Bow

Hunting and fishing, as compared with agriculture, play only a secondary part in the subsistence of the Moré. Their bows were made of palm wood with the rounded side turned towards the string. The bow is notched for the string by means of paring down the edges of the stave so as to produce knife-shaped points about 5 cm long, which also show how the bow is stringed. About one third of the bow-stave from the end is lapped with fine cotton yarn, and between this and the fastening point of the bow-string is wound the surplus length of the gradually tapering string, which is available in reserve in case of breakage. The lapping on the stave is so sparsely laid on that a leaf covering the stave shows through, as does also a black strip of bark-cloth at either end of it. A row of small red feathers are fastened in the lapping along both edges of the stave. The bow-string is made of fibre, 2-twined of three strands. After twining, it appears to have been smeared with wax. This bow is provided with festal decorations: a bunch of feathers next to the lapped portion, and a cord, or strip of cloth, carrying feathers stretching along the bare portion of the stave from its point to the grip. When fully decorated for festal occasions, the bow also has a similar feathered strip freely suspended from the end of the bow that is not lapped.