Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-02-27

Canoes Made Out of Logs and skins oy the
Alnaknn Indiana

canoes Made Out Of LoEs and skins oy tne
Alaskan Indiana
| NO PEOPLE IN THE WORLD ARE MORE
dependent upon boats than are the natives
Oh southeast Alaska They live In region
"nere tne coast line is broken into many chan
neis, straits and harbors by the numerous
Islands OF the Sitkan archipelago. The land
oners little to reward the skill or perseverance
OF the hunter and supplies OF food and other
necessaries must be drawn from the sea. Ac-
eordinGly the one thing Of joy, @, delight and
OF infinite use to the inhabitant Of that rart OF
the world b Q canoe. Existence ,rdass uould
Be . sad problem for him were i, No, %, this
adjunct Of his own creation Cno, "A. oop
struction he lavishes the best o, hi. ,hon,bt
the height Of his manual skill and his ti-ala.s
patience. The result is the fashioninp fro,,, /.
single log Of little vessel which challenge, a.
miration for its fne outline, its seawor.hinas.
and its strength.
So says q report about to be issued bv the
United States fish commission written hv
Capt. j. ". Collins. The author goes on
to remark that the Indians of the Sitkan re-
glon, IN modelling their canoes, have apparently
by intuition solved successfully the difficult
problem OF least resistance, buoyancy and
requisite stability-quslities essentially neces-
sary In working boat, but the proper combi-
test the constructive skill of the most expe-
rlenced white man. All the tribes of that re-
glon use dugout canoes the size of which varies
from ten festto more than thirty feet in length.
The usual length Of fishing canoe is from If
teen to twenty feet. A species of pine is util-
leo TO large extent in the manufacture of
such craft. The wood is light durable and
worked very readily. Unfortunately il is ant to
split. This constitutes the natives chief anx-
iety. He keeps his boat covered with mats and
hrt h., - IL
order 70 avoid such misfortune.
LABoRIous WORK.
Before the introduction of iron tools the
making OF a canoe was a work Of enormous
difficulty. The hatchets used were OF stone and
the chisels were of mussel shells ground to q
sharp edge. II required much time and labor
to cut down large tree for the purpose and it
was only the chiefs with a number of slaves at
their disposal, who attempted such oper .tions
Iheir method was to gather round a tree as
many as could work and these Clipped away
with their stone hatchets until the tree was lit
eraiiy knawed down. Then TO shape il and hol-
.oN ~ OUT WIS tedious job and many a month
"o9.9 intervene between the telling of the tree
nnu we finishing of the canoe. The imple-
| I1s USED atpresent are axes and steel chisels.
,. employed TO assist in excsvating the
| .h A small trench is first dug lengthwise
| - Ugh tne middle. and enough chips having
inc 80 naue Ior the purpose, they are kept burn
,bss, =. one enc OF the boat. When the wood at
| Gnu ~ charred enough to make the work
s OF IL comparatively easy the fire is trsns-
| 70 the opposite end and the workman
s 70 ekcavate the part that has been
ora;. mis- process is repeated over and
again until the bulk Of the intar;o, ,voo5 -
been removed. 1t would mo, ha SO ~ , ,,"s
nre 100 long. for in the last stages Of, the vorl
through. " oeins burned
The final process in the forming o, IN. ,;,,,s
| IN
that 1t may be made wide eBoncb 20 So 20
necessary stability. For this purpose the carne
is steamed by filling it one-third full nf ra,oe
and then putting hot stones into the wa,ar a.
canoe oeing covered with cedar mats 10 pre-
vent the escape Of the steam When dis ~
cess has been continued long enough the snr-
wales are forced apart and thwarf sticLs -
| inserted to hold them in proper position Af,ar
this the boat 10 painted or otherwise orna.
mented. The great war canoes formerly made
length. are no longer built One of them j.
exhibited at the National Museum.
BOATS OF SKIN.
In the cold regions Of the far north. where
timber or bark is difficult or impossible to pe.
boats of skin are almost exclusively employea
To provide material for them the native bun,e,
| relies upon the seal. the sea lion and the wal
rus. Many patterns of such craft are utilized
In the fisheries pursued among the Aleutia,
Islands and elsewhere on the Alaskan coas,
Mostly they are Of two types-the 'ikaiak," EN-
pioyed by the men. and heavier and safe
woman's boat known the ''oomiak," an,
used for Transporting females and freight
10 build kaiak marks an important point 4
the life OF the coast native. The youth, as 500
as he is able to construct one. no longer oh
serves any family ties. but goes where his fame
takes him. frequently roaming about in hi
boat for thousands Of miles before he takes
notion to marry, to excavate a miserabl
dwelling and to settle down for . time. Tn
| kaiak Is the most seaworthy small boat in ex
| lstence. 1t is covered over. save only for
hole In which the voyager sits, the carmen
which covers him, itself waterproof. bein,
fastened around the rim OF the manhole /,
such a manner as to exclude the water. Thu
Notation is perfect, and even when the boa
turns upside down. as not infrequently hap
pens the owner is able to quickly right il with
his double paddle. Larger kaiaks with two O.
three manholes are used for fishing and fol
capturing whales and sea offers, when one ma,
must manage the canoe while another throw
| a spear or harpoon.
The frame Of kaiak 10 composed of liph
pieces Of driftwood and small withes, which
| are firmly lashed together with sinews, SO as 4
stiffen the whole fabric. 1t is said that recent,
| rattan WAS used to some extent for the purpose
this light and elastic material being obtained
| through traders. Once made the frame i,
| covered with the Unframed skins of sea lions
| which have been freed from hair. These hide,
are drawn over the skeleton of the boat
deftly sewed, and properly secured in place
| while they are wet and plisble. The entire
boat, top and all, is covered, except the man.
| hole or manholes. When the skins drv tbey
contract SO as TO bind the frame firmly and are
as taut as the parchment of a well-strung bass
| drum. Then the native smears the hole over
with thick seal oil, which keeps the water on,
| OF the pores OF the skin for long period.