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hist_text-digest        Tuesday, June 30 1998        Volume 01 : Number 095




----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: Sun, 28 Jun 1998 12:06:30 EDT
From: <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Have we forgotten the mountain men?

thank hawk im printing it now i didnt  keep my tow dry used some paper from
the shop. it was out in the open and on the coast what was i thinking dry dry
dry dry . got to be dry. thanks .    iron tounge

------------------------------

Date: 28 Jun 98 09:13:00 +0000
From: Phyllis and Don Keas <[e-mail]>
Subject: RE: MtMan-List: Fire Starting..

There isn't much need to go any further than nature to get good fire
starting materials.  Find some old dead grass that has been dead long enough
to be a brown color, not just tan.  A hand full of this WILL ignite.  I
have found some along the sides of highways that crews have cut, take it home
and put it in a burlap bag and hang it in the garage untill it is really
dry.  I then carry some of it with me in a bag whenever I go out camping.
Get the weeds out and just use the grass and it will definately work.

DON AND PHYLLIS KEAS --- PROPRIETORS OF THE NADA TRADING COMPANY

Roger Lahti wrote:
>   Iron Tongue'
>
>This is my two bits worth on fire starting. Not something I have done
for
>years but something I picked up on in the last three or four years.
>
>I find that the rotten wood found inside a small birch log, ( it will
fall
>out if the log is shaken roughly) will char up into the finest char
>obtainable.  I then use a 3" or 4" square piece of burlap bag ( gunny
>sack/feed sack) that has seen better days as a nest in lieu of cedar
bark or
>cottonwood inner bark, to blow the heat from the glowing char into. I
find
>that if all ingredients are dry that this will bring fire very quickly
and
>the flame will be easily sustained in the burlap as in a match or torch
and
>will facilitate putting good flame to my tinder of small forest duff or
>twigs. The thing here that I wish to stress is that the burlap bag
material
>is quit superior to most anything else available along the Columbia R.
and
>when supplies arrive wrapped in burlap, those individuals headed for the
>interior will make whatever attempt is needed to aquire a modest supply
of
>the aforementioned burlap.
>
>
>
>I perhaps misunderstood your original post on this but I thought you
were
>having trouble finding a functional tinder that didn't require the use
of
>extra oxygen to get it to flame?
>You should not have this problem with the use of burlap bag material
when
>this material is available to you. Try it and see!
>
>YMO&HS
>Capt. Lahti
>
>
>
>
>
>RFC822 header
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------------------------------

Date: Sun, 28 Jun 98 16:01:09 -0400
From: Kirsten Smith and Tania Dopler <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Visit Canada's fur trade historic sites

Well done Angela,

Heritage Canada would be so proud of a tourst boost lke that!!

Kirsten Smith
Ottawa, Canada

------------------------------

Date: Sun, 28 Jun 1998 15:49:54 -0600 (CST)
From: [e-mail] (Henry B. Crawford)
Subject: MtMan-List: Makin' coffee

With all the MM skills I have I still can't make a decent pot of coffee.
You can tell I don't drink it regularly, otherwise I'd know how to make it.
But there are times when I want some.  Can you expert coffee makers out
there give me a good and SIMPLE recipe for good camp coffee?  I grind my
own beans in a box grinder, but I'm usually at a loss as to how much coffee
to how much water.  It's usually hit or miss, and I'd like to get more
consistent.  Also, lots of the recipes I've seen call for an egg.  What's
up with that?

TIA
HBC

*****************************************
Henry B. Crawford        Curator of History
[e-mail]     Museum of Texas Tech University
806/742-2442           Box 43191
FAX [phone]             Lubbock, TX  79409-3191
               WEBSITE: http://www.ttu.edu/~museum
******  Living History . . . Because it's there!  *******

------------------------------

Date: Sun, 28 Jun 1998 19:31:27 -0500
From: Jeff Powers <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List:  Making Beaver bate....

