,^ ^> 'UJ LIBRARY) a

THE CANADIAN FIELD-

VOL. XXXIII. MAY, 1919. No. 2.

CANADIAN ABORIGINAL CANOES.

By F. W. Waugh, Geological Survey, Ottawa.

a one Canoeing, it may be remarked by way of in- upon neighboring (accultural influence) would soon troduction, is one of a number of thmgs which have disseminate the canoe idea, possibly in a simple been borrowed, either for use or amusement, from form, very widely, and that, under the influence of the American Indian. The name, strangely enough, the varied materials at hand and diversified require- has been introduced from a region at some distance ments, specialization in various directions would from that with which we are accustomed to con- later arise. nect canoe culture in its typical form, being derived Materials naturally played an important part.. In from the word "canoa," in use among the Arawak areas where trees were not at hand, or were less of the West Indies. This was adopted in a similar convenient, such materials as rushes were sometimes form by the Spaniards, and as "candt" by the early built into a boat-shaped raft (see the balsa of Cali- or a French in Canada. The fact that there was already fornia) ; skin-covered craft was employed, as a name in current use, then, is no doubt the reason in the Eskimo area, among the neighboring Kutchin none of the names applied by the Indians of the of the Yukon, the Tahltan and other Athabascans Eastern Woodland area of America was adopted. of the Mackenzie region, and in some parts of the An Ojibwa term, fairly well-known from its em- Plams) see the "bull-boat," a tub-shaped craft of ployment by Longfellow in "The Song of Hia- skin and withes, used by various Siouan tribes, in- watha", is "cheemaun". A name applied to a very cluding the Mandan and the Hidatsa; also by the large craft is "nabikwan". A Mohawk appella- Ankara, a Caddoan tribe). The Omaha (Siouan) tion is the used hide-covered boats or canoes of "gahonwe'ia" ; rendered by Onondaga, ordinary type, a related tribe, as "gaho'nwa". It is interesting to but with a rude framework, indicating the slight de- note, in the last-mentioned dialects, the close resem- velopment among them of ideas regarding naviga- blance to the term for a bark bowl or trough. tion. In the last-mentioned craft, an oar or large Quaint early English forms, now obsolete, are paddle was used for steering, the paddlers sitting

canow and cannoe . near the bow.

There is little doubt that, in the earlier days of One of the most interesting developments in French exploration and settlement along the St. North American navigation was the canoe of Lawrence and of English settlement in New Eng- birch-bark, which apparently reached its perfection land, the birch-bark canoe of Indian make was very in the Algonkian area, a region extending from soon adopted as the most convenient method of around the Great Lakes, and some distance west- travel. We can readily infer, also, from early ward, to the maritime provinces and the New Eng- writers and other such sources, the extremely im- land states, though the birch canoe area exhibits cul- tural portant part played by the canoe in the develop- extensions in various directions, but particularly ment of a very large portion of the North Am- northward and westward to the Mackenzie river erican continent. basin. There is little doubt that this distribution was

It would obviously be most interesting to trace the largely determined by the range of the canoe birch canoe and other such devices to their origins, but (Betula pap^rijera), which extends practically from there are indications that the problem in hand is the Atlantic coast to the Rockies, as well as to some one of the diffusion or spread of a cultural trait distance south of the international boundary. The already elaborated, or partly elaborated, it may be disappearance of the birch southward is indicated by in some other region. This is in part suggested the fact that very inferior canoes of elm, buttonwood by both the extent and the continuity of the area and basswood bark were constructed by the Iro- in which canoes are used. We can see that migra- quois of Central New York state and southward, tions of population, or the influence of one tribe who evidently found the materials Icist mentioned 24 The Canadian Field-Naturalist [Vol. XXXIII.

