Tent pegs may be easily made of wood, but should be of a tough kind
that does not split easily. They are generally made in the shape shown
below, about ten inches long.
You can also get them of iron, but these, though they do not break, do
not hold quite so well in the ground, and are heavy to carry.
Aluminium ones are lighter, expensive, and inclined to bend.
Then you can use stones or logs instead of pegs, and what I like best
of all is half a dozen canvas bags filled with earth or stones and
buried in the ground as anchors. These can be used equally well in
sandy, muddy, or stony ground, where ordinary pegs would never hold.
These bags are easily made during your winter evenings, and can be
used for carrying your kit from camp to camp. They also make useful
buckets and washing basins. They should be made of stout duck or
canvas.
The top edge of this canvas should be folded over and stitched in
order to give strength.
The handles are made of half-inch rope, passed through brass eyelets,
let into the canvas below the stitching? the ends of the rope being
knotted inside.
In cutting out you must allow an extra inch for turning in at the
edges and joining to the other pieces.
Supposing that you have not the time or means for getting tents and
that you are going into camp where there are plenty of trees, and you
have got the right to use them, then some of the following tips may be
of use to you.
[Illustration: CORRECT TENT PEGS.]
[Illustration: A HANDY BAG.]
A bivouac shelter, as described in _Scouting for Boys_, is the
simplest and best form of hut, and is easily made in an hour. Two
upright stakes are driven firmly into the ground, with a ridge pole
placed in position along the tops. Against this a number of poles
should be made to lean from the windward aide, with cross-bars to
support the branches, reeds, sods, or twigs, or whatever is to form
your roofing material.
For a single man this shelter can be made quite small, _i.e._,
about 3 ft. high in front, and 3 ft. wide and 6 ft. long.
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