Castor is beaver musk,from the beavers musk glands! Whats with nutmeg,cloves
etc.? Castor is all I've ever needed.
On 1998-06-27 [e-mail] said to [e-mail]
   >Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
   >X-Priority: 3
   >X-MSMail-Priority: Normal
   >X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 4.72.2106.4
   >X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V4.72.2106.4
   >Sender: [e-mail]
   >Precedence: bulk
   >Status:
   >Okay... this newbie needs help.........
   >Can someone tell me or refer me to the way beaver bate would have
   >been made in the 1800s? Also how is it presented to the beaver?
   >DeVoto's book on Lewis and Clark talks about the "castor" or "bark
   >stone" as the base material. To this you add nutmeg, cloves and
   >cinimon(sic). Then add spirits to make it the consistancy of
   >mustard. I may have to study the anatomy of a male beaver.... do
   >they have musk glands or are these their balls? DeVoto says the
   >male beaver has "six" of these stones. Oh boy!
   >Is this thick fluid then put on the end of a stick and placed over
   >the underwater trap?
   >Gail
   >The living history Mt Man

Net-Tamer V 1.08.1 - Test Drive

------------------------------

Date: Sun, 28 Jun 1998 19:31:27 -0500
From: Jeff Powers <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List:  Making Beaver bate....

Castor is beaver musk,from the beavers musk glands! Whats with nutmeg,cloves
etc.? Castor is all I've ever needed.
On 1998-06-27 [e-mail] said to [e-mail]
   >Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
   >X-Priority: 3
   >X-MSMail-Priority: Normal
   >X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 4.72.2106.4
   >X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V4.72.2106.4
   >Sender: [e-mail]
   >Precedence: bulk
   >Status:
   >Okay... this newbie needs help.........
   >Can someone tell me or refer me to the way beaver bate would have
   >been made in the 1800s? Also how is it presented to the beaver?
   >DeVoto's book on Lewis and Clark talks about the "castor" or "bark
   >stone" as the base material. To this you add nutmeg, cloves and
   >cinimon(sic). Then add spirits to make it the consistancy of
   >mustard. I may have to study the anatomy of a male beaver.... do
   >they have musk glands or are these their balls? DeVoto says the
   >male beaver has "six" of these stones. Oh boy!
   >Is this thick fluid then put on the end of a stick and placed over
   >the underwater trap?
   >Gail
   >The living history Mt Man

Net-Tamer V 1.08.1 - Test Drive

------------------------------

Date: Sun, 28 Jun 1998 19:31:33 -0500
From: Jeff Powers <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Makin' coffee

Henry, my coffee is always hit or miss and I drink gallons of it! :)
as for the egg,in winter use snow instead, egg is meant to add air to the
recipe most of the time(at least thats what I was told years ago in a
survival course) and as long as ducks,geese,sage hens, etc. exist I believe
eggs(hell,even turtle) are acceptable in any camp. That leaves the date of
creation of the recipe in question to be verified. this isn't just my
opinion,in their Journals,Lewis or Clark mentioned gathering bird eggs for
meals,and I think Devoto quoted a mountain man about eggs in ACROSS THE WIDE
MISSOURI.Also in the journals of Alexander Henry of the NORTHWEST COMPANY
clerks traded for eggs from ducks,swans and geese.

On 1998-06-28 [e-mail] said to [e-mail]
   >X-Sender: [e-mail]
   >With all the MM skills I have I still can't make a decent pot of
   >coffee. You can tell I don't drink it regularly, otherwise I'd know
   >how to make it. But there are times when I want some.  Can you
   >expert coffee makers out there give me a good and SIMPLE recipe for
   >good camp coffee?  I grind my own beans in a box grinder, but I'm
   >usually at a loss as to how much coffee to how much water.  It's
   >usually hit or miss, and I'd like to get more consistent.  Also,
   >lots of the recipes I've seen call for an egg.  What's up with that?
   >TIA
   >HBC
   >*****************************************
   >Henry B. Crawford        Curator of History
   >[e-mail]     Museum of Texas Tech University
   >806/742-2442           Box 43191
   >FAX [phone]             Lubbock, TX  79409-3191
   >WEBSITE: http://www.ttu.edu/~museum
   >******  Living History . . . Because it's there!  *******

Net-Tamer V 1.08.1 - Test Drive

------------------------------

Date: Sun, 28 Jun 1998 20:46:22 -0500
From: John Kramer <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Makin' coffee

Henry,

Now I like real coffee with lots of flavor so puny folks may want to cut
back a
bit on the amount added. =20

Set pot with clear water on the fire and bring to a fierce rolling boil.=20
Remove from fire and immediately add coffee, I use 1/2 cup ground coffee to=
 1
quart of water.  Place back on fire and just allow enough roll to the water=
 to
wet all the grounds, then remove from fire and let steep a few minutes.

