Chapter X: Things to Think About

What do you think the women were doing while the men
were working on their weapons?

What tools and weapons did the women need? Do you think
that they made them themselves?

_How the Women Dressed Sabre-tooth’s Skin_

While the men worked upon their trophies and weapons, the women, too, were working.

They had gone to the river banks to get stones to make into tools.

They were ready to dress old Sabre-tooth’s skin, so they hunted for stones that would make good scrapers.

They shaped the stones by chipping them with hammer stones, but they did not make handles for them.

If the rough edges hurt their hands, they wrapped the scraper in a piece of skin.

When the scrapers were ready, they found a smooth spot where they stretched out Sabre-tooth’s skin.

Then they made little slits all around the edge and drove little pegs through them.

They scraped off thin shavings from the inner side, but they were careful not to spoil the skin by cutting through it.

When they had a smooth surface, they rubbed it with fat so as to make it soft.

Sometimes they chewed the hard parts to make them soft.

When the skin was smooth and soft, they dried it in the sun.

Then they took it into the cave.

Sabre-tooth’s skin was too large to wear every day, but Strongarm wore it on feast days.

THINGS TO DO

_Show how the women stretched the skin upon the ground._

_Show how they scraped it and rubbed it with fat._

_Find a stone or a shell that will make a good scraper._

_Get a skin at the meat market and see if you can dress
it._

_Name things that you wear that are made of fur._

_Name things made of fur that men and women wear._

_Find as many other uses of fur as you can._

_Where does the fur that we use come from? Ask some one
to tell you how it is prepared for use._

_Can you think why fur is more expensive now than it
used to be? Why should we be careful about killing
wild animals?_

_Name the things you have that are made of leather._

_Visit a tannery and ask some one to tell you about it._

_Draw a picture of the women dressing Sabre-tooth’s
skin._