330 Woodcraft Manual for Girls Blue. They had no good blue. Blue clays come nearest to the color. Sometimes black and white mixed were used. Black. Soot and charcoal, ground into the paint oil, made a good black. White. For white they used white clays, which are com- mon in some regions, or burnt shells, finely powdered. "Generally speaking. Black means joy; White, mourning; Red, beauty; and an excessive use of any of Uiese or other colors, excitement." Painting or greasing was universal among Indians. They did c b'^autify themselves and also to protect the skins from the
- 'i r. Though we condemn them for the practice, most of
» somen and a great many of our men do the same thing for . idme reason. Woodcraft Dyes The dyes used to stain porcupine quills, spruce roots, and other strong material, of which they made ornaments and utensils, were very numerous, and some of them very beautiful. Red. Soak the roots in the juice of the Squaw-berry- BHtum or Mis-caw-wa. Many other berries give red or purple. Black. Boil the roots, etc., with the bark, branches, and berries of sunuic, or the bark and chips of oak and soft maple, with some iron in the pot. Yellow. A beautiful yellow is made by boiling the inner bark of golden or black oak. Or the root of yellowroot or hydrastis. In the Rocky Mountains the ycilow moss off frine trees serves. Orange. Orange is obtained by two dips— one in the red and one in the yellow after the first is dry. Lace or Thong If you need a lace or thong and have no leather long enough, take a square piece, round the corners, then cut it round and round, till it is all used up. Pull and roll the thong produced, until it is small and even, without kinks. Woodcraft Buttont On the Plains, when a button is lost or needed, it is easy to make one of leather. Usually a piece of an old strap is used. Cut it the right size, make two holes in it, and sew
