INDIAN TRIBES OF NORTHERN MATO GROSSO, BRAZIL — OBERG 



33 



are placed underneath the stern and the bark is 

 forced upward to form a fantail stern. The two 

 lateral stakes on the sides prevent the bark from 

 bulging outward. The poles are lashed in place 

 and left overnight. Fires are then built along 

 the trough to make it curl inward and cross braces 

 from gunwale to gunwale are placed at intervals 

 to give the shell firmness. The bow is forced up 

 slightly to keep it above the surface of the water 

 when the canoe is in use. 



The day following the bending, the canoe is 

 placed upon a saddle made by crossing two pairs 

 of stakes and is left to dry for several days. After 

 it is dry the canoe maker returns and goes over the 

 hull very carefully sealing up any cracks that may 

 have appeared. The canoe is now ready for use 

 and a number of men carry it to the river. 



Camayura paddles are from 4 to 5 feet in length, 

 the blade being straight-sided and pointed at the 

 bottom. The T-shaped handgrip is not a separate 

 piece but is carved out of the handle. Sometimes 

 the blade, instead of being flat, is carved in the 

 form of an angular trough so that only one side is 

 used for propulsion. No decorative designs were 

 seen on paddles. Canoes are also propelled by 

 poles, especially in shallow water. Every canoe 

 has at least two paddles and two poles. When 

 not in use, canoes, paddles, and poles are hidden 

 in the bushes to keep them from being cracked or 

 warped by the sun. Canoes are also turned upside 

 down and left under water to prevent cracking. 

 In addition to the paddles and poles, every canoe 

 is equipped with a gourd bailer, for even if it does 

 not leak water often comes over the low bow. 



As has been mentioned, the bark canoe is an 

 important part of Camayura equipment. The 

 Camayurd state that although a canoe can be 

 easily and quickly made there is always a risk 

 that the bark will split from end to end or that 

 large cracks will appear in the hull. These dan- 

 gers, they believe, are due to the ill-will of the 

 mama'e, or guardian spirit, of the jatoba tree. 

 In order to assure success they must keep the 

 spirit away from the tree while the bark is being 

 removed. 



The mama'e of the jatobd tree is an insect called 

 turuwd. This insect lives in the tree and watches 

 over the welfare of the tree. When the canoe 

 maker is ready to peel the bark off he smokes 

 tobacco near the tree and asks turuwd for the 



bark. If turuwd flies away it is a sign of per- 

 mission but if he remains in the tree it signifies 

 that he is unwilling to have the bark removed. 

 The canoe maker must continue smoking and 

 talking to turuwd until he flies away. Only then 

 can the bark be removed. If the bark should 

 split in the process of peeling the canoe maker 

 will accuse turuwd of bad faith and go to another 

 tree and plead with its mama'e. 



TWINE 



An important item in Camayurd economy is 

 twine. It is used in making hammocks, bow- 

 strings, arrows, ornaments, in rolling cigarettes, 

 and for many other uses in which tying is neces- 

 sary. Although sipo vine is widely used for lash- 

 ings in house making and for the preparation of 

 large carrying baskets, the most important twines 

 are made from cotton and buriti fiber. 



When a woman wishes to make cotton twine 

 (nimo'i) she takes a little basket and goes to some 

 of her tall cotton bushes and picks as many bolls 

 of cotton as she thinks she needs or cares to pre- 

 pare during the day. She then sits in the shade 

 of the house with her basket of bolls, an extra 

 basket for cotton seeds and her spindle. First 

 she removes the seeds, then she plucks out the 

 cotton until it forms a flat, thin disk about 8 inches 

 in diameter. She continues this process until she 

 has four disks of cotton, one on top of the other, 

 resting on her thigh. The four disks she places 

 over a smooth stick about 18 inches long and one- 

 half inch in diameter. She then strikes one end 

 of the stick against her knee until the cotton clings 

 together around the stick in a long cylinder. The 

 cylinder is removed from the stick and hung over 

 it and waved in the air until it stretches into a 

 fluffy soft cord about 2}i feet long and 2 inches in 

 diameter. The woman then stretches out a length 

 from the end of the cord and fastens it to the top 

 of hor spindle. She then sets the spindle in motion 

 by rolling it on her thigh from knee toward her 

 body. As the spindle turns and twists the cotton 

 she keeps jerking the cotton to lengthen it and to 

 keep it tight. After she has spun about a yard, 

 she loosens the twine from the end of the spindle 

 and fastens it just above the whorl and as the 

 spindle is set in motion with her fingers the cotton 

 twine is wound around it. This process is repeated 



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