bois de vache

[bwah duh vash]

noun

1. dried buffalo dung, used as fuel by Canadian and U.S. fur trappers in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Word History and Origins

Origin of bois de vache¹

1835–45, < Prairie Canadian French: literally, buffalo wood ( vache buffalo, French: cow)

Example Sentences

We made a small fire of bois de vache, to which Tiger presently brought a few twigs of mimosa, so that we were able to cook our supper; then we supplied our friends whose bedding had fallen into the abyss with such blankets and hides as we could spare.

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We made a poor fire of bois de vache and small bushes, large enough to cook our supper, then we put up our tents and secured our traps under the tarpaulin on a bed of stones, for the sky was overcast and led to expectation of rain.

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We halted in order to refresh ourselves and our cattle, but we were obliged, as was the case nearly the whole week, to kindle a fire of bois de vache, to prepare our supper.

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Last year’s signs of them were provokingly abundant; and wood being extremely scarce, we found an admirable substitute in the bois de vache, which burns exactly like peat, producing no unpleasant effects.

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We saw, moreover, the bois de vache of the wild cattle.

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