550 
October, 1920 
MAKING FIRES 
By A. F. Westervelt 
O LD Prometheus certainly had noth- 
ing on us, so far as the desire to 
monkey with fire goes — he started 
something with his gift of fire that we 
humans have carried on ever since. We 
begin to play with matches even as tod- 
dling youngsters; we start to build fires 
in our backyards just about as soon as 
we are able to walk. The desire to create 
flame seems to have been born in us, it 
must be the handing down of desires 
that reposed in the breasts of our savage 
forbears, the fire-people of prehistoric 
times. Whatever or whoever is responsi- 
ble the instinct is there, and so strongly 
implanted that repeated warnings or 
whippings will hardly keep a youngster 
from the fascinating element. 
Hut building, too, seems to be one of 
the early desires; but for what purpose 
was the hut constructed? As I remem- 
ber, it was merely an excuse for the fire. 
A dreary thing in reality, this shack, 
or ramshackle construction, knocked to- 
A lazy man’s fire 
gether of old boards and pieced out with 
tin and canvas as it stood, but, with a 
cosy brick or stone fireplace, agleam with 
a somewhat smoky fire, this hut became 
a place of wondrous possibilities. 
What roast potato feasts, what plan- 
ning for real camps and outings took 
place within the wails of this hut and 
yet, what damage often resulted from the 
blaze started therein and left to itself 
by thoughtless and careless youngsters. 
Some of us have grown wise with ex- 
perience, some of us, even yet, are care- 
less or thoughtless and are, in the hand- 
ling of fire, a menace to the community 
or territory. 
So much damage has been done, in 
spite of the wide publicity given this 
subject by means of the press, lectures 
and posted notices that certain States 
absolutely prohibit the making of open 
fires without a permit from the local 
warden. This is a very wise provision 
although, if on a short trip, it material- 
ly lessens the period of enjoyment, if one 
has to take time to hunt for the warden. 
FT/'F are depending upon the 
rr 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 camping 
and “ going light ” have been 
adopted by the U nited States Army ; 
his canoe has been preserved in the 
Smithsonian Institution; and we 
hope that all good woodsmen will 
contribute to this department their 
Hints and Kinks and trail-tested 
continuances. — [Editors.] 

Some other way of preparing a hot 
meal, besides that of the open fire, must 
be arranged and here a portable stove 
of some kind comes into its own, but, as 
this stove proposition is a big chapter 
in itself, we will not touch upon it in this 
article, very much in detail. 
As the hunting season approaches and 
the clear, frosty air sets the blood ting- 
ling, to the woods and hills will flock hun- 
dreds of sportsmen, the knowing and the 
unknowing, the careful and the heedless. 
Again will feather and fur fall at the 
report of the gun and again, alas, will 
acres of timber fall before the wind- 
driven blaze. Again will the careless or 
ignorant hunter flip his burning cigar 
or cigarette-end into the brush and again 
will many a tenderfoot break camp and 
leave the coals of his night’s fire still 
glowing, to be later blown into flame by 
the wind with the resultant destruction 
of miles of forest. This is the season 
that makes trouble for the forest ranger, 
as, heedless of ordinary precautions, of 
law, of common sense, the amateur camp- 
er literally blazes his way in the woods. 
For those who select the sea beaches 
for camping, there is not this danger to 
be feared — a fire may be left to burn it- 
self out, as there is not very much dan- 
ger of its spreading unless it is built 
too near the dried grass and mosses of 
the dunes. Even at that, it is much 
better to spill water over the coals be- 
fore leaving your camp. 
F OR a woods fire, there are a few 
little suggestions that may not come 
amiss for the benefit of those who 
may not be really seasoned trampers. Be- 
fore one starts any kind of a fire, it is 
well to have a clear, unburnable space 
upon which to kindle it. See that it is 
not built against anything that will hold 
living coals, such as a rotten log or 
stump. It is very hard to put this out; 
the fire may seem to be extinguished yet 
the inner part of the log or stump may 
contain a spark that may later burst into 
flame. It is not necessary to build a fire 
a mile high for a cook fire, nor one so 
large for any purpose that it may leap 
into the branches of nearby bushes. 
If the location you have chosen for 
your camp needs drying, build a large 
fire of brush until the ground is dried 
out, rake the ashes away, clear away 
stones or roots, smooth over, and pitch 
your tent; if your fire has to be made 
on ice or snow, first make a platform of 
logs or poles or you.r fire will soon melt 
the ice or snow and it will settle down 
into the slush and go out. 
When finished with your fire, put it 
out — well out, not only for the sake of 
safety but it is the law; the best way is 
to use water and a whole lot of it. 
The beginner seems to feel, as a gen- 
eral thing, that a fire is a fire no matter 
for what purpose it is kindled — not so, 
there are all kinds of fires, cook fires, 
signal fires, fires for heating, fires around 
which the party may wish to congregate 
at night, to relax and to yarn over the 
day’s happenings, and smudge fires for 
the insect pests. 
As there are many kinds of cook fires 
