The American Boy's Handy Book

by Daniel Carter Beard

  Never attempt to send up a balloon upon a windy day, for the wind will be sure, sooner or later, to blow the blaze aside and set the paper on fire, and if once it catches up in the air there is not much use in trying to save it.

  After you have made a balloon like the one just described and sent it up successfully, you can try other shapes. A very good plan in experimenting is to make a small working model of light tissue-paper, fill it with cold air by means of an ordinary fan, and when it is expanded any defect in form or proportion can be readily detected and remedied. If it be too narrow, cut it open at one seam and put in another gore, or vice versa, until you are satisfied with the result; with this as a pattern, construct your larger balloon. Such a model, eighteen inches high, lies upon the writer’s table. He has sent it up in the house several times by holding it a few moments over a burning gas-jet. The balloon rapidly fills with heated air, and when freed soars up to the ceiling, where it rolls along until the air cools, then falls gently to the floor.

  The parachute shown in the tail-piece is simply a square piece of paper with a string at each of the four corners, meeting a short distance underneath, where a weight is attached. Fig. 101 shows how to make one that will not tear. It is made of two square pieces of paper. Two pieces of string are laid diagonally across the first paper; on top of this the second piece of paper is pasted, enclosing the strings without disturbing them; the ends of the strings come out at the corners.

  These parachutes are attached to a wire that hangs from the balloon in this manner: From the centre and top of the parachute is a string, we will say, a foot long; this is tied securely to one end of the large fuse from a pack of Chinese fire-crackers; a few inches from the other end of the fuse another string is tied and fastened to the wire. Just as the balloon starts the free end of the fuse is lighted (Fig. 102). When it has burned itself away past the point where the lower string has been fastened, it of course severs the connection between the parachute and the balloon, and the parachute drops, but does not go far, before the air beneath spreads it out, the weight at the bottom balances it, and it floats away slowly, settling lower and lower, but often travelling miles before finally reaching the earth.

  All manner of objects may be attached to a parachute—notes addressed to possible finders, letters, or figures of men or animals. The latter look very odd in the air.

  A real passenger balloon may be very closely imitated by painting crossed black lines upon the upper part of a paper balloon to represent the network. A pasteboard balloon-car, made after the manner shown in Fig. 103, and holding two pasteboard men cut out as shown in Fig. 104, may be hung on by hooking the wires attached to the car over the hoop at the mouth of the balloon. When the balloon and car are a little distance up in the air, it takes a sharp eye to detect the deception, because distance in the air cannot be easily judged.

  But so far we have dealt only with day balloons; for night, you must attach some luminous object.

  A lantern made like the one described in “Kite-time” (Fig. 29) may be fastened to the balloon by a long string and wire, and when it goes swinging after the larger light above, it has a curious appearance. In a similar manner, a long string of lanterns may be hung on to a large balloon, or packs of Chinese crackers may be exploded in mid-air by means of a fuse.

  The writer has experimented in other fireworks, but found them very dangerous to handle. Mr. Stallknecht, of the Hat, Cap and Fur Trade Review, however, showed the author how to make a simple, safe, and beautiful pyrotechnic out of a Roman candle with colored balls, a piece of wire and a fuse. The fuse used can be bought in almost any city or town; it is sold to miners for setting off blasts. With the wire make a sort of wheel, with two or three spokes; cut open the Roman candle and extract the powder and balls; wrap up each ball with some of the powder loosely in a piece of tissue-paper and tie the paper at the ends upon the spokes or cross wires of the wheel, as shown in Fig. 105. Run the fuse spirally around, passing through each parcel containing a ball, and allow the long end of the fuse to trail down beneath from the centre or side (Fig. 106). To the rim of the wire wheel attach several wires of equal lengths with hooked ends; hook these on to the hoop at the mouth of the balloon just before letting it go, and light the trailing end of the fuse. As the fire creeps slowly along, the balloon mounts higher and higher. Suddenly the whole balloon glows with a ruddy, lurid glare. The fire has reached the first ball. In another instant you see a floating globe of pale green light, then blue, and so on, until all the balls are consumed. Showers of pretty, jagged sparks are falling constantly during the illumination, caused by the burning powder. By the time all is over the tiny light of the solitary ball in the balloon looks like a star in the sky above, travelling where the wind chooses to blow it. The most experienced aeronaut has but very little more command over the actions of his immense silken air-ship than has the young amateur who builds his balloon of tissue-paper and sends it skyward with a ball of fire for its motive power.

