ON THE NORTH-WESTEBN TRIBES OF CANADA. 817 



solid frame. Another kind of blanket is woven of soft cedar-bark, the 

 warp being tied across the weft. They are trimmed with fur. At the 

 present time woollen blankets are extensively used. Men wear a shirt 

 under the latter, while women wear a petticoat in addition. Before the 

 introduction of woollen blankets, women used to wear an apron made of 

 cedar-bark and a belt made of the same material. The head is covered 

 with a water-tight hat made of roots. In rainy weather and in the canoe 

 a water-tight cape or a poncho, both made of cedar-bark, is used. 

 The women dress their hair in two plaits, while the men wear it com- 

 paratively short. The latter keep it back from the face by means of a 

 strap of fur or cloth. Ear and nose ornaments are extensively used. 

 They are made of bone and haliotis-shell. 



Besides the baskets mentioned above, a variety of others are used, 

 some made of dried seaweed, for keeping sewing-utensils ; others made of 

 cedar-bark, for storing away blankets. Still others are used for carrying 

 the travelling outfit. They have two straps attached to them, one 

 passing over the brow, the other over the breast, of the carrier. Water- 

 tight baskets made of roots are used for cooking purposes and for holding 

 water. Mats made of cedar-bark, of reed, and of rushes are used to a 

 great extent, for covering the walls of the house, for bedding, for packing, 

 for travelling in canoes, &c. 



In olden times work in wood was extensively done by means of stone 

 implements. Of these, only stone hammers are still used. They are 

 either carved stones, flat on one side, and having a notch in the middle, 

 attached to a handle by means of a leather strap, or they are similar in 

 shape to a pestle. Trees were felled with stone axes, and split by means 

 of wooden or horn wedges. The latter are still extensively used. In 

 order to prevent the wooden wedge from splitting, a cedar-bark rope is 

 firmly tied around its top. Boards are split out of trees by means of 

 these wedges. They were planed with adzes, a considerable number of 

 which were made of jade that was evidently found in the basin of Fraser 

 and Lewis Rivers. Carvings were made with stone knives. Stone mortars 

 and pestles were used for mashing berries and bark, the latter for mix- 

 ing with tobacco. Paint-pots of stone, with two or more excavations, 

 were extensively used. Pipes were made of slate or wood. 



Canoes are principally made of cedai'-wood. After the tree has been 

 felled, about one-third of its thickness is removed by means of wedges, 

 the outer side worked according to the proposed dimensions of the boat, 

 and then the tree is hollowed by means of axes, fire, and adzes. When 

 the sides of the canoe have almost reached the desired thickness, it is 

 filled with water, which is heated by means of red-hot stones. Thus the 

 wood becomes pliable, and is gradually shaped. In large canoes the 

 gunwale is made higher by fastening a board to it. The northern tribes 

 use the so-called ' Tsimshian canoe,' which has a high prow and a high 

 stem. The southern tribes use the ' Chinook canoe,' which has a smaller 

 prow, and the stern of which is straight up and do^^^l. Some other 

 types of boats are used for the purposes of war and fishing. The boat is 

 propelled and steered by means of paddles. In hunting there is a steers- 

 man in the stern of the canoe, while the harponeer stands in the stem. 

 It seems that sails have been used only since the advent of the whites. 

 Tlicy are sometimes made of mats of cedar- bark. Most of the large boats 

 have names of their own. For fishing on rivers very narrow canoes are 

 used, which difier somewhat in shape among the various tribes. 



1889. 3 G 



