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FOR many young people, the initial appeal of camping may well be that it is a very inexpensive way of getting a holiday in the country or by the seaside. But there is far more in it than that.

Camping provides a quality of enjoyment that no other form of holiday can give. It improves bodily health and physique and is an antidote to some of the more harmful effects of urban life. It can inspire new and lasting interests. It can promote both self-reliance and unselfishness. The spirit of fellowship which it can create will extend into the organisation to which the young campers belong. Indeed it is difficult to overstate the beneficial effect that camp life at its best can have upon the happiness, health, character and tastes of young people.

To-day the word "camp" has come to have many meanings, but this pamphlet is concerned only with the kind of camps which are so organised that each boy or girl has a part to play and a contribution to make in the common adventure. Such camps may be large or small, under canvas or in hutments, but they should always offer a new way of life in which the individual feels his significance and responsibility; and the way of life must be attuned to the surroundings of the camp.

As a summer activity for school and youth service organisations camping can be expected to become even more general during the next few years. Written primarily for leaders of youth service camps, most of this pamphlet should prove valuable also to teachers organising camps for schoolchildren.* It does not set out to be a comprehensive manual of instruction in campcraft, but rather to serve as a guide to those responsible for introducing young people to camp life, and to give some idea of what constitutes "good camping". And since it is important that anyone who undertakes camp leadership should do so not as a job or a duty but as an adventure, an opportunity and a privilege, it is hoped that these pages may convey also something of the spirit which is needed to make camping yield its finest fruits.

But camping cannot be learnt from a book. The authentic flavour of a camping holiday can be tasted only through personal experience. Before taking on camp leadership for the first time, it is advisable to attend, perhaps as a helper, a camp run by an experienced leader, or to spend a week at a practical training course for camp leaders run by the Ministry of Education, a local authority or a national voluntary organisation.

*It will, however, be understood that in the case of camps for schoolchildren different considerations may apply, particularly in regard to such matters as finance, administration and camp routine.

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THIS chapter gives a brief description of the main types of camp. Different problems arise according to whether a camp is for boys or girls only, or for both, for uniformed or non-uniformed organisations, for younger or for older boys or girls, and whether its purpose is specific training or simply holiday-making; but for all types of camp the general principles are the same.

Large Camps

Large camps usually make fewer demands on the campcraft of the individual boys and girls who attend them, and are therefore the most convenient for beginners. Large camps fall into two groups, those occupying permanent camping sites and those set up on temporary sites for a week or so in the summer. Sites used for camping for a longer period than forty-two consecutive days must by the terms of the Public Health Act of 1936 (Sections 268, 269) be licensed by the appropriate local authority and must conform to statutory regulations as regards sanitation, etc., unless they are controlled by an organisation specifically granted exemption under the terms of the Act. Permanent sites for large camps are usually owned by local education authorities or other responsible bodies.

Permanent camps usually have at least a nucleus of permanent buildings for cooking, in many cases for meals and recreation and also for sanitation. Normally they have a full-time staff, including a warden and probably a cook. Though campers are generally expected to assist in the preparation of vegetables and washing up, the cooking of meals is usually carried out by the permanent staff.

Groups from different organisations may use these camps, which play a useful part in providing camping facilities for young people from organisations which lack the experience necessary, or the opportunity, for camping independently. The provision of central facilities tends to increase the leisure time of campers.

There is also the large camp, generally under canvas, run by an organisation for its own members. In addition to providing a holiday it often affords the main opportunity during the year for giving training in some special activities which cannot be carried out at home. If the camp is run as a single unit, a large dining marquee with tables and benches is used and special centralised cooking arrangements are made.

Many large camps can with advantage be divided into smaller units and ultimately into units of six or eight campers.

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Hutment Camps

The term "hutment camp" is used for more than one type of camp, but, in so far as hutment camps are to be distinguished from the large camps described above, it connotes a camp which has permanent buildings for sleeping and eating and permanent latrines and wash-houses. The sleeping accommodation may be extended by the use of tents, and the indoor cooking facilities may be supplemented by out-of-door fireplaces.

Though hutment camps cannot offer the same variety of experiences and the same complete change from normal life as canvas camps, they afford many of the benefits of camp life, have undeniable advantages in periods of cold or prolonged wet weather, and can extend camping into the winter months. They also make less demand on the inexperienced leader and require less time in preparation. They have advantages in introducing young people, particularly girls, to country or seaside life who might not take very readily to camping under canvas, and many who start camping in hutments pass on to camping under canvas gladly and naturally after a year or two.

Hutment camps vary greatly in size, facilities and situation, but much of the advice and information given throughout these pages will be found to apply to them, with certain obvious modifications.

Small Camps

A camp of under fifty is usually regarded as a small camp, and it is with such camps that this handbook is mainly concerned. These camps range from the group of half a dozen upwards. Campers sleep in bell tents or in ridge tents. A separate tent or small marquee can be used for meals, according to the number in camp. It is advisable to have access in case of emergency to a permanent shelter of some kind such as a barn or village hall. This is also of great use in collecting equipment before camp and on striking camp.

In a small camp, campers take their full share of all camp duties, including cooking; but if the campers have only limited experience of camping it is advisable to have an adult cook when the number of campers exceeds twenty-five. Most campers, however, regard cooking their own meals as one of the delights of camping.

Camps for Both Sexes or for Girls only

Though not essentially different from other camps, mixed camps and girls' camps naturally involve special arrangements.

In mixed camps there must be one responsible leader of each sex and of these leaders one must have ultimate responsibility; dual authority must be avoided. Leaders of mixed camps should realise that girls, and to a lesser extent boys, are more concerned about their personal appearance when mixing with the other sex. Girls will need facilities for dressing, and it may be well to provide a special tent where they may hang their clothes.

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Members of mixed organisations often have less initial enthusiasm for camping under canvas than those in single-sex organisations, and careful preparation will be needed to ensure that they appreciate the conditions they will find in camp, the rules they must observe and the duties they will be expected to perform.

Special attention will be required to the lay-out of mixed camps. The entrances to the sleeping tents, wash-places and latrines of one sex should not be under observation by the other sex.

Each sex will look after its own sanitation, but apart from this all groups for camp duties should contain both sexes.

The presence of boys and girls in the same camp will necessitate modifications in the programme of activities, but offers valuable opportunities for joint excursions, walks and other pastimes. An attractive programme including well-arranged social events and concerts will help the campers to find their enjoyment within the camp community rather than by seeking outside entertainment or going off in pairs. It may be possible to arrange a special dance for the campers in the local village hall. Or they might be allowed to attend any public dances in the vicinity, but if they are to obtain full benefit from a camp holiday, it would not be wise to allow them to spend much of their time at local dance halls or other forms of commercial amusement.

Light-Weight Camps

Light-weight camping is the most developed form of camping. It is practised by individuals or small groups and its essential characteristics are mobility and independence. As the name implies, the weight of the tents and of every article of equipment is reduced to a minimum. Once the initial cost of equipment (which is at the present time rather heavy) has been met, it is an inexpensive form of camping. There are recognised sites for light-weight camping all over the country; a list of them is supplied to all members of the Camping Club of Great Britain and Ireland.* In addition, individuals, and small groups of light-weight campers, seldom find difficulty in obtaining permission to camp on sites of their own choosing. Many of the factors to be borne in mind when choosing a site for an organised camp apply to light-weight camping, but the choice is obviously far less restricted.

Enthusiasm for light-weight independent camping normally comes through attendance at organised camps. To start it with no previous experience in organised camps is hazardous and even foolhardy, for this kind of camping makes heavy demands on the camper's resourcefulness and adaptability.

Information about light-weight camping equipment will be found in Appendix VII.

*38 Grosvenor Gardens, London, S.W.1.

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PREPARATIONS for a camp must be made well in advance. The organiser should have an assistant or a small committee to help make the preliminary arrangements, and it is important that more than one of the staff know the complete plan.

Before fixing the camp fees the leader must make an estimate of income and expenditure. As prices vary so much at the present time, it is not possible to give exact guidance here, but the items of expenditure to be borne in mind are:

Rent of site.
Hire or purchase of equipment.
Repairs to equipment.
Storage and transport of equipment.
Fares of campers and staff.
Food of campers and staff (at least 15s. a week per head and proportionately more if the camp is a small one).
Wages (if any) of staff.

The first thing to decide is the district in which the camp is to be held, consideration being given to the distance from home and the chief points of interest in the neighbourhood - sea, moors, mountains or rivers. This decided, the hunt starts for a suitable site. Help and advice can be obtained from the local youth committee, voluntary organisations and local landowners. It is essential to ensure that the camp has exclusive use of the site and to know what its financial commitment is to be.

The following should be borne in mind when looking for a site:

Accessibility

Road entrances, distance from buses or railway.

Water Supply

Adequate and suitable water supplies are vital to good camping. All water supplies need to be readily accessible and easily approached.

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Ideally, water should be available on site, and in any case should not be more than 200 yards away.

Water for Drinking and Cooking

Great care is needed to ensure that the supply is safe and secure.
Local doctor is the best person for a first opinion.
Public Analyst will provide a factual check if necessary.
Temporary stand pipes can sometimes be run to the site.
Local Authority Surveyor or Engineer will advise.