canoe is birch-bark canoe of the latter is much more turned more plentiful. The Iroquois everywhere at a craft well to stated to have been heavy and loggy, inconvenient up each end, producing adapted In so the swift currents of rivers." He also states that for portaging and short-lived generally. fact, that of the "the are skilful boatmen," that "sails are poor a craft it was in comparison with occupants traded sometimes erected in a and that "at Algonkians, that the Iroquois are said to have single canoe," con- times two canoes are lashed and a sail eagerly for the lighter and more substantial together trivance.^ spread from a single mast."- Bark and skin-covered canoes, however, are not An offshoot of the Algonkian canoe was the the only craft which have been used by Canadian "rabiscaw" of the Hudson Bay Company, an extra Indians, since at least two other devices usually large birch-bark craft designed to meet the demands constructed in a very primitive style are found side of the fur-trade. A prominent feature was the high, by side with considerable advancement in naviga- upturned bow and stern decorated with gaudy tion. The dugout, for instance, which is usually designs. little more than a hollowed-out log, is employed At the western extremity of the bark canoe arc" of a by a great many tribes along with canoes we find at least two somewhat divergent forms which much superior kind. Another very primitive-ap- suggest an attenuation of eastern accultural influence, pearing contrivance, the raft, is distributed quite combined, possibly, with modifications from other in some widely, though employed to a greater extent sources. The Dog-ribs, an Athabascan tribe of the areas than in others. Mackenzie basin, like the Ojibwa, construct a birch- us It may be unnecessary, or even impossible, for bark canoe having separate keel-pieces for the bow to decide which of the foregoing came into use first, and stern. The small and narrow ribs and the but we should certainly be quite near the mark in slender, widely-separated siding or flooring strips placing the raft first in degree of simplicity, with extending from end to end, however, show some the simpler class of dugout next. resemblance to kayak construction. A special fea- THE BIRCH-BARK CANOE. ture (also showing a resemblance to the kayak)'' is the extensive sheet of at either end. Practically everywhere within the region of Al- fairly decking of the found in the gonkian influence proper the birch-bark canoe was Conspicuous side-flaps, type are The seams are essentially the same, such differences as occur con- Algonquin decking, lacking. sewn with root and cerning mostly the shape of bow and stern, which spruce gummed. the and the various Salish tribes has evidently been derived almost exclusively from Among Kootenay of southern British Columbia is found a canoe of a single pattern, with local variations in the amount of curvature or recurvature and the method of deck- pine or spruce bark, rather rude in general work- and but little external resemblance ing over at the ends, where such a device was em- manship showing to eastern forms. The most feature is the ployed. The Malecite (western New Brunswick) striking and Ojibwa forms are very good examples of the peculiar pointed extension of the lower part of bow and is said to to extremes in outline in the Algonkian region. The stern, which be specially adapted Malecite canoe also exhibits the decking-over sheet rapid rivers. From a structural point of view no radical difference from eastern is to be noted. at the ends, with side-flaps, in a well-developed form. types As we proceed westward, this sheet decreases in size The bark of the yellow cedar (Thuja excelsa) is in the Algonquin canoe of northern Quebec and also mentioned as a British Columbia canoe-making Ontario and becomes vestigial in a smaller form material. used by certain of the neighboring Ojibwa. The A Slave canoe from the neighborhood of Hay same purpose, that of preventing the inflow of water, river (flowing into Great Slave Lake) exhibits an is accomplished by the recurving ends of the Ojibwa upward extension at the bow and stern which adds are most familiar. type with which we much to its picturesqueness. In other respects it of central Regarding the Algonkian tribes Labra- conforms closely to eastern models. dor, Turner remarks that "a tribe of great dis- A description of Ojibwa canoe-making will no similarity between the Naskopies and the Little doubt give a fair idea of the methods employed Whale River Indians (Eastern is that the Cree) throughout most of the bark canoe area.^ The is most and considerable iDr. E. Sapir, in "Time Perspective in Abor- process interesting requires iginal American Culture," Memoir 90, of the skill. Geological Survey (Canada), p. 20, remarks: "Sim- ilarly, the clumsy elm-bark canoe of the Iroquois seems less adapted to its cultural environment than sTurner, Lucien M., "Ethnology of the Ungava the various types of birch-bark canoe of their District." llth Annual Kept, of the Bureau of Eth., Algonkian neighbors. We may risk the guess that Washington, D.C., p. 182. the Iroquois bark canoe is an imperfect cojiy in elm- sMention of this resemblance is made by Pet- bark, a characteristically Iroquois material, of the itot, m "Autour du Grand Lac des Esclaves," p. 268. superior Algonkian types, and connect this further 4<^rom data obtained by the writer among the with the general consideration that the Iroquois Saulteaux, or Ojibwa of the Lake Nipigon region. were rather more inclined to be cross-country Permission to use this and other original notes walkers than the neighboring Algonkian tribes, who was accorded by the Geological Survey. Ottawa. were more adept river and sea folk." Canada. May, 1919] Plate I.

