236 THE HIVE OF THE BEE-HUNTER. 



habitant of the woods never dreams of a boat made of 

 skins ; he looks to the timber for a conveyance. Skilled 

 in the knowledge of j)lants, he knows the exact time 

 when the bark of the tree will most readily unwarp from 

 its native trunk ; and from this simple material he forms 

 the most beautiful craft that sits upon the water. 



The rival clubs that sport their yachts upon the 

 Thames, or ply them upon the harbor of Mannahatta, 

 like things of life — formed as their boats are by the high 

 scientific knowledge and perfect manual skill of the two 

 great naval nations in the world, are thrown in the 

 shade by the beautiful and simple bark canoe, made by 

 the rude hatchet and knife of the red man. 



The American forest is filled with trees, whose bark 

 can be appropriated to the making of canoes ; the pecan, 

 and all the hickories, with the birch, grow there in infinite 

 profusion. 



A tree of one of these species that presents a trunk 

 clear of limbs for fifteen or twenty feet, is first selected ; 

 the artisan has nothing but a rude hunting knife and 

 tomahawk for the instruments of his craft ; with the lat- 

 ter, he girdles the bark near the root of the tree — this 

 done, he ascends to the proper height, and there makes 

 another girdle ; then taking his knife and cutting 

 through the bark downwards, he separates it entirely 

 from the trunk. 



Ascending the tree again, ho inserts his knife-blade 

 under the bark, and turning it up, soon forces it with 



