The author of this paper has studied the vegetable fibers used in
fabricating objects in the ethnological and archaeological collections
from the Indian tribes of the Mississippi drainage and eastward, now
in the American Museum. The first task was to identify them and view
them against the background of existing textile knowledge. The present
paper reports these identifications and comments upon fiber samples
from collections in other museums.
The writing of this paper would have been impossible without the
generous and whole-hearted coöperation of many institutions and
individuals. This assistance has ranged from the furnishing of
specimens for determination, to advice as to methods, classifications,
and the supplying of modern material for comparison. For specimens of
classified plants to be used in the comparative work thanks are due to
The New York Botanical Garden in Bronx Park, the Botanical Departments
of the University of Wisconsin, the University of Oklahoma, and the
University of Georgia.
The standard histological microscopic methods were used for the
determination of the fiber. Slides were made of both cross-sections
and longitudinal sections and these were compared with previously
prepared and classified modern material. When the specimen was too
colored for microscopic examination it was bleached in a solution of
Sodium perborate until clear enough for study. In charred material,
when sufficient detail was preserved for identification the fiber
sample was treated with Schultz Maceration solution, washed, dried,
and fortified by saturating in a collodion solution. Occasionally, it
was found necessary to stain the material and in this either
Delafield's Haematoxylon or Methylene Blue was used. In the
differentiation of certain species, it was found necessary to make
microscopic measurements of the length and width of the cells, but
generally the shape, distribution, medullation, and other constant
characters were sufficient for the identifications.
In the text and tables the following abbreviations are used for the
names of the coöperating institutions:--
American Museum of Natural History AMNH
Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation MAIHF
Milwaukee Public Museum MPM
McGill University Archaeological Museum McGU
Ohio State Historical and Archaeological Museum OSHAM
Peabody Museum, Harvard University PMHU
Rochester Museum of Arts and Science RMAS
University of Kentucky Museum UKM
United States National Museum USNM