Camping and woodcraft - Scoutmastercg.com

148 CAMPING AND WOODCRAFTsweater or Mackinaw, wears forever, and Is proofagainst thorns and burrs. But when wet It Is ascold and clammy as tripe.Genuine buckskin shirts are still listed In thecatalogues of certain dealers in the Northwest. Besure the skins are " smoke-tanned," so that they willdry soft and not shrink so badly as those dressed bya commercial tanner. A fringed shirt dries betterthan a plain one, as the water tends to drip off thefringes.Swedish dogskin jackets are rain-proof, but notso pliable as buckskin.If one can get them (Hudson Bay posts) lightCaribou orcaribou skins are better than buckskin.reindeer hide has the singular property of not stretchingwhen wet.When tanned with the hair on Itis the warmest of all coverings.Vests.— A vest without coat may not be sightly,but It is mighty workmanlike. Suspenders can beworn under it without desecrating the landscape —and stout suspenders, say what you please, are abadge of good common sense on a woodsman.But the vest worn in town is not fit for the wilderness.One's back Is more vulnerable to cold thanhis chest ; hence the thick cloth of a waistcoat shouldgo all the way round. There should be four roomypockets, the lower ones with buttoned flaps. Tabsfitted at the bottom will keep the vest from flappingwhen worn open.Waterproofing Woolens.— Wet clothing Isheavy and uncomfortable. It Is much less permeableto air than dry clothing; consequently It Interfereswith evaporation of sweat ; and it is chilly, becausewater, which Is a good conductor of heat, hasreplaced the air, which Is a non-conductor. Airpasses through dry cloth more than twice as freelyas through wet material.The problem Is to waterproof the outer garmentsand still leave them permeable to air. This Is donewith cotton goods by cravenettlng the material, or,