/.

2.

3.

CANADIAN CANOES.

1, Alaskan Eskimo umiak, or open boat: 2, Labrador Eskimo kayak: 3, Dog-rib canoe; 4, Malecite canoe: 5, Algonquin canoe; 6, Montagnais canoe. 26 The Canadian Field- Naturalist [Vol. XXXIII.

The bottom which is is Thin strips of cedar (Thuja occ'idenlal'is) for the frame, merely temporary, now the ribs taken from the bent to ribs, and the sheeting used between the ribs and bark removed, water, around the cut to and driven to prevent injury to the latter, are obtained, split shape knee, length into approximate sizes and placed in water to render into place with a mallet. Other thin strips of cedar, three or four them more flexible. Another important requisite is inches wide, are driven between the ribs as the the birch-bark, which peels off most easily late in and bark work proceeds. The purpose of these is to form a June or early in July. This is rolled up and laid protective flooring and siding. away in the shade. Towards evening, or at any The canoe, particularly at this stage, is kept well moistened both inside out. time, if the day is cloudy, stakes (nine or more to a and The placing of the ribs and side) are driven into the ground at intervals to sheeting proceeds, generally speaking, from approximate the length and width of the canoe. each end to the centre. Cross-pieces, to keep the are at rib. These are made to flare outward slightly. The top spread, hammered in every second The a bottom pieces of bark are now placed in position, ribs are couple of inches wide and about ihe overlapping a few inches in the middle where they some width apart. When the insertion of ribs and are to be joined. A single length of bark is pre- sheeting is completed, the canoe may require a gen- ferred for the bottom. This, however, is not always eral correction in shape, which is given by tying it obtainable, so that two pieces, or even three, may be between stakes and exposing it for a while to the used. Stones are laid on the bark to hold it down, sun. and a bottom frame, approximating the width of the The next process, also a woman's job, is to get canoe at the bottom and pointed at both ends, is ready, or rather, to have ready, the spruce gum and to the applied. The work so far is done by the men. gum seams. All laps have their outer edges The next operation, that of shaping the bottom by running backwards or towards the stern, so as not making slashes or gores on each side and sewing to obstruct the motion of the canoe. The spruce IS obtained from trees these with spruce root, is done by the women. The gum which have been gashed gores are made towards the ends, where the canoe the year before, is boiled a while to thicken it and begins to narrow. The upper edges of the bark mixed with powdered charcoal some say, to make it look are also trimmed evenly. The spruce root for nice. The bottom seam is coated with clear and not sewn. sewing has been split by the women to a suitable gum pegged, size and rendered flexible by steeping in fish broth. A little grease is said to be added to the gum The men next lay the upper lengths of bark along- by most tribes to render it more elastic. The ad- dition of the is side, measure them by trial, then place them in powdered charcoal not universal. position. The bottom pieces are now scored along Among the Micmac of Nova Scotia and Cape the bottom with an axe where they are to be Breton the women and girls are said to have pre- creased for the taper to bow and stern, after which pared the gum by chewing it. both upper and lower barks are pinched together The last step in Saulteaux canoe-making is to attach a is by stakes driven closely and tied at the top. An top gunwale strip. This nailed on at inner frame (or "inside gunwale") giving shape to present, but may have formerly been fastened on by the upper edge of the canoe, and having exactly tying or binding with spruce root. the right taper and curve, has been prepared be- The Malecite, according to information supplied forehand and is now placed between the upper barks by Mr. William Mclnnes, Director of the Geological and sewn closely and firmly to them. Pieces of Survey, Ottawa, construct temporary or emergency cedar, bent to the approved shape of bow and stern, canoes of spruce bark which are used for bringing are placed between the barks at the ends of the out furs from the hunting camps in the spring. The canoe, the bark trimmed to conform to these in out- ribs and frame are roughly constructed of withes line, then sewn to them with spruce root. The or saplings, flattened slightly and rather widely Sevang, as before, is performed by the women, to spaced, the bow and stern being chinked with clay. whom this part of the work is always assigned. Mr. Mclnnes also furnishes an interesting de- Stitches of uneven length are often employed, par- scription of the manner in which the Malecite protect ticularly around the ends, to prevent the bark from the bottoms of birch-bark canoes in shallow streams: splitting.'^ The gores and laps have in each case Lengths of spruce bark, with the smooth inner sur- been well cemented or stuck together with clear face placed outward, are wrapped around the bot-

