HINTS TO SPORTSMEN. 643 



evergreen boughs — balsam and hemlock are the softest — place 

 them in layers with the buts all one way, and shingle the buts of 

 the first row with the tops of the second, and so on successively. 

 Fires are made in various ways. For a good cooking fire, a back 

 should be made three logs high, supported against upright stakes 

 driven into the ground ; two logs at right angles, or two stones 

 placed in front to lay fuel on, will raise the latter from the ground 

 sufficiently for a good draft. Another mode is to lay two eight- 

 inch logs on skids, say two feet apart and parallel, filling in the 

 space with small fuel. The Indian fashion is to lay the sticks in a 

 circle, with the buts in the centre, resting on one another making 

 a conical pile. A tree should be felled, the trunk cut into logs, 

 and the branches being chopped up for fuel. In almost all woods 

 are logs, some time cut and seasoned that furnish dry fuel and 

 kindlings. To peel bark, girdle the tree at intervals of two or more 

 feet and split the sections with an axe longitudinally. In fly time, 

 when the air is still, make the camp fire so that the smoke will 

 blow into the tent or shanty, in order to drive out the flies ; but at 

 all times, and especially at night, guard against changes of wind 

 and flying sparks.* Clean greasy plates with moss and scour them 

 with sand. To clean knives and forks, simply thrust them two or 

 three times into the ground. At night, tuck your trowsers into 

 your woolen socks, and tie them at the ankles. Never .sleep with 



* To make Fire from Dry Wood luithout Matches. — Get a round spindle of dry 

 hard wood, oak for example, about a foot long and a quarter of an inch in diam- 

 eter ; polish it smooth, and round off one end. Then jjet a dry piece of some soft 

 pithy wood, elder will do ; if over half an inch in diameter split it : if less shave the 

 wood on one side down to the pith, making a flat surface ; make a small bow of 

 any springy wood or root, string it : buckskin is the best string ; get your kindling 

 wood all ready for your fire, together with some small dry splinters, grass or leaves, 

 or punk is best of all ; hold the soft wood, flat side up, firmly between your knees ; 

 take a turn with your bow string about the middle of the hard wood spindle ; set 

 the rounded end of the spindle in a little trench you will make in the soft wood or 

 pith ; press down with any flat piece of wood held in the left hand, on the other 

 end of the spindle ; work the bow back and forth, and the spindle will revolve 

 rapidly. In a little while the dust worn from the soft wood will fill the little trench, 

 smoke, and take fire. If punk is used, this spark will ignite it by bringing them 

 in contact ; if grass, as soon as the spark is well developed envelope it in dry grass 

 and wave rapidly back and forth until the fire is well set or breaks into flame. An 

 Indian expert in this method will get fire in about a minute, more or less, as his 

 material happens to be in condition, and will make it nearly as soon using both 

 hands, in place of the bow to revolve the spindle. 



