292 FOREST LIFE IN ACADIE. 



for myself is worthy of note. *' In nearly all timber 

 lands," lie says, speaking of this part of North America, 

 ** large fungi will be found growing on the sides of semi- 

 decayed trees ; this gather, and dry thoroughly in the 

 sun, when it will smoulder if lighted, like a joss-stick. 

 The smoke is not disagreeable to man, and tv/o or three 

 pieces kept frequently at work will soon drive all the 

 winged pests to other quarters. A piece about the size 

 of a walnut will burn for over a quarter of an hour." 



Overtaken by nightfall, one is sometimes compelled to 

 camp in low-lying swampy ground, when it becomes 

 exceedingly hard to light a fire, owing to the steam 

 rising from the damp, peaty soil beneath. In this case 

 we resort to the following expedient — an excellent plan, 

 worth remembering — namely, to cut down two or three 

 small firs and chop them into lengths of four or iive feet, 

 placing them side by side ; this forms a platform, and 

 the fire kindles readily upon it, and the platform itself 

 burns with the rest. Another plan for establishing a 

 good fire when there are plenty of rocks to be obtained 

 near the camp, is to make a good broad hearth with flat 

 slabs ; the stones will themselves emit much heat when 

 the fire is established, and it will burn better and clearer, 

 and may always be relighted with very little trouble ; 

 and, moreover, the great hole which the fire soon burns 

 in the ground beneath, and into which it sinks, will thus 

 be avoided. 



And now for a few remarks on the interior economy 

 of a camp. A small amount of light literature will while 

 away idle hours spent within — magazines or reviews are 

 the best generally. For a fishing camp there are several 

 excellent American publications on the sport of the British 



I 



