Rick - Indeed, thank you for pointing this out, I do see the similarity in the dominant central mid-rib on that spear in the photograph kindly posted by Migueldiaz, although I suspect the base may be round. (I also find it interesting to note the spears carried by the adjacent man to the right and also the second from the left have the assisting wire or cord as a backup for securing the blade to the shaft.) (I did the MEK work in the garage with the main door open and the container mouth covered with aluminum foil or a cap.)
These old pictures do show us that a number of different spear styles were in use concurrently. Looking at the spear first presented in this thread with the tang now exposed, there is considerable old brown rust patina on the tang. There was no evidence of active red rust or rusty flakes in the socket, the tarry material had done its job very well. Similarly, the
other spear I presented had a good coat of old rust on its bare tang while the blade had remained reasonably bright - so indeed it was not a new spearhead in 1907. I am beginning to wonder just how old some of these spearheads are. There obviously was significant trade throughout the region and older spearheads continuing in use beside new ones.
Migueldiaz - thank you for your kind comment on the photos. Most of the credit has to go to the new Canon camera I bought this summer to replace my old once respectable 2.4 megapixel unit that now lags behind the average phone in image quality. I have been shooting these outside on overcast days. As it snowed here a few nights ago, that is not going to work much longer this year, so I will have to try to set up some indoor lighting, please wish me luck.
Gavin - thank you also for your kind comments. While the silver ferrule sleeve is most attractive, even in dim light from across the room, it is pretty obvious that it was not providing much structural support. I do not know if it made a difference that the socket went deeper than the tang, but clearly the shaft had failed just beyond the tang. The wire on Emanuel's example makes a lot more sense. Perhaps this spear's mounting was adequate and was just abused, causing the failure. I am still looking around for potential pole material; for now the silver sleeve is underlain by a seamless copper tube and a temporary dowel provides a socket for the tang. Would oak have been used for these poles or was another wood favored?