The Scientific American Boy | Page 9

was cut up into strips and wound onto the
hickory sticks for a distance of 18 inches at each side of the center. We
then repaired to the kitchen to do the steaming. The hickory stick was
held over a large dish-pan filled with boiling water, and from this we
dipped out the water and poured it slowly over the burlap wrapping of
the stick. After a little of this treatment the stick was sufficiently
steamed to permit of bending to the required shape. The ends were then
firmly secured by means of bolts passed through bolt holes which had
been previously drilled. The frame was completed by fitting the
spreader sticks in place, after which it was laid away to dry. When the
frame was perfectly dry we started weaving the web. In this case,
however, instead of cord we used cane strips, which we had bought

from a chair caner. This necessitated drilling holes in the side sticks to
receive the cane strips. The web consisted of strands crossing each
other diagonally, as illustrated. Our second pair of Iroquois snow shoes
was made with a web of rawhide which we bought from a hardware
store at Millville.
[Illustration: Fig. 30. Frame of Iroquois Shoe.]
[Illustration: Fig. 31. Iroquois Snow Shoe.]

The Ainu Snow Shoe.
[Illustration: Fig. 32. Ainu Snow Shoe.]
One of the snowshoes described in the book was very much like Fred's
barrel-hoop snow shoe in appearance. According to the description, it
was a type used by the Ainus, a peculiar people living in the cold
northern islands of Japan. As the shoe seemed quite simple and rather
unique, we thought we would make one like it. Two hickory strips each
4 feet long were bent to a V-shape and lashed together, forming an oval
about 2 feet 6 inches long by 18 inches wide. The frame was held to
oval shape by tying the sides together. Then the filling was woven in,
running the strands diagonally, as shown in Fig. 32.
We had excellent weather for snow shoes after that snowstorm. A thaw
followed by a cold spell caused a thick crust to form on the snow which
would nearly hold us up without the aid of our snowshoes. We were
rather awkward with those shoes for a while, trying to keep them clear
of each other, and we found it particularly hard to turn sharply without
causing one shoe to run foul of the other. But with a little practice we
soon felt quite at home on them. In order to prevent cutting the web
with our heels, we found it necessary to wear rubbers.
Our vacation came to an end before we were prepared for the
expedition to Willow Clump Island. But before leaving the subject on
snow shoes, two more shoes remain to be described, namely the Swiss
snow shoe and the Norwegian ski. The Swiss shoe was made during the

summer and the ski during the following winter.

The Norwegian Ski.
[Illustration: Fig. 33. The Norwegian Ski.]
[Illustration: Fig. 34. Bending the Ski.]
The Norwegian ski was made of close-grained wood, 1 inch thick,
3-1/2 inches wide and 6 feet long. About 18 inches from the forward
end the wood was planed down to a thickness of 1/4 of an inch. This
end was placed in the dish-pan of boiling water, and in a short time it
was pliable enough to permit of bending. It was secured in the proper
bent position by slipping the toe end of the shoe between the banisters
on the back porch and nailing a cleat back of the heel end. When the ski
was perfectly dry the toe strap was nailed on just back of the balancing
point, and also another strap, to be secured about the ankle. Then a
cleat was nailed onto the ski to fit against the heel of the shoe. In use
we found it best to cut a groove in the bottom of the ski, so as to give
us a better grip on the snow in climbing up hills. With the skis we had
to use short poles or "ski sticks" to assist in starting, stopping and
steering when coasting. The ski stick was a bean pole provided with a
wooden block near the lower end, to prevent it from being forced too
far through the snow.

The Swiss Snow Shoe or Swamp Shoe.
The Swiss shoe was made primarily to assist us in exploring some
boggy land a short distance up the river from our island. The original
swamp shoes were made from the bottoms of two old baskets, and they
worked so admirably that it was decided to equip the whole society
with them. Uncle Ed, when told about them, informed us that that was
the kind