Jack the Young Canoeman: An Eastern Boy's Voyage in a Chinook Canoe

by George Bird Grinnell

"Why do they call them Flatheads, Mr. Galbraith?" asked Jack. "They don't seem to have their heads flattened as the Coast Indians have. The heads of these people are shaped like those of any one."

"Well," said Mr. Galbraith, "I don't know why they are called Flatheads, but that is the name for them in this country. They do not call themselves by that name. They call themselves Kallispelms. They are pretty good Indians, hunt all through this region, farm a little, and have plenty of horses. In July or August they always come down to the lake shore, because then, when the water is low, and the big meadows on the edge of the lake are exposed, the camas grows up, and they dig the roots which form a considerable portion of their vegetable food."

"I have heard of camas," said Jack, "but I don't think I ever saw it grow to know it. What is it like?"

"Why," said Mr. Galbraith, "I don't know what the books call it; but it is a root that grows in damp places, has two long leaves like a lily, and a slender stalk that bears a blue flower. The root is shaped somewhat like an onion or a tulip. The women gather them in great quantities. Then, after they are gathered, they are cooked and then dried for use in the winter. After they have been dried the roots are about as big as the end of your finger; and just after cooking they are sweet, something like a chestnut. The Indians make a very good bread by squeezing a lot of the newly cooked bulbs together."

"How do they cook them?" asked Jack.

"Oh, in the usual way," said Galbraith. "They dig a big hole in the ground; build a fire in it in which they heat stones and then spread grass over the hot stones. They then pile in a great quantity of the roots, covering them with grass, and next with hot stones. Then the whole thing is covered with earth, and the pit is left alone for three or four days. The women know when to open it, and when they do so and take off the stones and the grass the heat of the stones has cooked the roots which have turned dark brown in color and are ready to use. It's fun to see the children cluster around when the pit is opened, and to see them struggle to get the grass which has covered the roots. This grass is covered with a sweet syrup and the children delight to suck it. I suppose there are a lot of roots and berries which the Indians know of and use, of which we know nothing at all."

"Yes," said Jack, "I know that is so in my country. There is hardly any time in the summer but there is some vegetable food ripening that the Indians know of and use."

"There's another root called kaus, that the Kutenais know of," said Mr. Galbraith. "They dry and pound up these roots and then mix them with water and bake them in cakes, and they make a good bread. These roots are sweet and aromatic. Of berries, the sarvis berry is perhaps the most important, and it grows abundantly all through the mountains, but there are a number of other berries, fruits, and roots."

That night Mr. Sturgis had a talk with Mr. Galbraith, who said that he could very easily take them across the lake in the company's sailboat, and then would give them saddle and pack horses to take them up the Pend d'Oreille River, to the Jocko or any other point that they might wish to go to. At the Jocko, they could hire some Indian or half-breed to drive them on to Deer Lodge, and from Deer Lodge they could take the stage to Missoula or Silver Bow, which he understood was then the end of the track of the narrow-gauge road running up from the South. To all hands this seemed the best way to get home; and as they were now on the very borders of Montana it seemed that they had but a short distance to go before they would once more be in their own country.

The next morning early, accompanied by Mr. Galbraith and with a crew of three or four voyageurs, they started out from Siniaqueateen for the Lake. The river gradually became more and more wide and the scenery was very beautiful. The stream valley was broad, and smooth grassy meadows dotted here and there with willows and other small trees sloped gently up to the higher land from the water's edge.