Just before you pour add; egg shells (some add a whole egg, broken), a shot=
 of
cold water, or a green twig to help settle the grounds.  Of course if you
don't
mind chewing your coffee a little (more) to get all the good out of it, skip
this last step.

Cheap strong coffee can be made by boiling less coffee for several minutes,=
 it
also makes it bitter and acidic.

Enjoy,

John...


At 03:49 PM 6/28/98 -0600, you wrote:
>With all the MM skills I have I still can't make a decent pot of coffee.
>You can tell I don't drink it regularly, otherwise I'd know how to make it.
>But there are times when I want some.=A0 Can you expert coffee makers out
>there give me a good and SIMPLE recipe for good camp coffee?=A0 I grind my
>own beans in a box grinder, but I'm usually at a loss as to how much coffee
>to how much water.=A0 It's usually hit or miss, and I'd like to get more
>consistent.=A0 Also, lots of the recipes I've seen call for an egg.=A0=
 What's
>up with that?
>
>TIA
>HBC
>
>*****************************************
>Henry B. Crawford=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Curator of History
>[e-mail]=A0=A0=A0=A0 Museum of Texas Tech University
>806/742-2442=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Box 43191
>FAX [phone]=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Lubbock, TX=A0 79409-3191
>=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 WEBSITE:
<http://www.ttu.edu/~museum>http://www.ttu.edu/~museum
>******=A0 Living History . . . Because it's there!=A0 *******
>=20
Use it up, wear it out, make do, or do without.
John Kramer  <[e-mail]>

------------------------------

Date: Sun, 28 Jun 1998 21:22:59 -0500
From: Glenn Darilek <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Makin' coffee

Henry B. Crawford wrote:

> Can you expert coffee makers out
> there give me a good and SIMPLE recipe for good camp coffee?

I'm no expert, but I think weak coffee tastes the worst.  So err on the
side of putting in too much coffee.  You can always dilute it a little.
Or try making a few pots at home using your camp pot to get the right
amount of coffee.  Also, some boil camp coffee, but when we make it at
home, just almost-boiling water is put on the grounds, so I wouldn't
boil it.

Iron Burner

------------------------------

Date: Sun, 28 Jun 1998 22:59:29 -0400
From: [e-mail] (Michael Pierce)
Subject: Re: MtMan-List:  Making Beaver bate....

yoy need to tell him how to set it up to useor make it  -- or do you want
me to do it --- i usaually bought ther stuff when i was trapping beaver
but was well informed of how to make it if i needed to---could buy
castoreum from any cent manufacture so didn't take the time to make it
myself---there was about 6 or seven mgf that you could choose from---I
always bought the cheep stuff and it worked i don't know why---- but it
did....
      "Hawk"
Michael Pierce
854 Glenfield Dr.
Palm Harbor, florida   34684
1-[phone]

On Sun, 28 Jun 1998 19:31:27 -0500 Jeff Powers <[e-mail]>
writes:
>Castor is beaver musk,from the beavers musk glands! Whats with
>nutmeg,cloves
>etc.? Castor is all I've ever needed.
>On 1998-06-27 [e-mail] said to [e-mail]
>   >Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
>   >X-Priority: 3
>   >X-MSMail-Priority: Normal
>   >X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 4.72.2106.4
>   >X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V4.72.2106.4
>   >Sender: [e-mail]
>   >Precedence: bulk
>   >Status:
>   >Okay... this newbie needs help.........
>   >Can someone tell me or refer me to the way beaver bate would have
>   >been made in the 1800s? Also how is it presented to the beaver?
>   >DeVoto's book on Lewis and Clark talks about the "castor" or "bark
>   >stone" as the base material. To this you add nutmeg, cloves and
>   >cinimon(sic). Then add spirits to make it the consistancy of
>   >mustard. I may have to study the anatomy of a male beaver.... do
>   >they have musk glands or are these their balls? DeVoto says the
>   >male beaver has "six" of these stones. Oh boy!
>   >Is this thick fluid then put on the end of a stick and placed over
>   >the underwater trap?
>   >Gail
>   >The living history Mt Man
>
>Net-Tamer V 1.08.1 - Test Drive
>
>
>

