The Project Gutenberg EBook of Harper's Outdoor Book for Boys, by Various This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. Title: Harper's Outdoor Book for Boys Author: Various Editor: Joseph H. Adams Release Date: December 10, 2016 [EBook #53705] Language: English Character set encoding: UTF-8 *** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HARPER'S OUTDOOR BOOK FOR BOYS *** Produced by Chris Curnow, David Maranhao and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) Transcriber's Note: The cover image was created by the transcriber and is placed in the public domain. HARPER’S “TELL ME HOW” BOOKS A New Series HARPER’S GASOLINE ENGINE BOOK HARPER’S AIRCRAFT BOOK HARPER’S WIRELESS BOOK HARPER’S BEGINNING ELECTRICITY HARPER’S EVERY-DAY ELECTRICITY Illustrated. Crown 8vo. HARPER’S PRACTICAL BOOKS HARPER’S BOOK FOR YOUNG GARDENERS HARPER’S BOOK FOR YOUNG NATURALISTS HARPER’S HOW TO UNDERSTAND ELECTRICAL WORK HARPER’S ELECTRICITY BOOK FOR BOYS HARPER’S BOATING BOOK FOR BOYS HARPER’S CAMPING AND SCOUTING HARPER’S OUTDOOR BOOK FOR BOYS HARPER’S INDOOR BOOK FOR BOYS HARPER’S MACHINERY BOOK FOR BOYS HARPER’S HANDY BOOK FOR GIRLS Illustrated. Crown 8vo. THE STORY OF GREAT INVENTIONS Uniform in appearance with above. MOTOR BOATING FOR BOYS Illustrated. Crown 8vo. HARPER & BROTHERS, NEW YORK I FIG. 11—A SINGLE-TREE HUT IV V H ARP E R’ S O UTD O O R BO O K F O R B O Y S BY JOSEPH H. ADAMS WITH CONTRIBUTIONS BY KIRK MUNROE, TAPPAN ADNEY CAPT. HOWARD PATTERSON LEROY MILTON YALE AND OTHERS WITH MANY ILLUSTRATIONS HARPER & BROTHERS PUBLISHERS NEW YORK AND LONDON Copyright, 1907, by Harper & Brothers. PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA B-W VI CONTENTS Part I IN BOUNDS PAGE CHAPTER I.—BACK-YARD PLEASURES 3 A WIGWAM A SQUARE TEPEE A RIDGE-POLE TEPEE A FOUNTAIN AN AQUARIUM HOW TO MANAGE AN AQUARIUM A MERRY-GO-ROUND CHAPTER II.—PET SHELTERS 29 MARTIN BOXES BIRD SHELTERS PIGEON-COTES DOG-KENNELS GUINEA-PIG HOUSES CHICKEN-COOPS RABBIT-HUTCHES SQUIRREL CAGES REPTILE PENS CHAPTER III.—SUMMER-HOUSES AND PERGOLAS 52 A SIMPLE SUMMER-HOUSE A BACK-YARD PERGOLA A TOADSTOOL TREE CANOPY A RUSTIC PERGOLA A CIRCULAR PERGOLA A SUMMER SHELTER CHAPTER IV.—WEATHER-VANES AND WINDMILLS 59 A PINION-WHEEL WEATHER-VANE A WIND-SPEEDER THE ARROW WEATHER-VANE WOODEN VANES A WIND-PENNANT A BASKET-BALL VANE A MERRY-GO-ROUND A WIND TURBINE A BARREL-HOOP PINION-WHEEL A PUMPING WINDMILL A WINDMILL AND TOWER CHAPTER V.—AËRIAL TOYS 81 THE ELASTIC FLYING-MACHINE SELF-ACTING AËRIAL CAR AËRIAL BOAT-SAILING A “HIGH-FLYER” VII VIII Part II AFIELD CHAPTER VI.—COASTERS, SKEES, AND SNOW-SHOES 101 TOBOGGANS A ROCKER-COASTER A SINGLE-RUNNER COASTER A BOB-SLED SKEES SNOW-SHOES CHAPTER VII.—SAIL-SKATING AND SNOWBALL ARTILLERY 115 A SKATING-SAIL A SQUARE-RIGGED ICE-SAIL A SNOWBALL MORTAR CHAPTER VIII.—KITES AND AEROPLANES 120 THE SHIP KITE THE CHINESE-JUNK KITE THE SCHOONER KITE A BALLOON KITE AN AIR-SHIP KITE BAT-WING AND CROWN-TOP KITES SANDWICH ISLANDS BIRD KITE BOX KITES THE FLYING-WEDGE AND DOUBLE-PLANE KITE KITE-REELS CHAPTER IX.—FISHING-TACKLE 144 CHOICE OF TACKLE BAIT-RODS AND FLY-RODS REPAIRS, KNOTS, AND SPLICES AIDS FOR YOUNG ANGLERS BAITS, AND WHERE TO FIND THEM A TRAP FOR SMALL FISH A WATER-TURTLE TRAP AN EEL-POT A SCAP-NET A HOOK DROP-NET CHAPTER X.—LAND-YACHTS AND PUSHMOBILES 177 A LAND-YACHT A SAIL-WAGON A PUSHMOBILE CHAPTER XI.—FIRE-ENGINES AND TRUCKS 191 THE ENGINE THE HOSE-CARRIAGE THE HOOK-AND-LADDER TRUCK CHAPTER XII.—WATER-WHEELS 201 IX A SIMPLE PADDLE-WHEEL A WAGON WHEEL A BARREL-WHEEL AN UNDERSHOT-WHEEL A POWER-WHEEL A WHEEL-RACE Part III AFLOAT CHAPTER XIII.—BOATS 211 PUNT AND SCOW A SHARPY A DORY A SAILING SHARPY A CENTRE-BOARD SHARPY A PROA A LARK A POWER-BOAT CHAPTER XIV.—CATAMARANS 239 A ROWING CATAMARAN A SAILING CATAMARAN A SIDE-WHEEL CATAMARAN CHAPTER XV.—ICE-BOATS 249 A SLOOP-RIGGED ICE-YACHT A TWIN-MAST ICE-BOAT SCOOTS AND SCOOTERS A WIND-RUNNER CHAPTER XVI.—HOUSE-BOATS AND RAFTS 261 A HOUSE-PUNT A HOUSE-RAFT A FLOAT CHAPTER XVII.—MARLINE-SPIKE SEAMANSHIP 280 SPLICES KNOTS BENDS HITCHES Part IV IN THE WOODS CHAPTER XVIII.—CAMPS AND CAMPING 295 A TENT OF MEDIUM SIZE A LARGE CAMPING-TENT FLIES AND CANOPIES X A HOUSE-TENT THE NEW TENT CANVAS COTS AND HAMMOCKS TABLES AND BENCHES CAMPING EQUIPMENT LOCKERS AND MESS-KITS A STONE STOVE AND CAMP-FIRES CAMP-COOKING THE CARE OF A GUN CHAPTER XIX.—TRAPS AND TRAPPING 334 SNARES AND DEADFALLS CHAPTER XX.