364 The Natural History 



plenty, that Millions of them are seen in Flocks in a Day, 

 they sometimes break large Boughs of the Pine, and other 

 Trees whereon they perch or roost at E^ight, making the 

 Ground as white as Snow with their Dung, and destroying 

 every Herb or small Plant where it falls, being in some 

 Places above half a Foot deep. The Indians take a Light 

 of Pitch-Pine in one Hand, a long Pole in the other, and 

 go into the Woods at ^Night where they are, and kill thou- 

 sands of them by knocking them off the Trees ; this is always 

 done in the Winter, at which time they appear in Flocks. 



Thus they remain in these hunting Camps all the Win- 

 ter, and part of the Spring, 'till such time as the Season ap- 

 proaches for planting their Maze, Pulse, and other Fruits. 

 In these Quarters at spare Hours, they make Baskets and 

 Mats to lie upon, and those that are not extraordinary Hunt- 

 ers, make Bowls, Dishes and Spoons, of Gum-Wood and 

 Tulip-Tree. Others where they find a Vein of White Clay 

 fit for their Purpose, make Tobacco Pipes, and several other 

 things, which are often transported and bartered with other 

 Indians that have plenty of Deer Skins, or such Commodi- 

 ties as they have occasion for. They buy with these Manu- 

 factures, their Raw Skins with the Hair on, which our 

 ISTeighbouring Indians bring to their To^vns, and in the 

 Summer make their Slaves and bad Hunters dress them; 

 the Winter Sun being not strong enough to dry them; those 

 that are dried in their Cabins are black with the Light- 

 wood Smoak, which they commonly burn. 



Their way of dressing their Skins is by soaking them in 

 Water; they get the Hair off with an Instrument made of 

 the Bone of a Deers Foot (some use a sort of Iron Draiving 

 Knife, which they purchase from the Europeans) after the 

 Hair is take oft', they dissolve Deers Brains (which they 



have 



