Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-06-18

0ExHNRAy between British Colum-
&GEE NaEAsSS bia and Mexico, up and
- - down the Rockies, but
EA-<can say in all honesty
that have never seen
or smelled an Indian
stew or roast that /
wanted TO partake Of in all my wanderings,"
said a gentleman to a STAR writer. mo. not
that-that's not the reason at all, for have
been hungry enough. often. but the fact Is sim
ply this: an Indian wants a great deal to eat
and cares little about the details of cooking.
while a white man Is much more concerned
about the manner in which his meal is to be
served than he is about The quantity Of it.
"a great Zeal of nonsense has been written
about the depraved appetites of Indians, what
nasty messes of putrescent meat, fish and oil
they make way with. and other like feasts: but
lust stop a moment. Go down to that restau-
rant across the street from Us and the chances
are that if yon are not used TO 1t l can order up
a dish Of Linburger cheese that will turn your
appetite adrift or a plate of 'gamey' deer meat
which viii drive you from the scene.
SOME PECULIAR TASTES
with the exception of rotten fish and roe
repasts have never smelled anything worse than
the odor of portion of that particular Dutch
cheese | have Just referred to in any Indian
spread that has been under my eyes. An Indian,
strangely enough. likes putrid fish, but he does
not relish his flesh after that fashion or his
fowls; a distinctly rotten egg he never eats, but
eggs that are vel advanced toward hatcking he
rather prefers: shell fish are always eaten fresh
BY savages. and I know that if there was any
method not involving great care and labor by
which animal and fish oils could be kept sweet
BY their savage consumers these oils would be-
for they know and appreciate the difference
Just "a keenlv "a we do in the case of sweet or
rancid butter. Oil takes the place OF butter
with them; but though they know how to
render the fats. and how 20 preserve the
product thereof TO be sweet. Vet the labor
Is never undertaken and the strong smell which
hangs over ali the Indian kitchens Is due to this
oil itself or its reSiduum in the unwashed
wooden or metal utensils where Ii Is kept
THEY LIKE ENTRAILs OF ALL KINDS
''Indians have marked liking for the en-
trails Of al birds beasts and fishes-these are
the real glou. morceaIx; they pluck and SINCE
the feathers from most os the land fowls and
skin ducks. geese and other water birds. skin
all animals and scale all fishes which are dis
tinctly scaled; no bird. animal or fish Is ever
wasted after these steps are taken by the squaws.
who either put the result of their rude dressing
into a stew kettle or spit il for roasting before
the Goals under the enbers: they object to
washing the game and tish, saving that water
spOils il, They Use no salt in cooking or pepper;
no spices: no condiments whatever.
The Indian i'll his daily search for food takes
most everything that he comes across and he
has quite large variety. but when it comes out
from the kitchen the result Is that 1t all tastes
ebout the same-yenisOn TO-DAY boiled in a
kettle where FISH were stewed yesterday, and a
goose goes into this kettle tOmOrrow-in the
meantime the kettle has never been cleaned or
emptied fully of the leavings OF this days re-
past ere the material for the next days dinner
Is thrown into it, Naturally. this curious. shift
less cooking gives an lndescriDabiy hat and re-
pugnant favor to everything that comes from
the kettle div after day-a1 least. IL Ii 50 de-
clared by our palaier. But the Indians are
satisfied-they simply eat TO hive. and the
pleasures of the table they count Of less value
than the ease Of their IaboTs in the cuisine.
THEY APPRECIATE GOOD COOKING.
''S.ill Indians appreciate good cooking and
were in the full knowledge of making variety
Of feast dishes which were very good. They
Understood the making of gravies, thick soups
and corn bread and the baking of fish and
meats to a turn long. long before a white man
ever set foot on the American continent. but
the wooden dishes, such as platters. birch bark
kettles and spoons of maple or bass wood were
usually SO charged with ancient Odors to
make disagreeable impression upon every
thing that served In them when offered TO
the white visitors and neutralized all the skill
that dish washing vas an undertaking much
disliked and seldom thoroughly done in the
Indian kitchen. and a rude scraping of the
kettles was about all that they ever got before
being reeharged with fresh supply OF the raw
material
"A small FIRE and slow simmering. stewing
Of meats and ish. vegetables and berries was
the inyariGble feature Of lodge fires when the
Pilgrims first looked in upon them. The wooden
pans or kettles were hberaily charged with meat
cut into chunks and partially filed with water
which was made to boil by reason of hot stones
regularly thrown in and taken out as they
cooled to make way for freshly heated dorrieks,
which were kept in reserve among the embers
Of a steady ire
AS soon the iron kettles Of the white men
were shown TO our Indians the labor-saying
qualities OF these vessels were at once appreci-
sted by I.o. who made the utmost haste 10 pos
sess himself of them. But he did not change
the result at all OF his cooking. He simmsred
and steved everything a. heretofore and failed
to wash the iron pots The act Of roasting and
baking meats and vegetables involved a vast
deal more labor for the squaws, and the SLOW
enly and expeditions stew whereby enough for
Q large number of yOraciOus feeders as
quickly prepared as if for only few eaters
this universal stew became well established
among the savages long before white men were
known TO them
''An Indian warrior or buck when at home or
when squaws surround him. never gives the
least attention to the kitchen-not a hint or a
suggestion, but takes what the woman wo-
men Of his household bring him without muir
muir. But after these bucks have lived in con-
tact with white men they often cook AT their
own firesides, the pattern set them being too
forcible, SINCE the white trappers and pioneers
we're skillful and particular in the preparation
Of their meals when they had the leisure.
THE INDIAN LODGE on THE POTOMAC.
SIN order that a clear idea of the manner in
which the Indian kitchen was managed every
where in this country Of ours before our civil
hzation broke it up, let look back little
more than century and regard an Indian
summer house or lodge rs il stood there on tina,
point where the arsenal is located TODAY, at the
Intersection Of the Potomac and the Eastern
branch This lodge is the shelter of member
OF Powhatans band, a hunter. who, with his
two or three sluaws, six or seven children and
savage relative or two, has pitched il for the
summer here, and who will take il down in No
vember and return to the winter village of his
people on the James river with the store OF
dried meat and fish that he shall Law by for
the hymeneal soktice.
1T Is June morning, and not IN
IL the h high in the heavens
b there the least sign of life In this
'tepeej the inmates, old and young are all
soundly sleeping; but as the day opens and the
0ies grow lively one or two Of the squaws rise
Throwing Of the blanket, they get up rs they
lay down, in full dress; they turn their