The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1900-02-03

O LYFOoT-WEARFOR HUNTSMEN
The Materials Used Since MGosehhie
Became Too Scarce and Hard TO
l-inl-Wl,at shocnacks and
Lnrrisans Are.

i
When the silent. Indian ranged the for
osts in NeEr England in quest OF the
game that was his source OF sussenance,
he were a foot covering. which made ms
tread as soft rs Z. wild ca;.s-a shoe
called a smoccasi,l, shaped to his foot from
a single piece Of green mcosehiie. sewn
to a smaller piece al the top OF the foot
with the snews OF a deer.
Centuries have passed since the say
age frs: fashioned this shoe. bat 10 this
da; o better foot covering for the hunter
has, never been devised. Hunters boots
OF various kinds are made and sold TO
city men vino go into the woods after
big gamc, but none Of them eGualS for
softness Of tread the noccas.n. which
to-day is made in just the same slS-e
as in the days when the savage :e::ica
supreme throughout the land Men nave
devised machinery for making shoes. put
The machine has never been made lllt
can fashion a Inoccasin as well as 1t can
be shaped by hand.
In only q few places in this country
are moccasins now made. ana most ni
these places are in New Engiaad. ne
art OF making good i,loccas:ns ms beS'i
preserved by the Indian tribe. AT q dlt Wn.
Me-: and from their porEensors ana other
Indians. WHO come from Ganaui !hto
Maine TO hunt. the art OF making a really
good hunting moccasin was hrst caught
by white men So well ai'c n!occaslnS
made in Maine that those supplied the
western Indians by the government are
made in the city of Bangor. The red man
of the plains does not have the skins TO
make moccasins as his fathers made
them, and if he had them it is doubtful
if a proper supply for themselves could
be furnished by the agency Indians. IN
these, days when the noble savage has
degencratcd to the agency Indians. re-
celving the bounty OF the government III
rcd drill overals and plug tobacco, his
traditional footwear comes to him from
the factory of a moccasin maker who
learned his business in Maine from the
wood lore banded down by wOodsmen ana
Indian hunters. Not only are moccaslns
sent from Maine to the West for the
Indians. but Uncle Sans scouts in the
West and in Alaska where moccaslns
are needed in the service, for use on
snow with snowshoes, get their footwear
from Bangor. The contracts are made
for several thousand pairs at a time
MEATS HIDE.
None of these moccasins are made of
moose hide nowadays, the material being
chiefly obtained meats hide which is
cowhide. This turns the water as wen
as moosel,ide, and wears almost as We'll
The leather is well saturated with. flsh
oil, which gives it a strong smell. but I'M
parts virtues that assist in repellinS
snow water. which will penetrate ordi-
nary leather very quickly
The tannage is known as Indian Tam.
Not only are moccasins made from this
oiled tanned leather but other articles of
footwear that may properly be called off
springs of the moccasins such as the
shoepack and the larrigan.
The shoepack is a moccaSin with n shoe
top made of the same sort Of material
as the bottom. and laced. The origin OF
the word is not clear, though 1T IS
.ecribed to the vernacular of lumbermcn
in upper Canada, around Lake superior.
1t was brought into Maine by the Cana
dams, and has become a part OF the local
vocabulary in the northern part of the
State A city shoe-dealer would be at a
loss to know what Il customer wanted
should he demand to be shown a shoe
pack In Northern Maine these useful
articles of footwear based on the In
dian's moccasin, are displayed outside
every store where lumbermen's or hunt
ers' supplies are sold.
The larrigan is a moctasn with a boot
highly esteemed by many. 1t is a Cana
dian article of footwear, and the name
seems TO have become as much part of
the local Maine vocabulary as shoepack.
Its origin. however. is not so clear.
While native hunters in Maine wear all
three of the foot-coverinSs described they
prefer the moct asin for all-round wear
1t is light, noiseless. easy to the foot,
and wears well. In winter it is worn
over three or four pairs of stockings, and
a pair OF leggings. also knit. This makes
a bundle of woollen stuff covering the
foot, and maintains warmth even in the
coolest weather
Not lumberman or guide in Maine is
to be seen in winter without his legghls.
They are as much a part of his wardrobe
as his hat. They are thick and warm.
and when strapped around the leg below
the knee with u piece of tape are snow