Need not be of the same purity standard as drinking and cooking water.
Spring, stream or well water is suitable.
Inspect a stream to at least half a mile above camp. If, for example, a cattle drinking-point is above the drawing-point, it is unwise to use the water.
Assume worst drought conditions, i.e., find out if spring, well or stream has ever been known to dry up.
Check locally on dependability of water supply.

It is advisable to visit the site during wet weather to see if the land drains well. Local advice should also be taken. Drainage, or lack of it, affects siting of tents, kitchens, latrines. Tests should be made to see if it is possible to dig latrines. If this is not possible, arrangements will have to be made for the use and emptying of chemical closets.

Sheltered Position

The site should have protection from the prevailing wind by trees, hedge or slope of land. It is well to visualise what it will be like in continuous rain, howling wind or blazing sun. It is important not to be overlooked by houses, though it is helpful to have a cottager near who will keep a watchful eye on the camp.

Fuel

It is necessary to find out if suitable wood is available and how far it has to be fetched.

Supplies

Purchasing foodstuffs locally (i.e., near camp site) is good for relations with the neighbourhood and promotes goodwill towards youth organisations.

The site must be within reasonable reach of the local shops, milk supply, etc. What is reasonable will vary according to transport available on the site.

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Making local contacts is an important part of the preparation for camp and it is helpful to consult the site owner before making them. Local knowledge is always worth having. Contacts to be made are as follows:

Doctor

The doctor should be visited and given the dates and exact location of the camp. His telephone number and surgery hours should be noted and information regarding hospital facilities should be obtained. Particulars of the next nearest doctor are also valuable. These addresses should be displayed on the Camp Notice Board.

Butcher

The butcher should be consulted to see if, and if so when, he can deliver to the site, and what supplies are likely to be available, in order that these things may be known when planning menus. It is best to arrange with him to keep surplus food (not only meat) in his refrigerator.

Baker

Inquiries should be made about any special baking, e.g., meat pies on certain days of the week. It is advisable to try to arrange for visits to his house out of shop hours for more bread when the campers have eaten more than was estimated.

Grocer

Here again a real friend is needed, and most grocers will accept a visit out of shop hours in an emergency. He will appreciate good notice of what the camp requires, and a list of the main essentials and quantities should be sent along at least a fortnight before camp with a note of when deliveries will be needed. He will usually lend orange boxes and empty tins for the store tent if he is notified beforehand.

Note: Fruit and vegetables may often be purchased direct from growers.

Milkman

Storage of milk is always a difficult problem. It will be of considerable help if the milkman can leave one set of churns at the camp, exchanging them each day. Empty churns should be scoured at once.

Landowners

To avoid trespass permission for campers to cross their land should be obtained from all neighbouring landowners as well as from the owner of the ground on which you are camping.

Clergy and Ministers

Particulars or local religious services of all denominations should be obtained and local Ministers should be informed that campers may attend.

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Stationmaster and Bus Service

Up-to-date times of trains and buses must be known. The local bus service should be approached about possible excursions, as buses get booked up a long time ahead in the summer. The local stationmaster should be told if and when luggage or equipment is coming in advance.

Local Food Office

So long as rationing continues, the Food Office should be consulted about permits and whether campers should bring ration books or temporary cards. Tradesmen must also be informed about permits or ration cards.

Nearest Telephone

Permission should be obtained to use the nearest telephone in cases of emergency. The position of the nearest public telephone should be marked on the camp map.

Arrangements for camping equipment should be made by, at latest, Easter if it is desired to hire canvas for peak holiday periods. It is well worth while to make personal contact with the firm concerned. It is often cheaper to deal with a local (home) firm.

If the equipment is owned by your organisation, preparation for camp starts with the storage and overhaul of all equipment as soon as one season's camping ends. Good campers put away their equipment in a condition fit for erecting at any time. All repairs should be carried out at once and not left till just before the equipment is required.

Camp gear should be looked over during the winter months. All camp equipment should be checked at least four weeks before camp.

Much depends on careful selection of staff, because unless the staff work as a friendly team the camp will be a failure. People are busy and get booked up very far ahead, so it is essential that staff be planned well in advance and that they meet before camp.

There must be one camp leader as the final authority. He or she must understand the handling of young people. As has been said, in a mixed camp there must be an assistant leader of the opposite sex to the camp leader. For the adult assistant staff a ratio of one to every eight campers is desirable, though the leader may have to be content with fewer; a minimum of two adults is essential for any camp, however small. The camp leader must assign duties to his staff, who should be temperamentally suited to each other and, so far as is possible, should fill the gaps in each

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other's experience. The helpers should be keen campers and be prepared to devote the whole of their time to making the camp enjoyable and successful.

Every camp should have on its staff someone trained to render first-aid, someone to act as quartermaster and someone who can be responsible for camp activities.

A detailed plan for layout of site should be prepared beforehand. All concerned with running the camp should have detailed knowledge of the plan. All campers should have general knowledge of the plan. Use of 6-inch Ordnance Map for this purpose is recommended.

No hard and fast rules can be laid down, but the following points should be borne in mind :

Kitchen should be near wood and water supplies.

Chopping area should be near, but not too near the kitchen - 10 to 15 yards away.

Wash-houses should be within reasonable reach of tents, near water and drainage. Use available cover.

Latrines should be to leeward of the whole camp, but within site bounds: 50 to 100 yards distant from centre of camp and below level of camp.

Use available cover. Wash-houses and latrines are necessary but not attractive features of a developed site. Ideally they should be placed within easy reach, but out of sight of tents and kitchens.

Sleeping tents should be back to prevailing wind, but open to morning sun. Pitched in the open, not under trees. Allow plenty of room between tents. The exact spacing depends on the site, but at least one tent area should be left between tents.

Store tents should be pitched in shade facing north on flat ground. Near kitchen, but to leeward; as far as possible from latrines. An additional store for baggage and reserve gear is useful.

Marquee should be on flat ground to leeward and not far from kitchen.

First Aid tent should be near the tent of the member of staff in charge. In partial shade with pleasant aspect.

These should be arranged beforehand.

The advance party's arrival must be carefully organised to coincide with the arrival of equipment and supplies. The advance party should include a senior member of the staff, quartermaster and a suitable working party of experienced campers: for a camp of fifty a working party of

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three to five. It is essential that the time allotted for the advance party work should allow for wet weather: two clear days at least are advised. Duties of the advance party should include confirmation of arrangements for food supplies and local transport.

A small rear party will be required, although the main work of striking the camp should be done by the campers themselves and should have been explained well beforehand. The rear party's main duties are described in Chapter IV.

A point that is often forgotten is that the campers themselves should be well prepared for camp. They should know and understand the aim of the camp. They should be consulted in the planning of the camp programme. They should already know the features of the country they are going to live in through the use of 1-inch, 2½-inch when available, and 6-inch Ordnance Maps. They should be told what will be expected from them in camp, what work they will do, at what time there is to be silence in camp. They should know under what conditions they will be living and told what sort of clothing to bring. (They should be given a full kit list.) Interest in the camp should be aroused early in the year, and intending campers should be encouraged to pay into a camp fund both for pocket money and camp fees.

Detailed rotas of camp duties should be prepared before arrival in camp. Tent lists should also be prepared in advance. As a guide for allocating, it is suggested that though two friends should be allowed to sleep in the same tent it may be a mistake to have all the members of the same gang in one tent. Whatever principle of allocation is adopted, it should be adhered to, otherwise there will be no end to the demand to change tents.

All campers should be insured against accident. The staff should be covered against legal liability. Camp organisers will be well advised to consult either the officials of their education authority or the headquarters of their national organisation about this question.

Parents' consent for the leader to take full responsibility for their children, and certification of freedom from infectious disease, should be obtained.

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Glossary of Tent Terms

Erecting Camp

It is important to perform the operations of erecting and striking a camp methodically and in appropriate sequence. The sequence will vary according to the weather.

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Under good weather conditions, erect tents, etc., in this order:

One tent as a safeguard against sudden storm.
Latrines.
Main Marquee.
Store Tent.
Sleeping Tents.
Kitchens.
Staff Tents.
Wash-places.
Sundries, e.g., Notice Board, Flag Poles.

Marquee - unless high wind prevails. This ensures maximum amount of immediate cover and could house whole camp as temporary measure. Latrines.
Store Tent.
Sleeping Tents.
Kitchens.
Staff Tents.
Wash-place.
Sundries - leave over until better conditions.

Generally, the reverse of the order for erecting should be followed, attention being given to the following points:

Dismantle and pack up sundries and non-essentials first. Leave the latrines standing until last possible moment.

Leave the kitchen till late if a meal is desired after packing and before leaving.

If striking camp in wet weather leave one large tent standing until last so that gear may be sheltered.

Quartermaster should check all packages before they leave the site. Camp leader should visit the owner of the site to thank him and invite him to inspect the site.

