Produced by Audrey Longhurst, Emmy and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
TO ALL GIRLS WHO LOVE THE LIFE OF THE OPEN WE DEDICATE THIS BOOK
The joyous, exhilarating call of the wilderness and the forest camp is surely and steadily penetrating through the barriers of brick, stone, and concrete; through the more or less artificial life of town and city; and the American girl is listening eagerly. It is awakening in her longings for free, wholesome, and adventurous outdoor life, for the innocent delights of nature-loving Thoreau and bird-loving Burroughs. Sturdy, independent, self-reliant, she is now demanding outdoor books that are genuine and filled with practical information; books that tell how to do worth-while things, that teach real woodcraft and are not adapted to the girl supposed to be afraid of a caterpillar or to shudder at sight of a harmless snake.
In answer to the demand, "On the Trail" has been written. The authors' deep desire is to help girls respond to this new, insistent call by pointing out to them the open trail. It is their hope and wish that their girl readers may seek the charm of the wild and may find the same happiness in the life of the open that the American boy has enjoyed since the first settler built his little cabin on the shores of the New World. To forward this object, the why and how, the where and when of things of camp and trail have been embodied in this book.
Thanks are due to Edward Cave, president and editor of _Recreation_, for kindly allowing the use of some of his wild-life photographs.
LINA BEARD, ADELIA BELLE BEARD. FLUSHING, N. Y., March 16, 1915.
CHAPTER PAGE I. TRAILING 3 II. WOODCRAFT 21 III. CAMPING 44 IV. WHAT TO WEAR ON THE TRAIL 84 V. OUTDOOR HANDICRAFT 106 VI. MAKING FRIENDS WITH THE OUTDOOR FOLK 119 VII. WILD FOOD ON THE TRAIL 138 VIII. LITTLE FOES OF THE TRAILER 165 IX. ON THE TRAIL WITH YOUR CAMERA 187 X. ON AND IN THE WATER 205 XI. USEFUL KNOTS AND HOW TO TIE THEM 233 XII. ACCIDENTS 244 XIII. CAMP FUN AND FROLICS 255 XIV. HAPPY AND SANE SUNDAY IN CAMP 269
PAGE One can generally pass around obstructions like this on the trail 5
Blazing the trail by bending down and breaking branches 11
Dining-tent, handy racks, and log bedstead 53