—TREE HUTS AND BRUSH-HOUSES 350 A LOW TWIN-TREE HUT A HIGH TWIN-TREE HUT A SINGLE-TREE HUT A LOW SINGLE-TREE HUT A BRUSH-HOUSE A BRUSH “LEAN-TO” CHAPTER XXI.—WALKING-STICKS 367 HOW TO GROW THEM FOR PLEASURE AND PROFIT “H INTRODUCTION ow to do it,” might very well be the title of this new handy-book for American boys. It is first and last a practical guide, based upon the experience of those who have done what they describe. Results are wanted, not theories in a book of this kind, and careful tests have been applied to secure working results and the certainty that everything will come out all right. Another point, which has had the most careful attention of a board of editors, is that of selection. It would be easy to include a quantity of sports and games, and also plans for elaborate contrivances neither particularly amusing nor necessary when done. But the object of this book is to show boys how to do accurately things which are quite within their powers, and things also which will be a satisfaction when they are done. The plan followed is to develop a boy’s ingenuity and mechanical ability along lines which will reward him. In short, the book is intended to help a boy to think and act for himself and to have fun in doing it. The plan of arrangement which is followed is the natural one—to begin at home. The back yard lies immediately at hand. Let us see what can be done there. The aquarium, pet shelters, windmills, and many other contrivances are identified with the home. Going farther afield we learn the making of coasters and skees, ice-boats and snow cannon, and all that enters into winter sports. There is the air, also, with its invitation to kites and aeroplanes, and there is water, with all the chances for the use of water-power and sport. Fishing itself is something best learned by experience, but the choice and management of tackle afford a most instructive theme. And water naturally has an importance which requires an entire division of the book wherein boat-building and boat-management of all kinds are thoroughly and practically explained. Camping out, which appeals to every healthy boy, is treated from every point of view in the fourth division of the book, which includes also trapping, taxidermy, and tree huts and brush houses. In all these general divisions the aim of the editors and author has been to show in the simplest and most accurate way how to do things which are amusing to do and valuable when done. The principal contributor to this book is an amateur carpenter, boat-builder, and mechanician as well as an artist and writer. One editor has had a wide practical experience in almost everything that has to do with out-door amusements. Another has camped and fished in the four corners of our country and in Canada. All their experience has been combined to prepare a convenient out-door handy-book free from unnecessary words and details, and filled with the latest and best methods, which will be indispensable to every American boy who likes the fun of doing things for himself. XI XII S Part I IN BOUNDS OUT-DOOR BOOK FOR BOYS Chapter I BACK-YARD PLEASURES ince home is the natural centre of life, it will be most helpful if we find out what we can do just outside the house. In large cities there is usually no front yard, and even where such space exists its use as a play-ground is apt to be undesirable. But the back yard even in cities often affords some chances not only for gardening on a small scale but also for making and using a variety of things which will furnish constant amusement. A Wigwam For boys who like to “play Injun” in the back yard, here are some ideas for tepees and wigwams that may easily be followed cut at a very small cost for the poles and canvas. Canvas can be bought at a dry-goods or country store, and poles may be cut in the woods; or one-and-one-half-inch- square spruce sticks may be purchased at a lumber-yard and dressed round with a draw-knife and plane. When cutting poles for a wigwam it is necessary to select very straight ones, preferably of pine, for crooked or knotty poles are unsightly and make an uneven exterior. The real Indian tepee is made from buckskin or other strong hides lashed together with rawhide thongs; but as this covering is beyond the reach of the average boy, the next best thing to use will be heavy twilled canvas or stout unbleached muslin that can be had for about ten cents a yard. The regulation wigwam is perhaps the most satisfactory kind of a tent, for it is roomy, will shed water, and it is about the only tent in which a fire