"poison" arrows

[Pat B]

I remember the "pods" in SC back then. The chemical used was an anticoagulant that didn't let bod clot so any wound could bleed out a deer. Problem is it could bleed out you also. Small balloons were used to hold the powder and the shaft went through it and tied off on both ends. When the arrow went through the deer the balloon ruptured and released the poison.
 My daughter worked in a pet shop in college and raised poison arrow frogs and they did get their poison from what they ate. The ones she had were pretty but not poison because they weren't eating what they had in the wild.

[Chief RID]

You are spot on Pat. That is what I was told also. I was hunting in Sumter National Forest back then but I did not know a thing about them. My mentor did not use them and never said anything about them as I remember. They were probably already illegal by 68 or 69 when I started bowhunting.

[sweeney3]

Does anyone wonder where the were "Toxophilite" originated?  Does the "tox" have anything to do with "toxin"?  I don't know at all.  Just curious. 

Regarding poison arrows, there is a long history of poison being used.  And, if considered with an open mind, there is some validity to the argument that it helps to ensure a humane, clean kill.  Obviously you'd want to hit something vital, but in the event of a miss, the animal would still be killed and, hopefully, found and used. 

I'm not advocating its use, but it is something to think about. 

[jeffp51]

Does anyone wonder where the were "Toxophilite" originated?  Does the "tox" have anything to do with "toxin"?  I don't know at all.  Just curious.   

from Oxford dictionary:  toxophilite
Origin: Toxophilus (a name invented by Roger Ascham, used as the title of his treatise on archery (1545), from Greek toxon "bow" + -philos "loving") + "-ite1"

but I just found this that makes the connection as iron-clad as anything you can choose to believe on the internet:

Student Dictionary

One entry found for intoxicate.
Main Entry:   in·tox·i·cate
Pronunciation:   in-primarystresstäk-sschwa-secondarystresskamacrt
Function:   verb
Inflected Form(s):   -cat·ed; -cat·ing
Etymology:   from Latin intoxicatus, past participle of intoxicare "to poison," from earlier in- "put into" and toxicum "poison," from Greek toxikon "arrow poison," from toxon "bow, arrow" --related to TOXIC, TOXIN
1 : to affect by alcohol or a drug especially to the point where physical and mental control is much reduced
2 : to excite to enthusiasm or frenzy
Word History The Greek word toxon means "bow" or "arrow." From this came the Greek toxikon, meaning "a poison in which arrows are dipped." Toxikon was borrowed into Latin as toxicum, which gave rise to the Latin verb intoxicare, "to poison." The English word intoxicate comes from this Latin verb. Intoxicate originally meant "to poison" in English, but now it is almost never used with this meaning. It is related to the words toxic, meaning "poisonous," and toxin, meaning "a poison." Both of these words can also be traced to the Greek toxon. 

--taken from the Miriam Webster website.

[son of massey]

So a toxophile is someone who loves bows but could also refer to someone who loves the pick of the poisons...so the practice of tillering with a beer in hand, etymologically, is the correct way to go about it.

SOM

[JW_Halverson]

SOM, I just had the laugh of the day!  Thank you, SIR!

[Pappy]

 
   Pappy

[sweeney3]

Jeff with the well detailed etymological study.

SOM, with the near total deconstruction of the sobriety of the thread.   

I like both replies.