286 



PREHISTORIC FISHING. 



are roasted, they place fresh supplies on the hurdle, and repeat the cooking until 

 they think they have a sufficiency of eatables."* 





Fig. 364. — Virginia ludiaus smoking fish. 

 After De Bry. 



[XII. The mode of making boats]. "The mode of manufacturing boats 

 in Virginia is wonderful ; for though they have neither iron implements nor 

 others resembling ours, they nevertheless know how to make them not less con- 

 venient than our own, either for navigating rivers or for fishing. Having first 

 selected a thick and high tree, corresponding to the size of the boat they intend 

 to make, they light on the surface of the ground close to its roots, and all around 

 it, a fire, using well-di*ied tree-moss, and rousing the fire gradually by means 

 of chips of wood, lest the flame might ascend too high and diminish the length 

 of the tree. When the tree is nearly burned and threatens to fall, they light a 

 new fire, which they allow to burn until the tree comes down by itself. Having 

 then burned away the top and the branches of the tree, in order to give the 

 trunk the proper length, they deposit it on stems laid across forks, at a height 



* [XIV. Crates lignea in quapisces vstulant]. " Capta piscium abundantia, ad locum destinattim concedunt 

 cibis parandis idoneum : illic defixis in terram quatuor furcis quadrangula area, quatuor ligna imponunt, atque 

 his alia transuersa, cratis satis altaj instar. Crati piscibus impositis ignem substruunt, vt assentur, non incolarum 

 Floridse prouincije more, qui dumtaxat vstulant & fumo indurant, vt tota hieme adseruare possint; nam hi nihil 

 seponentes omnia assant & absumunt, deinde cum opus habent, recentes assant aut elixant, vt postea videbimus. 

 Cum vero cratis interdum omnes pisces capere nequeat, reliquos bacillis in terram apud ignem defixis per branchias 

 appendunt, hac ratione cocturam absoluentes : diligenter autem obseruant ne adurantur. Primis assatis, alios 

 recens allatos crati imponunt, subinde cocturam repetentes donee satis eduliorum se habere existiment." 