gum boiled a little to thicken it. toms of the canoes from end to end and held in r.Other devices for preventing the from edges position by tying their edges to the thwarts with splitting along seams, are: The sewing of an extra of strip bark around the outer edge of the canoe cedar inner bark. Another material, which is pre- beneath the gunwale; also the inclusion under the ferred to the bark on account of its stitches of a strand of spruce root (often used along spruce lightness, longitudinal seams where barks are joined). Both consists of strips of cedar about two inches wide and of these schemes are employed by the Dog-ribs Slaves and Chipewyans. three-quarters of an inch thick. The strips run May. 1919] Plate II.

/.

3.

'' -'1 f^it^- J I II "_' in'L^ - i V V]-,-!] ,JT

Illllllll1ll |)l |!)l|l |lll\llllllll|f!l^

i)\

CANADIAN CANOES.

1, Ojibwa canoe (Northern Ontario): 2, Chipewyan: 3, Slave; 4, Kootenay, Shuswap and other southern B.C., tribes; .5, Haida. No.s. 3 to 6 on plate 1, and 1 to 3 on plate 2, are arranged consecutively to show how one form may have developed from the preceding. 28 The Canadian Field-Naturalist [Vol. XXXIII.

that lengthwise from end to end of the canoe, just high and navigation developed, with the exception enough along the sides to afford protection from the Eskimo to some extent use large sea-going kayaks to for the whale and seal and also that the rocks, and are lashed together and the thwarts by hunting ; continuous strands of cedar bark which are threaded Micmacs, like other coastal tribes, sometimes con- through perforations in their upper edges. struct large bark canoes for a similar purpose. The Micmac canoes in the Victoria Museum have the sides of the Micmac canoe are up-curved and turned ends stuffed for a short distance with moss or shav- in towards the centre to exclude heavy seas. be ings, the purpose being to keep the bark from col- The Eskimo kayak, for present purposes, may lapsing or wrinkling where ribs are lacking. The regarded as a highly specialized canoe, differing not stuffing is held in place by thin partitions of cedar, from the Algonkian in the important, though cut to shape and held in position at the bottom by essential, respect of having the framework so con- the end of one of the inside sheetmg strips. Slave structed that it is held together independently of the and Chipewyan canoes also exhibit stuffing. cover; and in the superficial one that the covering ^ ^ /

V

7. 8. fl. /. 2. 3. ^ .' 6. SOME TYPICAL TADDLES. 1 and 4, West Coast paddles, exact locality unknown: 2 and 3, Tlingit (northern B.C.); 5, prob- ably Haida (Queen Charlotte Islands): 6, Kootenay (southern B.C.); 7, Ojibwa: 9, Copper Eskimo: 8 and 10, Central Eskimo. (The last three are neighboring groups).

that In spite of its many excellent qualities and his- is of skin instead of bark, to which we may add toric associations, the birch-bark canoe is evidently of being decked over so as to accommodate, in most on the wane at present as a medium of travel. The cases, but one person. factory-made canoe, though modelled after the In- The upper rim or frame of two pieces is made first, dian article, has, in fact, so far eclipsed it that it is with mortises for the insertion of ribs and thwarts and seldom seen except among remote and backward holes for lashings. The thwarts are placed in pos- bands of Indians who employ it mainly from ition and the upper part or deck practically com- economy or conservatism. pleted, one of the last steps being the attachment of

