n: Showing use of bark and tar paper.]

Practically any form of tent may be reproduced by tacking tar paper to
sticks arranged in the proper manner, but if you make a wigwam of tar
paper, do paint it red, green, or yellow, or whitewash it; do anything
which will take off the civilized, funereal look of the affair.

X

A SAWED-LUMBER SHANTY

BEFORE we proceed any further it may be best to give the plan of a
workshop, a camp, an outhouse, or a shed to be made of sawed lumber, the
framework of which is made of what is known as two-by-fours, that is,
pieces of lumber two inches thick by four inches wide. The plans used here
are from my book "The Jack of All Trades," but the dimensions may be
altered to suit your convenience. The sills, which are four inches by four
inches, are also supposed to be made by nailing two two-by-fours together.
First stake out your foundation and see that the corners are square, that
is, at right angles, and test this with a tape or ruler by measuring six
feet one way and eight feet the other from a corner along the proposed
sides of the house marking these points. If a ten-foot rod will reach
exactly across from point to point, the corner is square and you may dig
your post-holes.

The Foundation

You may use a foundation of stones or a series of stone piles, but if you
use stones and expect your house to remain plumb where the winters are
severe you must dig holes for them at least three feet deep in order to go
below the frost-line. Fill these holes with broken stone, on top of which
you can make your pile of stones to act as support for the sills; but the
simplest method is to use posts of locust, cedar, or chestnut; or, if this
is too much trouble, pack the dirt tightly, drain it well by making it
slope away from the house in every direction, and lay your foundation
sills on the level earth. In that case you had better use chestnut wood
for the sills; spruce will rot very quickly in contact with the damp earth
and pine will not last long under the same circumstances.

All through certain sections of this country there are hundreds of humble
dwellings built upon "mudsills," in other words, with no foundation or
floor but the bare ground.

We will suppose that you have secured some posts about two feet six inches
long with good, flat ends. The better material you can obtain the trimmer
and better will be the appearance of your house, but a house which will
protect you and yo