A WATER-PROOF LINE CASE 
\Y7 HEN you buy a lot of line at one 
time in order to save something- 
on the cost, you will need a water-proof 
case to keep the surplus in. Probably 
the line came on a long spool. In 
this case, you can make a good protec- 
tor for it out of a small tin or brass can. 
Get a can which is large enough to 
take the spool of line and preferably 
with a screw top. Cut a hole in one 
side about one-quarter inch in diameter. 
Now roughen the inside of the can 
around the hole with a piece of sand 
paper. Cut a small square of rubber 
from -a sheet (it may be taken from an 
old inner tube) and after coating one 
side with glue, apply it to the inside 
over the hole. It will be well to force 
a plug or something into the can to hold 
it tightly in place until the glue has set. 
Now make a small slit with a pen- 
knife through the rubber and run the 
end of the line through from the inside. 
Insert the spool, and after turning on 
the cap the case will be complete. 
In this way the line can be drawn 
out as wanted (always leave an inch or 
so protruding through the rubber) and 
yet it is in a tight container, convenient 
to carry and always ready. You might 
think that it wouldn’t matter if the line 
does get wet. Ordinarily it wouldn’t 
hurt, but unless air is freely circulated 
about it the line will mould and weaken. 
The rubber can be made more secure 
if a piece of tin is soldered over it on 
the inside, and if you have a small sol- 
dering iron it will not be difficult. It 
will also be well to soak a small rag 
with good machine oil and place this' in 
the bottom of the can. The oil per- 
meates the interior, preventing rust and 
water-proofing, to a certain extent, the 
line. Van Horn. 
E are depending upon the 
friends and admirers of our 
old correspondent Nessmuk to 
make this department worthy of 
his name. No man knew the woods 
better than Nessmuk or wrote of 
them with quainter charm. Many 
of his practical ideas on camp- 
ing and “going light” have been 
adopted by the United States 
Army; his canoe has been preserved 
in the Smithsonian Institution; and 
%oe hope that all good looodsmen 
will contribute to this department 
their Hints and Kinks and trail- 
tested contrivances ^ — [Editor.] 
A SIMPLE SHELTER 
E very person who travels in the 
woods will at one time or another 
have to build some sort of shelter from 
material that he can easily obtain. The 
occasion may come of one’s own free 
will, as when such a shelter is purposely 
depended upon for a one-night stop; or 
it may come from the force of neces- 
sity, such as when one becomes lost and 
darkness is close at hand. For this rea- 
son it is wise for everybody who fre- 
quents the woods to learn to build a 
suitable shelter. 
Such a shelter, to be of any use what- 
ever, must be easily and quickly con- 
structed, and must furnish the necessary 
protection. The well-known “lean-to” 
model of shelter meets these require- 
ments fairly well, if it is constructed 
with ends to it; however, this model re- 
quires a large amount of thatching, the 
area of the roof and sides being great 
compared with the floor space. The 
form of shelter that best meets the re- 
quirements is one that is built after the 
pattern of the well-known “forester 
tent.” The roof of such a shelter is 
supplied by two triangular sections with 
two of their edges forming the ridge of 
the shelter. This gives a triangular 
floor space and also a triangular front. 
A shelter of this shape is the one that 
is most easily heated by an open fire 
placed in front of it, because the sides 
act as reflectors, throwing the heat down 
into the interior. This feature is not 
to he scoffed at, especially if one is 
without blankets or sleeping bag. 
The principal part of the frame work 
consists of a pair of shears and a ridge 
pole, one end of which rests in the 
shears and the other on the ground. 
Smaller poles, with one of their ends 
resting on the ground, are then laid on 
the ridge pole. The branches of these 
poles should not be broken or cut off 
close to the main stem ; but they should 
be cut so as to leave about six inches 
of their length on the poles, in order 
that they may hold the cross-poles , 
which go on next. The cross-poles are ' 
laid the full length of the shelter and 
are held in place by the branches which 
were left on the other poles. 
The shelter is now ready for the most i 
important part of all, the thatching. | 
Upon the care with which this work is 
performed depends the success of the 
whole thing, for the primary object in 
building it is to obtain protection from , 
the elements, and if this is not furnished ' 
the whole work is for naught. There- 
fore spend as much time as is feasible 
upon the thatching of the roof. | 
There are several methods by which 
the thatching can be done. Probably the 
most satisfactory means of doing this I 
lis by the use of loose leaves. In order l 
that leaves may be used it will first be 
necessary to place a layer of twigs and 
small branches upon the framework of 
the shelter. This layer is necessary to | 
hold the leaves, as they would soon fall ; 
through the large spaces of the frame- | 
work. The leaves can now be gathered 
up in arm fulls and thrown on the top 
of the layer of branches. This allows i 
them to settle in the natural position, i 
which is flat, and not on edge, as would ; 
be the case if they were laid on in i 
handfulls. The largest possible leaves ) 
should be used, as they shed the water 
much better. ! 
If the leaves are left lying on the 
shelter this way they will soon blow | 
away. For this reason some means must « 
be used to hold them in place. The 
best method of doing this is to put a 
layer of dirt on top of them. However, j 
it requires a large amount of dirt to do i 
