Rafts.--Rafts of Wood.--Rafts are made of logs of wood, held together by
pairs of cross-bars, one of each pair lying above the raft and the other
below; then, the whole may be made quite firm by a little judicious
notching wherethe logs cross, and a few pegs and lashings. Briers,
woodbines, etc., will do for these. If the logs are large, they should be
separately launched into the river, and towed into their proper places.
Outriggers vastly increase the stability of a raft. The raft-fastening in
common use is shown in f. 1: it is a stout, little wand, bent over the
cross piece, and wedged into holes in the framework.
[Sketch of raft].
[Fig 1 and Fig 2 show fastening arrangements].
The rafts of European rivers are usually built on shore, and launched
into the water: three slides are laid for the purpose, on the sloping
bank of the river; upon these are laid the four poles, secured together
by their ends, which are to form the framework of the raft (fig. 2).
Other poles are put in between, until the whole is complete.
Bamboo rafts.--Where bamboo is plentiful, it is preferable to any other
material for rafts. A few bamboos lashed into the shape of an ordinary
field gate, but with two diagonals, and with handfuls of grass thrown on
to make a platform, is very buoyant and serviceable.
Floating power of various Woods.--The floating power of a raft depends on
the buoyancy of the wood of which it is made. I give, in a Table (p. 90),
a list of the specific gravities of a few well-known woods; and have
annexed to them a column of what may be called their "specific floating
powers."*
[Footnote] *Specific floating power = (1/Spec. Gr.)--1. (Mem., the Table
of these, in previous editions is incorrect.) Burden = weight of raft x
specific floating power. Weight of wood required to support a given burden =
Burden x (Spec. Gr./1-Spec. Gr.); the last column gives the latter
factor.
Hence, to find the actual floating power of a raft, it is simply
necessary to multiply its weight into the specific floating power of the
wood of which it is made.
Thus, a raft of 12 logs of larch, averaging 30 lbs. each, weighs 360
lbs.; this multiplied by .47, is equal to 169 lbs. very nearly, which is
the weight the raft will support without sinking. Poplar is the lightest
on the list.
Specific Specific Factors to be multiplied
Gravities. Floating Powers. into burden to find
weight of raft just
able to support it.
Alder........ .80 .25 4.0
Ash........... .85 .18 5.7
Beech......... .85 .18 5.7
Elm....... .59 to .80 .70 to .25 1.4 to 4.0
Fir...... .47 to .60 1.13 to .66 0.9 to 1.5
Larch..... ... .53 .89 1.1
Oak........... .75 .33 3.0
" heart of.. 1.17 sinks cannot be used
Pine..... .40 to .63 1.50 to .60 0.7 to 1.7
Poplar........ .38 1.63 0.6
Willow........ .59 .70 1.4
Examples: -- a raft of alder, weighing 200 lbs., would just support
200 x .25 or 50 lbs.
A burden of 100 lbs. would require a raft of alder, weighing not les
than 100 x 4.0, or 400 lbs. to support it.
Burning down Trees.--Where there are no means at hand to fell trees, they
should be burnt down; two men may attend to the burning of twenty trees
at one and the same time. When felled, their tops and branches, also, are
to be trimmed by fire. (See "Hutting Palisades.")
Reed Rafts.--Mr. Andersson, in exploring the Tioughe River, in South
Africa, met with two very simple forms of rafts: the one was a vast
quantity of reeds cut down, heaped into a stack of from 30 to 50 feet in
diameter, pushed out into the water, and allowed to float down stream:
each day, as the reeds became water-logged, more were cut and thrown on
the stack: its great bulk made it sure of passing over shallow places;
and when it struck against "snags," the force of the water soon slewed it
round and started it afresh. On an affair of this description, Mr.
Andersson, with seven attendants, and two canoes hauled up upon it,
descended the river for five days. The second reed raft was a small and
neat one, and used for ferries; it was a mattress of reeds, 5 feet long,
3 broad, and some 8 inches thick, tied together with strips of the reeds
themselves; to each of its four corners was fixed a post, made of an
upright faggot of reeds, 18 inches high; other faggots connected the tops
of the posts horizontally, in the place of rails: this was all; it held
one or two men, and nothing but reeds or rushes were used in its
construction.
Rafts of distended Hides.--"A single ox-hide may be made into a float
capable of sustaining about 300 lbs.; the skin is to be cut to the
largest possible circle, then gathered together round a short tube, to
the inner end of which a valve, like that of a common pair of bellows,
has been applied; it is inflated with bellows, and, as the air escapes by
degrees, it may be refilled every ten or twelve hours." ('Handbook for
Field Service.')
