pagi ;
T H E C H E M A W A A M E R IC A N
4
I N D I A N B A S K E T R Y OF T H E
W IN T O O N
IN D IA N S
OF C A L IF O R N IA
B y M yra R a u zi, N in th G rade
T h e art of m aking baskets by th e older women of
the W intoon tribe is fast disap p earin g and it does
not seem as if the women of th e y o u n g er generation
were attem p tin g to keep up the w ork, for the m aking
of basketry has decreased. A great m any years ago
every one of the older women knew how to m ake bas
kets, w hile today th ere are about one out of every ten
who u n d erstan d the art, and I believe th at the women
o f th e y o u n g er generation ought to learn how to make
baskets and teach th eir ch ild ren , so they can in tu rn
teach th eir children and so on from generation to g e n
eratio n .
T odav a basket is high priced because few are made
and the women realize how hard it is to obtain the
m aterial and how long it takes to m ake one. T h e d if
ferent m aterials used are the roots of a pine tree, the
m aiden hair fern, and the green fern, th e willow, and
a long, sh arp , w hite grass called peelee, bv the
In d ian s. T h is grass grow s to a h eig h th of from three
to four feet. W hen d ry the long, w hite grass is very
sh a rp ; it would cu t your hand if you placed it along
th e edge. T h is grass is q u ite hard to obtain, for it
grow s in the rockiest parts of certain m ountains. Be
fore it is ready to use it has to be kept m oist in a
dam p cloth over n ig h t, or until it becomes soft and is
no longer sharp-edged.
'l'he n ex t fiber, th e roots of the pine tree, are also
very hard to obtain. T he Indian woman has to get a
pick and go out into the woods and lo^k for th e roots
of the pine. She is very p articu lar about th e kind
she gets, for some roots of pines are hard and not
pliable and these are unsuitable.
T h e way to tell good roots is th at some are above
the ground and they start in to dig if they are satis
fied with them . Some of the roots grow very deep
into the ground and the poor woman has to dig alm ost
all day before she has enough for her su p p ly . Som e
tim es she gets the roots ot tw o or th ree different pines,
for it m akes no difference.
T hen after she has taken the roots hom e th ere is
another long process: She builds a fire outside and
cooks the roots, as we say; th at is, she holds the roots
over the flame which cooks th e outside bark and re n
ders it easy to take off. T h e inside is nice and w hite.
T ile root is round and she now has an old, sh arp
knife, w ith which, she cuts th e roots in to four parts,
and keeps on dividing it until she can get very thin
pieces off of it. T hen that is all for th e present. She
then p u ts them out in the sun to d ry . A fter they are
d ry , she p u ts them away, if she is not inclined to use
them rig h t aw ay. These roots have to be m oistened
in a dam p cloth over n ig h t before being ready to use.
T h e roots are about the m ost needed m aterial for bas
ket m aking.
A very plain basket can be m ade from ju st the roots
and w illow , b u t to m ake a p retty basket the other
m aterials have to be used, especially m aiden hair fern.
Some m aiden h air ferns grow near m ountain springs,
and are very difficult to obtain, besides being scarce.
T hese ferns have to be split in two and also m oistened
w hen m ade ready for use.
T h e green fern also grow s in th e m o u n tain s, b u t it
is m ore com m only seen th a n m aiden h air fern. T hese
ferns are picked w hen green. T h e first process after
g e ttin g them hom e is to p o und th e stem s cf th e ferns
w ith a rock u n til they get very soft. A fter p o u n d in g
th ere is a long w hite fiber inside th e fern w hich is re
m oved. T h is is w hat she w ants.
A fter she gets these w hite fibers out, she dyes them
a lig h t pink w ith the bark procured from an alder tree.
To obtain th e pink this bark has to be pounded very
fine and put into a bucket w ith some w ater, and then
the w hite fibers are put into th e dye and left for a day
or so, then they are taken out and dried in the su n .
T hen after they are dried she has th e pink ferns ready
for use. T hey also have to be m oistened before they
are used.
N ex t is the willow: T h ere are two k in d s— th e
Pussy willow is not used— but the o th e r kind w hich
grow s b u n ch y , some grow ing tall w hile o th ers are
sh o rt. T h e lim bs are taken off these w illows and
great care is tak en to get th e slender lim bs all the sam e
size. T he sm allest lim bs m ake th e sm allest baskets
and the larger baskets need very large willow lim bs
for m aking. Before these lim bs are used the bark has
to be taken off w ith a knife. A fter it is taken off they
are spread out in th e sun and also dried. W hen ready
to use, th e ends are put into a can of w ater.
T h e In d ian w om an, w hen she sits dow n to sta rt in
to m ake a basket, has m any articles around her— the
roots of a pine tree, th e black fern, and th e green
fern, a long sh arp w hite grass, and th e willows.
T h e first m aterials used in a basket are th e roots of
the pine and th e w illow s, and the roots woven in and
o u t of the w illow s form the bottom of th e basket. As
th e top is form ed, the design is woven in w ith th e
different colors.
T h e Indian women m ake up th e ir own designs,
each design h av in g a special m eaning. T hese designs
are woven into th e basket accurately and w ith o u t any
m echanical aid. It is an art th at should be cultivated
and fostered by all In d ian s w hose trib es excel in
b ask etry .
T h e A m erican one year, 25 cents.