Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/420

 40 8 General Obfervations on

bake great loaves, they make a ftrong blazing fire, with fhort dry fplit wood, on the hearth. When it is burnt down to coals, they carefully rake them off to each fide, and fweep away the remaining afhes : then they put their well-kneeded broad loaf, firft fteeped in hot water, over the hearth, and an earthen bafon above it, with the embers and coals a-top. This method of baking is as clean and efficacious as could poffibly be done ,in any oven ; when they take it off, they wafli the loaf with warm water, ,and it foon becomes firm, and very white. It is likewife very wholefome, .and well-tafted to any except the vitiatedpalate of an Epicure.

The French of Weft-Florida, and the Englifh colonifts, got from fthe Indians different forts of beans and peas, with which they were be fore entirely unacquainted. And they plant a fort of fmall tobacco, which .the French and Englim have not. All the Indian nations we have any ac quaintance with, frequently uie it on the moft religious occafions. The women plant alfo pompions, and different forts of melons, in feparate fields, t a confiderable diftance from the town, where each owner raifes an high /caffold, to over-look this favourite part of their vegetable poffefiions : and though the enemy fometimes kills them in this their ftricT: watch duty, yet it is a very rare thing to pafs by thofe fields, without feeing them .there at watch. This ufually is the duty of the old women, who fret at the very ftvadow of a crow, when he chances to pafs on his wide furvey of the fields ; but if pinching hunger fliould excite him to defcend, they foon frighten him away with their fcreeches. When the pompions are ripe, they .cut them into long circling flices, which they barbacue, or dry with a flow heat. And when they have half boiled the larger fort of potatoes, they likewife dry them over a moderate fire, and chiefly ufe them in the fpring-fealbn, mixt with their favourite bear's oil. As foon as the lar ger fbrt of corn is full-eared, they half-boil it too, and dry it either by the fun, or over a flow fire, which might be done, as well, in a moderately hot oven, if the heat was renewed as occafion required. This they boil with venifon, or any other unfalted fiefli. They commonly have pretty good crops, which is owing to the richnefs of the foil ; for they often let the weeds out-grow the corn, before they begin to be in earneft with their work, owing to their lazinefs and unfldlfulnefs in plant ing : and 'this method is general through all thofe nations that woik fe-

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