The uncivilized races of men in all countries of the world; vol. 2 of 2 / Being a comprehensive account of their manners and customs, and of their physical, social, mental, moral and religious characteristics

by J. G. Wood

Canoe of the Ahts.
(See [page 1362].)

CHAPTER CXLIII.
VANCOUVER’S ISLAND—Continued.
THE AHTS AND NEIGHBORING TRIBES—Continued.

MANUFACTURE OF CANOES — CORRECT EYE OF THE NATIVE BUILDERS — MATERIAL AND SHAPE OF THE PADDLE — MODE OF USING IT — PATTERN WITH WHICH IT IS DECORATED — “CUTTING” THE WAVES — SKILL AND ENDURANCE OF THE PADDLERS — ESCAPE OF A NATIVE — FEASTS AMONG THE AHT TRIBES — METHOD OF COOKING — THE WOODEN POTS AND HEATED STONES — HOW “THE INDIANS DIED” — DISTRIBUTION OF PROPERTY, AND ITS CONSEQUENT DESTRUCTION — SACRED CHARACTER OF A FEAST — THE SACRED MARKS — THE ARTIFICIAL SNOW-STORM — THE DOCTOR’S DANCE — ADMIRABLE ACTING — SIMULATED MURDER AND RECOVERY OF THE CORPSE — THE ROOF DANCE.

The canoes in which the Aht tribes make their expeditions are carved out of solid wood. The tree which is employed for this purpose is a kind of cedar (Thuja gigantea), which flourishes by the sea. When a native wishes to make a canoe, he looks out for a good tree as near as possible to the water, and, with the assistance of a comrade, cuts it down. Now that he has European tools, he can fell a tree with some rapidity, but in the olden times, when his sole tool was a sort of chisel made of wapiti horn, it was a very slow process indeed. The only way of using this primitive instrument was by placing the edge of the chisel against the tree, and striking the butt with a heavy stone, shaped something like a dumb-bell.

The tree being felled, the bark is stripped off, and the trunk split lengthwise by wedges. The next process is to hollow out the inside, which is done entirely by hand, fire not being employed, as is the case with many savage tribes. The outside is then dubbed down to the proper thickness by means of an adze formed of a large mussel-shell fixed in a handle. In this work the natives use no measuring tools, but trust entirely to the eye; yet their work is so true that, when the boat is completed, it sits lightly on the water, and is well balanced. Any of my readers who have made even a toy boat will appreciate the difficulty of this task.

In about three weeks or so the canoe is roughly hewn and hollowed, and then comes a more difficult business, namely, the bringing it into the peculiar shape which the Ahts think to be the best. This is done by filling the canoe with water, and throwing redhot stones into it till the water boils. This part of the process is continued for a considerable time, until the wood is quite soft, and then a number of crosspieces are driven into the interior, so as to force the canoe into its proper shape, which it retains ever afterward.

While the canoe is still soft and comparatively pliant, several slight crosspieces are inserted, so as to counteract any tendency toward warping. The outside of the vessel is next hardened by fire, so as to enable it to resist the attacks of insects, and also to prevent it from cracking when exposed to the sun. Lastly, the bow and stem pieces are fixed to the canoe, and the interior is painted of some brilliant color, usually red. The outside is generally quite black and highly polished, this effect being produced by rubbing it plentifully with oil after the fire has done its work. Lastly, a pattern of some kind is generally painted on the bow and stern.

The [figure] on page 1361 will give the reader a good idea of the form of this canoe. It is drawn from a large model brought from Vancouver’s Island by Lieut. Pusey, and added by him to my collection. In this specimen the patterns at the bow and stem are red and blue. As is mostly the case with canoes made by savages, there is no keel to the boat.

The paddle by which the canoe is propelled is a singularly ingenious one, combining the three qualities of lightness, elasticity, and strength to a really remarkable extent. The paddle represented in fig. 1 of [illustration No. 6], on page 1357, is one of the specimens in my collection. It is four feet six inches in length, and the blade is about six inches wide at the broadest part. It is shaped with the greatest accuracy, the part where it is grasped by the left hand being nearly cylindrical, and then widening gradually until it forms the blade. At this part it is very thin—so thin, in fact, that it seems scarcely able to bear the strain that is put upon it when the paddler urges his canoe swiftly over the water.