We read of the skins of animals, stuffed with hay to keep them distended,
having been used by Alexander the Great, and by others.
Goatskin rafts are extensively used on the Tigris and elsewhere. These
are inflated through one of the legs: they are generally lashed to a
framework of wood, branches, and reeds, in such a way that the leg is
accessible to a person sitting on the raft: when the air has in part
escaped, he creeps round to the skins, one after the other, untying and
re-inflating them in succession.
[Sketch fig. 1 and fig. 2 showing gourd rafts].
African Gourd Raft.--Over a large part of Bornu, especially on its
Komadugu--the so-called River Yeou of Central Africa--no boat is used,
except the following ingenious contrivance. It is called a "makara," or
boat pareminence.
Two large open gourds are nicely balanced, and fixed, bottom downwards,
on a bar or yoke of light wood, 4 feet long, 4 1/2 inches wide, and 3/4
or 1 inch thick. The fisherman, or traveller, packs his gear into the
gourds; launches the makara into the river, and seats himself astride the
bar. He then paddles off, with help of his hands (fig. 1). When he leaves
the river, he carries the makara on his back (fig. 2). The late Dr. Barth
wrote to me, "A person accustomed to such sort of voyage, sits very
comfortably; a stranger holds on to one of the calabashes. There is no
fear of capsizing, as the calabashes go under water, according to the
weight put upon them, from ten to sixteen inches. The yoke is firmly
fastened to the two calabashes, for it is never taken off. I am scarcely
able, at present, to say how it is fastened. As far as I remember, it is
fixed by a very firm lashing, which forms a sort of network over the
calabash, and at the same time serves to strengthen the latter and guard
it against an accident." It is obvious that the gourds might be replaced
by inflated bags or baskets, covered with leather, or by copper or tin
vessels, or by any other equivalent. I quite agree with Dr. Barth, that a
makara would be particularly suitable for a traveller. In Bornu, they
make large rafts, by putting a frame over several of these makara, placed
side by side.
[Sketch of sailing boat].
Rude Boats.--Brazilian Sailing-boat.--A simpler sailing-boat or raft
could hardly be imagined than that shown in the figure; it is used by
fishermen in Brazil.
Log Canoes are made by hollowing out a long tree by axe and by fire, and
fastening an outrigger to one side of it, to give steadiness in the
water. Recollect Robinson Crusoe's difficulty in launching his canoe
after he had made it. (See "Rafts of Wood.") It is not a difficult,
though a tedious operation, to burn out hollows in wood; the fire is
confined by wet earth, that it may not extend too far to either side, and
the charred matter is from time to time scraped away, and fresh fire
raked back on the newly-exposed surface. A lazy savage sill be months in
making a single canoe in this way.
[Fig 1 and fig 2 sketch of boat and pattern].
Canoe of Three Planks.--A swift, safe, and graceful little boat, with a
sharp stem and stern, and with a bottom that curves upwards at both ends,
can be made out of three planks. The sketch, fig. 1, is a foreshortened
view of the boat, and the diagram, fig. 2, shows the shape of the planks
from which it is made. The thwart or seat shown in fig. 1 is important in
giving the proper inclination to the sides of the boat, for, without it,
they would tend to collapse; and the bottom would be less curved at
either end. If the reader will take the trouble to trace fig. 2 on a
stout card, to cut it out in a single piece (cutting only half through
the cardboard where the planks touch), and to fasten it into shape with
pieces of gummed paper, he will understand the architecture of the boat
more easily than from any description. If he wishes to build a boat he
had best proceed to make as large a model in pasteboard as his materials
admit, and to cut the planks to scale, according to the pattern of his
model. The grace of the boat depends on the cut of its planks, just as
much as the elegance of a dress does on that of its cloth. These
three-plank canoes are in frequent use in Norway. Bark may be used
instead of planks. If the canoe be built of five planks instead of three,
a second narrow side-plank being added above each gunwale, the section of
the canoe is decidedly improved.