_____________________________________________________________________
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Get completely free e-mail from Juno at http://www.juno.com
Or call Juno at (800) 654-JUNO [654-5866]

------------------------------

Date: Mon, 29 Jun 1998 00:09:40 EDT
From: <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Makin' coffee

Don't know about the egg but for a standard pot, the easiest measure is to cup
your hand and fill your palm. ( if you know how much a tsp measures in your
hand and you know that 3 tsp makes one tbsp and it takes four heaoing tbsp to
make a good pot of coffee...) two rounded palms of grounds should make a good
pot. After it boils for about 10 min find a stick, strip the bark, and poke it
in to settle the grounds. If you are winter camping, a little snow or stream
water will do a better job. Enjoy.

Keep your eyes on the horizon.

KP

------------------------------

Date: Mon, 29 Jun 1998 00:26:03 EDT
From: <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Fire Starting

thanks capt for you input i dont have berch butt will try somother wood that
might work. how do you make good char.?? ive had littl eluck with puting it in
a tin and roasting it on tha stove????!!!! how am i doing ugh.  iron tounge

------------------------------

Date: Mon, 29 Jun 1998 00:43:01 EDT
From: <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Makin' coffee

In a message dated 98-06-28 16:53:07 EDT, you write:

<< [e-mail] (Henry B. Crawford >>
fill your pot boil the water  when its roling boil take it off the fire and
add coffe. im a coffe drinker not a hot water drinker put a good charge in the
pot a good charge. my secrit is when you put the coffe in dont let it boil
over slowly adding  all then put it back on the fire gently so it does notboil
over let boil a min or too.the first cup is the best because you get all the
grounds from the spout mmmmmm/mm. take it off the fire and let it settle for
awhile. keeping it worm as you can drink it. made thousands of gallons of the
stuff and im not dead yet . if boils odont worry it will be just a tad weaker.
boiled it in a tin can i found along side the trail  driven cows to summer
pasture once ittasts mighty good from a spring  or a good running creek watch
out for geraida.  iron tounge

------------------------------

Date: Sun, 28 Jun 1998 22:05:44 -0700
From: Roger Lahti <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Fire Starting

Iron Tongue (that walks)'

If you don't have any rotten birch logs you might try some really rotten maple or
other Hard Wood that has lain on the ground and just about disintegrated. Let it
dry out or dry it with care in the oven or near the fire until it is dead dry.
Break up some small pieces into a can with a tight fitting lid. Punch a very small
hole in the lid and put the can in the fire or  over direct flame so  the can gets
red hot. This will drive off the volatile gases from the rotten wood or what ever
fine carbon based material you are using, like cotton or linen fabric, and turn it
into charcoal inside the can. You must get the can very hot and you must see all
the vapors come out of the tiny hole you made and burn off with a tiny flame.
After the can has cooled you may open it and inspect the newly made char. It will
be fairly fragile if made from punk wood but can be handled if one is careful.

When it is available I use naturally found materials to blow my glowing char into.
Some good choices in my area are handfuls of dry grass and the inner bark of
cotton woods and sage brush will work too. I collect cedar bark when in the
regions where it grows and linen tow will work when it is available. Some types of
ropes and small lines will serve for tinder if the material can be spared. All
these materials must be prepared to some degree so that they be very fine and soft
as to catch the heat from the char and bust into flame.

In an earlier post I mentioned using burlap bag fabric as tinder when it is
available. I use natural materials as they become available in the field but I try
to have a hidden stash of burlap squares with me for that time when other tinder's
are not to be had and a sure fire must be got. The burlap squares will also serve
as tow to wipe out an unruly barrel.

I hope this has been of further help to you.

YMO&HS
Capt. Lahti
Clerk for the Wilson Price Hunt Party (to Astoria) AMM


[e-mail] wrote:

> thanks capt for you input i dont have berch butt will try somother wood that
> might work. how do you make good char.?? ive had littl eluck with puting it in
> a tin and roasting it on tha stove????!!!! how am i doing ugh.  iron tounge

------------------------------

Date: Mon, 29 Jun 1998 08:42:46 EDT
From: <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: hard tack recipie

In a message dated 98-06-11 11:38:53 EDT, you write:

<<  Just a note, I have heard that Baking powder and Soda were not
commercially
 > available until around 1850.

