Illustrations of the manners, customs, & condition of the North American Indians, Vol. 2 (of 2): With letters and notes, written during eight years of travel and adventure among the wildest and most remarkable tribes now existingCatlin, George
History
Illustrations of the manners, customs, & condition of the North American Indians, Vol. 2 (of 2): With letters and notes, written during eight years of travel and adventure among the wildest and most remarkable tribes now existing
Catlin, George
Indians of North America
After the business and amusements of this great Treaty between the
Chippeways and Sioux were all over, the Chippeways struck their tents
by taking them down and rolling up their bark coverings, which, with
their bark canoes seen in the picture, turned up amongst their wigwams,
were carried to the water’s edge; and all things being packed in, men,
women, dogs, and all, were swiftly propelled by paddles to the Fall of
St. Anthony, where we had repaired to witness their mode of passing the
cataract, by “_making_ (as it is called) _the portage_,” which we found
to be a very curious scene; and was done by running all their canoes
into an eddy below the Fall, and as near as they could get by paddling;
when all were landed, and every thing taken out of the canoes (+plate+
239), and with them carried by the women, around the Fall, and half a
mile or so above, where the canoes were put into the water again; and
goods and chattels being loaded in, and all hands seated, the paddles
were again put to work, and the light and bounding crafts upon their
voyage.
The bark canoe of the Chippeways is, perhaps, the most beautiful and
light model of all the water crafts that ever were invented. They
are generally made complete with the rind of one birch tree, and so
ingeniously shaped and sewed together, with roots of the tamarack,
which they call _wat-tap_, that they are water-tight, and ride upon
the water, as light as a cork. They gracefully lean and dodge about,
under the skilful balance of an Indian, or the ugliest squaw; but
like everything wild, are timid and treacherous under the guidance of
white man; and, if he be not an experienced equilibrist, he is sure
to get two or three times soused, in his first endeavours at familiar
acquaintance with them. In +plate+ 240, letter _a_, the reader will see
two specimens of these canoes correctly drawn; where he can contrast
them and their shapes, with the log canoe, letter _b_, (or “dug out,”
as it is often called in the Western regions) of the Sioux, and many
other tribes; which is dug out of a solid log, with great labour, by
these ignorant people, who have but few tools to work with.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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