
A Convenient Auto-Kitchenette 
HEN the “Good old summer- 
WY time” comes, and we get hun- 
gry for the wildwoods where 
the birds sing, and the streams ripple 
with fish eager to bite, we shall need 
camping comforts. 
One of the most essential of them is 
a kitchenette that helps make eating a 
pleasure. 
Such a cabinet you can not buy ready 
made, but any one of ordinary mechan- 
ical ability can make one by following 
the instructions here given, at a very 
small expense. 
As the illustration shows, it is a com- 
partment trunk, attached to the rear of 
the automobile. Mine is supported by 
the tire-holder brackets of my Stude- 
baker light six car, but a little in- 
genuity will enable one to attach it to 
almost any make of car. 
It may seem rather large, but my ex- 
perience shows me that for a party of 
from two to four persons it should not 
be made smaller. 
It may be fastened to the running- 
board if desired, and the dimensions 
need not be changed for this location. 
The frame is made of one inch thick 
boards, one foot wide, increased to thir- 
teen and one-half inches by attaching to 
the edge a strip of similar thickness one 
and one-half inch wide, so as to se- 
cure a depth when finished of thirteen 
and one-fourth inches. The trunk is 
thirty-six inches wide and thirty-four 
inches high, and is divided into two 
main compartments by a cross partition 
one inch thick, fourteen inches wide, 
and thirty-four and one-fourth inches 
long. The frame is put together with 
tenpenny finishing nails. The upper 
main compartment is thirty-four and 
one-fourth inches wide, and twenty-four 
high, 
and five-eighths inches inside 

measurements. The lower compartment 
is.the same width but only eight inches 
high. The door of the upper compart- 
ment is made of one-half inch ceiling 
boards—up and down—being stayed at 
their upper edges with a cross piece of 
hard wood, one-half inch thick, and one 

and one-half inches wide, attached to 
the end of each ceiling board with a 
long finishing nail. Another similar 
strip is put across the lower inside mar- 
gin of the door (not on the edge) and 
attached with threepenny nails to 
clinch on the outside. Another similar 
strip is attached to the center of the 
door on the outside with clinched nails. 
These three hardwood strips give the 
door sufficient firmness so that it may 
be used as a table when let down. 
The back of the trunk is made of one- 
half inch ceiling boards, up and down. 
The lower compartment has a door 
eight inches wide made of a plain board. 
The entire trunk, except the back, is 
to be covered with black, auto-top rub- 
ber cloth. The back is painted black. 
The sides are to be covered first, 
using pieces of rubber cloth sixteen 
inches wide and thirty-five inches long. 
Tack the edge of the cloth, with black 
side next to the wood, along front edge 
of side, so that when the cloth is folded 
over to cover the side the heads of the 
tacks will be concealed. Then nail a 
piece of medium weight galvanized iron, 
two inches wide and thirty-five inches 
long, on the outer side of the front edge 
of the side, letting it project one-half 
inch—the thickness of the door—and 
extend one inch above the top. Fold the 
cloth over this metal projecting edge to 
completely cover it, and draw snug over 
the side and tack to the back of the 
trunk. Turn down the one-inch pro- 
jecting iron at top to form a rigid cor- 
ner, and after putting on both sides 
take a piece of rubber cloth sixteen 
inches wide and thirty-nine inches long 
and fasten to the top, with a similar 
strip of iron thirty-eight inches long, 
covered in with the cloth as were the 
sides, and bend down the one inch pro- 
jecing ends to form rigid corners. 
The covered projecting edges of the 
iron strips form a recess for the door to 
shut into, rendering it almost dust 
tight. 
The door should be hinged to the 
cross partition, which comes out flush 
with the outside of the door. The lower 
door should be hinged to the lower 
board of the frame, and should close in 
snug under the projecting edge of the 
cross partition. 
The two doors should be covered with 
the rubber cloth. The interior of the 
trunk may be divided into compartments 
to suit. Mine, as shown in the illustra- 
tion, has a bread box at the upper right 
corner lined with white oil-cloth with a 
close fitting door to keep the bread from 
drying out quickly. At the left upper 
corner is a compartment for the coffee 
pot, and between these compartments 
there is a large space for general use. 
Below the coffee pot is a compartment 
made to fit a “Duplex” one-cell fireless 
cooker, and below the bread box is one 
for a gallon “Thermoline” food jar. Be- 
tween these two compartments are the 
knife-and-fork drawer and small com- 
partments for pies, cakes, and dishes. 
The lower compartment is reserved for 
rough stuff—skillets, stew pans, basins, 
ten pounds of potatoes and a few 
onions, with a small soap box, and an 
egg crate holding a dozen eggs. 
The fireless cooker contains two cov- 
ered aluminium dishes and a soapstone 
heating disc—there should be two of 
these discs. These dishes may be used 
as food containers when not in use for 

Page 276 