Inflatable India-rubber Boats are an invention that has proved invaluable
to travellers: they have been used in all quarters of the globe, and are
found to stand every climate. A full-sized one weighs only 40 lbs. They
have done especial service in Arctic exploration; the waters of the Great
Salt Lake, in the Mormon country, were first explored and navigated with
one by Fremont; they were also employed by Dr. Livingstone on the rivers
of South Africa. They stand a wonderful amount of wear and tear; but, as
boats, they are inferior to native canoes, as they are very slow in the
water: it is, indeed, impossible to paddle them against a moderate
head-wind. For the general purposes of travellers, I should be inclined
to recommend as small a macintosh-boat as can be constructed; just
sufficient for one, or at the most for two, persons; such as the cloaks
that are made inflatable, and convertible into boats. A traveller wants a
portable boat, chiefly as means to cross over to a village for help, or
to carry his valuables across a river, while the heavy things are risked
at a ford; or for shooting, fishing, or surveying. Now a very small boat,
weighing about ten pounds, would do as well for all these purposes as a
large one, and would be far more portable.
It is perfectly easy to get into a macintosh-boat, after having been
capsized out of it into deep water.
Basket-boat with Canvas Sides.--FitzRoy gives an account of a party of
his sailors, whose boat had been stolen while they were encamped, putting
out to sea in a large basket, woven with such boughs as were at hand, and
covered with their canvas tent--the inside of which they had puddled with
clay, to keep the water from oozing through too fast. They were eighteen
hours afloat in this crazy craft. I mention this instance, to show how
almost anything will make a boat. Canvas saturated with grease or oil is
waterproof, and painted canvas is at first an excellent covering for a
boat, but it soon becomes rotten.
Canoe of Reeds or Vegetable Fibre.--A canoe may be made of reeds, rushes,
or the light inner bark of trees. Either of these materials is bound into
three long faggots, pointed at one end: these are placed side by side and
lashed together, and the result is a serviceable vessel, of the
appearance fig. 1, and section as fig. 2. The Lake Titicaca, which lies
far above the limit of trees, is navigated by boats made of rushes, and
carrying sails woven of rushes also. Little boats are sometimes made of
twigs, and are then plastered both inside and outside with clay, but they
are very leaky.
[Fig 1 and fig 2--sketches of reed canoe].
Hide Tray.--This is a good contrivance; and if the hide be smoked (see
"Hides") after it is set, it is vastly improved. In its simplest form,
Peruvian travellers describe it as a dish or tray, consisting of a dry
hide pinched up at the four corners, and each corner secured with a
thorn. The preferable plan is to make eyelet-holes round its rim, and
pass a thong through, drawing it pretty close: the tray is kept in shape,
by sticks put inside and athwart its bottom.
Coracle and Skin Punt.--If a traveller has one hide only at his disposal
he should make a coracle, if he has two, a punt. This last is a really
useful boat; one in which very great distances of river may be descended
with safety, and much luggage taken. Hide boats are very light, since the
weight of a bullock's skin only averages 45 lbs.; but, unless well
greased, they soon rot. When taken out of the water, they should be laid
bottom upwards to dry. To make a proper and substantial coracle, a dozen
or more oxier or other wands must be cut; these are to be bent, and have
both ends stuck in the ground, in such a way as to form the framework of
the required boat, bottom upwards, much like half a walnut-shell in
shape, but flatter. Where these wands cross, they should be lashed; and
sticks should be wattled in, to fill up gaps. A raw hide is then thrown
over the framework, sewn in place, and left to dry. Finally, the
projecting ends of the osiers have to be cut off. Should this boat, by
any chance, prove a failure, the hide is not wasted, but can be removed,
soaked till soft, and used again.
A skin punt requires two bullocks' or other hides, and also about ten
small willow-trees, or other tough flexible wood, 14 feet long. Captain
Palliser says that a couple of days is sufficient for two people to
complete an entire punt of this description. He has been so good as to
furnish me with the following minute description of the way of making
this very useful boat.
1. The keel, stem and stern might be in one; but because the stem and
stern ought to be strong, this whole line is made of two small trees
lashed together with the thick ends outwards, as in fig. 1, where AB is a
lithe clean little willow-tree, and ab another similar one. They are
lashed together at their taper ends.
2. Cut notches half-way through KK, at about 20 to 25 inches from each
end; then turn up the notched portions, and you have stem, keel and
stern, all in one piece, as in fig. 2.
[Fig 1 and Fig 2 sketches].
3. Stake out the ground, according to the size your boat will cover, by
driving eight strong pointed stakes of wood into the ground; to these
lash four cross (willow-tree) sticks, notched in two places, so that each
of these four willows shall form two knees, as well as run across the
bottom of the boat.
4. Bent two more main willows for gunwales for the boat, and two more for
bottom rails. Each separate stick, as will be perceived by fig. 3, is
lashed in five different places, and the keep in eight places.
[Fig 3 and Fig 4--sketches as described].
The main framework being now completed, loosen it from the stakes driven
into the ground.