  CHAPTER XVI.

  HOW TO CAMP OUT WITHOUT A TENT.

  THE next best thing to really living in the woods is talking over such an experience. A thousand little incidents, scarcely thought of at the time, crowd upon my mind, and bring back with them the feeling of freedom and adventure so dear to the heart of every boy. Shall I ever enjoy any flavor earth can afford as we did our coffee’s aroma? The flapjacks—how good and appetizing! the fish—how delicate and sweet! And the wonderful cottage of boughs, thatched with the tassels of the pine—was there ever a cottage out of a fairy tale that could compare with it?

  In fancy I can see it now. There stands the little cot, flooded with the light of the setting sun; those who built it and use it for a habitation are off exploring, hunting, fishing, and foraging for their evening meal, and the small, shy creatures of the wood take the opportunity to satisfy the curiosity with which they have, from a safe distance, viewed the erection of so large and singular a nest.

  The boys will soon return, each with his contribution to the larder—a fish, a squirrel, a bird, or a rabbit, which will be cooked and eaten with better appetite and enjoyment than the most elaborate viands that home could afford. And although such joys are denied to me now, I can, at least, in remembering them, give others an opportunity to possess similar pleasures. It shall be my object to describe how these houses may be built and these dinners cooked, and that, too, where there are neither planks, nor nails, nor stoves. To boys well informed in woodcraft, only a few hints need be given; but for the benefit of amateurs we will go more into detail.

  Four persons make a good camping-party. Before arriving at their destination these persons should choose one of their number as captain.

  The captain gives directions and superintends the pitching of the tent or the building of the rustic cottage. The site for the camp should be upon a knoll, mound, or rising ground, so as to afford a good drainage. If the forest abounds in pine trees, the young cottage-builder’s task is an easy one. It often happens that two or three trees already standing can be made to serve for the corners of the proposed edifice, though trees for corners are not absolutely necessary.

  Fig. 107 represents part of the framework of one of the simplest forms of rustic cottage. In this case, two trees serve for the two posts of the rear wall. The front posts are young trees that have been cut down and firmly planted at about four or five paces in front of the trees, as shown in the illustration. Enough of the branches have been left adhering to the trunks of the upright posts to serve as rests for the cross bars. To prevent complication in the diagram, the roof is not shown. To make this, fasten on an additional cross bar or two to the rear wall, then put a pole at each side, slanting down from the rear to the front, and cover these poles with cross sticks. When the framework is finished, the security and durability of the structure will be improved by fastening all the loose joints, tying them together with withes of willow, grass, or reeds. The next step is to cover the frame. This is done after the method shown in Fig. 108.
From among some boughs, saved for this purpose, take one and hang it upon the third crossbar, counting from the ground up; bring the bough down, passing it inside the second bar and resting the end on the ground outside the first bar; repeat this with other boughs until the row is finished. Then begin at the fourth bar, passing the boughs down inside the third and outside the second bar, so that they will overlap the first row. Continue in this manner until the four walls are closed in, leaving spaces open where windows or doors are wanted. The roof is thatched after the same method, beginning at the front and working upward and backward to the rear wall, each row overlapping the preceding row of thatch. The more closely and compactly you thatch the roof and walls, the better protection will they afford from any passing shower. This completed, the house is finished, and you will be astonished to see what a lovely little green cot you have built.