When the time comes for the majority of the campers to leave, it will be the duty of the Rear Party to stay on the site until the final task of striking has been completed. That is to say they should make a final tour of the camp before leaving, ensuring that

i. Rubbish pits and latrines are adequately filled in and their sites clearly marked.
ii. Fire site is really cold, damped down and made good.
iii. No gear or litter has been left.

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There are many types of tent and various opinions regarding their respective merits. The average camp is concerned with two main types, the bell and the ridge. Of both types there are many varieties. The subject is too large to go into fully here and only the most important points about each main type used as sleeping tents can be listed.

The Bell

Advantages:

Stands up to most weather conditions.
Fairly easy and quick to pitch.
Commodious.
Provides reasonable head-room and storage space.
Best wind-resisting design.

Heavy.

Needs level ground.
Has only one door and therefore entrance quickly becomes messy in wet weather, which may necessitate "swinging" the tent.
Awkward if prevailing wind shifts, as door may have to be kept closed, which is unhealthy, or the tent "swung".
Inside temperature more variable.
More difficult to keep tidy.

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Ridge or Wall Tent

There are two main types, those with ridge poles, and those with end poles only. Both are good; choice is largely a matter of individual preference. Both need to be of the best quality obtainable.

Advantages:

Lighter in weight than the bell.
Pitch quite well on sloping or uneven ground.
Can have two doors, therefore one end can be open in almost any weather.
Possible and desirable to have fly sheet.

Less room per yard of canvas.
Greater strain on canvas and guy lines in wind.
Lacks a "centre".

There are many ways of pitching and striking different makes of tents: the following methods are simple and good.

Pitching

BELL TENTS. Spread out the tent in a circle with its apex in the centre, walls tucked under. Make sure the door is laced up or the tent will pull out unevenly. The door should lie facing the direction in which it is to open. Pull all guy runners down to the end and lay each guy line full-length on the ground in a line with the seam it meets. Drive in a peg two-thirds of the way (measured from the tent) down each guy rope. Slip the guy lines over the pegs, leaving the ropes full-length. Unfasten the door and insert the pole - under the brailing - placing the top carefully inside the rope ring at the apex of the tent. Raise the pole by sliding the butt along the ground until the pole is upright. Tighten up the guys, taking the strain evenly all round the tent. Put in the brailing pegs. Two people can erect a tent by this method, although it is better to have a team of four.

RIDGE TENTS. Lay the ridge pole on the ground in the required direction. Put in a peg at each end of this pole. Remove the ridge pole and spread out the tent on its side with the lower edges in line with the two marking pegs. Insert the ridge pole and uprights. Be careful not to stick the spikes of the uprights through the tent. The butts of the uprights should be at the marking pegs. At an angle of 45 degrees, and about three or four paces from the marking pegs, drive two pegs at each end to take the main guy lines. Put the main guys on the poles and lift tent into position, slipping the guys on to the pegs. Make sure the poles are upright and in line. Fasten and peg down the doors. Peg out the corner

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guys, next the four corner brailing pegs, and then those between them. Corner guys should be pegged out diagonally from. the end of the tent. If a fly sheet is used it is easier, except with high tents, to slip this on after the tent is erected. With high tents it should be put on before the tent is lifted. Guy it out similarly to the tent. A team of three or four is best for this job.

MARQUEE. Open the marquee roof and lay it out flat, letting the ridge lie in the required direction. At an angle of 45 degrees, and 6 ft. from each corner, drive in a "corner" peg. Taking a line across the roof and from the ends of the ridge pole and 6 ft. from the edges

of the canvas, drive in four pegs to take the main guys. Slip the guys over the four "corner pegs", insert corner poles and guy them into position, lifting the roof on the corner poles. (If the marquee is more than 20 ft. long it is advisable to provide for a pole in each side as well as the four corners.) Fit the ridge pole and main uprights together and insert them. Put two main guys over the spikes on the main uprights and slip on to the main guy pegs. Step up the ridge pole gradually by walking the main uprights towards the centre. Tighten the main guys. Insert the rest of the wall poles and guy them. Hook on the walls.

Pegging

This must be done correctly or trouble will come with the first bad weather. Pegs should be driven in at an angle of 45 degrees so that their heads point away from the tent. In bad weather or where the soil has

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poor holding qualities it is advisable to double-peg. Pegs can also be reinforced by driving in two more pegs and passing a rope round the main peg.

Striking Tents

In all cases the method of striking is the reverse of pitching. When struck all tents should be carefully folded and put in their tent bags. All pegs should be counted, cleaned and dried and packed with the mallets in the peg bag. All guys should be wound up and securely tied. It is essential to put canvas away dry; wet canvas will go mouldy and rot. Be careful that damp sod-cloth is not folded into the centre of a dry tent.

The tension of canvas is affected by sun and dew, wind and rain. Poles, pegs and guys therefore need adjusting very frequently according to the weather. When pitching, care should be taken that the runner is half-way up the guy to allow for adjustment.

Whenever possible all doors should be open day and night and tents should be brailed up in fine weather until tea-time. Everything should be raised off the floors of the tents during the day, or the ground will turn sour. In bad weather it may be necessary to alter the position of the door to avoid mud. This can be done with a bell tent by swinging the tent around. Guys are slipped off the pegs, held and passed round four pegs and then replaced.

Canvas should never be left completely unattended for any length of time.

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To loosen guys of tents in wet weather without going out, dig a hole about 4 inches deep next to the pole and gently lower the pole into the hole.

To air a tent after rain, do not roll the walls up tightly but hook them up by the brailings to the wooden button which secures the guy to the tent.

Do not allow clothes line to be hung between poles of ridge tent.

When purchasing tents remember to examine the poles. Avoid painted poles. Good poles should be of ash or hickory and clear varnished only.

If the pegs and poles are marked distinctively a complete tent set is recognisable.

Tent bags should be stored in separate store when tent is pitched.

Avoid rolling wet guys tightly. Just coil loosely and repack when dry.

Have all tents emptied and brailed in morning except in very bad weather.

WARM adequate sleep is essential to the health and happiness of a camp, and it is important to give careful attention to bedding.

PaIliasses

These are not essential; they have advantages and disadvantages, but new campers, especially girls, may gain confidence from the use of palliasses.

Straw-filled bags are very messy and encourage insects; and the fire-risk is considerable.

Kapok filled "biscuits" are better, but once they become damp are hard to dry and after drying become lumpy and uncomfortable.

Hair-filled palliasses are best, but they are expensive and add to the bulk of the equipment.

Blankets

Cotton mixture blankets should be avoided; warmth is derived not from the weight but from the fluffiness of wool, which holds body-warmth.

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More thickness of blanket is advised between the body and the ground than between the body and the air. Normally four good quality wool blankets are sufficient for each camper, but a wise leader will have a reserve stock as well.

Bed-making should be practised before camp.

Camp Beds

Camp beds are very cold unless a palliasse is used. One camp bed at least is needed in the First Aid Tent.

Groundsheets

No part of any groundsheet should ever protrude outside the tent.

Groundsheets should not be walked on and should be rolled, never folded, for packing.

Axes, Saws, Other Tools

These should all be of the best quality. They should be in one person's charge, for they are all potential sources of accident if carelessly used; they should all be kept "masked", that is, the working edge covered when not in use. All tools should be kept clean and sharp.

Lighting

Hurricane lamps or candle-lanterns are the accepted form of lighting for canvas camps. Avoid naked flames.

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Kitchen Equipment

Too much makes work; too little means poor meals. Good quality tin and iron ware is best; enamel cooking utensils are unsuitable for camp. All kitchen equipment should be kept scrupulously clean and should be inspected every day

Running Repairs

Emergency repairs may be necessary during the camp. A sail-maker's needle, hemp or flax thread, cobbler's wax and some old canvas, adhesive plaster, spare cord, hammer, nails and screws, screwdriver and a good pocket-knife will cope with most eventualities.

Equipment Lists

Lists of equipment are given in Appendix V for a camp of twenty-five divided into three units for cooking, and in Appendix VI for a camp of about a hundred using central cooking. With appropriate modifications these will serve as guides for a camp of any size.

One of the aims of every camper should be to make himself comfortable. This calls for a certain amount of improvised equipment in order to keep things clean and dry and to save labour. Improvising equipment is a necessary and enjoyable part of camping and offers scope for skill and

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ingenuity. All improvised equipment should be strong and serviceable, and dangerous spikes on which campers may get hurt should be avoided, especially at eye level. A few examples of such equipment are described below, but these are only indicative of wider possibilities (see sketches).

TRIPOD. This has more uses than any other form of improvised equipment. Take three straight pieces of stick, laying these side by side, lash together and then open out into a tripod. This can be used to hold a wash-stand or a rucksack; or four small tripods may support two straight bars between them to make an excellent case-rack.

RACK FOR BEDDING, ETC. This is for a bell tent. Fasten two loops to the centre pole about 12 inches from the ground; slip two stout poles into these, resting the other ends on tripods.

MEAT SAFE. A good meat safe can be made from an orange box and butter muslin. The orange box must be covered completely with muslin. The muslin on the front should be fastened across the top with tacks, and a piece of elastic passed right round the front to keep the muslin tightly in place where it is opened. A similar box will be found invaluable for keeping jam, etc., in the store tent.