ESKIMO CANOES. a middle strip lengthwise along the top, except In only one region, the great insular area of the where it is intersected by the opening or man-hole. North Pacific Coast, was a true seafaring culture The whole affair is then turned top or face down- May, 1919] The Canadian Field-Naturalist 29

wards. The ribs are now shaped and fitted and of Yukon Territory and Alaska possesses features their ends inserted in the upper side-pieces and which give it an intermediate position between the secured with wooden pins. The ribs are usually umiak and the canoe of the region to the south and from two to six inches apart. The other longitudinal east. A canoe-like feature is the wedge-shaped bow strips are then attached to the sides, with a similar and stern. A pointed or leaf-shaped paddle is piece along the middle of the bottom, which, like used. the other canoes described, is destitute of a keel. The umiak is said to have been entirely aban- The sealskin covering is sewn together and ap- doned on the east coast of Labrador." In parts cf the plied to the framework wet, so that it stretches tightly latter region and in Alaska it is used largely by the of the the men for as it dries. The sewing, as in case whale and walrus hunting as well as Algonkian canoe, is done by several women working for general purposes. Lengthy journeys or migra- together in order to complete the job at one sitting. tions are often undertaken in it and its capacity A double waterproof stitching renders the seams is said to be remarkable. water-tight. The bow and stern of the Labrador umiak are

DISTRIBUTION MAP, the dotted portion showing the Eskimo kayak and umiak region, and tlie part covered by oblique lines, tlie bircli-bark canoe region.

According to E. W. Hawkes, from whose memoir wider than those of the Alaskan, which gives it a on the Labrador Eskimo the foregoing description is clumsier appearance. It is usually about twenty- taken, "Great speed is maintained by the Eskimo in five feet long and is steered with a rudder, quite their frail kayaks. It is said that a single Eskimo likely an Asiatic borrowing, as are also the oars. in a kayak will propel it as fast as two white men rowlocks and sails. In Alaska the umiak is pro- will a canoe. The Eskimo ventures out in a sea pelled by the more aboriginal paddle, the steering that an Indian would not dare attempt. . . .''" being done with an extra long and heavy one. The umiak, an open craft, also used by the SAILS. Eskimo, a somewhat different presents appearance Sails were nowhere used as an integral feature from the due to its not decked kayak partly being of navigation except along the North Pacific Coast, over and to its rather and partly being deeper where there is also a suspicion of Russian or other clumsier in form. In other respects it does not Asiatic influence.

differ a fact which would it as materially, suggest Jhe light and rather easily upset birch-bark the form from which the was derived. kayak canoe was evidently unsuited for propulsion by such An skin-covered boat used the Kutchin open by a contrivance, except in very light breezes, or when GHawkes, E. W., "The Labrador Eskimo," Memoir

SAULTEAUX CANOE-MAKl i\<; : i'laciiig upper barks in position and trimming.

