Camping and woodcraft - Scoutmastercg.com

CONCENTRATED FOODS 15/that "It is Indian corn parched in the hot ashes, theashes being sifted from it; it is afterwards beatento powder and put into a long leatherne bag trussedat the Indian's backe like a knapsacke, out of whichthey take three spoonsful a day." Roger Williams,the founder of Rhode Island, said that a spoonfulof nocake mixed with water made him "many agood meal." Roger did not affirm, however, that itmade him a square meal, nor did he mention thesize of his spoon.In Virginia this preparation was known by anotherIndian name, "rockahominy" (which is not, as oufdictionaries assume, a sjmonym for plain hominy,but a quite different thing). That most entertainingof our early woodcraftsmen. Colonel Byrdof Westover, who ran the dividing line betweenVirginia and North Carolina in 1728-29, speaks of itas follows:"Rockahominy is nothing but Indian corn parchedwithout burning, and reduced to Powder. The Firedrives out all the Watery Parts of the Corn, leavingthe Strength of it behind, and this being very dry,becomes much lighter for carriage and less liable tobe Spoilt by the Moist Air. Thus half a DozenPounds of this Sprightful Bread will sustain a Manfor as many Months, provided he husband it well,and always spare it when he meets with Venison,which, as I said before, may be Safely eaten withoutany Bread at all. By what I have said, a Man needsnot encumber himself with more .than 8 or 10 Poundsof Provision, tho' he continue half a year in theWoods. These and his Gun will support him verywell during the time, without the least danger ofkeeping one Single Fast."The Moravian missionary Heckewelder, in hisHistory^ Mariners and Customs of the IndianNations Jdescribes how the Lenni Lenape, or Delawares,prepared and used this emergency food:"Their Psindamooan or Tassmanane, as they call it,is the most nourishing and durable food made out ofthe Indian corn. The blue sweetish kind is the grainwhich they prefer for that purpose. They parch itin c^an hot ashes, until it bursts;, it is then sifted