Spear

Spear, a generic weapon, the prototype of the whole race of throwing and stabbing weapons. The early spear consisted doubtless of wood sharpened at the end and hardened by fire. The next steps were to head it with fish-bone, flint, bone, shell, and eventually metal, the finishing touch being to poison the point. The mediaeval lance was sixteen feet long. The spear has long existed side by side with the javelin, and the Matabele warrior has ancient precedent for carrying his long assegai and his stabbing assegai. In sport, the spear is still used in wild-boar hunting and in some kinds of fishing, and in the case of whale-catching it is sometimes fired from a gun. The modern cavalry lance, from eight and a half to eleven feet long is becoming more and more popular, as the work of cavalry in war becomes restricted to reconnoitring and pursuing.