THE INDIAN MOSS-BAG. 



Besides the use which is made of the white peat moss 

 by the nurserymen and the gardeners, there is one which 

 I will describe, as it will be new to those of my readers 

 who are not acquainted with the interior of the North- 

 West Indians' wigwams, and the way the Indian mothers 

 nurse and care for their babies. 



The Indian moss-bag takes the place of the cot or 

 cradle — I might add, of the rocking-chair, also, so 

 indispensable in our nurseries. It is simply formed of 

 a piece of cloth, or more usually of dressed doe-skin, 

 about two feet in length, shaped wider at the upper part 

 and narrower below. The sides are pierced with holes 

 in order that they may be laced together with a leather 

 thong. On this skin is laid a soft bed of the dried moss, 

 and the papoose (the Indian name for baby) is placed 

 upon it, its hands and arms carefully disposed at its 

 sides and the little legs and feet straight down and 

 wrapped in a bit of fur, so that the tiny toes can feel no 

 cold. The end of the bag is then folded over at the 

 other end, turned up and the sides laced together. 



