Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1897-01-28
WOOD WAS SCARCE.
HOW THE FRElGHTERS ON TIE
PLAINS DID THEIR COOKING.

tunity to See How Plainsman Prepared
a Meal With Fuel Which He Carried
With Him In Small Chunks.
1t was in the days before the rail-
roads had been pushed out through
northwest Nebraska, and supplies were
freiphted 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 the
freighter. We went into camp WITHIN
100 wards of where he stopped. IL was
almost at the head of the Elkhorn river
and the stream, where it flowed 1e"
rods from our camp. was hardly more
than yard wide The guide had told
us at the start that we should strike
country where we could find no WOOD,
and we had brought along small OIL
stove. with tin oven and a big can OF
| kerosene. When I had watered our
horses and staked them out for the
night. I wandered over to see the
! freiebter. He had an enormous wagon,
pulled by two giant mules he hao
etaked them out and was getting sup
ner. It was the first time l had ever
seen il done by g plainsman and stald
to watch him.
He was an old hand at freightlng,
and he knew just how many stops ne
vonld have to make where he could get
no firewood. For each one he carried Ill
his wagon, when he started out OF Nor
folk, piece of by pine timber ABOUT
eight inches long. Each piece represent
ed the fire for one meal. He was split
ting up one Of them when struck his
camp.
".D evenin," he said, without look
ing up from his work, "prospeotln lei
lland?''
sNo, hunting" I replied.
ooh" he said, with an information
. that seemed to convey his feeling thai
he knew all about US.
He had split the piece OF pine intt
little sticks. He gathered handful o.
dry grass and wadded it up into ball
Then he beat down the tall grass ant
cleared a little spot where he couit
make his fire. In the middle OF 1t n
L put the ball Of grass, and over IL n
piled eight or ten little sticks OF pine
I It was ready for the match. From DO
y at the end of his wagon he brought GU
long handled steel frying pan, coffee
not and tin can that looked as II l
had once held two pounds OF tomatoe
or pie apples. Then he brought out
wooden box and set it on the ground.
A held part of his supplies and served as
table. Out Of it he took some flour an
; bacon and little tin can Of coffee. ID
got mill out of the box and ground n
:. coffee. He was very particular about n
!" coffee, he said to me, half apologetlcall.
HE couldn't endure the ready groun
lstuff, When be had got that done, I
Ii tsliced his bacon. Then he got sheet
tin out Of the wagon-and stood 1T up D
" hind the little pile Of sticks. 1t helpe
J TO concentrate the heat by acting as
reflector.
He put the coffee in the pot, pour.
in some water from the bucketful
had brought from the river, and set
down beside the pile Of sticks. linen
ARRANGED the slices of bacon in the fr
. ing nan and settled it on top of the p1
J of sticks. Then he lit his fire. In MI
ute it was blazing up merrily, ana
bacon was sizzling in the pan. He pot
= ed some -four into the tomato ca
\ dumped in pinch of salt and some ga
\ ing powder and stirred it all up vlgt
ously with a SPOON Occasionally
stopped stirring to turn the bacon. Fri
. G emily the bacon was done. He tlshed
out into tin pie pan with fork, a
into the hot grease he poured the M
ture of flour and other things from
:, tomato can. That was going to be 'bu
va whacker's bread, " or "scrugene.
As soon as he took the frying pan
the fire he put the coffeepot on,
= when the thick, stiff dough was n1c'
q smoothed out in the frying pan he pr
. ned it up in front of the fire. where
!. reflector would do it's best work. III
5. ont of the wagon be hauled a jug
Z. sorghum, Three or four more Iii
~ " sticks of pine were deftly arranged
der the coffeepot, and by that time
bread had begun to brown in the p
He took the pan by the end OF the Il
handle and gave it quick sidew
twist and little forward jerk. !
mass of half baked dough slid out OF
pan and flew up into the air. 1t turl
IT'S bottom side up, and he caught 1t
me deftly as any French cook catching
9 cakes, and propped the unbaked SIDE
es Of against the fire. BY the time 1t
Fall baked the coffee was boiling, and
Con meal was ready. He drank the cot
s o1es strong and black, out of tin cup
'hie. used sorghum for sweetening. Blu
and lard he despised. His sorghum
the place Of the one and the ba
grease served as substitute for the OIL
When he took the coffeepot OH
- fire, he put on little can OF water
stewed and simmered and presel
boiled over the embers. That was
dishwater. He had 10 have it hot to I
D the bacon grease out Of his pans. !
- when it was all done. there were tt
d. or four Of the little pine sticks still
lent l asked him if he did not want
toes. Yes, he said, and he had tn
Fine but only when firewood was plenty,
1 al took too long and too much WOO
cook potatoes, and he couldn't d
5000 when he had to depend on one
aHy stick to cook his neal
-oof In the morning, before we had ws
m ed the horses, he had cooked his br
g of fast and was on up cne trali.-1
York Sun.
ne of ronnv-o, ord ri. w;fa.
,.000. 49,, - -.
alter Aennyson was "o'o'oo W ,A'
spots put' IKE man OF true taste' ne
very little about his feeling for
both That beautiful dedication beginI
item "Dear, near and true is that bi
and his writing which will be most