St. Landry democrat., 1881-09-10

Land Leader, by Ne2oton G. ChisUeN.
Picnics and Gypsying Parties.
For the picnic proper, only cold pro-
visions and such as can be easily trans
ported are made ready. Roast AMI
broiled chickens should be cut into nea.
joints, ham sliced, and the superiom
fat trimmed away from this As from
fresh meats. If you have I. sandwich
box large enough to hold your meats,
divide each kind from the rest by clean.
odorless white paper. The next bes!
thing to tin meat-caSe is to imDrovlso
substitute by lining neatly with
white paper as many small, lat paste
board boxes as are needed. There IS
generally a goodly supply of such in
every house in this day of ruchings,
cuffs, collars and bon-bons. Pack one
with nam, another with chicken, a
third with cheese. and so on, tying
them up securely. If the boxes are
creased they can be thrown away when
empty. The third best way of carrying
meats is to do up each kind in writing
paper, then in small napkin pinned
securely about the parcel. For sand
witches, chopped or ground ham is
preferable to sliced, and tongue better
than either. Butter biscuits at home,
slice bread thin, and fold over upon
the butter. Wrap the pile in napkin
not SO tightly as to crush it, and give it,
when YOU can, basket to itself This
is even more expedient with cake.
and necessity with fruit. In one re-
ceptacle put up such condiments as are
needed.
If cold tea and coffee are provided
and they are always welcome pour
them into bottles, carefully corked. At
the cost of whatever Inconvenience,
have ice to cool these, water and lem
onade A lump of ice. wrapped in dry
flannel and this inclosed i'll stout paper
bound firmly in place with Irvine, the
| whole set in covered basket, will keep
for hours without me ting into serious
waste. Strong, cheap tumblers are best
| for picnic use. For plates you may. If
you like, buy the light wooden or jap
anese paper ones sold for this purpose
The weight of crockery is serious OBJ
jeclion to carrying it on a walking
party. If you go by carriage Or boat,
pack one hamper with plates, tumblers
knives, forks, spoons and other needed
utensils. Into this can also go table
cloth and napkins. If you use paper
dovlevs, vet see that three or four tow
els are put up also. Afew hand-towels
and cake of soap should not be for
gotten, since fingers usually supersede
forks on such occasions. A little prac-
tice will enable you to stow away all
the articles l have named in a surpris-
ingIy small space. Olives and pickles
are acceptable at all cold collations.
Sardines are convenient and popular,
also potted meats, such as deviled game
and boned chicken.
The gypsying- party is a variation Of
the picnic, and, in my opinion. is an
Improvement upon the original plan.
1t is, however, hardly feasible when the
excursion is pedestrian. unless the
camping ground is selected so near to
a farm house that a large iron-pot or a
tea kettle can be borrowed. Of course,
either or both of these are easily car
ried in wagon. The kettle can be
hung upon a horizontal pole lashed at
each end to tree, or supported upon
forked boughs. A more picturesque
style is the conventional three poles
thrust into the ground and inclining
toward one another until they meet,
and are bound together at top. The
kettle is swung from the point of inter-
section over clear fire of dry sticks,
which has been kept up some time be-
for the water is trusted above it. Green
wood and newly-kindled flame make
artistically graceful smoke as the back
ground of the encampment, but creo-
sote has not yet been decreed, even by
high art, to be "quite the thing. you
know" in tea. Should the big pot be
suspended instead of the kettle. pota-
toes and green corn may be boiled.
Or, the inlprompta crane may be omit
ted, and rude oven be built of stones
and the fire made therein. The pot
may be set on this over the accumu-
lated bed of embers, and potatoes in
their jackets and corn in the inner husk
be roasted in the hot ashes. For fish
ing parties frying-pan is indispensa'
ble.- Marian Harla,sd, in Examiner ana
Chronicle.