voyageurs are often twice that size and sometimes Those used by the Ojibwa are extremely simple more. They are capable of bearing enormous and are usually made of clear cedar. The paddler weights, and many will hold twenty or more men. sits rather low, the toes turned inward and bent The paddles used are short and rather clumsy. They backward beneath the body. On a long journey a have no swelling at the end of the handle to facil- small pad of leaves or clothing is placed beneath the itate the grip. In paddling, the Eastern Cree take legs conveniently for sitting on. shorter and more jerky strokes than their Ojibway A double-bladed paddle is used throughout most neighbors of the south. When a fair wind is of the Canadian Eskimo region, although in Alaska blowing, a blanket or even a bush is set up in the the single paddle is found. Among the Aleuts of bow for a sail."^" southwestern Alaska the paddle is pointed, like that According to Boas, the Tsetsaut, a small group of the Pacific Coast. The Labrador double paddle is about ten or "Letters and Notes on tlie Man- sCatlin, Geo., twelve feet long and made of hardwood or spruce ners, Customs and Conditions of the North Amer- ican Indians," London, 1842, p. 214, and plate 294. tipped with bone. Leather rings on the handles sDenys, Nicholas, "Description and Natural the from on the History of the Coasts of North America," The keep water dripping paddler. Champlain Society, Toronto, 1908, p. 422. The British Columbia paddle and that used by loSkinner, Alanson, "Notes on the Eastern Cree and Northern Saulteaux," Anthropological Papers of the American Mus. of Nat. Hist., vol. IX, part 1, iiMorice, A. G., "The Great Dene Race," Anth- p. 43. ropos, vol. 5, p. 441. May, 1919] The Canadian Field-Naturalist 31 certain adjoining tribes, such as the Aleuts and the Dugouts seem to have been used to a limited western or northwestern Dene, is invariably sharply- extent by the Ojibwa and by the Menominee, a pointed or lance-shaped and has almost invariably a tribe living in northern Michigan and Wisconsin, T-shaped grip. and fairly closely related to the Sauk, Fox and British Columbian influence in this respect seems Kickapoo. This usage may also have been induced observable eastward as far as the Slaves and the by a scarcity of the ordinary material, which is Chipewyans, who have the paddle obtusely-pomted. birch-bark. WINTER TRANSPORTATION. The eastern dugout region seems fairly continuous A conveyance of the type represented by the southward from among the tribes mentioned, and canoe, which is suitable mostly for summer, natur- would probably be contained very largely by the ally supposes a corresponding wmter cor.trivance, southern half of the Eastern Woodlands area, to especially for the northern part of our range. That which we might no doubt add the eastern half of this was, or is, actually the case is suggested by the the south-eastern area. close correspondence of the dog and sledg= or The canoe in common use on the lower Mis- toboggan area with that of the canoe (Eskimo Atha- sissippi is a dugout, called "pirogue" by the French. bascan and Algonkian). The exceptions to this are The bow of this canoe is broad and sloping. The found principally on the West Coast, where con- average measurement is forty feet by three in width, ditions are favorable to water transportation through- with a thickness of about three inches. A canoe

Saulteaux Indian in.serting' ribs. out most of the year; on the Plains, where the of this size will carry twelve persons. The material travois replaced the sledge or toboggan, and canoeing is usually some light or buoyant wood. A craft

and in the called the same name is still to be in the was of relatively slight importance ; by found southern part of the Eastern Woodlands, where the old "Acadian" region of eastern Canada. The snowfall is comparatively light. material used is white pine. A black walnut dug- THE DUGOUT. out IS used on the Arkansas. Besides a dugout, the Chitimacha of the lower Mississippi manufacture an The dugout, in most cases a rather crude canoe elm-bark canoe. made by charring and hollowing-out a log ,also has Bushnell, in speaking of the Choctaw of Bayou quite a wide distribution and is found, as already Lacomb, Louisiana, states that "dugouts were em- noted, in many regions where a more advanced type ployed on the creeks and bayous, but evidently only of canoe is also used. to a small extent." The Creoles at present make Among the Iroquois, who were noted as in- dugouts eight or twelve feet in length from logs of different canoe-makers, it was quite extensively em- black gum.^- ployed, and is still used for the navigation of small Those in use among the Creeks (a Muskhogean streams for trapping and other such purposes. The tribe related to the Choctaw) were made of cypress scarcity of better materials may have been a factor in its popularity. The favorite Iroquois material is iL'Buslmell, D. I., jr.. "The Choctaw of Bayou Lacomb. Louisiana," Bulletin 48, Bureau of Amer pine. Ethnology, p. 18. Field-Naturalist [Vol. XXXIII. 32 The Canadian

