?o ETHNO-BOTANY OF THE CO AH U ILL A INDIANS 



In the splendid moonlight; after the heat of the day, from all 

 directions there would come the busy thud of pestle in wooden mortar, 

 as the women worked leisurely at the mills, while jest and laughter 

 broke the continuity of their toil. Every bush or tree was dropping 

 fatness. The desert seemed the very land of plenty, where the manna 

 fell at each man s door. 



Or, consider the agave. The various portions of a single plant 

 might keep a family in food for a week. It is a splendid food, delici 

 ous, nourishing, and when roasted seemingly superior to deterioration. 

 The lower levels of the canons of the San Jacinto range or the sides 

 of the Coyote valley could annually feed an army with agave. The 

 &quot; chamish &quot; or &quot; yslay &quot; (Prunus Andersonii) in certain parts of the 

 mountains grows very abundantly and yields splendidly. A single 

 canon often contains enough to supply an entire village with meal of 

 pounded pits. Within the habitat of the Coahuillas scores of such 

 canons could be found. 



The road from Coahuilla valley down to Ahuanga creek descends 

 along the bottom of a gorge. The sides of this canon are covered 

 with Yucca Mohavensis. In July or early August these palm-like trees, 

 for so they almost are, are all crowded with stalks hung with heavy pods, 

 more fruit drying in the sun than the entire tribe could devour. The 

 groves of oaks and pines in the higher valleys of San Jacinto ; the 

 abundant crops of chia and other seed plants ; the elder berry, so 

 greatly enjoyed, that frequently families will live for weeks on little 

 else; all of these can be found in inexhaustible quantities. Another 

 fact very favorable to the Indians is the long season over which the 

 gathering of these staples is distributed. The harvest time opens in 

 April, with the budding out of agave and yucca stalks, and from this 

 time until late fall there is no month without its especial product. The 

 chia and other seed plants are ready for the fan in May and June, the 

 wild plums in June and July, the mesquite and sambucus in August, 

 and the pincns and acorns from September on. For only about four 

 months of winter was it necessary to hoard food. The ollas and basket 

 granaries were sufficient store-houses. 



50. The uses to which the majority of these food plants have been 

 put are passing away and will not be revived. The Indians are begin 

 ning to earn a large part of their support by civilized labor. They are 

 the best sheep shearers in southern California, riding in bands through 

 the country in spring and fall. Many work through the summer in 

 orchards and vineyards and in fruit-drying and packing establishments. 



