I won’t count myself as an expert, so feel free to skip this post if it isn’t helpful. My background is in U.S. history. I can’t speak to Canadian or British documentation.

Oral history and written history are two different matters and people will weigh them differently. I have not read Mr. Swankey’s work, but I would want to know more about what kind of “vetting” the Haida did before I can judge the impartiality of the work. (Edit to add, if you want to talk about the issues with oral history, my family’s oral history describes tribal members removing blankets from the graves of people who had passed from illness. This would be post-civil war northern plains. When I worked in collaboration with Crow staff from the Little bighorn site, I was informed that blankets were a status symbol and all us women had to wear them for a special event. I remember this because it was 90F out and I was ready to strangle the chief of interpretation with said blanket. But if this is true, then it could be interpolated that blankets–in this area–were valuable enough both practically and socially that some people would have enough motivation to take them in that manner. However, an entire narrative can not be written solely from such stories. Rather they should be small pieces of the bigger picture, supported or refuted by multiple sources.)

According to a U.S. history professor I worked with who was trying to trace primary sources for this aspect of history on the U.S. side, he believed this claim originated from a passing mention in a letter written by a British officer (I’m sorry, it was so long ago I can’t remember the officer’s name and date of the letter, and I don’t want to dox my coworker since his professional opinion may be unpopular).

He had been unable to find any further follow up in the written record, specifically in relation to any official U.S. government policy or general implementation of such a strategy. This was some years ago so I am unaware if his research produced any more primary sources. Thus far the letter he read has been the only direct primary source I’ve seen in it’s entirety. Like you, I have come up short when trying to locate documentation. The Wikipedia (yes, I know) page for smallpox lists several sources under the “biological warfare” section related to what is written there and it could be interesting to look into those publications.

I also have had questions about how people understood disease at this time, and how would they determine the unlucky guy who would get to “gift” infected goods and potentially be infected himself. I have to wonder how this was supposed to work logistically based on their (lack of) understanding of viruses. Maybe I’m over complicating this, but I would not be eager to mess around with anything from a smallpox victim any more than necessary.

This is a difficult subject to examine though and find the actual facts, both because of how long ago this was, and because of the emotional aspect. I still remember a (different) professor I had in college when I was studying for my bachelor’s in history who was giddy about how many white people had died from tobacco and how they deserved it and it was great the native tribes got revenge like that. I had a hard time accepting him as a (reasonably) unbiased source afterwards, though he would count as an expert.

This basically describes any activity I start with my daughter (5) 😄😭 Though she does like finger knitting, just not with the yarn I give her. Even if she chose it herself. Stolen scraps apparently make for the best finger knitting.

Yay for socks! (Booo for COVID)

I have sock related questions! I’m making a new pair of socks as a Christmas gift, for someone who wore a hole in the previous pair. How do you guys mend your socks? I patched them pretty quickly with a speed weave, but of course the texture of the patch doesn’t match. On the other hand I have a young child and I like the speed part of the speed weave 😅

Favorite sock yarns? I love Drops Fabel so much. The colors, durability, and price are all great. Plus lots of patterns from the company. But it is so much harder to get here in the U.S.

Has anyone used Cascade Yarns “Fixation?” The local yarn shop owner claims this yarn is near indestructible. But it’s pricey and cotton, so I’m not going to knit a whole pair out of it. I’m intending to reinforce the heel and toe of the socks I’m currently making with this yarn.

The Fabel socks I’ve started, plus a couple other pairs that are going strong after a several years of wear (red is one strand, blue is held double):

Seconding the suggestion to block! I’ve used the ironing board, large cardboard pieces with a towel on top, and even an old foam mattress to pin my work, depending on how big it is (but I don’t have blocking boards). Natural fibers I soak, pin into shape, and let dry. Synthetic fibers I steam with my iron (being careful to not actually touch them).