  A cottage may be built differing from the one we have just described by having the roof extended so as to form a sort of verandah, or porch, in front; the floor of the porch may be covered with a layer of pine-needles. Should you find your house too small to accommodate your party, you can, by erecting a duplicate cottage four or five paces at one side, and roofing over the intervening space, have a house of two rooms with an open hall-way between.

  Before going to housekeeping, some furniture will be necessary; and for this we propose to do our shopping right in the neighborhood of our cottage. Here is our cabinet and upholstery shop, in the wholesome fragrance of the pines.

  After the labor of building, your thoughts will naturally turn to a place for sleeping. Cut four forked sticks, sharpen the ends, and drive them firmly into the ground at the spot where you wish the bed to stand in your room. Two strong poles, long enough to reach lengthwise from fork to fork, will serve for side boards; a number of short sticks will answer for slats; after these are fastened in place you have the rustic bedstead shown in Fig. 109. A good spring mattress is very desirable, and not difficult to obtain. Gather a lot of small green branches, or brush, and cover your bedstead with a layer of it about one foot thick; this you will find a capital substitute for springs. For your mattress proper, go to your upholstery shop under the pine tree and gather several armfuls of the dry pine-needles; cover the elastic brush springs with a thick layer of these needles; over this spread your India-rubber blanket, with the rubber side under, so that any moisture or dampness there may be in your mattress may be prevented from coming through. You may now make up your bed with what wraps or blankets you have with you, and you have (Fig. 110) as complete and comfortable a bed as any forester need wish for. In the place of pine-needles, hay or grass may be used. I have slept very comfortably upon a brush mattress covered with iron-weed.*

  I would suggest to any boy who means to try this rustic cabinet-making, to select carefully for the bed-posts sticks strong enough to support the weight he intends them to bear, otherwise his slumbers may be interrupted in an abrupt and disagreeable manner. My first experiment in this line proved disastrous. I spent the greater part of one day in building and neatly finishing a bed like the one described. After it was made up, with an army blanket for a coverlid, it looked so soft, comfortable, and inviting that I scarcely could wait for bedtime to try it.

  When the evening meal was over and the last story told around the blazing camp-fire, I took off hat, coat, and boots and snuggled down in my new and original couch, curiously watched by my companions, who lay, rolled in their blankets, upon the hard ground. It does not take a boy long to fall asleep, particularly after a hard day’s work in the open air, but it takes longer, after being aroused from a sound nap, for him to get his wits together especially when suddenly dumped upon the ground with a crash, amid a heap of broken sticks and dry brush, as I happened to be on that eventful night. Loud and long were the shouts of laughter of my companions when they discovered my misfortune. Theoretically, the bed was well planned, but practically it was a failure, because it had rotten sticks for bed-posts

  Having provided bed and shelter, it is high time to look after the inner boy; and while the foragers are off in search of provisions, it will be the cook’s duty to provide some method of cooking the food that will be brought in.

  One of the simplest and most practical forms of bake-oven can be made of clay and an old barrel. Remove one head of the barrel, scoop out a space in the nearest bank, and fit the barrel in (Fig. 111). If the mud or clay is not damp enough, moisten it and plaster it over the barrel to the depth of a foot or more, leaving a place for a chimney at the back end, where part of a stave has been cut away; around this place build a chimney of sticks arranged log-cabin fashion and plastered with mud (Fig. 112). After this, make a good, rousing fire in the barrel, and keep adding fuel until all the staves are burned out and the surrounding clay is baked hard. This makes an oven that will bake as well, if not better, than any new patented stove or range at home. To use it, build a fire inside and let it burn until the oven is thoroughly heated, then rake out all the coal and embers, put your dinner in and close up the front with the head of the barrel preserved for this purpose. The clay will remain hot for several hours and keep the inside of the oven hot enough to roast meat or bake bread.