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CLOTHES LINE. A good clothes line can be made of two pieces of rope twisted together, the clothes being fastened through the twists.

END OF SEASON

All camping equipment when put away at the end of the season should be left ready for the next season. Articles liable to rust should be well greased. Blankets should be protected from moths. Groundsheets should be piled flat. If weather makes it difficult to dry canvas on the site, an early opportunity must be made to dry and repack tents ready for storage.

No camp can be a success unless the campers are well fed. The preparation, cooking and punctual serving of good food are therefore of the utmost importance. Careful thought must be given to the menus; meals should be suitable for the kind of camp contemplated and the best commodities available should be bought. People living in the open air want to eat more than at home. However necessary economy may be, the lowering of feeding standards must never be countenanced. There is no virtue in showing a credit balance if the campers have been badly fed.

Menus (see also Appendix I)

Based on the menus and the number of campers, a stores list should be prepared and orders should be placed in good time. Meals must fit in with the programme of the camp and times must vary accordingly. Some camps prefer the main meal in the middle of the day and high tea at about 5.30; others have a light lunch, tea at four o'clock, and make supper at 7 p.m. the main meal. A hot drink before bedtime is always necessary. If campers have been out all day with a sandwich lunch, a substantial meal on their return will be essential. While menus need careful planning they should not be followed rigidly. Weather conditions and availability of supplies must be considered daily, and the quartermaster must be prepared

[page 23]

to alter the menu at short notice. It is well always to carry the ingredients for at least one emergency meal in case of failure of deliveries.

The main points in making a menu may be summarised as follows:

(1) At breakfast a cooked dish, besides porridge (or cereal), bread and butter, marmalade, and tea or coffee.

(2) Two courses at dinner; if first course is substantial it should be followed by a lighter second course, or vice versa, e.g., fish followed by steamed pudding, or stew and vegetables followed by fruit.

(3) The dish at supper or high tea should be adequate, so that the campers do not make a meal chiefly composed of bread.

(4) Cocoa (National Milk Cocoa is excellent), or soup before bedtime at night.

(5) Some raw fruit or vegetables should be included daily.

(6) Day and time of delivery by vans, or when food is to be called for, should be considered so that food, especially meat or fish, can be cooked as soon as possible after arrival.

(7) Number of available cooking pots must be considered. Dishes cooked in advance and hay-box help here.

A ridge tent opening at both ends with a fly sheet is best for storing food, or a bell tent with walls kept brailed. If more than one tent is required, one should be kept for fruit, vegetables and bread, and another arranged to take dry goods on one side and a table for bowls, jugs, etc., on the other. Nothing but food should be kept in the food store. A roomy store tent makes efficient quartermastering easier.

Dry goods are safe in tins if the lids fit tightly. A large wooden box, stood on its side on pegs, makes a good improvised cupboard for tins and other odds and ends. A similar arrangement is suitable for bread, and it can be made flyproof by covering it with muslin fixed by elastic or tape round the box. If bread is kept in a bin the bin should be left open and covered with muslin.

Butter and margarine should be kept in the shade and are best left in their paper and put in a dry bowl. In hot weather the bowl should stand in water and a muslin cover should be placed over it, leaving the ends of the muslin in the water.

Milk bottles should stand in water in the shade, and jugs containing milk should be covered with muslin in the same way as butter. Milk in quantity in churns is difficult to keep in hot weather. If there is a stream, churns should be stood in it; otherwise they should be kept in the shade with the lids off and covered with muslin, as for butter and margarine. Milk goes sour if put into a badly cleaned container or a chipped enamel jug, or if new milk is mixed with the old supply. Milk containers should

[page 24]

be cleaned by rinsing with cold water, washing thoroughly, rubbing with salt if necessary, and then scalding with boiling water.

Meat must be kept in the open air, cool and protected from flies. It can be hung from a branch in a muslin bag, but the bags must be flyproof and the muslin kept from touching the meat by means of a hoop or frame. It is best to ask the butcher to keep all meat till required for cooking. Cooked meat can be kept in a meat safe.

Tins of food must be emptied as soon as they are opened.

Drinking water can be stored in clean galvanised dustbins or buckets, covered with muslin and kept in the shade. Stones tied in the corners of the muslin serve to weight the edges.

One of the main problems of quartermastering in camp is the care of partly used food. Waste must be avoided. Plenty of space and abundant supply of boxes, racks, bowls and muslin provide the best answer. All food left over can be put into bowls and covered with muslin. For this purpose muslin caps, with elastic round the edges, are useful.

In hot weather it is always cooler in the ground than above it. Larders dug into the earth in shaded places will keep most foodstuffs in good condition. The use of clean bracken and other foliage for covering wrapped fats is also recommended.

Cooking

In large canvas camps, solid fuel ranges and boilers are often used for cooking. These may be hired, but previous inspection is essential.

In small canvas camps, solid fuel stoves are unnecessary. The quartermaster should have a knowledge of cooking on open fires.

It is not the purpose of this pamphlet to give detailed information about the cooking of particular foods. This can readily be obtained from Ministry of Food leaflets, and elsewhere. The following general hints, however, on matters which experience has shown are likely to be overlooked, may be helpful.

Heat is not easily concentrated out of doors so extra time must be allowed for everything.

Food burns easily on an open fire, so anything not in a double pot must be carefully watched. If the lid fits tightly and is kept on, the food will not be smoked.

Stone jam-jars are useful to put inside dixies to improvise double pots. Special care must be taken to keep food hot after it is cooked, and it is best served from the pots it is cooked in.

Time spent in planning the kitchen will save needless walking to and fro. Stack fuel near the fire, and wash up near the water supply. A good wood stack is essential and this should be covered nightly and in wet weather with a waterproof sheet.

Have plenty of hot water: an empty space on the fire should at once

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be filled with a pot of water which can be tipped into the boiler if necessary.

Keep a dixie for tea, or have a kettle.

Steaming instead of boiling conserves the goodness in food. Make porridge overnight.

If no oven is available meat can be roasted in a heavy dixie. Put about half a pint of water in the bottom of the dixie. Raise the meat off the bottom by using a wire grid or plate upside down (the latter is apt to stick on the bottom of the dixie), put a little fat on the meat, keep lid on tight and baste often.

Carving knives and bread knives should be really sharp.

Gloves should be worn when handling pots and pans on the fire.

Hay-hole and Hay-box

Fires and fuel are the subject of a separate chapter, but it is appropriate here to consider the hay-box, to which reference has already been made. The hay-box and hay-hole are useful devices for helping to cook stews, porridge, etc., but they must be expertly constructed and fully understood or their results will be disappointing. The actual cooking takes much longer than on an ordinary fire, but fuel is saved as the food goes on cooking in the box or hole. The dixie or pan used must have a tight-fitting lid (a saucepan with a long handle should be avoided), and all food must be put boiling into the hay-hole. Beans should boil for half an hour, porridge and macaroni for ten minutes, and rice for five minutes, before being put in. Stew should simmer for at least half an hour and potatoes for ten minutes.

A hay-hole may be dug about 1 ft. deeper and wider than the saucepan or casserole to be used, and prepared as follows: put a layer 4 to 6 inches deep of closely packed hay in the bottom, stand the dixie or pan in the

[page 26]

middle, and pack it round as tightly as possible with hay. Make a bag of some material large enough to fit the top when well stuffed with hay. A waterproof sheet or some other protection should be put over at night and in wet weather. A hay-box can be prepared in the same way in any wooden box or galvanised bin, which should be lined first with several layers of newspaper.

Kitchen Sanitation : Pig-pail, Grease-trap and Refuse Pit

A pig-pail should be available for scraps and should be kept covered.

Arrangements should be made with a farm for disposal. Tea leaves, egg-shells and fruit stones should be burned.

Greasy washing-up water will soon make an unpleasant mess if thrown on the ground. To avoid this a sump with grease-trap should be constructed. To make a simple grease-trap an inverted wire meat cover, or large tin with holes punched in it, or garden sieve, is filled with long grass, hay, straw or bracken, and placed over the sump, supported and kept in position by four sticks driven into the ground. All greasy water should be poured through this trap. The grass, etc., should be renewed daily, and the dirty grass burned. In heavy soils it is necessary to increase the size of the sump. The grease-trap should be protected and clearly marked so that campers do not step into it.

A refuse pit is essential. A deep hole should be dug and used for burnt-out tins (which should be hammered flat), broken jars, etc. It should be filled in with earth and marked clearly before the site is left.

Storage of Kitchen Equipment

All pans, dixies, saucepans, etc., should be kept off the ground, inverted, with lids off, and under cover if possible.

Firewood

WHEN planning any camp, fuel must be taken into consideration. For a large camp it is often necessary to import fuel; for a small camp, rarely. In the main it is necessary to use what is available, suitable or unsuitable, but it is at least possible to try to make the best use of whatever resources are offered.

For the small camp, wood fires are most suitable and are, indeed, attractive. Those who would make such fires well must learn not only

[page 27]

how to build the fire, but how to recognise suitable fuel, to recognise the trees and the wood that comes from them and to know which types of wood fuel are best suited to the various types of fire likely to be needed.

