182 



REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1887 



tion, which is a forked stick : the cross-bars, lashed beneath, and the 

 slat of twigs upon which the bed is laid. Some parts of this frame 

 demand minuter description. The fork is a common twig, not neces- 

 sarily symmetrical, with short handle and prongs nearly 3 feet long, 

 spreading about 16 inches at the distal end or top. 



Pomo Cradle. 



(Cat. No. 21398, U. S. N. 



Fig. 14. 

 The Child sits in the rounded portion. 



M. Potter Valley, California. Collected by Stephen Powers.) 



At the back of the fork are lashed seventeen rods of wood, projecting 

 at their ends an inch or more beyond the fork. The lashing of the rods 

 to the fork is by means of sinew skillfully crossed both in front and 

 rear, that is, the seizing is partly parallel and partly cross laced to give 

 the strongest joint. These wooden rods seem to follow a rude plan of 

 pairs, but the design is not apparent. Between the upper pair is a 

 third rod, whose function is to hold in place the slats in front. The 

 slat- work or slats on the front consist of a separate transverse rod, to 

 which about forty twigs are attached by bending the large end of each 

 one around the rod and then holding the series in place by a row or 

 two of twined weaving with split twigs. To fasten this crib- work in 

 place the rod is put behind the two ends of the forked stick, and the 

 twi^s laid in order on the front of the series of transverse rods so as to 

 fill neatly the space between the forks. These twigs are held in place 

 by lashing them here and there to the transverse rods and to the side 



