed along trails as booby traps for pursuing enemies. They heated the venom trying to increase its toxicity. One tribe, the Santee, left poisoned arrows on the trail in the hopes enemies would use the arrows on game and be poisoned by the meat.

"Most Indians did not worry about the effects of the poison on the meat for their own consumption and research proves the venom is destroyed by cooking. In fact, the Mexican naturalist A. Duges provoked a large rattler to bite itself four times and then he cooked and ate the snake without any ill effect.

"Of more interest is the question of how effective were the poisoned arrows on killing intended victims? U.S. Army records of 159 arrow-wounds indicate that the poison was a negligible factor in the fatal cases. If anything the only additional risk from the poisoned arrows was the danger of septicemia caused by the dirty and contaminated arrows. Indeed, the putrefaction process itself destroys the poisonous properties of snake venom."

Also this:

1) General George Crook, Autobiography (1889)

I at once commenced reloading my old muzzle loader, when the guide at the tops of the bluffs yelled, "Look out for the arrows!" I looked up, and saw the air apparently full of them. Almost simultaneously one hit me in the right hip. When I jerked it out the head remained in my leg, where it remains still. There were a couple of inches of blood on the shaft of the arrow when I pulled it out. The Indians doing the firing were some who had previously swum across, and had secreted themselves in the rocks. They set up a yell when I was hit.

I at once commenced the ascent through a shower of arrows. The ascent was so steep that I had to pull myself up by catching hold of bunches of grass, rocks, and such things as I could get hold of. In one bunch of grass I caught hold of two arrows that had been shot at me. The wonder was that I was not hit oftener. By the time I reached the top the perspiration stood out on me in large drops, and I was deathly sick.

As soon as I was able, we returned to our camp at the ferry. I had to ride on horseback and suffered most excruciating pain during the journey. When I reached camp, my groin was all green.

The nearest doctor was at Fort Jones, 120 miles distant, but I was in hopes I could get along without having to send for the doctor, fearing that I would be relieved, as Captain Judah was inimical to me, and if he found out that I preferred being in the field to Fort Jones, he would certainly order me back, for that was just about his caliber.

I stood it for a couple of days, but my leg got so much worse that I sent Dick Pugh in to Fort Jones after the doctor. When the news of my being wounded reached Fort Jones, much excitement prevailed. The whole command was ordered out, and as usual they got drunk, Judah included, who fell by the wayside, and Lt. Hiram Dryer, and Dr. C. C. Kearney with all the available men came out.

By the time they reached me I was a little better, but the doctor saw nothing to do except let things take their course. The doctor thought the arrow might have been poisoned, as these Indians were noted for using poison in their arrows.

They would poison them in this way: They would catch a rattlesnake, and when they would kill a deer or an antelope, they would take the fresh liver, and let the rattlesnake bite it until it would get full of poison. Then they would run the shafts of the arrows through it. On the shafts were small grooves to hold the poison. Under the most favorable circumstances this poison would retain its strength about one month, but during moist weather it would not last over a few days.

[Brazos Bucky Smith]

Howdy Capt. 

It seems nobody else has heard of the Indians using Poison Arrows in the old west either.  You have anymore info on it or what is your take on it?  Or is somebody mixing time, place, and peoples?

BB

[Big Hext Finnigan]

Howdy,

It seems that I read that passage in a L'amour book.  Something about the old lady woudl die when she opened the propperly aged poison pot.

But.. I'll have to double check but the Tonkawa and Karankawa of Texas used poison.. but since there was a bit of cannibalism by the tribes, it was occasional.

Dang!  Been too long since I've read up on this stuff.  Adios,

[Capt. Hamp Cox]

Howdy Capt. 

It seems nobody else has heard of the Indians using Poison Arrows in the old west either.  You have anymore info on it or what is your take on it?  Or is somebody mixing time, place, and peoples?

BB

BB,

I think it is very likely that poisoned arrows were used by some of the tribes.  Here are a couple of sights that will probably tell you more than you ever wanted to know about arrows.

This sight http://www.ehistory.freeservers.com/vol2/Arrow%20Wounds.htm#_ednref1 also mentions the use of poison arrows, and provides considerable info regarding arrow wounds and their treatment.

http://www.historynet.com/we/blarrowswoundedwest/ provides a good assessment of the effectiveness of arrows in combat.

[Big Hext Finnigan]

According to a web page I found on the Tonkawa Indians http://www.angelfire.com/tx2/ecc/tonkawa.html this tribe used a poison arrow, but it was based on Mistletoe, not poison impregnated liver.

Good story on the Tonkawa tribe. http://www.ci.round-rock.tx.us/planning/rrcollection/earlyhistory/tonkawa/

[Capt. Hamp Cox]

From the "Official Site  The Tonkawa Tribe":

Weapons
   An important weapon was the bow and arrow, which was used in warfare and in hunting bison and deer. The bow string was generally fashioned from bison sinew. The arrows were supposedly "poisoned" with the juice of the mistletoe leaf (this is know to be non-poisonous).
   Other weapons were the spear and the lances, used in warfare and in bison hunting. Here too, "poison" from the mistletoe leaf was used. As defensive armor the Tonkawa wore "jackets," helmets, and shields of dressed hides.

http://www.tonkawatribe.com/culture/habit.htm

The power of positive thinking at work?  Guess if your enemy also thinks it is poison, it might be effective psychologically.