The men and women in the Cave Colony suddenly found that one bright-eyed young fellow, with a little straighter forehead than the others, was beating them all at hunting. During weeks he had been going away mysteriously, for hours each day. Now, whenever he left the camp he was sure to bring home game, while the other men would straggle back for the most part empty-handed. Was it witchcraft? They decided to investigate. [Illustration: THE FIRST MISSILE The Cave Man of prehistoric times unconsciously invented arms and ammunition.] What They Saw. Accordingly, one morning several of them followed at a careful distance as he sought the shore of a stream where water-fowl might be found. Parting the leaves, they saw him pick up a pebble from the bank and then, to their surprise, take off his girdle of skin and place the stone in its center, holding both ends with his right hand. Stranger still, he whirled the girdle twice around his head, then released one end so that the leather strip flew out and the stone shot straight at a bird in the water. The mystery was solved. They had seen the first slingman in action. The Use of Slings. The new plan worked with great success, and a little practice made expert marksmen. We know that most of the early races used it for hunting and in war. We find it shown in pictures made many thousands of years ago in ancient Egypt and Assyria. We find it in the Roman army where the slingman was called a “funditor.” We find it in the Bible where it is written of the tribe of Benjamin: “Among all these people there were seven hundred chosen men left-handed; _every one could sling a stone at an hair breadth and not miss_.” Surely, too, you remember the story of David and Goliath when the young shepherd “prevailed over the Philistine _with a sling and with a stone_.” Today shepherds tending their flocks upon these same hills of Syria may be seen practicing with slings like those of David. Yes, and slings were used in European armies until nearly a hundred years after America was discovered. Something Better. Yet they had their drawbacks. A stone slung might kill a bird or even a man, but it was not very effective against big game. What was wanted was a missile to pierce a thick hide. Man had begun to make spears for use in a pinch, but would you like to tackle a husky bear or a well-horned stag with only a spear for a weapon? No more did our undressed ancestors. The invention of the greatly desired arm probably came about in a most curious way. Long ages ago man had learned to make fire by patiently rubbing two sticks together, or by twirling a round one between his hands with its point resting upon a flat piece of wood.