Peeling the bark from roots and splitting them was 

 done by use of the thumbnail, a stone knife, or a 

 clamshell. Biting was also resorted to. The end of 

 a root could also be split by first pounding it with a 

 stone, using a log or another stone as an anvil, to 

 open the fibers at one end. Splitting a root was 

 usually done by biting to start the split. Once this 

 was done, half was held in the mouth and the other 

 half between the thumb and forefinger of the right 

 hand. Then the two parts were gradually pulled 

 apart with the right hand, while the thumbnail of 

 the left was used to guide the split. If the split 

 showed a tendency to "run off," bending the root 

 away from the direction of the run while continuing 

 the splitting usually served to change the course of the 

 split. If a root was hard to split, the stone knife came 

 into play instead of the thumbnail. When the split 

 reached arm's length, the ends were shifted in hand 

 and mouth and the operation continued. 



The use of hot water as an aid in bending wood was 

 well known to some tribal groups before the white 

 man came. Water was placed in a wooden trough, 

 or in a bark basin, and heated to boiling by dropping 

 hot stones into it. Some Indians boiled water in 

 bark utensils by placing them over a fire of hot coals 

 surrounded by stones and earth so that the flame 

 could not reach the highly inflammable bark above 

 the water-level in the dish. Stones were lifted from 

 the fire with wooden tongs made of green saplings 

 bent into a U-shape or made into a spoon-like outline. 

 A straight stick and a forked one, used together, 

 formed another type of tongs. The straight stick 

 was placed in and under the fork; then, by forcing 

 the latter under the stone and bringing the end of the 

 straight stick hard against its top, the stone was held 

 firmly, pincer-fashion. 



The wood to be bent was first soaked in the boiling 

 water, or the water was poured over it by means of 

 a birch-bark or other dipper. When the wood was 

 thoroughly soaked with boiling water, bending 

 began, and as it progressed boiling water was almost 

 continuously poured on the wood. When the wood 

 had been bent to a desired form, it was secured in 

 shape by thongs and allowed to cool and dry out, 

 during which it would take a permanent set. Hard 

 bends, as in gunwale ends and stem-pieces, were made 

 by this means, usually after the wood had been split 

 into a number of laminations in the area of the 

 greatest bend. When the piece had been boiled 

 and bent to its required form, the laminations were 

 secured by wrapping them spirally with a thong 

 of inner bark (such as basswood), of roots, or of 

 rawhide. 



Flat stones were used to weigh down bark in order 

 to flatten it and prevent curling. Picked up about the 

 canoe-building site, they had one smooth and fairly 

 flat surface so that no harm came to the bark, and 

 were of such size and weight as could be handled 

 easily by the builder. Smooth stones from a stream 

 appear to have been preferred. In preparation for 

 building a canoe, the pins, stakes, and poles which 

 were of only temporary use were cut or burned down 

 in the manner mentioned and stored ready for use. 

 Bark containers were made and filled with spruce 

 gum, and the materials used in making it hard and 

 durable were gathered. The building site was selected 

 in the shade, to prevent the bark from becoming hard 

 and brittle, and on ground that was smooth, clear of 

 outcroppings of stone, and roots, or other obstructions, 

 and firm enough to hold the stakes driven into it. The 

 location was, of course, usually near the water where 

 the canoe was to be launched. 



When steel tools became available, the work of the 

 Indian in cutting and shaping wood became much 

 easier but it is doubtful that better workmanship 

 resulted. The steel axe and hatchet made more rapid 

 and far easier than before the felling and cutting up of 

 trees, poles, and sticks; they could also be used in 

 peeling bark. The favored style of axe among Cana- 



20 