may be built without smoking out the occupants. The tepee will not blow over if properly set up and stayed with an anchor-rope, and it is easily taken down and moved from place to place. Fig. 1, Fig. 2, Fig. 3, Fig. 4 A WIGWAM For a party of three or four boys the wigwam shown in Fig. 1 will afford ample room, and it is not so large as to be unhandy. Select thirteen straight poles, not more than two inches thick at the bottom, and clear them from knots and projecting twigs. They should be ten feet long and pointed at the bottom so as to stick into the ground for a few inches. Tie three of them together eighteen inches from the top, and form a tripod on a circle five feet and six inches in diameter. Place the other poles against this tripod to form a cone, as shown in Fig. 2, and lash them fast at the top with a piece of clothes- line. From unbleached muslin or sail-cloth (light weight) make a cover as shown in the diagram Fig. 3. Lay out a sixteen- foot circle on a barn floor, or the grass, with chalk, and indicate an eighteen-inch circle at the middle. Around the outer circle or periphery measure off nineteen feet and chalk-mark the space. From these marks to the centre of the circle draw straight lines, and within these limits the area of the wigwam cover will be shown. It should correspond with the plan drawing in Fig. 3. The muslin should be three feet wide and with it this area can be covered in any direction, sewing the strips together to make the large sheet; or the muslin may be cut in strips three feet wide at one end and tapering to a few inches at the other, as shown in Fig. 4, the seams running up and down the canvas instead of across it. The outer edge of the canvas cover should be bound with clothes-line or cotton rope, sewed securely with waxed white string; then thirteen short ropes should be passed over this rope so that the canvas may be lashed fast to the foot of each pole to hold the cover in place. The doorway flaps are formed by stopping the lacings three feet up from the ground. With short ropes and rings sewed to the cover the flaps may be tied back, as shown in Fig. 1. The real Indian wigwams are decorated with all sorts of emblems, for even the uncivilized red men had their crests and totems, and the boys who make these tepees can easily invent some mark which will distinguish their tent abode from all others. The ornamentation should be done with paint and should be carried out before the canvas covering is stretched over the poles. 1 3 4 5 6 Fig. 8 A Square Tepee Fig. 5, Fig. 6 A square tepee, as shown in the illustration Fig. 5, is another form of rear-yard tent that is easily made. Twelve poles are selected and four of them are lashed fast and spread apart on a square of six feet. Two poles are added to each side and all are lashed together at the head. Four pieces of canvas or heavy unbleached muslin are cut and made on the plan as shown in Fig. 6, the strips being cut from goods a yard wide. These pieces are six feet long, one foot wide at the head, and six feet at the foot. The seam through the middle of one piece is left open for three feet to form the doorway flaps, then the four sides are securely sewed together with waxed white string. This cover is slipped about the pole frame, tied at the front, and held down by means of short ropes that are lashed fast to the foot of each pole. The cover is decorated with paint to give it the Indian appearance, and when the flaps are tied back it is easy to go into and come out of the tepee. A Ridge-pole Tepee A ridge-pole tepee is shown in Fig. 7, and is a very easy and simple one to make, for it is of one piece of canvas with two flaps sewed at each side to form the ends. Fig. 7 One ridge and two upright poles make the framework, and they are held in place by the canvas, which is drawn and lashed fast to stakes driven in the ground, as may be seen in the drawing. The ridge-pole is eight feet long, one and a half inches thick, and four inches wide. Two inches from either end a half-inch hole is bored to receive the iron pins that are driven in the ends of the uprights as shown at Fig. 8 A and B. The upright poles are eight feet long, and when set one foot of the lower end should be embedded in the ground. The sides are in one piece of muslin made by sewing widths of it together. The sheet measures seventeen feet long and eight feet wide; and when stretched over the ridge-pole and fastened down at both sides an inverted shape will be the result. It is