Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1901-07-11
INDIAN MAPLE SUGAR MAKING.
The Aborisines Taught the Art to the
Whites.
(From Forest and Stream.)


very few of the people to whom maple
ausar Is an entirely familiar and common
Vlace thing are aware of the fact that the
fiethod of making sugar was taught to
.he white people by the Indians, and that
'ney made sugar long before the discovery
or America. This is only one of the many
things that the white people learned sro'n
me Indians. Others were the weaving Of
cotton. the cultivation Of Indian corn ana
the Use Of tobacco.
Some of the early writer's tell us that the
french were the first to make this sugar,
ana mat they learned how to make Il from
,he indian women. The sap was collected
III rude way, cash being cut in the
Tree ana into this a stick was thrust down
Nnlch the freely-flowing sap dripped into
vessel OF birch-bark, or a gourd or into
wooden troughs followed out by fire or
me axe. Then into larger wooden troughs
Iuil OF the sap, red-hot stones were thrown
Just as in old times they used 20
ne thrown into the water in which
focd was boiled-any by constantly throw
ms in hot stones and taking out those
mat had become cool the sap was boicl
ana "vaporated, and at length strip was
made, which later became sugar
mis- manufacture of the sugar was not
confined to any tribe, but was prac:iced by
al northern Indians and was known to
those living IS far south as Florida and
''N''' ftHlonB tnc SuEar-mAklnE tribes
Special festiN al was held, which was call
ed the maple dance, which was undoubted-
~ religious festival in the nature of a
prayer or propitiatory ceremony, asking
Tor an abundant flow of sap ard for good
fortune in collecting it,
among many of the Indians inhabiting
the northern United States. maple sugar
was not merely a luxury-sometL hing tat.n
because IT was toothsome-but vas actually
an important part Of their support Mixed
WIN pounded. parched corn II was put up
IN small quantities and was a concentrate ed
FORM OF nutrimcnt, not much less valuable
IN respect to Its quality OF support than the
Ienlinican which was used almost down to
cur own times.
among the cider writer's who had much
familiarity with the customs of the IL
uahs accounts are given of the manufac.
lure OF sugar, and this custom was so gen
etal that among many tribes the month
III winch the sap ran best was called the
sugar month. BY the Troquois the name
halirontaks. meaning tree-eaters, was APP
pled to the algonquin tribes. and an enh-
nelt authority, Dr. Brinton. has suggested
mat ~ were probably "so-called from
thelr love of the product of the sugar ma
Ile. ON the other band, A. f. Chamber
IAN has very plausihly said: "Tha, 1t is
ms rdIy likely that the Iroquos disting,Ish-
su other tribes by this term. if its orGir
were sugar makers and eaters" More
probable origin of the word is that given
oE Schoclcraft. in substance as follows
RaurontakS, whence Adirondacks was
applied chiefly to the Montagnais tribes,
north of the st. Law renee and was de-
rslVe term Indicating well-known habit
of these tribes of eating the inner bark of
trees in winter when food was scarce, or
"hen on war excursions" This habit Of
eatlng the inner bark Of trees was as is
Wen known common to many tribes of
lhcians, both those who inhah bit the coun-
Try where the sugar maple grows and also
those in other parts Of the country where
Inc maple Is unknown
On the Western prairies sugar was .,,a1o
also from the box elder which trees were
tapped by the Indians and the sap boiled
Gown for sugar, and to-day the Cheyenn.
INDIANS tell us that it was from this trrn
mat they derived all the sugar that they
mad until the arrival of the white man on
the plains something more than \, wears
ago.
1t Is interesting to observe that in rnan>
tribes to-day the word for sugar is prc-
clsely the word which ttoy applied to the
product of tho maple tree before they
knew the white mans sugar It is inter-
esting, also, to see that among many
tribes the general term for sugar means
wood or tree water-that is to say tree
sap This is true Of the Omahas and
Poncas, according to j. o. Dorsey and
also of the Kansas. Usage and Iowa. Win
nehago, Tuscarora and Pavnees The
tbeyennes, on the other hand, call it box
elder water A F. Chamberlain, who has
gone with great care into the question of
the meaning Of the words " ich designate
the maple tree and it's product is disposed
to believe that tho name of the maple
means the tree--in other words the real or
actual tree, or the tree which stands above
all others