“How so?”
“Did you ever see a Peruvian Indian shoot an arrow? an Ayuli, or a man of any other tribe?”
No. They had not.
“I have watched them many times; and I have seen them kill a deer and not aim at it at all; only shoot up in the air.”
“And the arrow would describe a parabola and fall on the animal?”
“Its flight would rather be the sides of a triangle, and it would turn in mid air at the apex, then falling at the same angle on the other side, would strike the deer in the back.”
“Have you seen this done?”
“Yes; and not once, but several times.”
“Then I can understand why you built the covering!” exclaimed Hope-Jones; and so did the others.
As the three men were quite tired, the captain let Harvey stand guard, and they lay down in the shade. Thus another hour passed, and not a sight of an Indian was had, nor did a sound come from down the river.