darkness to see how much higher the water is going to 

 rise. It does not usually rise much higher, but you 

 have another good story, and, once more, you'll do bet- 

 ter next time. 



Granted now that the tent does not leak, doesn't 

 blow down and doesn't begin to fill up from below, the 

 novice must still learn that any objects touching the 

 walls of a tent during a rainstorm get wet because they 

 divert the water from its course to the ground. And 

 here I may say that this is one reason why I prefer a 

 wall tent to a so-called "A" tent or wedge tent. In a 

 heavy rain, when you may wish to put some extra 

 things into the tent, a strip about a foot wide all around 

 the inside of an "A" tent cannot be used, because any 

 article placed there would touch the sloping walls and 

 get wet. On the other hand, a wall tent, if set up prop- 

 erly offers the same area of usable floor space on rainy 

 nights as on sunny days, and the few minutes more it 

 requires to set up a wall' tent bring a rich return in 

 added comfort. 



The roominess of a wall tent is especially appreciated 

 on rainy days. On those occasions the flaps are thrown 

 back, a fire is kept burning in front of the tent, and 

 one has a cozy, warm, little house for reading or writ- 

 ing, for chatting or for just dreaming and looking at 

 the rain. Squatting a whole day in a small "A" tent 

 is strongly suggestive of living in a dog house. 



In a wooded country, it is not necessary to carry tent 

 poles. My light-weight silkolene tent is generally set 

 up without any poles, the rope being stretched be- 

 tween two conveniently located trees. If two suitable 

 trees cannot be found, one end of the rope is passed 



14 



