I have said it was
tedious. Then we filed off each of the smaller bones projecting
from the neural arch until they were of equal length.
They extended on either side about ten inches, which, allowing
four inches for the width of the larger bone and one inch for the
covering, would make our raft slightly over a foot in depth.
To make the cylindrical column rigid, we bound each of the
vertebrae to the one in direct juxtaposition on either side
firmly with strips of hide, several hundred feet of which we had
prepared.
This gave us four beams held straight and true, without any play
in either direction, with only a slight flexibility resulting
from the cartilages within the center cord.
With these four beams we formed a square, placing them on their
edges, end to end. At each corner of the square we lashed the
ends together firmly with strips of hide. It was both firm and
flexible after we had lashed the corners over and over with the
strips, that there might be no play under the strain of the
current.
Over this framework we stretched the large piece of hide so that
the ends met on top, near the middle. The bottom was thus
absolutely watertight.
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