those of the West Coast, are sufficiently different and are said to have had their ends sHghtly elevated under in general character to suggest a development and pointed. conditions. Among the northern Ojibwa, Cree and Algon- differing r^FTS is kian tribes generally, the dugout conspicuous by The raft is at least the crudest of the navigatory holds for the its absence. The same remark good devices mentioned and possesses a distribution which and for the Eskimo. in Plains tribes is practically universal, though used many regions of a is Its The Iroquois method making dugout merely as an occasional or emergency craft. for the whole eastern region m exhibits probably typical form is usually extremely simple and seldom the name of which it is used. anything which can be dignified by of suitable material and size was first cut there are ex- A tree design or style, though occasionally times the fire being certain Jown in former by burning, ceptions to this. The balsa, found among above the localized by applying some damp material California Indians and in isolated localities south- to be burned The bunches point where the tree was through. ward to Chili, is really a raft composed of the same The next log was cut to length in way. of tule or rushes tied together, although its pointed to build a number of small fires at intervals to a canoe. step was ends give it some resemblance hack the charred part state- on top of the log, then away Regarding the northern Dene, we have the and the work with adzes. The fires were rebuilt ment of Morice to the effect that they occasionally a suitable hollow was continued in this way until make use of rafts. "They are made of three dry The ends were in a similar way. their ends aft, obtained. shaped logs bound together, with larger of and large their The same method hollowing-out dugouts while a slightly tapering shape is given op- bowls is the present-day are fastened wooden practised by posite extremities. The logs together Iroquois. fore and aft by means of ropes, which, when of truly the of the dugout is or willow Among the Dene, adoption aboriginal make, are of twisted strips to be of recent origin, considered by Morice fairly bark, starting from one end of a crossbar placed in his re- dugouts of balsam poplar having, opinion, over them and going round each of the logs and the canoe. These dug- these placed the original spruce-bark bar alternately. Among the Loucheux, prim- feet in not more outs are sometimes thirty length by itive embarkations are used in combination with regu- are said to no than three in the middle and possess lar canoes."'' elegance or design of beauty. GENERAL REMARKS. Coast the is the char- Along the Pacific dugout Decking, so prominent in Eskimo canoes, has been into an article acteristic craft and is here elaborated observed to be less extensive in the Dog-rib bark lines and considerable beauty of possessing graceful canoe, and still slighter in the Chipewyan, Algon- Its both in the matter to workmanship. development, quin and Malecite. It is interesting, however, was no doubt due at least partly side of of size and finish, find it outside the Eskimo region. The flaps of the coniferous trees to the size and workability the Algonquin and Malecite and some Ojibwa deck- the coast as well as to the decreased referred to. of region, ing sheets have been already which must have demand for portability. A factor Sewing, like covering materials, exhibits changes of the last or greatly improved the product century based on geographical location, these consisting of modern tools. sea- the two is the introduction Huge mainly of a transition from sinew (used by are still made all Cana- faring dugouts were, and occasionally, Eskimo) to spruce root (used by nearly tribes of the northern by the Haida and neighboring dian tribes excepting the Eskimo and Kutchin) ; or, Pacific Coast. in a few cases, to the bast or inner bark of the bass- is the re- An interesting feature of construction wood and elm (used by the Iroquois). of alternate tention of the simple or primitive method The seams in all bark canoes are gummed. the interior. charring and hacking in hollowing-out The wide, flat rib is characteristic of the Eastern The final adzing imparts a fine scale-like appearance. Woodlands and extends westward to the Slave coun- When the adzing has been completed the canoes an inside sheeting try. This is accompanied by with water, are given additional beam by filling which covers the bark completely. Contrasted with is heated with stones, after which the sides it in which the wide, flat rib, though not differing from are forced apart by means of thwarts. rib of principle, is the narrow and widely-spaced Columbian in bear a British dugouts general the Eskimo, Kutchin and Dog-rib crafts. of interresemblance in outline and structure degree A feature which seems to be closely associated a common cultural or intercultural that suggests with the birch-bark canoe in general is the separate A groove inside the stern provides a rest to the bow and origin. strip or piece used to give shape for the and sealing harpoon. the whaling stern respectively. These are also possessed by The eastern dugouts, already described, though isMorice, A. G., "The Great Dene Race," Anth^ broad features of resemblance to possessing some ropes, vol. 5, p. 443. May, 1919] The Canadian Field-Naturalist 33