Recognition of Trees

In learning to recognise the different kinds of trees there are three main aspects to be considered; the shape and habit of the whole tree, the leaf, the timber. Most trees that grow in this country have a general appearance that is peculiar to themselves; extremes are the bold spear-head effect of the Lombardy poplar and the widespread thickly clustered foliage of the oak. For the present purpose trees that grow in this country may be divided into two main groups: deciduous or broad-leaved trees, i.e., those that shed their leaves in autumn; and coniferous or cone-bearing trees. This is not an exact classification, but an adequate general guide for the camper's purpose.

The majority of broad-leaved trees produce what is known as hard wood; that is, wood that burns fairly slowly. Coniferous trees, in the main, produce soft woods which burn much quicker.

To start a fire, one needs a quick-burning wood that will blaze up and give plenty of flame. This kind of fire is also needed for boiling water. For boiling, stewing or roasting food a much slower burning fire is needed, and for this the hard woods must be used.

Dead seasoned wood normally burns better than green or "live" wood. Green wood is full of sap, which tends generally to slow down the burning. But there are exceptions: some of the trees that have plenty of sap, such as the pines and larches, burn much quicker when they are green, but it should be noted that any resinous wood tends to spit while burning.

The deciduous or broad-leaved trees that campers are most likely to meet with are:

ash, beech, oak, apple, cherry, birch, lime, maple, sycamore, plane, hawthorn, hazel, hornbeam, horse chestnut, sweet chestnut, alder and elm.

For general purposes ash is undoubtedly the best wood of all; easy to chop or to split; it burns steadily but not too quickly.

Beech is not quite so good as ash, gives a bigger flame, and will burn green or dry.

Oak burns very steadily, but rather slowly.

Apple and cherry burn extremely well and give a very pleasant sweet smell.

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THE health of a camp depends largely on good management, suitable feeding, and sound sanitation. Theoretical knowledge is no substitute in these matters for care and common sense.

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Change of air, food or water tends to affect most people adversely at first. Camp constipation is a very common result, and a very real trouble. It is, however, most often caused by nervousness or bashfulness in the face of new and unexpected conditions. The first essential, therefore, is to provide complete privacy in latrines. They should also have an unobtrusive approach since many campers hesitate to be seen going to the latrine. Proper siting is of real importance. The following list of points includes some that have already been mentioned, but they will bear repetition:

Latrines should be 50 to 100 yards from the centre of the camp, but within the bounds of the site; ideally, in a coppice or thicket just off the main camp field.

They should be on the leeward side of the camp and preferably below the level of the tents.

They should be well away from all water supplies.

If well or stream water is being used, special care must be taken to see there is no possibility of latrines draining into it.

The number of compartments should be at least one to every six campers.

Complete privacy in each compartment is essential.

Screening must be of close weave and at least 6 feet high and should finish 1 inch above ground at base.

Latrines should be in the shade and where the sun has no chance to strike through and throw embarrassing shadows on the latrine walls.

Latrines should be inspected morning and evening.

Covered and waterproof containers for paper should be provided in each compartment.

Wash-bowl, soap and towel on stand, should be part of the latrine equipment.

Waterproof roofing for at least part of the latrine block is necessary. Allow air space between top of wall and base of roofing.

Night use: latrines should be lighted all night. Hurricane lamps are best for this purpose. One light should be provided outside the latrine block and one to take into the compartment. If latrines are more than 50 yards from sleeping tents night buckets should be provided nearer to the tents.

Seats: best to avoid these in camps.

Dismantling: fill trenches to 6 inches above ground level and re-turf. Do not ram earth down; natural settlement is better. The site of the latrines should be clearly marked.

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Types of Latrine

For permanent camps permanent latrines are necessary; normal W.C. system, emptying into main drainage or into its own cess-pit or, preferably. septic tank.

For temporary camps, either chemical closets - these are satisfactory, but really efficient "burial" arrangements have to be made - or earth trenches. Deep trenches are unsuitable, dangerous and apt to be unpleasant: small slit trenches 3 feet long and 1 foot wide, 1½ to 2 feet deep

are best. Trench sides should be cut clean and vertical. Earth taken from the trench should be piled at the trench end inside the compartment and a scoop or small shovel left in each compartment, and campers must be trained to cover their own excrement with earth.

Girls' Latrines

In addition to the arrangements outlined above, a metal box with lid and a supply of newspaper alongside for soiled towels must be provided. A clearly worded notice should appear in each compartment to draw attention to this facility. The tin should be emptied daily and the contents burned on a small incinerator sited near the girls' latrines.

Boys' Latrines

The addition of a separate urinal is to be commended. Campers should be encouraged to use this.

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In camps provided for boys only, washing facilities need not be elaborate or artificially screened. In all cases the fullest possible use of natural cover should be made.

If the camp includes girls an ablution block should be erected containing separate compartments, the general design and siting being subject to the same consideration as for the latrine block. Basins should be provided upon improvised stands.

If river water is used for washing, separate drinking water must be available for use when cleaning the teeth.

A wash bowl should be provided for the cooks near the kitchen; not that cooks should be allowed to perform their ablutions there, but they must be able to wash their hands on the spot after, for example, making up the fire.

Disposal of Dirty Water

The ablution block should preferably be sited near a running ditch. Soapy water should not be scattered or thrown into ponds or streams where animals may drink. Failing a convenient ditch a soakage pit will need to be dug. For fifty campers for a week the pit should measure about 4 cubic feet. On sandy, gravel or chalk soil drainage is naturally simpler than on rock or clay, and if the site drains really well a smaller and quite shallow pit will be adequate.

These soil considerations apply equally to urinals and grease-pits. Whatever pit is used the dirty water should be screened and soap waste trapped and burned or buried separately. A simple and effective screen or trap can be made from an old bucket or oil-drum with small holes pierced in the bottom.

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Grease-Pit

The construction of grease-pits has already been dealt with under Cooking and Dietary. A new pit should always be made before it is actually needed.

Salvage Sack

This should be hung in a sheltered place. Do not use open wastepaper baskets about the camp where the wind can take toll of their contents.

Incinerator

A simple incinerator can be built out of old bricks or clay and will be found useful for burning out old tins, grease-pit coverings, etc. Rubbish on the kitchen fire impedes the cook. This fire can also be used for heating washing water.

When in doubt call the doctor.

See all campers know where First Aid is available, but don't fuss and bring it too much to the fore or it easily becomes the fashion to have something wrong. All the staff should know how to cope with an emergency. The nearest doctors' names, addresses and telephone numbers should be displayed clearly in the First Aid Tent and on the camp notice board.

The First Aid Tent should contain a camp bed, spare blankets, a hot-water bottle and equipment to deal with minor ailments, also books, magazines. Some trained member of the staff should be responsible for first aid. In large camps it is usual to have a Red Cross or St. John nurse always on duty. This is neither necessary nor desirable in smaller camps.

The First Aider should be ready to deal with trouble on the site or in the vicinity of camp. In camp, it should be dealt with quietly in the First Aid Tent. For cases outside camp there should be an emergency haversack which can quickly be taken to the site of the accident and always carried on expeditions. A small attaché case with the contents attached to cardboard by rubber bands or fitted into small boxes makes a suitable and unobtrusive medicine chest.

The three most common ailments in camp are constipation, sunburn, and home-sickness. The two former can be prevented better than cured, and the latter can be dealt with firmly but sympathetically by the camp leader.

Details of First Aid equipment and its uses will be found in Appendix IV.

Clothing and Footwear

It is important that campers know well in advance of camp what kit they are expected to bring. An appropriate camp dress is shorts and

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shirt, but in this country it is necessary to be prepared for sudden changes of temperature and weather. The following list covers most eventualities.

Mackintosh.
Two warm jerseys.
Gum boots.
Walking shoes or boots (preferably two pairs).
Canvas shoes for use about the camp.
Pyjamas.
Plenty of socks or stockings.
Bathing costume.
Complete change of clothes.
Mending material.
Sleeping bag (sewn-up sheet or blanket),

Toilet Requisites

Toothbrush and paste, face-cloth, nailbrush, soap, towel, hairbrush and comb.

Other Equipment

Knife, fork and spoons; two mugs, two plates, ration book, coat-hanger. Possible additions are: pillow, mirror, shoe-cleaning materials, flash-lamp.

Airing and Drying Clothes

Every opportunity must be taken for airing and shaking all bedding and surplus clothes. Stout lines fixed between poles (not tent poles) in position to catch the morning sun will prove the soundest method. Even in wet weather blankets benefit from a good shaking in the marquee.

When bedding or clothing has become damp a drying-tent should be fixed up by putting a number of hurricane lamps inside and building a framework of green wood over them. But someone should be left in charge of the tent.

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ALTHOUGH successful camping depends primarily on a high standard of campcraft, camp life will not be fully satisfying unless it provides scope for the development of individual and group interests. An indefinite or improvised recreational programme which serves merely to fill the gaps between meals can quickly lead to boredom or even mischief. A programme must be planned in advance with the same care as is given to details of equipment, catering and camp routine.

