642 WOODCRAFT. 



heavy for one person, it should be shouldered by two men, one at 

 each end, and carried right side up. There is a knack in walking, 

 too, which should be acquired, namely : always run your eye along 

 the trail at least a rod in advance, so that you may not only see 

 soft places, rocks, roots, and other obstructions, but calculate to a 

 nicety just where your steps are to be made. This practice will 

 prevent stumbling; it also enables one to discern a blind trail 

 easily, and teaches him to observe any strange signs which might 

 otherwise pass unnoticed. If you are thirsty by the wayside, and 

 have no cup handy, bend up a portion of the brim of your felt hat 

 so as to form a cup, and drink out of that. It is better than lying 

 flat on the stomach to drink from a pool or spring, whereby there 

 is real danger of swallowing living creatures that may possibly 

 cause serious difficulty afterwards. A cup may be instantly fash- 

 ioned by cutting a slit longitudinally in a piece of clean bark ; and 

 lapping the divided parts, one over the other, hold them between 

 the thumb and fingers. 



Camp sites should be selected for access to wood and water — ■ 

 wood first ; but there are many other considerations to take into 

 account, such as shelter, immunity from insects, or proximity to 

 game*. A high open knoll away from water is preferable, in fly 

 time, to a location on a river bottom. Sandy beaches or gravelly 

 points are liable to swarm with midges or punkies, and the thicker 

 woods with mosquitoes. Points where a I;reeze draws up or down 

 a stream are the most desirable. Black flies do not molest between 

 sunset and sunrise. The camp site being chosen, the first duties, 

 are to fix the shelter, cut wood, and get the kettle boiling. A let- 

 ter A tent is the greatest luxury in camping, but in fair weather a 

 tilt or half tent of canvas or blankets, or a " rough slant " of bark 

 or boughs laid on poles supported by crotches, are comfortable 

 enough when a good fire is kept up. Or, for the matter of a night, 

 a screen of spruce boughs to windward, or the canoe turned over 

 to protect the chest and shoulders, is a good make-shift. The lee 

 of a protecting ledge, with a bush screen, is a dry and comfortable 

 camp. A permanent shanty is made with sides four logs high and 

 a peaked roof of poles covered with bark or split shingles four feet 

 long, with a hole at the top for smoke. In this way also a conical 

 wigwam can be constructed, Indian fashion. Make the bed of 