5. Fasten a large number of little slender willow-twigs between each of
the main cross-knees, as shown by the thin lines in fig. 3. It is then
fit for covering. Lift it up like a basket, and turn it topsy-turvy.
6. Kill two bulls, skin them, and in skinning be careful to make your
cuts in the skin down the rump to the hock of the animal, and down the
brisket in front of the fore-leg to the knee, so as to have your skins as
square as possible (fig. 4). Cut off the heads, and sew the skins
together at the nape of the necks; and, while reeking, cover the
wicker-work, turning them over it, the hairy side inwards, and fasten it
all round by means of skin-cords. Cut holes with a knife round the edges,
to pass the cords through, as you lash up to the top-rails of the boat.
7. Leave it 24 hours in the sun; cover the seam where the skins are sewn
together, with melted fat, and the boat is fit for use.
Bark Boats.--"From a pine, or other tree, take off with care the longest
possible entire portion of the bark; while fresh and flexible, spread it
flat as a long rectangular sheet; then turn it carefully up at the sides,
the smooth side outwards; sew the ends together, and caulk them well. A
few cross-sticks for thwarts complete this contrivance, which is made by
an American Indian in a few hours, and in which the rapid waters of the
Mackenzie are navigated for hundreds of miles. Ways of strengthening the
structure will readily suggest themselves. The native material for sewing
is the fibrous root of the pine." ("Handbook for Field Service,"
Lieut.-Col. Lefroy.)
[Figs I, II, III, and IV--sketches as described].
Birch-bark canoes.--Birch bark, as is well known, is used for building
canoes in North America, and the bark of many other trees would do for
covering the framework of a boat, in default of leather. But it is
useless to give a detailed account of birch canoes, as great skill and
neat execution are required both in making and in using them.
Boats of Sheet-tin, covered with Pitched Canvas.--These might be made at
any of the outposts of civilization. I am indebted to a correspondent,
whose name I regret exceedingly to be unable to insert, having
unfortunately mislaid it, for the following full description of his
shooting-punt. It will be obvious that his methods are applicable not
only to their professed object, but also to tin boats of any shape
whatever.
"Form the bottom, fig. I., as follows:--Select the thickest sheets of tin
and solder them together by their narrowest sides, until as many lengths
are made as, when laid side by side, will be sufficient for the whole
length and breadth of the figure. The soldering should be by a joint of
this kind."
[Sketch of join].
"These lengths must then be soldered side by side by a similar joint, and
the whole sheet thus made, trimmed to the shape of fig. I., care being
taken that no two joints in the lengths should be exactly opposite each
other. Form two other sheets in a similar manner for the two sides, and
of the shape of fig. II. The dotted lines a b c d e f, fig. I., show the
portions of the tin round the edges, 1 inch wide, which must be turned up
at right angles with the bottom, and to which the sides are to be
soldered on the inside; they should have triangular pieces clipped out of
them, as shown in the fig., where the bends of the boat begin, to make
them take the curve required. The two extra pieces at the ends a d, e f,
2 inches wide, are for turning down over an iron rod, which is to pass
round the gunwale, to give stiffness to the boat; g h, fig. II., is a
breadth of 2 inches of extra tin, for the same purpose of turning down
over the iron rod.
"Each side is now to be soldered to the bottom piece, beginning with the
centre, and working in to each end.
"The soldering of the turned-up edges to the bottom, on the outside, may
then be done. Separate slips of tin 2 inches wide should then be bent up
longitudinally in halves, like angle-iron, and fitted along the joining
of the bottom and sides, on the inside, and soldered; these slips may
also be clipped on either side, when necessary, to make them take the
curves.
"The measure round the gunwale may now be taken within the edge of the
tin, and an iron rod 3/8 of an inch thick, to go round this gunwale, bent
to the form of the outline of fig. III., i b k c, which will now be that
of the boat, and the ends welded at their meeting. Sufficient iron rod
must be taken to form eyes at i and k to receive rings of 3 or 4 inches
diameter, through which a pole is to be passed, for carrying the boat,
and for their welding at the meeting of the ends.
"The iron-rod gunwale may now be put in, and the 2 inches width of tin,
allowed in excess on the sides and ends of the bottom, turned down
closely over the rod, all round and soldered on the inside. The side
elevation of the boat will now be as w x y, fig. IV. "The boat should be
proved as to being water-tight by filling it with water, any leak being
stopped by more solder.
