N» Y, Acade/iiy 

 Of Scleiicti. 



TRANSACTIONS 



OF 



THE CANADIAN INSTITUTE. 



ON THE ANATOMICAL CHARACTERS OF THE 

 SUBSTANCE "INDIAN SOAP." 



By Miss M. Dawson, B.Sc. (Lond. and Wales). 



(Read jrd March, igoo). 



ON THE STRUCTURE OF "INDIAN SOAP." 



In December, 1898, a piece of the material used by the Indians of 

 British Columbia as a substitute for soap, was sent to the Botanical 

 Laboratory, Cambridge, by Prof Anderson, of the Department of 

 Agriculture, Victoria, B.C. 



Enclosed with this was a report upon the material from Dr. 

 Fletcher, who stated that Prof Macoun had identified it as a Polyporus, 

 allied to P. betulinus, which had become changed by its own mycelium 

 into punk. Dr. Fletcher explained that the scroopy feeling upon 

 rubbing the soap between the fingers is due to the presence of quantities 

 of resin, also that it burns freely with a strong resinous odour and much 

 black smoke, in a similar manner to birch bark, which accounts for its 

 use by the children of the district as candles. With hot water, it 

 scarcely produces a lather, but rubs up like clay, and leaves a chalk-like 

 deposit on the hands after drying. 



Some of this " Indian Soap" was handed to me last April by Prof. 

 Marshall Ward for a more detailed study of its anatomy. A superficial 



