FISHING VESSELS AND BOATS OF THE PACIFIC COAST. 
23 
remarkable overhang at the bow. Indeed, the average white man would, unless 
informed on the subject, think that the bow was the stern and the stern the bow. 
Both ends are sharp, and often the canoes have long’, graceful, easy lines — sometimes 
made on the “wave system” — that are well adapted to speed. 
A full-sized specimen of the Alaskan dugout canoe, now in the National Museum, 
may be thus described: It is made of cedar ( Thuja gigantea )j is sharp at both ends, 
with easy, slightly hollow water lines, and very little sheer except at the extreme ends, 
which curve abruptly upwards. It has a narrow, nearly flat bottom, that is rounded 
a very little, and tapers to a point at each end ; the sides are strongly flaring, and 
moderately curved, and this flare is carried out in the bow and stern, both of which 
have nearly the same angle of rise that is given to the midship section. The bow, 
which is characteristic of this class of dugouts, is distinctive in type and unlike the bow 
of any other boat we are familiar with. The forefoot is thin, like the after skag of an 
ordinary boat, its forward side being vertical, or nearly so, forming a right angle with the 
bottom, and extending upwards about 1 foot. Above and beyond this square-cornered 
forefoot the bow projects strongly forward and upward, forming a snout-like appendage 
between 3 and 4 feet in length,* with a sharp, cutwater edge below and with a vary- 
ing width above, the extreme end being cut vertically, so that it shows a V-shaped 
section, the angles of which are nearly equal, and each about 7 inches in length. 
It will thus be seen that the flare of the side is carried out to the extreme point of the 
bow. The point of this projection, for about a foot in length, is painted in fantastic design, 
three colors, red, blue, and black, being used. These designs, like those on the totem 
posts, are supposed to have some symbolic meaning. 
The stern has a strong rake and flare, with gradual upward curve below, like the 
forward end of a sled runner, the general form resembling somewhat the so-called 
“scoop-shaped” bow characteristic of certain types of Scandinavian fishing craft. 
The top of the stern curves sharply upward, and its extremity is squared oft like that 
at the bow and forms a similar V-shaped section. The stern is carved to resemble 
somewhat a boat which has a curved stern-post, a decided hollowing out being apparent 
about 3 to 4 inches from the after edge. This canoe has the following dimensions : 
Feet. Inches. 
Length, over all 27 10 
Beam, extreme 3 8 
Depth, inside amidships 1 51 
* The length of these projections varies in different canoes of essentially the same size, and in one 
of 25 to 30 feet in length the bow may range from a little over 3 feet to upward of 5 feet projection. 