 Good point, but I think they were known by different names.  Webster's
 Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary dates the earliest use of the terms
 "baking powder" to 1850 and "baking soda" to 1881, and "bicarbonate of
 soda" to 1887.  I was surprised that "baking powder" predated "baking
 soda" because baking powder contains baking soda.
 However the term "soda" which means sodium carbonate or sodium
 bicarbonate dates back to 1558. >>

The name used for Baking Soda (sodium Bicarbonate) prior to the 1800's was
Saleratus.  Saleratus was a refined form of potash and was a pearl ash
(potassium carbonate) and is common in early cookbooks.  Saleratus reacts with
acids in the milk used to make biscuits and make them rise.  Per my wife (open
hearth cooking instructor at the Genesee Country Museum) using sour milk will
make you biscuits lighter.  And remember mixed with water Saleratus paste is
good on insect bites and bee stings.

Baking Powder could and was made prior to its commercial introduction by
combining Saleratus and Cream of Tarter (Tartaric Acid).  Tartaric acid is the
crystals you sometimes find on the bottom of a wine cork.  BUT per my wifes
research and early cookbook collection the use of Saleratus and Cream of
Tarter together (Baking Powder) is RARE in 18th century cook books.

Sorry this took so long to be sent but it took a while for me to get Jane to
sit down and write the info out.   Every time she told me Saleratus my poor
spelling took over and I just knew I would screw up everyone unless I got her
to spell it out.

So get a tin, fill it with Baking soda and mark it with its pre-1800's name
Saleratus and have some good biscuits on the trail.

Your Humble Servant

C.T. Oakes

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 25 Jun 1998 21:32:41 -0700
From: Dennis Fisher <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Custer Comments

     I have never been much of a Custer fan on way or the other but last =
summer we
made a trip to the battlefield on our vacation.  Not knowing anyone in th=
e area and
wanting to make the most of things I sprung for a history guide to show u=
s around
and it was well worth the money.  We arrived on a Saturday evening in Har=
din and the
next morning, Dennis Fox, our tour guide, stopped by the hotel to pick us=
 up.  We
followed him over to his house which was a few blocks away and he got in =
our van and
took over the driving.  I found him through the internet.  He actually wo=
rks for Jim
Court who is the former superintendent of the Custer Battlefield and assi=
sts him
with in depth history type tours.  We headed back down the interstate pas=
t the Reno
museum and got off on a dirt road that cut cross country though some ranc=
hes.  The
Reno Museum is privately owned and in my opinion, better than the one at =
the Custer
Battlefield.  The plan was to start at the =93Crows Nest=94 which was a l=
ookout point
from which Custer=92s Indian Scouts spotted the =93hostiles=94 pony herds=
 about 15 miles
from the actual battle location.  We couldn=92t get all the way up to the=
 Crow=92s nest
because the storms from the previous night had turned the low lying secti=
ons of dirt
road into a mud hole.  We now turned around and followed the route Custer=
 took north
up Ash Creek (now called Reno Creek). Dennis showed us all the significan=
t points
along the route where Benteen split off to scout the hills to the west, w=
here the
pack train got mired down in a swamp, where Reno crossed over to the west=
 side of
the creek, where the lone teepee with a dead warrior was found, and then =
to the
point where Custer sent Reno off to attack the village and he skirted aro=
und the
east side of the village up on the bluffs.  We then walked out across the=
 field
where Reno deployed his skirmish line and looked at some of the markers t=
hat
indicate the position where some of Reno=92s men died.  We followed the p=
ath of his
retreat to the point where he forded the Little Bighorn.  Dennis then too=
k us across
the interstate and across some private land up on a bluff where some of t=
he Indians
viewed the battle from.  Next we did lunch at the Crow Trading Post just =
outside the
entrance to the Custer Battlefield.  Indian tacos all around with a big d=
rink.
After lunch we went into the actual Custer National Monument and drove al=
l the way
down to south end to pick up the battle where Reno=92s men dug in after c=
rossing the
creek.  They had picked out some pretty good high ground (about 100 feet =
high) and
where digging in when Benteen arrived with his troops and the pack train =
which had
finally been extricated from the swamp. They regrouped and headed out to =
see what
had become of Custer but came under heavy fire at Weir Point and retreate=
d back to
their original positions.  By this time Custer and his command had been w=
iped out.
We next drove up to Weir Point and down to Medicine Trail Coulee where Cu=
ster had
made an attempt to cross and found himself in the center of a much larger=
 village
than he anticipated.  From there we went up on Calhoun Hill and last stan=
d hill.
Actually being there and seeing how spread out everything was, it is easy=
 to
understand why there were so many questions about what happened.  It is o=
ver four
miles from Benteen=92s/Reno=92s position to where Custer fought.  The ter=
rain is hilly
and we had a hard enough time with modern binoculars and clear air when w=
e looked at
long distance from place to place.  Add all the dust that was kicked up b=
y the
animals and the smoke from the black powder and you have a real visual ch=
allenge.

