Camping and woodcraft - Scoutmastercg.com

zSoCAMPING AND WOODCRAFTsteam that will presently begin to rise from the meat, asthe coals get their gradual but effective work in on it.Keep the fire down there between the logs so it won't maketoo rapid a heat, for if it does the juice will ooze out ofthe meat and be lost, and that wou'd detract from theexcellence of the finished product." If during the process of jerking your venison the meatis taken off the coals before it is done it will be soft andflabby. If it is hard when taken off it will be overdone.In either case your jerked venison might much better haveremained unjerked, for it will be a failure. To preventeither of these catastrophes the meat should be tested frequentlyby pushing a sharp knife blade or other convenientprobe into and through the strips. The moment it requiresmore than ordinary force to push the probe through, yourvenison is thoroughly and properly jerked. Then shovethe coals from under the strips and let them cool with thedying embers."Computing Weight.— Hornaday gives thefollowing rule, in his Natural History, for computingthe live weight of deer from the dressedweight: Add five ciphers to the dressed weightin pounds, and divide by 78,612; the quotient willbe the live weight in pounds.Small Mammals.— Now for what Shakespearecalls " small deer." The easiest way for anovice to skin a squirrel is the one described by" Nessmuk." —"Chop off head, tail, and feet with the hatchet;cut the skin on the back crosswise, and, insertingthe two middle fingers, pull the skin off in twoparts (head and tail). Clean and cut the squirrelin halves, leaving two ribs on the hind quarters."The objection is that, in this case, youthrow away the best part of the squirrel, the cheekmeat and brain being its special tid-bits.A better way is this: Sever the tail from below,holding your left forefinger close in behindit, and cutting through the vertebrae close up to thebody, leaving only the hide on the top side. Thenturn the squirrel over and cut a slit down alongeach ham. Put your foot on the tail, hold therear end of the squirrel in your hand, and pull,stripping the skin off to the fore legs. Peel the