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Show Man and Nature In Early Utah 11 inner bark of the kinnikinnick* (Comus stolonifera), was smoked alone or mixed with tobacco, and apparently had the effect of an opiate, and the leaves of Vaccinium occidentale and Silene menzi esii, etc., were used. Other plants provided beverages a.nd even chewing gums. Fibers for the making of lines, cords and nets and for such fibers in small baskets were secured from the dogbane or Indian hemp (Apocynum androsaemifolium L. and other species) and hom the stinging nettle (U rtica). The flax from these plants was usually secured from the withered stems in the autumn. uses as For the making of various domestic objects, such as baskets, water jugs, baby cradles, etc., various species of willows and shoots of the cottonwood were used, a tougher frame being often provided by wood of the serviceberry. Water jugs, cooking bowls, seed baskets, winnowing fans and other vessels designed to hold water or fine material were made impervious by being coated on the inside, or both inside and out, with gum of the nut pine. A smooth, glaze-like inner surface was often supplied to these vessels, as also more especially to earthen dishes, by coating them with a mucilage obtained from Mcloastrum munroanum. This was obtained by macerating or mincing the stems and leaves of the plant in water or simply by drawing it with pressure across the surface to be coated. Bows were most usually made from the mountain mahogany (Cerocarpus ledifolius) and arrows from wood of the serviceberry. The wood of the kinnickinnick was The wood of some times used for the framework of snowshoes. the sagebrush was largely used for producing fire by friction, other materials also used for the same purpose being the dried roots of cedar, mountain mahogany, and Shepherdia. A very perma nent dye was made from the flowers of the goldenrod. bowls, \ THE EXPLORERS AND EARLY NATURALISTS Fathers Escalante and Dominguez and party in their trip through Utah made note of the native plants and animals furnish ing food to the Indians, and when on their return journey they ran short of provisions they were forced to depend largely upon supplies from these sources. Under date of September 24-25, 1776, Escalante, speaking of the Indians living about the Utah Lake, says: Eastern Indian word originally applied mixture of various ingredients such as The name subse native tobacco, sumac bark, bearberry, dogwood bark, etc. quently was applied to plants yielding the smoking materials, such as the bear berry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) in the Northwest and the dogwood (Comus stolonifera) in the Great Basin Area, the name having been carried into the West by trappers and other employees of the fur companies. *The to any word kinnikinnick is an smoking preparation, usually a |
