The snowshoe is held to the foot by a wide buckskin thong attached at
the semicircular space back of the toe-bar. The ends must be far enough
apart to admit the width of the foot as far as the toes, and must be
then drawn down to prevent the foot from pushing too far forward and
striking against the toe-bar. The loop passing over the toes must be
slack enough to allow free movement of the foot. When the strap suits
the foot it is passed around the heel of the wearer and tied
sufficiently tight to give ease and comfort. If too tight, the weight
soon presses the tendon of the heel. If too loose, it drops down and the
toe slips from under the toe band.
The single-bar snowshoes are not much used, because they are somewhat
difficult to make. They are of two styles. One has the bar directly
under the center of the foot. It is wide, and should be strong enough to
sustain the weight of any wearer. The other style is where the single
bar is at the front of the toes, which pattern differs from the
"beaver-tail" style only in the absence of the heel bar. This pattern is
considered the easiest of all to wear and walk in when once learned.
The foot straps are exactly like those of the common kinds.
[Illustration: FIG. 131.--Wooden snowshoe, Little Whale river.]
The single bar in the middle of the snowshoe renders it a matter of
great discomfort until one is accustomed to it, as the straps are simply
loops for the toe and heel. This pattern has been already figured. The
largest snowshoes measure as much as 28 inches across and 3 feet in
length.
Some of the Indians acquire great expertness in the use of these
snowshoes, and are able to run quite rapidly with them. The width of the
shoes causes one to straddle widely to allow one snowshoe to pass above
and over the other. Care must be exercised that while bringing the rear
foot forward the frame does not strike the ankle and produce a serious
bruise. In ascending a hill the toe must elevate the snowshoe to avoid a
stumble. In descending the body must be thrown well back or a pitch
heels over head ensues, and sometimes the frames strike the back of the
head.
To put them on the feet the foot must enter the loop from forward toward
the rear, and when the loop is on the foot the latter must be turned
within the loop and then passed under the toe band.
Everybody wears snowshoes--men, women, and children. Without them travel
in winter would be an impossibility, and as the capture of furs is made
in winter and the ground to be hunted over must of necessity be of great
area, the snowshoe becomes a necessity as much as the canoe in summer.
I collected two peculiar pairs of snowshoes, made of flat spruce boards
(Fig. 131). They are shaped exactly like netted snowshoes of the "beaver
tail" pattern, and the arrangement of the foot strap is the same as
usual.
They came from the Little Whale river Indians, who informed me that they
were worn on soft snow.
In the spring of the year, when the snow is rapidly melted by sun, the
netted snowshoes become clogged with slush, rendering the weight very
fatiguing. Wooden snowshoes are admirably adapted for that season of the
year, and may be made in a few hours, while the netted ones require
several days' assiduous labor. The Indians of the Koksoak valley do not
use the wooden snowshoes.