    After the =93official=94 tour ended, Dennis could see we had a real i=
nterest in this
stuff so he invited us back to his home to show us some other artifacts a=
nd he
invited us to come out to their ranch that evening to meet his family.  T=
his ranch
was once part of a 3 million acre ranch that cover a big chunk of Montana=
.  It was
about an hour drive outside of Hardin down in a beautiful little valley. =
 We meet
his children, his wife, his brother Richard who is an archaeologist, and =
another
brother.  Richard conducted an archaeological investigation of the Custer
Battlefield back in the mid 1980=92s and published a critically acclaimed=
 book of the
findings and an interpretation of those findings that changed many people=
s thinking
about the sequence of events during the battle.  We had a great time out =
there and
experienced some genuine hospitality.  They brought out a 50 year old bea=
ded Indian
dress and moccasins which Julie, my oldest daughter  modeled for a few pi=
ctures.  I
think it was of Northern Cheyenne make.

    I picked up quite a few books on the subject and three that I would r=
ecommend
highly are "Custer's Chief of Scouts, The Reminiscences of Charles A. Var=
num".  Lt.
Varnum was with Reno's command and provides a very detailed account of wh=
at
happened.  The "Reno Court of Inquiry" has more interesting things in it =
that most
of the other books put together.  As most of you know, someone had to tak=
e the blame
for what happened to Custer and Reno was the main target.  He requested a=
 formal
inquiry into what happened and this book is a transcript of the official =
testimony
that was given between January 13, 1879 and February 11.  Almost everyone=
 who could
be called in testified.  No charges were ever filed against Reno.  Richar=
d Fox's
"Archaeology, History, and Custer's Last Battle" is the result's of the
archaeological investigation of the Custer Battlefield.  Also very intere=
sting.

                  Dennis

------------------------------

Date: Sun, 28 Jun 1998 17:04:33 -0400
From: "nancy" <[e-mail]>
Subject: MtMan-List: Trying to locate...

Hello I am trying to locate the e-mail address of Amazon Dry Goods.  I
understand they carry civil war era patterns and etc.  Can you help me?  My
address is [e-mail]
   Thank-you,
    Nancy

------------------------------

Date: Sun, 28 Jun 1998 22:23:45 -0400
From: seanbear <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Makin' coffee

I use a muslin bag to put my coffee in then into the pot.  Per cup, I use
one TABLESPOON of coffee... ie... 16 cup pot... 16 rounded tablespoons of
coffee... then I add one more heaping for good measure.  I like STRONG
coffee.... <G> Definitely gets you going on a cold morning... Then let the
coffee do a low boil for about 15-20 mins... Comes out real good, and real
strong...  Actually, I found that you could just place it near the fire, and
not have it boil.  Keep it about 180 degrees... and it does fine...

Addison Miller

- -----Original Message-----
From: Jeff Powers <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail] <[e-mail]>
Cc: [e-mail] <[e-mail]>
Date: Sunday, June 28, 1998 8:32 PM
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Makin' coffee


