From Chapter XV: Osier Peeling and Basket Making

“The basket-maker, who works either in a covered shed or in an open one according to the weather, sits on a board on the ground; his chief tool is a short broad-bladed knife, sharp as a razor. Simple as a basket looks when made, it does not look such easy work as one watches the smart workman picking his osiers from seven assorted sizes, and bending the twigs to their proper places, cutting here and there, and twirling the basket round first this way, then that. He works hard, and considers he has done a good day’s work when he has made a dozen common hampers and lids, large enough to hold a good-sized cod or salmon. For these he will get three shillings; and surely he will have earned every penny of it, for considerable skill is required; for besides the actual knowledge of basket-making, there is great judgment needed for using the appropriate osiers at the right time. Such hampers sell for eightpence each. The basket-maker whom we see at work in the second plate was as obliging as his son, who was learning the trade, and entered well into the spirit of the thing when we suggested a picture; so we wish him a long life and a great sale of baskets, swills, and skeps, but we are not sure we wish as great a demand for his cradles and perambulators.” p. 95

“Salix viminalis, the basket willow common osier or osier, is a species of willow native to Europe, Western Asia, and the Himalayas.“—Wikipedia accessed 2025