TREES OF AMERICA. 121 



pets ; you have seen the neat httle Indian 

 baskets, I dare say." 



" Yes ; but, Uncle Phihp, they were not 

 white, but a sort of yellowish red ; and you 

 told us the bark was white." 



" Ay, and so it is white on the tree ; but it 

 changes its colour when it is stripped off and 

 exposed for some time to the air ; the outer 

 bark makes very good paper." 



" Paper, Uncle Philip !" 



"Yes, paper: it is split into thin sheets, 

 and I can assure you that when there is no 

 better to be had, birch-bark paper is by no 

 means a bad thing to write on ; but, after all, 

 its greatest and best use is for making canoes. 

 You must know that great numbers of Cana- 

 dians are employed in making journeys and 

 voyages far into the interior of the country, 

 to trade with the Indians for furs and skins ; 

 and these journeys are made upon the great 

 rivers by means of canoes." 



"But why do they not use boats. Uncle 

 Philip ?" 



"Because there are many places in the 

 journeys where the voyageurs^ as they are 

 called, have to cross from one river to another 

 by land, or to avoid rapids ; and then they 



K 



