this, and dirt is often hard to dig. This 
i being the case, the next best method of 
accomplishing it is to lay large sticks 
upon the roof. Care must be taken to 
: see that they are not placed in such a 
: way as to prevent the water from run- 
ning off the roof freely. 
During the time of the year when the 
trees are in leaf, branches with the 
leaves on may be used in place of loose 
leaves. In this case, it will not be neces- 
sary to first place a layer of branches 
and twigs on the framework. The com- 
pound leaves of such trees as the wal- 
nut, hickory and ash make excellent 
thatching material, when the trees are 
plentiful enough to furnish them in suffi- 
cient numbers. 
If the shelter is to be used for any 
length of time it will certainly pay to 
make the roof of the bark of such trees 
as the paper-birch, basswood, slippery 
and white elms, pignut hickory, chestnut, 
spruce and hemlock, because the thatch- 
ing of leaves is very likely to leak if 
rained upon for a period of any length. 
The construction of such a shelter as 
is here described, if it -is thatched of 
leaves, can be accomplished by one man 
in about an hour and a half. This is 
a small price to pay for a comfortable 
night’s rest. 
Wilbur C. Feastee. 
SECRET LOCK FOR CABIN 
DOOR 
H ere is a suggestion for a cheap and 
effective bar for the hunting camp 
door: Secure 3 beckets on the inside of 
door, opening outward; insert a wooden 
bar, say 1 by inch, through corre- 
sponding openings in beckets and also in 
the jamb. Butting into that have a bar 
same size leading through 2 beckets be- 
tween the logs to the corner of the cabin. 
To secure the door go outside around 
the corner, remove a bunch of moss 
from between the logs, push the bar 
forward until short bar reaches the 
check. The two ends of the bars being 
concealed by the wide becket, the long 
bar is concealed from view by a split 
sapling tacked over it between the logs. 
Cut a Quaker 1 fly hole to supply an 
apparent cause of fastening. 
All this may be done in the woods 
with an axe, at no cost whatever and 
be entirely secure from observation. Mr. 
Robbin’s iron bar, described in the 
March Eorest and Stream, may be se- 
cured in the same manner if desired, 
although one would know at once that 
the bar must of necessity be fastened 
from the outside somehow and that 
would start an investigation. 
L. V. Shaw. 
COOK AS YOU PADDLE 
W HEN we go canoeing we usually 
travel as far and as long each day 
as wind and sun will allow, and we con- 
gratulate ourselves that each year we 
overcome one more inconvenience, even 
the greatest of all inconveniences — hun- 
ger. A fire on the stream shore at night 
is romantic and picturesque, but it doesn’t 
assuage one’s hunger to feed the gnaw- 
ing void on the smell of slowly cooking 
stews. So we have a small fireless cooker 
that works while we paddle. 
At the point of embarkation we beg, 
borrow or help ourselves to a pasteboard 
carton about two feet square. This we 
fill with excelsior, and in the middle sink 
an absestos receptacle a little larger but 
the same shape as a two-quart tin pail. 
While we are cooking breakfast and 
sipping our after-bacon cup of coffee, 
our supper stews on the fire in its ten- 
ccnt pail. The last thing before the fire 
is spread out to die the pail and contents 
are slipped into the excelsior bed, cov- 
ered with some of the duffle and forgot 
till night. 
This arrangement is so satisfactory we 
are willing to give the cooker the coveted 
room in the canoe. It has other advan- 
tages. It is surprisingly light. It is 
cheap, easy to assemble and as easily 
disposed of at the end of the way. 
In this steam chamber we cook soup 
of any sort and stews, if we are fortunate 
enough to touch civilization near enough 
to find a bone, porridge, rice, beans or 
anything else that is filling. 
Before we leave home we always break 
up in the meat grinder some dried heans 
and split peas. We flavor this with a 
little dried sage and store it away in 
air-tight tins. This concoction thus re- 
duced to fine grains easily cooks to a 
stew in four or five hours. A piece of 
ham added to it improves it greatly. 
O. C. Haskins, Georgia. 
A FLOAT FOR STILL FISHING 
’T'WO boys starting on a fishing trip 
took along two old automobile inner 
tubes. They were going to spend a 
week on the river and as one said, “We’ll 
take them along for they may come in 
handy.” And they did. 
Once camp was pitched they fared 
forth for a likely hole. The grassy bank 
of the stream was overgrown with wil- 
lows and here and there they came upon 
a small eddy where the water was prac- 
tically still. But during the forenoon of 
the first day with pole and line a lot 
of different places netted but one fish, 
a pound cat. 
“Harry,” exclaimed Jim, as they 
cooked the fresh fish over the evening 
fire, “there are plenty of fish here, and 
big ones, too. We’ve got to set out 
some lines.” So the lines were put out 
and the next morning two big fellows 
were hauled in. “This is more like it,” 
shouted Jim from the river bank, as he 
dragged the largest fellow toward camp. 
But it was not until the next day, 
when they rented a boat that the idea 
using the inner tubes for fishing, 
came to them. This is what they did: 
The tubes were inflated until fairly 
tight and then five or six short lines, 
hooked, sinkered and baited, tied to 
them. A stout cord was then tied to 
each tube by means of which they were 
anchored to a convenient sapling. Then, 
when they were out in the boat, or on 
the bank, for that matter, they could 
see from a distance the moment a fish 
was hooked. At one time two fish were 
caught on the same tube and there cer- 
tainly was a merry bobbing up and 
down of the tube until they were taken 
off. D. H. V. H., Nebraska. 
