Guns and knives facilitated hunting and fishing for the Native Americans. While Natives already had knives, what they used were very malleable because they were made of obsidian and could not be used over and over like the European knives made of steel and iron. Before guns, spears, hatchets and bows and arrows were the most common used weapons of the Native Americans. A bow and arrow allowed for hunting from greater distances, but they did not do the same amount of damage as a gun. Some animals required more than one arrow to be killed. When Natives witnessed the destructiveness of guns they realized that they could use them for hunting larger animals. Natives now because of the migration of Europeans also had horses to ride. Natives could now chase down large herds of animals quicker and with the guns, they could kill them quicker. Weapons had such a profound impact on the Native American culture that they soon became the most widely traded goods between Europeans and Natives. Natives cherished weapons because of the hunter gatherer society they lived in. Europeans had an abundance of weapons and felt that parting with them for Indian goods such as labor or crops was worth the cost. Europeans used the natives fascination with firearms and weapons to exploit them. Europeans had such a comparative advantage in manufactured goods, that Natives became dependant on them for stronger weapons, thus allowing the Europeans to receive more for the goods.