>Henry, my coffee is always hit or miss and I drink gallons of it! :)
>as for the egg,in winter use snow instead, egg is meant to add air to the
>recipe most of the time(at least thats what I was told years ago in a
>survival course) and as long as ducks,geese,sage hens, etc. exist I believe
>eggs(hell,even turtle) are acceptable in any camp. That leaves the date of
>creation of the recipe in question to be verified. this isn't just my
>opinion,in their Journals,Lewis or Clark mentioned gathering bird eggs for
>meals,and I think Devoto quoted a mountain man about eggs in ACROSS THE
WIDE
>MISSOURI.Also in the journals of Alexander Henry of the NORTHWEST COMPANY
>clerks traded for eggs from ducks,swans and geese.
>
>On 1998-06-28 [e-mail] said to [e-mail]
>   >X-Sender: [e-mail]
>   >With all the MM skills I have I still can't make a decent pot of
>   >coffee. You can tell I don't drink it regularly, otherwise I'd know
>   >how to make it. But there are times when I want some.  Can you
>   >expert coffee makers out there give me a good and SIMPLE recipe for
>   >good camp coffee?  I grind my own beans in a box grinder, but I'm
>   >usually at a loss as to how much coffee to how much water.  It's
>   >usually hit or miss, and I'd like to get more consistent.  Also,
>   >lots of the recipes I've seen call for an egg.  What's up with that?
>   >TIA
>   >HBC
>   >*****************************************
>   >Henry B. Crawford        Curator of History
>   >[e-mail]     Museum of Texas Tech University
>   >806/742-2442           Box 43191
>   >FAX [phone]             Lubbock, TX  79409-3191
>   >WEBSITE: http://www.ttu.edu/~museum
>   >******  Living History . . . Because it's there!  *******
>
>Net-Tamer V 1.08.1 - Test Drive
>
>

------------------------------

Date: Mon, 29 Jun 1998 18:03:14 -0500
From: Jeff Powers <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List:  Making Beaver bate....

I've always chopped and ground dried musk glands up real fine and mix with a
few drops of mineral oil,just enough to get a paste like consistancy and put
a little on a stick placed so beaver step on the pan when he comes to see
who is intruding in his pond
On 1998-06-28 [e-mail] said to [e-mail]
   >X-Mailer: Juno 1.38
   >X-Juno-Line-Breaks: 6-12,14-44
   >yoy need to tell him how to set it up to useor make it  -- or do
   >you want me to do it --- i usaually bought ther stuff when i was
   >trapping beaver but was well informed of how to make it if i needed
   >to---could buy castoreum from any cent manufacture so didn't take
   >the time to make it myself---there was about 6 or seven mgf that
   >you could choose from---I always bought the cheep stuff and it
   >worked i don't know why---- but it did....
   >"Hawk"
   >Michael Pierce
   >854 Glenfield Dr.
   >Palm Harbor, florida   34684
   >1-[phone]
   >On Sun, 28 Jun 1998 19:31:27 -0500 Jeff Powers <[e-mail]>
   >writes:
   >>Castor is beaver musk,from the beavers musk glands! Whats with
   >>nutmeg,cloves
   >>etc.? Castor is all I've ever needed.
   >>On 1998-06-27 [e-mail] said to kestrel@ticon.
   >>net    >Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
   >>   >X-Priority: 3
   >>   >X-MSMail-Priority: Normal
   >>   >X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 4.72.2106.4
   >>   >X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V4.72.2106.4
   >>   >Sender: [e-mail]
   >>   >Precedence: bulk
   >>   >Status:
   >>   >Okay... this newbie needs help.........
   >>   >Can someone tell me or refer me to the way beaver bate would
   >>have    >been made in the 1800s? Also how is it presented to the
   >>beaver?    >DeVoto's book on Lewis and Clark talks about the
   >>"castor" or "bark    >stone" as the base material. To this you add
   >>nutmeg, cloves and    >cinimon(sic). Then add spirits to make it
   >>the consistancy of    >mustard. I may have to study the anatomy of
   >>a male beaver.... do    >they have musk glands or are these their
   >>balls? DeVoto says the    >male beaver has "six" of these stones.
   >>Oh boy!    >Is this thick fluid then put on the end of a stick and
   >>placed over    >the underwater trap?
   >>   >Gail
   >>   >The living history Mt Man
   >>Net-Tamer V 1.08.1 - Test Drive
   >____________________________________________________________________
   >_ You don't need to buy Internet access to use free Internet e-mail.
   >Get completely free e-mail from Juno at http://www.juno.com
   >Or call Juno at (800) 654-JUNO [654-5866]

Net-Tamer V 1.08.1 - Test Drive

------------------------------

Date: Mon, 29 Jun 1998 17:22:09 -0500
From: Bishnow <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Makin' coffee

