s, as among the remains found are litters of straw, etc.,
which had evidently served as bedding for these animals. This, of
course, necessitated the gathering of grass or other material for
their food. They also cultivated wheat, barley, flax, and a number of
other vegetable products. Their methods of cultivation were no doubt
very rude, consisting of a mere scratching of the ground with crooked
branches of trees or with simple instruments made of stags' horn; but,
nevertheless, they succeeded in getting very good results. Among the
relics which they have left are found stones for crushing corn, the
grain which they used, and even the very cakes or bread which they
made. There are also fruits, such as the apple, pear, nut, etc.; so
that the bill of fare of prehistoric man was by no means contemptible.
He had fish, game, beef, mutton, pork, bread, and fruit, besides a
plentiful supply of water from the lake at his door. He was acquainted
with the potter's art, and manufactured earthen vessels of various
kinds. He seems to have produced two kinds--a coarser and a finer; the
former made from clay mixed with a quantity of grains of stone, and
the latter of washed loam. These he ornamented in an elementary
fashion with certain lines and marks. Some of the vessels he used have
been found with a burnt crust of the porridge which he had been making
adhering. As to his clothes, these were probably formed in great part
from the skins of wild or domestic animals, but he also used fabrics
made from flax, which he had learned to weave, as remains of cloth,
twine, rope, etc., are not infrequently found in his dwellings.

One prominent feature in the history of these lake dwellers is their
gradual advance in the arts of civilization. While the main features
of their settlements remain very much the same during the whole period
of their residence, there is a gradual improvement in the details; the
settlements become larger, and the implements, etc., better finished.
And this is especially observable in the change of material which the
dweller uses. In the earlier stages of his existence stone is the
predominant feature, all his knives, saws, chisels, axes, etc., are
made from this substance; but as time rolls on, one or two implements
are found made of bronze, which is a mixture of tin and copper, and
requires for its production a certain amount of knowledge and
mechanical skill. Gradually the number of bronze implements increases
unti