There is no reason why the task should prove difficult. The sharp contrast with everyday life and work which camping offers, its appeal to the spirit of adventure, the feeling of exhilaration and well-being born of a vigorous open-air life, all these may be relied on to promote an atmosphere of comradeship and a zest for co-operative enterprise. Under these conditions the programme should be one of continuous challenge; the main danger to be avoided is that of under-estimating the capacity of young people to respond.

The type of programme will vary according to the situation of the camp. A site by the sea or river or in a busy agricultural area offers possibilities entirely different from those of a site near to forest, moor or mountain. The aim should be to develop to the full activities which arise naturally from the surroundings of the camp.

The problem of organisation is probably simplest when the camp is by the sea, or within easy reach of it. In this case there will be an unfailing demand for the popular activities of the seashore - sea and sun-bathing and beach games - and interest can be aroused in the life of rock pools and the collection of shells. Wherever a camp is situated, care should be taken to see that bathing is adequately supervised by placing each group under the charge of a competent swimmer and life-saver. Full information should be obtained about dangerous currents and states of the tide, and strict rules made and enforced in respect of hazards.

The camp in the countryside gives scope for more varied activity, in the planning of which full advantage should be taken of opportunities for stimulating the interests of the young people in bird, animal or plant life, geology, sketching, map reading and making, weather lore, study of the stars, archæology, country lore, or the manifold occupations of countrymen. It is in pursuit of interests such as these that many young people find real satisfaction in the camping holiday. This is not to deny the value and usefulness of team games and sports as elements in the camp

[page 39]

programme, but in the ordinary club camp they should function as spare-time, rather than as main activities.

There is a wide field for experiment in the planning of activities and projects designed to promote interest in, and knowledge and experience of, the countryside. By intelligent planning it is possible to make the camping period one of discovery and enlightenment for everyone, and the climax of the outdoor programme of the organisation to which the young people belong.

Those responsible for the camp should learn as much as possible about the neighbourhood beforehand, preferably by preliminary visits. A close study should be made of the 1-inch Ordnance Survey sheet for the area, and it is well worth while also to obtain 6-inch sheets. The members who are to attend camp should be encouraged to join in this preliminary study, to plan excursions and to visit the Public Library to seek out books giving information of any kind about the neighbourhood. Investigations of this kind will not only build up interest in the camp itself, but reveal the inclinations of the members.

These preliminaries to the camp proper should result in a portfolio of information, ideas and proposals sufficient to ensure a programme suited to the character of the district and to the number attending the camp, and flexible enough to be adjusted to weather conditions and unforeseen opportunities. Moreover, the thoroughness of this preparation, and the fact that it is carried out with the help of all the members, will produce a feeling of confidence in the success of the camp.

As in the case of games equipment, notes should be made in advance of requirements in the way of maps, and of books - of which, fortunately, there are illustrated pocket editions devoted to birds, flowers and trees. A small library tent with maps and suitable books should be provided. A chart of the heavens should be included in the equipment, and sketching blocks, paper, pencils, etc., should be available. There should be a table to display campers' "Treasures". The County Library will usually supply books.

On arrival in camp no time should be lost, once camp routine is established, in getting familiar with the characteristic features of the district and in reviewing the plans made beforehand for excursions and projects. Excursions to places of interest may have to be made by fairly large groups, but these groups should be broken down into parties, each of four to six people. For Field Expeditions no group should exceed half a dozen.

It is not possible to give full details of the many different projects which young people will be found to undertake with enthusiasm outside the major excursions, but the following examples may be useful as suggestions:

The study of weather with the aid of a simple rain gauge and weather vane.

[page 40]

Tracing out the boundaries of the parish, and the routes of disused bridle paths and cattle tracks or old paths.

Land utilisation and soil surveys (6-inch maps valuable here).

Comparative studies of flora of the hedgerows, banks and exposed hillsides.

Identification of harmful plants.

Investigation of weeds associated with particular crops.

The haunts and habits of wild animals.

The making of plaster casts of footprints and the collection of food-tracks are fascinating pastimes.

A great stimulus is given if the help of local experts is enlisted and there will often be found a bird watcher, naturalist or archæologist willing to take part in an expedition.

The resourceful leader will find many ways of introducing the competitive element and of planning projects in the form of "Treasure Hunts" and the like, with in the fun of rhymed clues, puns and colloquialisms.

Holiday camps often have two all-day or long half-day excursions in which all campers take part - a really long mountain walk, a combined walk and steamer or rail trip or a motor-coach excursion, for which sandwiches are provided in rucksacks. Climbing or mountaineering should not be undertaken except under expert guidance.

Games and Sports

Reference has already been made to the role of formal team games and sports as a spare-time activity. It is, of course, desirable that a space for team games should be available, but there is no need to think in terms of football and cricket, as there are many excellent minor games which require little apparatus and which can be played on a small or uneven space. In addition an afternoon or evening might well be given over to a miniature sports meeting, and use can be made of the natural features of the camp and the surrounding area for obstacle races. Much enjoyment can be derived from a well-devised programme of group or inter-tent competitions, and miniature leagues organised. Lists of apparatus and equipment required should be compiled before going to camp and games leaders made responsible for collecting it. Draughts, chess and ludo, Lexicon and other table games can be very useful in camp in wet weather.

Evening Activities

Some of the most pleasant hours of camp life are those spent round the camp fire as the day closes, but it is not sufficient merely to provide the fire as a rallying point. Detailed preparation will prove as worth while here as in all other events of the camp programme. Camp fire sing-songs should be kept for special occasions, or they can become very forced

[page 41]

affairs. An enjoyable evening can be spent if someone from the neighbourhood will come in and talk about the locality.

A starlit night offers opportunities for a talk on stars, which may serve to stimulate an interest in elementary astronomy or in the legends and religions of the ancient world. Short stories read aloud or told can be surprisingly popular in the last hour before bedtime.

But over-planning should be avoided. Plenty of opportunity should be allowed for the campers to arrange their own activities. On such occasions there is often a demand by a group to go out and lie up to watch for the animals and birds which are active only at night. A walk in the moonlight is always popular, as is an expedition to watch the sunrise from a hill.

THERE is not, nor could there be, one system or scheme of organisation applicable to every type of camp. The age, sex, numbers, educational standards, social background and previous training of the campers are all factors which must inevitably be reflected in methods of organisation, and the wise leader will find himself taking them into account, perhaps unconsciously, in deciding on what lines his camp ought to be run. All that this chapter can do is to suggest some principles and details of organisation and some attitudes towards discipline which experience has taught are conducive to the happy and successful running of young people's camps.

At present, most boys and girls are first introduced to camping by a school camp or by a voluntary youth organisation. The experiences and standards of camp life are so different from those to which young people are accustomed in their normal day-to-day lives that there are great advantages if the camps can be run by leaders already known personally to the campers and if the campers are drawn from a single group, whether school, club, company, troop or youth centre. For such camps there can be effective preliminary preparation and the campers already have some experiences and interests in common to bind them together. On the other hand, valuable and necessary though they are from many points of view, camps which cater for "all comers", or for members of youth organisations in general, naturally find it less easy than the camp which caters for a single organisation to create a sense of unity and fellowship.

It is a mistake to try to cater for too wide an age range in any camp since too great a diversity of interests leads inevitably to conflict. An age

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range of more than four years is best avoided. A programme and type of organisation which suits and appeals to youngsters of school age may be quite inappropriate for young workers whose schooldays are far behind them. If the "over-seventeens" are admitted to camps attended by "twelves", "thirteens" and "fourteens", they should go in the capacity of junior helpers and in strictly limited numbers.

Staffing

This most important aspect has already been covered under Selection of Staff on p. 8, where it was indicated that a ratio of one adult helper to every eight campers is desirable, with a minimum of two adults for any camp, however small.

The type of organisation adopted may affect the number of adult staff required.

General Organisation

There are two main methods of camp organisation, namely, centralisation and decentralisation. It is possible, and in practice often desirable, to combine elements of both methods. It is convenient to outline the extremes and to leave the reader to work out the many progressive steps possible between complete centralisation and decentralisation.

CENTRALISED ORGANISATION. Here everything is done on a single-unit basis - one staff, one kitchen, one store. The organisation is laid on in one unit and controlled centrally. For inexperienced campers this method is the simplest and the best.

Its advantages are:

Ease of control.
Economy of space.
Economy of staff.
Economy of fuel.
Largest possible time left to campers for other activities and leisure.

If anything breaks down, e.g., the preparation of a meal, the whole camp suffers.
Absence of real responsibility on the part of individual campers.
The limited camping experience offered to campers.

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The advantages are:

More realistic experience offered to individuals, especially to girls, e.g., feeding six rather than sixty.
The whole camp is not affected by mishaps, e.g., meals spoiled, flooded kitchens or stolen food.
The individual is given more prominence and a greater sense of personal responsibility.
The camping experience offered is greater.
While there is more work to be done, it is lighter and more varied work, and its purpose is more easily realised.

Rather more food and fuel, especially the latter, required.
More equipment required.
Administration takes up more time.
More space required.

The best advice is to begin "centralised" and gradually in each succeeding year work towards "decentralised". It is possible to arrive at a stage where the best parts of both methods are being used in a camp.