  If there be no bank convenient, or if you have no barrel with which to build this style of oven, there are other methods that will answer for all the cooking necessary to a party of boys camping out. Many rare fish have I eaten in my time. The delicious pompano at New Orleans, the brook-trout and grayling, fresh from the cold water of Northern Michigan, but never have I had fish taste better than did a certain large cat-fish that we boys once caught on a set-line in Kentucky. We built a fire-place of flat stones, a picture of which you have in Fig. 113, covered it with a thin piece of slate, cleaned the fish and with its skin still on, placed it upon the slate. When it was brown upon one side we turned it over until it was thoroughly cooked. With green sticks we lifted off the fish and placed it upon a piece of clean bark; the skin adhered to the stone, and the meat came off in smoking, snowy pieces, which we ate with the aid of our pocket-knives and rustic forks made of small green twigs with the forked ends sharpened.

  If stones cannot be had to answer for this stove, there still remains the old, primitive camp-fire and pot-hook. The very sight of this iron pot swinging over a blazing fire suggests soup, to eat which with any comfort spoons are necessary. These are quickly and easily made by thrusting clam or mussel shells into splits made in the ends of sticks. A splendid butter-knife can be made from the shell of a razor-oyster with a little care in a similar manner (see Fig. 114).

  If you stay any time in your forest home you can, by a little ingenuity, add many comforts and conveniences. I have drawn some diagrams, as hints, in this direction. For instance, Fig. 115 shows the manner of making an excellent rustic chair of two stout poles and two cross poles, to which are fastened the ends of a piece of canvas, carpet or leather (Fig. 116), which, swinging loose, fits itself exactly to your form, making a most comfortable easy-chair in which to rest or take a nap after a hard day’s tramp. It often happens that the peculiar formation of some stump or branch suggests new styles of seats. A table can be very readily made by driving four forked sticks into the ground for legs, and covering the cross sticks upon the top with pieces of birch or other smooth bark. Fig. 117 shows a table made in this manner, with one piece of bark removed to reveal its construction.

  As a general rule, what is taught in boys’ books, though correct in theory, when tried proves impracticable. This brings to mind an incident that happened to a party of young hunters camping out in Ohio. Early one morning one of the boys procured from a distant farm-house a dozen pretty little white bantam eggs. Having no game, and only one small fish in the way of fresh meat, the party congratulated themselves upon the elegant breakfast they would make of fresh eggs, toasted crackers, and coffee. How to cook the eggs was the question. One of the party proposed his plan.

  “I have just read a book,” said he, “which tells how some travellers cooked f
owls and fish by rolling them up in clay and tossing them into the fire. Shall we try that plan with the eggs?”

  The rest of the party assented, and soon all were busy rolling rather large balls of blue clay, in the centre of each of which was an egg. A dozen were placed in the midst of the hottest embers, and the boys seated themselves around the fire, impatiently waiting for the eggs to cook. They did cook—with a vengeance! Zip, bang! went one, then another and another, until, in less time than it takes to tell it, not an egg remained unexploded; and the hot embers and bits of clay that stuck to the boys’ hair and clothes were all that was left to remind them of those nice, fresh bantam eggs. It was all very funny, but ever after the boys of that party showed the greatest caution in trying new schemes, no matter how well they might seem to be endorsed.

  Hints to Amateur Campers.

  From time immemorial it has been the custom of the city fellows to laugh at their country cousins, and to poke all manner of fun at them on account of their verdancy in regard to city manners and customs. This is hardly fair, for if a real city fellow be placed on a farm, or in the woods, his ignorance is just as laughable and absurd. It was only the other day I saw a young New York artist refuse to drink from a spring because something was bubbling up at the bottom. Experience is a great teacher. Even the artist just mentioned, after making himself sick upon stagnant water, would, no doubt, learn to select bubbling springs in the future. A few timely hints may, however, prevent many mishaps and unpleasant accidents.