Page:The Pima Indians.pdf/138

] The stems of the cat-tail, Typha angustifolia Linn., are used as foundation in the common baskets. They are gathered in July when green, and are split and dried. The stalks curl inward along the split surface while drying, so that they have the appearance of round stems with a mere line running along one side to show where they were split. These stalks are from 1 to 2 m. long and are kept in bundles, sometimes 25 cm. in diameter, but usually much less.

The pods of the devil's claw, Martynia fragrans Lindl., furnish the third material necessary for the ordinary basket. The supply of wild plants is not large enough, and a few martynia seeds are planted each year by the basket makers. These are gathered in the autumn at any time after the plant has dried. They are made into bundles (fig. 58) for storing or for barter by tying a few hooks together and then pushing other hooks down into the center and allowing the pods to curve over one another. Each half of a pod is provided with one of these long recurved hooks, from 15 to 20 cm. in length (fig. 59). They are black on the surface, and hence desired for the purpose of contrasting with the white willow to form the designs. Their central portion is pithy, but the outside is very tough and woody. To prepare for use, the devil's claw is soaked over night and then buried in moist earth for a day or more. It is then dug out, usually by a party of women, who make a "bee" of it, and the outer fiber of each claw is removed by breaking the hooked end and holding it in the teeth while the split fiber is pulled off with the fingers. Figure 60 shows such a party stripping the fibers, which appear in a coil at the knees of the second figure from the right. In the foreground is a heap of stripped pods. A small board in front of each woman is to lay the splint on when thinning and shaping it. Instead of soaking and burying the devil's claw, some have begun to hasten the process by pouring hot water over it and proceeding at once to strip off the fiber. The strips are kept in coils (fig. 57, b) similar to those of willow. They are valued somewhat more highly than the willow splints, and