Kutchin skin canoe. In the Eskimo canoes they The gunwale is another interesting item. Among are continuous with the central strip along the the Slaves and the neighboring Dog-ribs there are

bottom. two gunwale strips, an inside and an outside, bound The differences in outline, which constitute the at intervals with the sewing or binding material. A most striking superficial variations among the canoes similar feature links together the Algonquin and the described, are dependent principally upon the shape Malecite. An inside gunwale to which the upper

of the end strips or "fashion-pieces" just referred to. edge of the covering is sewn continuously, is found the A reference to Plates 1 and 2 will show that a series among Chipewyan, Ojibwa, Montagnais and may be found starting with a very simply curved Micmac. An upper or top gunwale characterizes bow and stern piece (Kutchin and Dog-rib) and all the Algonkian canoes. The Algonquin and proceeding to one having an almost perpendicular Malecite have consequently all three gunwales; in- upper portion (Algonquin and Malecite), and from side, outside, and top. The maximum of protection the latter form to one which is considerably re- or reinforcement is evidently gained by this employ- curved (Slave, Chipewyan, Ojibwa, Montagnais, ment of three protective strips along the upper edge, Micmac). although at some addition of weight.

THE FLORA OF KAPUSKASING AND VICINITY.

By Capt. T. W. Kirkconnell.

Pastures new are always seen through an alluring ant of cold have survived the selection of ages, and mist of anticipation, and when, some two years ago, even existing life is dwarfed and stunted. Finally,

the soil almost is it was my military misfortune but botanical privilege everywhere a heavy clay resting to be detailed for duty on the staff of Kapuskasing on gneiss and covered with from one to four feet Internment Camp in further New Ontario, I waited of rich vegetable mould. Thousands of square miles with intense interest for my first opportunities for have absolute homogeneity of conditions and the exploration. During my exile, unkind weather and flora shows like lack of variety. strenuous duties have permitted far fewer local ex- The change from Southern Ontario is marked and cursions than I had hoped for, yet I have been able complete. As one travels northward from North to ggin a fair approximate knowledge of the sub- Bay, the transition in the character of the forestation arctic conditions that obtain here and of the vegeta- cannot fail to attract attention. In the long climb tion which they have evolved. into the rock country deciduous trees are left be- hind white is in Kapuskasing, in the so-called "Clay Belt," is situ- more and more ; pine supreme ated on a river of the same name which joins the parts of the Timagami area, but before Cobalt is reached the last white has and Mattagami, about one hundred miles from James pine disappeared ; Bay. The region exemplifies in its flora the inevit- in descending into the Great Clay Bog of the North able selection power of rainfall, temperature, and one sees mile after weary mile of stunted spruce soil. Lying within the path of the broad cyclonic (Picea mariana), broken at intervals by ridges of disturbances that traverse North America from the poplar (Populus balsamifera), aspen (Populus tre-

southwest, it has an abundant rainfall and is conse- muloides), and birch (Betula alba). First im- quently completely forested, except in the extreme pressions of the endless leagues of spruce are pecu- north where under duress of temperature trees give liar. One might almost, by a stretch of the imagina- place to scrubs. It also borders on the great north- tion, conceive of the scene being laid in Paleozoic western reservoir of high pressure and so tastes the times amid the forest of progressive Equisetales and first bitter cold of anticyclonic gales. The menace Lepidodendreae which clothed the lower James Bay of winter is felt throughout the greater part of the slope when the world was some aeons younger. Closer finds other trees out a year, and during 1918 frost was registered in every inspection eking minority exist- month without exception. The great penetration of ence. Cedar grows along river-bottoms, as do the winter frosts cannot fail to have a discouraging Alder and Willows. Balsam and Jackpine (Pirtus effect on plant life. During August, 1918, a drain Banlfsiana) are occasionally found, and the Moun- was being dug through the camp at Kapuskasing and tain Ash (P^Tus americana) flourishes as a large ice was encountered at a depth of four feet. Snow shrub on higher ground. Any tamarack that I have late in the summer. found has been the victim of the \ also persists in the bush until dead, apparently Larch ^^\As a result, only species that are exceedingly toler- Sawfly.

^vy