2332Henry B. Crawford wrote:
>
> With all the MM skills I have I still can't make a decent pot of coffee.
> You can tell I don't drink it regularly, otherwise I'd know how to make it.
> But there are times when I want some.  Can you expert coffee makers out
> there give me a good and SIMPLE recipe for good camp coffee?  I grind my
> own beans in a box grinder, but I'm usually at a loss as to how much coffee
> to how much water.  It's usually hit or miss, and I'd like to get more
> consistent.  Also, lots of the recipes I've seen call for an egg.  What's
> up with that?
>
> TIA
> HBC
>
> *****************************************
> Henry B. Crawford        Curator of History
> [e-mail]     Museum of Texas Tech University
> 806/742-2442           Box 43191
> FAX [phone]             Lubbock, TX  79409-3191
>                WEBSITE: http://www.ttu.edu/~museum
> ******  Living History . . . Because it's there!  *******
When I was a kid I remember my granddad carried a bag of crushed
egg shells when we went hunting. He used it in his coffee. he said
a handfull in a pot would take the bad taste out of the coffee.
Never used it myself but granpa swore by it.

Snakeshot

------------------------------

Date: Mon, 29 Jun 1998 18:15:44 -0600
From: bob----debie <[e-mail]>
Subject: MtMan-List: AN ANNOUNCEMENT

We've been yakkin bout Ballistol and it's uses for a long time and quite
frankly, I've not gotten any negative feed back and that is, in part,
responsible for the following announcement.

I have JUST completed an agreement with Ballistol to be a regional
distributor for the Rocky Mountain area.  The order is in.

I am definately seeking dealers and you do NOT have to been in the Rocky
Mtn. area.

So.  If you have a desire to be a Ballistol dealer---now is probably the
perfect time to look into it.

If you want more info.  Contact me OFF LIST ONLY.  List posted replies
are a no-no.

Thanks for the help in getting here.
Bob G
Thunder Ridge

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 30 Jun 1998 00:13:36 EDT
From: <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Makin' coffee

In a message dated 98-06-28 16:52:29 EDT, you write:

<< With all the MM skills I have I still can't make a decent pot of coffee. >>

Have read all the replies up to this point with some intrest, 'cuz I like
coffee too.  There have been some good suggestions.  I think John's prociedure
(there were other's too along this line) of not boiling it has merit.  I've
discovered boiling it makes it become bitter.  Some people like it boiled, but
for me, it has better flavor if it isn't.  The best pot I ever made was with a
perk pot ( I know -- for shame!) on the heating stove inside the tent -- the
"old lady" was along -- what can I say -- anyhow, that pot never perked, but
it was the best tasting coffee I'd ever had when camping.  I've since figured
out how to do it without the basket in the pot & get the same results.  As for
how much coffee for how much water, the 1 TBSP/cup seems to work pretty well.
I've even made 1 cup at a time with this ratio when on a scout & pots were
limited.  Just put the water in my cup, & added the coffee after boiled then
kept hot by the fire for a few minutes 'till the color & aroma was right.
Egg, egg shell, twigs, snow, cold water, & etc are added to speed the settling
of the grounds.  The grounds will settle by themselves as the coffee cools a
bit, but if you're in a hurry, the above "additives" all work to a certain
degree.  No one has mentioned adding a touch of salt -- basicaly an old trick
to get the water to boil faster.  Don't get carried away, 'cuz a pinch is all
you need for the whole pot.  Some folks can't have salt for health reasons,
but if you can use salt, I think it mellows the flavor a bit.

NM

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 30 Jun 1998 08:34:33 EDT
From: <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: Have we forgotten the mountain men?

In a message dated 98-06-27 01:30:05 EDT, you write:

<<  i can get flint sparks . ican get char cloth to ignite but thats as far as
it goes i
 usualy give up   iron tounge  >>

Once you get the char glowing put it on some good tinder i.e.; dry tow.  My
favorite tinder is the loose ends of hemp tent ropes it catches flame really
easily.  The trick is that the tinder has to be real dry if you want it to
catch from the char.  Of course it helps to have a lot of hot air so you can
really blow on that glowing char to get the tinder to burn.  Good or bad I
have a lot of hot air so I can just blow that glowing ember into a flame in no
time.  Try the rope end, unravel it and make a nest of rope ends or tinder and
blow.

Your Humble Servant

C.T. Oakes

------------------------------

End of hist_text-digest V1 #95
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