i ae Se ee Se ee 
THE CAMP DWELLERS. 149 
baccata, has a banana-shaped fruit which is cooked in 
the ashes, and may then be dried for later use. The 
agave, a century plant, furnishes a large bulk of nutri- 
tious food. The plants are watched until signs of the 
flowering stalk appear when they are seven or eight 
years old. The entire plant is severed near the base by 
means of a chisel-shaped stick which is hammered with 
a stone. The plant is then turned top down and 
trimmed with a broad knife of native manufacture. 
A leaf or two is left for a handle by which the stumps 
are carried to a large deep pit used year after year. 
Mescal Knife. San Carlos Apache. 
This pit is thoroughly heated and filled with stumps. 
A covering of earth is thrown over them and a fire 
maintained on top for a day or more. The cooked 
material is dried in the sun and packed in bales for 
transportation to the camp. This food, while coarse, 
is not unpalatable. 
There are many species of cacti, most of which have 
edible fruit. The giant cactus, which grows on the 
lower elevations, because of its great size yields abun- 
dantly. The fruit is pressed into large balls which keep 
indefinitely. These contain many black seeds which 
are separated by soaking and ground for flour. There 