ten feet across at the bottom, seven feet high, and eight feet long at each side. For the back it will be necessary to make a triangular piece of canvas the right size to fit the opening, or two flaps may be cut, divided at the middle, and tied back, or laced, to close the tent. The apron or part enclosure at the front is formed from pieces of canvas two feet wide sewed along the edges and caught together at the middle over the opening. Ten pegs eighteen inches long and two inches wide are cut from hard-wood as shown at Fig. 8 C. These are driven in the ground at an angle and ropes attached to the lower edges of the canvas sidings are lashed fast to them. This tepee is long enough to swing a hammock from pole to pole, and on a warm summer night makes an ideal place for sleeping out- of-doors. The covering, like that of the other wigwams, may be decorated with Indian emblems, and if a party of boys are going to camp in the back yard their tepees can be inscribed with different crests and totems to indicate individual ownership. A Fountain A practicable rear-yard fountain may be made with a brick or concrete basin, an underground pipe-line and an overflow, thus insuring a continuous flow and discharge. In Fig. 9 the basin, pipe, and trap are shown with the inlet pipe fitted for a hose connection. Three plates of different sizes are used for the traps, and if care is taken in drilling the holes an opening may be made in the bottom of each plate so that it will slip over the stand-pipe. Tin or enamelled iron plates will answer the purpose very well for a while, but the tin plates would soon rust unless frequently painted. The white earthern-ware plates will present the best appearance and will last indefinitely. Dig a circular hole thirty inches across and twelve inches deep, and with cement and sand make a hard bottom or bed. Use a trowel and smooth the cement so that the top surface is smooth. With some bricks form a circle, as shown at Fig. 10. With a cold-chisel and mallet cut away the edges of two bricks so that the overflow pipe will pass between them, as shown at A in Fig. 10. The pipe should be half or three-quarter inch galvanized water-pipe, and it may be purchased at a plumber’s shop for a few cents a foot. The supply-pipe is three-eighths-inch galvanized water-pipe, and should be set in place under the concrete bottom of the basin before the cement is poured in. The upright, or stand-pipe, is thirty-six inches high from the elbow, B (Fig. 10), in the ground. The cross-pipe leading out is eighteen or twenty inches long, and the short upright that comes to the surface outside the basin is fifteen inches long and is to be provided with a hose connection so that a garden hose may be attached to it. The stand-pipe in the basin and the cross-piece should be embedded in the cement concrete, and when it is dry and 7 8 9 10 11 hardens around the pipes it will hold them securely in place. When the circle of bricks is complete, fill in the crevices with equal parts of cement and sand mixed into a mortar. This will lock the bricks together; then plaster the cement all around the inside of the circle and some at the outside so as to make a water-tight basin. Fig. 9, Fig. 10, Fig. 11, Fig. 12, Fig. 13 Earth is to be put back into the hole outside the circle of bricks and the sod replaced, so that grass will grow right up to the edge of the basin rim, which should project an inch or two above the surface of the ground. From a plumber or gas-fitter obtain some old pieces of brass tubing an inch in diameter, cut one of them fourteen inches long, and slip it down over the stand-pipe. The lowest and largest plate rests on this. Next cut a piece of tubing nine inches long and slip it over the pipe. The second plate rests on this and the top plate is supported by a piece of the tubing cut six inches in length and slipped over the pipe. If porcelain dishes are used, make the first hole in them as follows: Obtain a stout, three-inch steel wire nail, a block of wood about three inches square, having an inch hole bored at one end, and a small hard-wood mallet. Place a plate on the block of wood, inverted so that its centre will be exactly over the hole. Place the point of the nail on the plate, taking care to get it in the centre; then give it a sharp, quick blow with the mallet. If this is properly done a small piece of the porcelain will be driven out, but remember that if the blow is not properly centred it will break the plate. For this