January, 1922 
FOREST AND STREAM 
21 
strong wind, and obviates the need of 
shifting the hold to consult those por- 
tions of the map near the edges. 
Use only very heavy cardboard or 
Bristol board of about the thickness 
commonly used as a foundation for 
desk - blotters. In mounting, photo- 
graphic paste is employed, and a light 
coat of varnish preserves from dirt and 
moisture. 
Of course it often is necessary to cut 
the road-map into two or more parts, 
but you’ll find that method a much bet- 
ter way than to have the bother of a 
tightly rolled or folded affair. In the 
upper corner of the left-hand margin at- 
tach a label giving title of map, and also 
a number, if the original has been di- 
vided into two or more parts when 
mounted. 
To carry the maps in the machine; 
make a portfolio of flexible oilcloth, 
about 26 inches by 20 inches, with an 
extra wide flap held down by two ordi- 
nary snap fasteners taken from an old 
set of side curtains. 
M. H. Clarke, Vermont. 
RETRIEVING DUCK DECOYS 
W HEN the weather is cold and it is 
blowing a gale it is sometimes pretty 
hard work to take up a bunch of duck 
stool. I have found the following method 
to work well : I drop the anchor of my 
boat to one side of the bunch of stool, 
and, attaching a weight of eight or ten 
pounds to one end of a stout piece of 
cord, I throw the weight across the stool 
anchor ropes and pull the decoys toward 
the boat. Then when they are gathered 
together near the side of the boat I can 
take my time in picking them up and ar- 
ranging them in the rack. 
Brant, Pennsylvania. 
ICE CREEPERS 
POR the trapper who is working in a 
* country where there are many water- 
ways and large expanses of glare ice, a 
pair of creepers is an indispensable part 
of his outfit. These can be made easily 
and inexpensively by utilizing two blades 
of a worn-out mowing machine and two 
pieces of thin sheet iron three inches by 
seven inches for heel plates. The ac- 
companying drawings show clearly how 
they can be made. 
Bend the points of the blades at right 
angles and then bore two holes in the 
center of the heel plates to match the 
holes already in the blades. Also bore a 
hole in the centre of each of the heel 
plates and bend them up to almost right 
angles about inches from each end. 
Use two small bolts to fasten the 
creeper blade to the heel plate. Skate 
straps will do for fastenings and should 
be put on as shown in drawing. You 
will now have a pair of creepers that will 
stand the hardest kind of wear. J. G. 
WINTER WOODCRAFT 
T he old saying that there is always 
some way to do a thing if we can only 
find it is certainly true in the woodsman’s 
life. A fellow can count on it that his 
ingenuity and resourcefulness will be 
tested when he goes into the wilds for 
any considerable stay. And to the winter- 
outer a knowledge of woodcraft — that is, 
the best way to meet primitive conditions 
with meager facilities, and retain health, 
high spirits and an appreciation of the 
sport — becomes especially valuable. 
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TO WEAR 
Diagrams for ice-creepers 
In winter an outer may have to camp 
in very undesirable places. I read once 
of a novice who took along a snow- 
shovel and tried to show his woods-lore 
by fastening a piece of wood on its under 
side to provide leverage. That sounds 
fine, and is doubtless all right where 
snow-shoes are not used, but the camper 
in snows has no need of a shovel ; it is an 
unnecessary addition to his pack. He has 
to have snow-shoes, and the old-timer 
makes one of these answer every purpose 
of a snow-shovel. That is just one illus- 
tration of “the art of substituting.” 
Avoid a rope-ridge tent in winter; the 
weight of accumulating snow will make 
it sag and cause no end of trouble. Re- 
member that the tent for winter — unless 
you are unusually hardy and quite a 
skilful camper — should be enough larger 
than the summer tent to contain a stove 
and a pile of “advance” firewood (wood 
that is drying for later use). Be par- 
ticularly careful in the winter not to 
erect the tent within reach of any tree 
that is liable to fall during a storm. 
If you are going to stay in one place 
long enough to justify it, elevate your 
cook stove on a boxed-in pile of earth or 
sand. You will find it easier to work on, 
and safer. Use an elbow in the pipe so 
as to run it through a hole in the side of 
the tent; a pipe hole in the roof of your 
tent canvas generally lets in snow and 
rain. 
Never be without a little dry kindling; 
at your leisure provide against the pos- 
sible occasion when you may not have 
much time, and gather some small parti- 
cles of birch bark or a few handfuls of 
pine needles. Wrap them in a little piece 
of oilcloth, and keep the package con- 
stantly on your person, with matches in 
a waterproof case. These and a reliable 
compass the winter camper should never 
be without, for a sudden lowering of 
temperature or a “fade-away” by the sun 
may throw him into a dangerous position. 
Speaking of the compass reminds me 
of a little trick many woodsmen use when 
they have no instrument to aid in deter- 
mination of direction. In a section, and 
at a time of year when the wind is fairly 
constant in one direction, catch the “feel” 
of it in your ear. This part of your 
anatomy is particularly sensitive to even 
a slight breeze, and if you keep the same 
ear “in the wind” you will know you are 
not circling. 
Snow-blindness is one of the big dan- 
gers to which winter campers are ordi- 
narily exposed. Two things make the 
inexperienced outer an easy victim to 
snow-blindness: First, it will happen 
most likely when the sun is dull — just 
when the hiker is most apt to have laid 
' aside his glasses. Secondly, the first 
symptom is entirely misleading, for it 
appears in the nose, not the eyes. After 
the nose has run a while the victim be- 
gins ko “see double,” then the vision 
blurs. The eyes now feel as if there was 
sand in them, begin to water excessively 
and gradually close up. 
The best guard against snow-blindness 
is to use colored glasses ; but it is well 
to know a cure that can be used in the 
wilds. Be sure to have some cocaine in 
your first-aid kit; drop a little of it into 
the eye, then apply some powerful astrin- 
gent like sulphate of zinc, to reduce the 
distended blood vessels. 
In fixing up your camp it is well to 
{Continued on page 30) 