Camp Duties

It goes without saying that all campers have to do their share of camp duties, but this is no matter for regret; it is part of camp life and the fun of camping. Such work need not be irksome, distasteful or prolonged if properly organised. The main duties are in connection with preparing food, washing up, sanitation and the cleanliness of the camp. Additional duties that may be necessary are carrying water and collecting wood, where wood is the fuel used for cooking.

Camp duties should be so organised that, as far as possible, all campers are engaged for a part of each day rather than that a few should be busy for most of the day while the rest are free. It is generally best for camp duties to begin with preparation for tea on one day, finishing with lunch on the following day.

Circumstances must decide the precise method in which camp duties are arranged, and what follows is a set of suggestions rather than a hard and fast pattern.

"Cooks", "Health", "Servers" or "Helpers", "Water" and "Wood", are the main groups of duties. In a fairly big camp each of these will have to be subdivided, so that parties do not become too large and get in one another's way. An effort should be made to see that approximately the same amount of work falls to each group. It should not be forgotten that the more "Servers" there are, the more equipment will be required, e.g., bowls, dishcloths and teacloths for washing up and

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so on. A leader should be appointed or elected for each group. Suggested duties falling to each group are given below, but this allocation may need to be modified according to the circumstances of particular sites - e.g., where "Wood" or "Water" duties are heavy they might be shared by the "Health" group.

"COOKS". Prepare vegetables and cook all meals. Light and stoke fires. Wash up all cooking utensils. See that there is a continuous supply of hot water by adding to the vessel on the fire as hot water is withdrawn. Need to get up at least half an hour before the rest of the camp.

"HEALTH". Care of latrines: check condition of trenches and re-dig when necessary; check paper supply, guys and screening. See that wash-houses are clean. Keep camp tidy, except sleeping tents, which are the responsibility of the campers. Burn and renew bracken, etc., from grease-trap. See that any soak-away is working properly. Empty and wash out pig bucket. If a refuse pit is used see that all refuse is covered with soil. Empty salvage sack.

"SERVERS" OR "HELPERS". Responsible for laying, serving and clearing away meals and for washing up, except cooking utensils. (Queueing for meals is not to be recommended. It is a wise rule that no one shall receive a second helping until everyone has finished the first.)

Washing up is better done by a group of campers responsible for this job rather than in a long line with each camper doing his own. Plenty of hot water, soap and dry teacloths should be available. This group should be shown how to sort and stack cutlery.

"WATER AND WOOD". Must see that all water containers both at the kitchen and wash-houses are kept full. Buckets must be checked each evening or cooks will be left without water for the morning. Collect, chop and stack wood for the cookhouse fire. See that the wood pile is covered at night and during rain.

Details of Organisation

It should not be forgotten that when campers are inexperienced they will require instruction in how to do their various jobs. There should be a member of the staff ultimately responsible for each group.

Peeling potatoes is a long and unwelcome job which is best overcome if each camper peels his own. He is given his potatoes on leaving the dining marquee after breakfast, and a number of buckets of water and basins, knives or peelers must be provided in proportion to the number of campers. In large camps a potato-peeler should be obtained if possible.

It is very important to have a camp bank with a helper in charge. He will require a large cash box and a suitably ruled book for entering deposits and withdrawals. He should also be ready to look after other valuables and act as Lost Property Office. The bank should be open for definite periods during each day.

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A camp canteen is well worth running although rationing makes this a matter of some difficulty. In normal times a canteen can sell chocolates, minerals, biscuits, fruit, sweets and postcards.

A large notice board is an important item of camp equipment. It should hang under cover in an easily accessible spot-this generally means in the recreation or dining tent. The camp programme, list of camp duties and camp rules and any other necessary announcements should be displayed there. The ordnance map or maps of the district should also be exhibited where campers can study them.

Camp Programme

Even among experienced leaders of boys' and girls' camps, opinions differ sharply as to the organisation of the camp programme. Some advocate much more freedom and much less organisation than others and produce arguments in support of their views. But it is quite certain that an under-organised programme is a greater danger than an over-organised one. There are two reasons. First, youngsters are seldom happy if left entirely to their own devices. They get bored and inclined to grumble if they have no obvious occupation, whereas the memories of camp that give them the greatest satisfaction to recall are those connected with organised, corporate activity, the all-day mountain climb, the match with the village cricket team and so on. The second reason is no less important: an organised camp should not be a cheap form of holiday accommodation to be used as a centre for the type of urban pleasure-seeking activity which characterises the popular seaside resort. Public money and the time of leaders are too valuable to be squandered on organising a camp from which young people drift aimlessly about in odd groups along crowded promenades or to cinemas, dance halls and chip shops. Its justification is that it is an experience of happy community living, and an opportunity to live for a week in intimate touch with natural beauty. Unless the leader has that conception in mind, he had best leave camping alone.

A Typical Timetable

7.00 a.m. Cooks report for duty.
7.30 Wake, wash, tidy bedding.
8.15 Breakfast, followed by camp duties.
10.00 Tent inspection, after which bank and canteen are open.
10.30 Bathing party, games, etc.
1.00 p.m. Dinner, followed by camp duties and then a rest hour for writing letters, reading, etc.

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campers should have a period of unorganised time. The evening programme should include some corporate activity. The time of return to camp should be clearly understood by all who leave camp. There should be a fixed time for lights out and silence.

Sunday Programme

It will probably be considered that the Sunday programme should be different from that of other days and should include an opportunity for campers to attend religious services in local churches. In addition, many leaders are convinced that a special camp service can have a quality and effectiveness absent from some formal religious observances. Sometimes the camp site is adjacent to a village church, and this can often be used for a special camp service. The beauty of the church, together with an organ and the use of hymn books, is an immense help to the service. Many young people are not practising members of any denomination but have a religious instinct which seldom receives opportunity for expression. Any camper who wishes should be allowed to abstain from attending the service. Camp Prayers should also be entirely optional and should not automatically follow another item without giving the campers the option to abstain if they wish to do so. The leader will be wise to insist that complete silence is observed in the camp during Prayers. It is impossible to obtain the right atmosphere or the full attention of the campers if they can hear a football being kicked about or any similar noise.

Camp Discipline

Some rules must govern the life of every community. A young people's camp is a very special kind of community and there need be no apology for suggesting that the standards of behaviour necessary must in the first place be imposed; they do not come automatically. Many camps are open to censure for selfish and inconsiderate behaviour as well as for bad camping technique. Throughout the year, the youth service organisation meets only for a few hours in the evenings; in camp, members live together, working, playing, sleeping, for twenty-four hours a day. Many may never have been away from home or parents for a single night, and this fact throws very considerable responsibility on the camp leader, who is truly in loco parentis.

Camp regulations should be as few as possible but firm and consistent. It is imperative that the campers should understand and accept them in advance, otherwise there will certainly be grumbles and resentment from those who did not know that there would be camp duties or rules about bathing or a time-limit at night. This is especially important in an organisation going camping for the first time: once a tradition is established, early difficulties in establishing good standards of camping disappear and become incomprehensible. Reference to rules and duties can

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appropriately be included in the circular about clothes, travel arrangements and such things, which should be distributed in advance to each camper.

Boys and girls will co-operate in observing rules for which they can appreciate the necessity. Any rules for behaviour at camp can be shown to be dictated by care for the campers' own safety and enjoyment, and by consideration for others. Bathing and boating can be allowed only at specified times and under careful supervision. Drowning accidents at camp are far from uncommon and not the slightest risk should be taken. The store tent and cookhouse are out of bounds except to orderlies on duty. Youth organisations vary in their attitude to smoking, but the least that should be expected is that smoking should not take place in the sleeping tents: fire is not an imaginary danger, and the camper is entitled to fresh air in his bedroom. Unless young people have abundant sleep they will not gain full benefit from a camping holiday, Silence after lights out should be insisted on, except perhaps for the first night, when campers will be too excited by the novelty of their situation to sleep much. Silence in the early hours of the morning is no less important, and those who wake early should be encouraged to get up quietly and go for a walk rather than disturb others.

The camp leader should always know and approve the intended destination of any boys or girls leaving the camp. In unpopulated country not less than three should go out together. Accidents happen - broken legs are not unheard of - and there should always be one person to stay with the victim while the other goes for help. All campers should be expected to be in at a recognised time unless granted special late leave, which should not be given too readily.

Whether or no the inns should be placed out of bounds is a question for the camp leader's discretion, bearing in mind differences in age among the campers. It is an offence for intoxicating liquors to be served over the bar to persons under eighteen. The whole question is one on which it would be unwise to dogmatise, but nothing would be more unfortunate than that a boy's or girl's first introduction to alcohol should come through attending a camp.

Many countrymen complain bitterly and with justification of the behaviour of city-bred campers. Gates left open, hedges broken, crops trampled on, live-stock chased, fruit pilfered, noise in villages and country lanes after nightfall are the main offences. They are due partly to lack of consideration and partly to ignorance, and are best prevented by a talk on the subject by the leader either before the camp starts or on the first evening. It is very seldom that boys or girls will refuse to conform to good standards of behaviour if they are set before them clearly and firmly.

