The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-11-22
CAMP COOKING
ON THE PLAINS
How the oid-Time Freighters
Economical Firewood.

the middle of the morning he was fal
ahead on the old trail and Graham
who was driving. thought he was game
Whoa he said, pulling up so sharp
ly that he almost set the horses back
on their launches. Gimme my gun
There's a buffalo,"
The tall guide stood up in the wagon
and shaded his eyes.
Nary a buffalo," he said after a
moments silence. during which the
| rest of us waited with GREATNESS in
| terest; its a freighter.''
1t was in the days before the rail-
roads had been pushed out through
northwest Nebraska, and supplies were
/ freighted into the forts and trading
posts in big wagons, pulled sometimes
by eight or ten yoke OF oxen and some
times by one span of great mules.
! 1t was evening when We overlook
this freighter whom Graham had mis-
| taken for a buffalo We went into
camp within 100 yards of where he
stopped. 1t was almost at the head of
/ the Elkhorn river. and the stream,
where it flowed a, few rods from our
/ camp, was hardly more than a yard
wide. The guide had told us at the
start that we should strike a country
where we could find no wood, and we
had brought along a small oil stove,
with a tin oven, and a big can of kero-
sene. When ] had 'watered our horses
and staked them out for the night
wandered over to see the freighter. He
had an enormous wagon pulled by two
giant mules. He had staked them out
and was getting supper. 1t was the
first time ] had ever seen it done by
a Dlainsman, and 1 stayed to watch
him.
He was an old hand at freighting,
and he knew just how many stops he
would have to make where ne could get
no firewood. For each one he carried
in his wagon, when be started out of
Norfolk, a piece of exc pine timber
about eight inches long. Each piece
represented the fire for one meal. He
was splitting up one of them when /
struck his camp.
cd evenin','' he said, without look
ing no from his work, prospectin' fer
land?"
mo, hunting replied.
Oh he said, with an information
that seemed to convey his feeling that
he knew all about us. He went on
with his work. and presently ejacu-
lated by way of keeping up the con-
versation:
Hot"
1t had been a blistering August day.
The sun had sailed through a cloud
less sky that cleaned like an inverted
prairies with a force that sent the heat
devils dancing a mad, swift, tortuous
figure in shimmering millions above the
dull brown tops of the tall blue Joint !
grass that stood straight up in the
GREATNESS air. 1t was as if the sun !
had striven with desperate energy to
dry w the little stream that trickled |
salvation to the parched land, and baf- I
fled in its long struggle, had skunk be-
hind the lowlying range of hills that /
far away marked the western horizon,
red-faced and sullen. filled with fierce |
anger that would be poured out on the
defenseless prairie day after day until
the land and the water shriveled up /
together and were lost in cloud of |
binding, sitting alkali dust.
SLOW travelin' such weather." con-
tinued the freighter, mules peter out
He had split the piece of pine into
little sticks. He gathered a handful of
dry grass and wadded it up into a ball.
Then he beat down the tall grass and
cleared a little spot where he could
make his fire. In the middle of it he
put the ball of grass, and over it he
piled eight or ten of the little sticks
of pine. It was ready for the match
From a box at the end of the wagon
he brought out a long-handled steel
frying pan, a coffee pot and a tin can
that looked as if it had once held two
he brought out a wooden box and set
it on the ground. 1t held part of his
supplies and served as a table. Out
of it he took some flour and bacon and
a little tin can of coffee. He got a mill
out of the box and ground his coffee.
He was very particular about his cot
fee, he said to me, half apologeticaliy.
He couldn't endure the ready ground
stuff. When ne had got that done he
sliced his bacon. Then he got sheet of :
tin out of the wagon and stood it up
behind the little pile of sticks. 1t
helped to concentrate the heat by act
ng as a reflector.
He put the coffee in the pot, poured
n some water from the bucketful he
had brought from the river, and set it
Town beside the pile of sticks. Then
ne arranged the slices of bacon in the
trying pan and settled it on top of
he pile of sticks. Then he lit his fire.
IN a minute it was blazing up merrily
md the bacon was sizzling in the pan.
He poured some flour into the tomato
an, dumped in a pinch of salt and
some baking powder, and stirred it all $
ID vigorously with a spoon. Occa-
'ionally he stopped stirring to turn the
Iacon. Presently the bacon was done :
He fShed it out into a tin pie pan
With a fork, and into the hot grease
lie poured the mixture of -four and
'ther things from the tomato can. That
vas going to be "bullwhacker's bread,n :
n ''scrugene.'' .
AS soon as he took the frying pan off
he fire, he put the coffee on, and when :
he thick, stiff dough was nicely :
moothed out in the frying pan he ;
popped it up in front OF the fire, where :
he reflector would do it's best work. !
Then out of the wagon he hauled a jug
4 sorghum. Three or four more sticks 9
f pine We're deity arranged under the
Office pot, and by that time the. bread :
lad began to brown in the pan. He .
ooK the pan by the end of the long :
andle and gave it a quick sidewise :
wist and a little forward jerk The :
mass of half-baked dough slid out of :
he pan and flew up into the air. 1t :
urned bottom side uD, and he caught :
as deftly as any French cook catch :
lg pancakes. and propped the unbaked {.
ide up against the fire. By the time it :
ad baked the coffee was boiling and q
he meal was ready. He drank the =
Office, strong and black out of a tin :
I'D and used sorghum for sweetening. .
utter and lard he desDised. His sor- 3
hum took the place of one and the .
aeon grease served as substitute for :.
he other. ::
When he took the coffee pot off the .
re he put on a little can of water .,
nat stewed and simmered and pres Z
ntly boiled over the embers. That was ::
is dish-water. He had to have it hot ssss
} take the bacon grease out of his ::
ans. And when it was all done there :.
ere three or four of the little nine -