reason it is best to practise first on a broken plate; or if the porcelain seems to be impossible, the painted tin or enamelled plates will have to answer. A perforated porcelain plate is shown in Fig. 11 A. The ragged hole can be smoothed out or chafed away with an old rat-tail or half-round file. A brass reducer and a gas pillar should be screwed fast to the top of the stand-pipe so that a jet of water about a quarter of an inch in diameter will shoot above the pipe. If a little wooden ball is to dance at the top of the jet, a half-circular basket will be necessary to catch the ball when it falls, so that the stream of water can pick it up again. This is made from brass or galvanized wire, and where the wires cross bind the joint with fine copper wire and solder the joints so as to make them rigid. A small brass ferrule or short piece of pipe should be soldered to the bottom of this basket, so as to hold it in place when slipped over the pillar or nozzle. This basket and its shape is more clearly shown in Fig. 11 B. It should be six or eight inches in diameter and three inches deep, with the wires close enough together to prevent the ball from falling through. If it is not possible to get the bricks of which to form the basin, a concrete wall can be made instead. Dig the hole as before described; then construct a cylinder of wood twenty-four inches in diameter and eight inches thick. Floor over the bottom of the hole with concrete, after the stand-pipe is in place, and around the edge of the concrete floor and outside the cylinder embed some small stones so that the filling will hold fast. This is shown at c c in Fig. 12. Slip the wooden cylinder over the stand-pipe so that it will occupy the position as shown in Fig. 12. Make a mixture of coarse sand or gravel and cement, half and half, and add a shovel or two of small stones, preferably cracked, such as are used for the under-dressing to macadam roads. Tamp this down in the opening in the ground so as to fill up the ditch or moat as shown at Fig. 13. The outside of the cylinder should be thoroughly coated with lard or some heavy grease before the concrete is poured in, so that the wood will not absorb the moisture from the concrete and cause it to bind in the hole. As a precaution it would be well to make the bottom of the cylinder an inch smaller in diameter than the top, so that it may draw out easily after the concrete has set. The two slots shown in the top of the cylinder are hand holes to grasp it by. With nearly clear cement, having but a small portion of sand added, finish the inside of the basin and the rim with a trowel so as to give it a smooth and even surface. The force of water may be regulated with a faucet. An Aquarium Fig. 14, Fig. 15, Fig. 16 There is nothing difficult in the construction of a glass-and-wood aquarium like the one shown in Fig. 14, and the boy who is handy with tools and careful in joining wood-work accurately will be able to knock it together in short order. The best size will be twenty-four inches long, fifteen wide, and ten inches high. This will be generous enough in proportions to accommodate a dozen or so of small fish, some baby eels, crawfish, a turtle or two, and some water-lizards. From a carpenter obtain a piece of white-wood twenty-seven inches long, seventeen inches wide, and one and a half inches in thickness. This must be of selected stock, hard and free from knots or sappy places. Cut four battens of hard- wood two inches wide, an inch thick, and fifteen inches long, and with brass screws attach them securely to the underside of the board to prevent its warping from the action of the water. Obtain a stick one inch and a half square and four feet long; cut this into lengths of eleven inches each and also prepare one eight feet long, two inches wide, and seven-eighths of an inch thick. With a groove-plane having a quarter-inch blade cut into the square stick on two sides as shown in Fig. 15 A. The edge of the stick between the two grooves may then be planed off so that an end view of the stick will appear as shown at Fig. 15 B. A groove should be cut at one side of the long stick three-eighths of an inch from one edge so that when turned groove side down an end will appear as shown at C in Fig. 15. This stick is to be cut in lengths fifteen and twenty-four inches respectively for top rails. In the four corners of the white-wood board cut a hole with bit and chisel three-quarters of an inch square as shown at 12 13 14 15