It should be made quite clear beforehand that for breaking rules about bathing, boating or staying out at night without permission, or for any

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definite defiance of the authority of the camp leader, an offender will immediately be sent home. The leader must not hesitate to carry out this threat.

Camping affords the leader an opportunity he will find nowhere else of giving practical training in health education and in good social behaviour. Camp is too often regarded as an excuse for lowered standards or "pigging it". No effort should be spared to see that meals are served attractively and eaten properly. Tables, if used, should be scrupulously clean and flowers used as table decorations. Campers should be clean and tidy as well as punctual at meal-times. Washing facilities should be as good as possible and hot water made available. The camp leaders should use their influence to see that campers go to bed clean. For many campers, a good camp may be their first introduction to the habit of washing feet and cleaning teeth before going to bed. Many campers need reminding of the importance of taking off all their daytime clothes when they go to bed. This can be made more easy if the ration of blankets is adequate; at least four should be allowed to each camper.

Except in a small camp of experienced campers, some form of inspection is essential in order to maintain good standards and see that bedding, equipment, etc., is kept dry and in good condition. Such inspections can vary from a strict, detailed and soldier-like examination of each camper's tent, person and equipment to a casual and friendly perambulation of the leader around the tents. Although the precise method of inspection will be dictated by the type of organisation which is camping, it would be a mistake to suggest that inspection need not be taken seriously or could be dispensed with. Above all things, it should not be regarded by the campers as an arbitrary imposition. Inspection should include an examination of the condition of each tent, of each camper's bedding and equipment, and of the latrines, wash-places and cookhouse, and an eye should be kept open for any lack of personal cleanliness. The tent leader's sense of responsibility for his tent will be increased if he accompanies the leader when his tent is being inspected. Interest in tent inspection will be stimulated if some award is made to tents reaching a good standard.

Campers should become part of the neighbourhood in which they are living. It should be the custom of the camp to invite all the local villagers who have helped in any way with the camp to visit it and join in the evening programmes that are suitable.

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So long as rationing continues and ration and points values fluctuate no specimen menu can do more than offer an indication.

Cocoa served every night before bed.
Tea or coffee served with breakfast, lunch and supper.
Cereal in place of porridge as desired.
Bread and marmalade or jam at all breakfasts.
Tea and buns in the afternoon according to programme.

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requiring neither points nor B.U.s at the time of going to press, such as rabbits, liver, tripe, meat pies and brawn.

N.B.2. Jam and marmalade are a problem as one week's temporary card only provides 4 oz. per person. It is advisable to arrange for campers to bring homemade preserves from home if at all possible, otherwise too many points will be used up in obtaining imported jams and marmalade.

N.B.3. If fish is not available suitable alternatives are savoury beans and tinned fish: but at present these foods are on points and if substituted for fish the general "points" situation would have to be watched.

N.B.4. Ministry of Food leaflets are of great value.

It must be noted that variations in ration quantities are made from time to time and the allowances given below are those in force at the time of going to press. Camp organisers would be well advised to check the whole list with the local Food Office shortly before camp starts.

The figures which follow are based on the domestic ration; for special arrangements see Appendix III.

Approximate quantities for 25 people.

Baker:

Buns and Cakes: For most camps it would be necessary to change some points into B.U.s to purchase these as bread consumption in camp is usually high.

Butcher:

Milkman:

This can be supplemented by household milk, etc.

Fishmonger:

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Greengrocer:

Grocer:

(a) Rationed goods:

(b) Points goods:

25 ration books - 8 points each = 200 points.

Use as desired on :

(c) Miscellaneous goods:

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Temporary camps (other than Harvesting Camps) can be divided into 3 groups:

I. Standing camp sites run by youth organisations and used regularly throughout the season.

These camps are licensed as catering establishments and obtain supplies on the ordinary catering scale of allowances. If they cater exclusively for young people under 18 years of age additional supplies are allowed equivalent to five extra main meals per week on the school feeding scale. An extra 1 2/3 pints of milk per resident per week can also be obtained. Where the camp is organised by a local education authority for its school children supplies on the school feeding scale can be authorised. All licensed camps for adolescents (i.e., young persons over 11 but not over 19 years of age) are allowed 3 bread units a day for each camper.

II. Camps operating for short periods but for not less than one complete week.

Camps in this group are not licensed as catering establishments but obtain supplies by means of weekly "special authorities" based on the domestic rations for each camper. These unlicensed camps are given the same allowance of bread units as licensed camps and, where the camp is exclusively for young people under 18 years of age, all the additional allowances in paragraph I above are available.

III. Week-end camps not using a permanent camp site.

No special arrangements (except for the supply of liquid milk on normal catering scale) are made for the supply of rationed foods to week-end camps or any camps operating for less than a complete week (other than those covered by paragraph I above). Campers must either take their own food or employ a caterer to cater for them. If the latter, the Food Office for the area in which the camp is sited should be consulted as long as possible in advance.

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TENTS

Ridge Tents 6 ft. x 6 ft. - 1 for each member of the staff.
Bell Tents for sleeping - 1 to every 5 campers.
Ridge Tent 8 ft. x 6 ft. - 1 for First Aid.
Marquee for dining, say 60 ft. x 20 ft. (square ended marquee best).
Marquee for recreation say 60 ft. x 20 ft.
6 ft. x 8 ft. Ridge Tents and Fly Sheets - 4 for Stores, or small marquee.
Cottage Tent 10 ft. x 10 ft. - 1 for Camp Office.

KITCHEN

(1) On a site in use all summer: three sides and a roof of wood with asbestos sheeting or other fireproof back. Sloping roof with metal plate containing hole for chimney. Additional screens for sun, wind and rain. Size: to contain cooking stove, table and possibly boiler, 12 ft. x 6 ft., roof 7 ft. 6 in. high in front, 6 ft. at back.

(2) Fire shelter of fireproof canvas. This should have a high ridge roof 10 ft. at ridge. There should be 6 ft. walls which will hook on when and where desired. It should be 12 ft. x 12 ft.

LATRINES

Where permanent latrines are not supplied, the following will be needed to set up a unit of three (1 to 8 campers): 1 piece of hessian 34 ft. long x 6 ft. high and 2 pieces 8 ft. long by 6 ft. high, 12 poles, 14 pegs, and 7 double guys 10 yds. long, paper-containers and shovels.
Wash-houses. As for Latrines.

GENERAL EQUIPMENT

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KITCHEN EQUIPMENT AND HARDWARE

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It may be more convenient for each camper to bring his own cutlery and crockery, in which case only spares will be required.

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EQUIPMENT FOR ONE PERSON - as recommended by the Camping Club of Great Britain and Ireland:

The above are practically indispensable. To them may be added as extra comforts:

With personal items, such as comb, towel, soap, toothbrush, matches, candles, etc., the total weight can still be kept within 14 or 15 lb.

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The above are practically indispensable. To them may be added as extra comforts:

With personal items such as combs, towels, soap, toothbrushes, matches, candles, etc., total weight can still be kept at 12 lb. per person.

Mackintosh
Coat
2 Warm jerseys
Gumboots
2 Pairs leather walking shoes or boots
Canvas shoes
Pyjamas
Complete change of clothes, including plenty of socks and stockings
Mending materials
Toilet requisites - toothbrush and paste, face-cloth, nail-brush, soap, towel, hairbrush, comb and mirror
Sleeping-bag (sewn up sheet or blanket)
Coat-hanger
Knife, fork and spoons, 2 mugs, 2 plates (these should be marked)
Ration book
Rope or strap for bedding

Possible additions:
Pillow
Shoe-cleaning outfit
Flashlamp
Bathing costume

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The above are books of reference to which organisers of camps would be well advised to give close attention. The list does not include any books on activities appropriate to the countryside, in respect of which camp organisers are recommended to consult their local libraries. It is desirable to have available in camp some books of the latter kind and also some on the locality in which the camp is situated.

The items published by H.M. Stationery Office are available as indicated on page two of the cover. The prices in brackets include postage.

[inside back cover]

No. 2. A Guide to the Educational System of England and Wales, 1945. Describes the change introduced by the 1944 Education Act. 1s. (1s. 2d.).

No. 3. Youth's Opportunity - Further Education, in County Colleges, 1945. Suggestions for the organisation and curriculum of the colleges, which will provide part-time education for young people who leave school before 18. 1s. (1s. 2d.).

No. 4. Building Crafts, 1945. How to plan Training Courses for new recruits to the Building Industry. 1s. (1s. 2d.).

No. 5. Special Educational Treatment, 1946. The ascertainment and education of mentally and physically handicapped children. 9d. (10d.).

No. 6. Art Education, 1946. Information and suggestions for the development of art education. 2s. 6d. (2s. 8d.).

No. 7. Entrants to the Mining Industry, 1947. How to plan courses for young miners. 6d. (7d.).

No. 8. Further Education, 1947. Defines future policy under the 1944 Act. 2s. (2s. 3d.).

No. 9. The New Secondary Education, 1947. The development of Secondary Education under the Education Act of 1944. 1s. 6d. (1s. 8d.).

[back cover]