There Thorn heard the sound of
stone hammers and saw a big rocky place in the hillside. Three men sat
on the ground at work. Other men sat about talking. Pointing to
these, Flint said, "They are waiting to buy axes."
There were piles of bowlders on the ground, and little piles of stone
chips around each ax maker.
Flint went up to one of them and said, "Redtop, my boy wants to make
axes. Show him how."
Redtop grinned at Thorn, and threw him a smooth oval bowlder.
"That is your hammer stone," he said. "Now take a stone about the size
you want your ax, and chip it this way."
Redtop sat on the ground. He held a flint bowlder and began chipping
it with his hammer stone. Every time he struck the bowlder, a chip
flew off. He kept on striking, first on one side and then on the
other. Thorn watched with shining eyes. Redtop worked fast and
easily, and after some time held up a beautiful ax. It was broad at
the sharp end and narrow at the head. Thorn saw the little places all
over it where the chips had come off.
He looked at it and laughed, and then sat down and tried to do what
Redtop had done. He struck with his hammer stone, but the bowlder did
not chip. He worked on and on, for a very, very long time. Still the
bowlder would not chip, and his arm was ready to drop off.
[Illustration: He struck with his hammer stone]
At last Redtop said, "Enough for to-day! You will do.
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