"The outside must now be covered with pitched canvas, thus:--
"Turn it upside down, in a sheltered spot exposed to the sun, or warm it
by other means, and have a caldron of boiling pitch on a fire at hand,
also have sufficient canvas sewn together in breadths as will quite cover
the boat, bottom and sides; then, beginning across the middle of the
bottom, brush on a layer 3 or 4 inches wide of the boiling pitch, and
quickly press down the corresponding central portion of the canvas upon
it; work on thus, from the centre of the bottom to the ends, laying on a
breadth of pitch, and then pressing down and stretching a portion of
canvas over it; then turn down the canvas over each side, and pitch in
the same way, butting out the parts of the canvas that would overlap too
much at the bends, but leaving no tin uncovered; the boat may then be
righted, the excess of canvas cut off, and the edge laid down with pitch,
a little short of the gunwale.
"The bottom may then be pitched over the canvas for 6 inches up, and the
rest of the outside, with the inside, be painted with two or three coats.
"A flooring of thin planking for 3 1/2 feet of the central portion of the
boat must now be made as follows:--Make five planks, between 8 and 9
inches wide, to fit across the beam of the boat, and in each of the outer
planks, o o, p p, fig. III., fix uprights m n, 6 inches high, to support
a seat, mortised on the pair of uprights in each board; the ends of each
seat should be short of the breadth of the boat by an inch or so, so as
not to bear against the sides; then lay down two ribs of tough wood,
fitted to bear equally across the planking, on each side, as rs, r1 s1,
and screw each end of them down to the outer planks only.
"Wooden cleats can be fixed on each board at t t, each to receive the
butts of two guns, while their barrels lie in hollows formed in the
cushions of the seat opposite them, so that the rower can put down his
paddles and take up his gun instantly; steps for a mast can be also
contrived at the same points. The woodwork is to be also well painted; it
can be taken out with ease, as it is nowhere connected with the tin of
the boat. Care should be taken that no projections in this woodwork, such
as screw-heads, etc., should chafe the tin, and that it should be always
kept well painted.
"The boat, of which this is a description, drew 2 1/2 inches water with
one person in, with two guns and ammunition, etc.; it was furnished with
two short paddles, which were tied by a short length of string to the
sides, so as to be dropped without loss of time on taking up the gun to
fire; the boat turned with the greatest ease, by one backing and pulling
stroke of the two paddles, and was very stiff in the water.
"Iron rowlocks were fitted to it, on the outside at b, e, fig. I. (I do
not give the diagram by which the author illustrated his description; the
rowlocks were applied to the sides of the boat, and each rowlock was
secured to the side by three bolts.) The two upper bolts had claw-heads
to seize the iron-rod gunwale on the inside, and a piece of wood was
fitted on the inside, through which the three bolts passed, to give
substance for their hold, their nuts were on the outside. With these
rowlocks two oars of 7 feet long were used. The breadth between the horns
should be only just enough to admit the oars.
"This boat could be carried on the shoulders of two persons, when
suspended on a pole passed through the end rings, for a distance of
twelve or fifteen miles daily, with guns and ammunition stowed in it. It
could be fired from, standing, without risk, and be poled over marshy
ground barely covered with water, or dragged with ease by the person
seated in it, through high reeds, by grasping a handful on each side and
hauling on them. A rudder was unnecessary. It was in use for more than
three years, and with due care in getting in and out, on a rough shore,
and by keeping it well painted and pitched, it never leaked or became
impaired in any way."
Boats.--Of Wood.--English-made boats have been carried by explorers for
great distances on wheels, but seldom seem to have done much useful
service. They would travel easiest if slung and made fast in a strong
wooden crate or framework, to be fixed on the body of the carriage. A
white covering is necessary for a wooden boat, on account of the sun:
both boat and covering should be frequently examined. Mr. Richardson and
his party took a boat, divided in four quarters, on camel-back across the
Sahara, all the way from the Mediterranean to Lake Tchad. A portable
framework of metal tubes, to be covered with india-rubber sheeting on
arrival, was suggested to me by a very competent authority, the late Mr.
M'Gregor Laird.
Copper boats have been much recommended, because an accidental dent,
however severe it may be, can be beaten back again without doing injury
to the metal. One of the boats in Mr. Lynch's expedition down the Jordan
was made of copper.
Corrugated Iron makes excellent boats for travellers; they are stamped by
machinery: Burton took one of them to Zanzibar. They were widely
advertised some ten years ago, but they never came into general use, and
I do not know where they can now be procured.
Canoes.--The earlier exploits of the 'Rob Roy' canoe justly attracted
much attention, and numerous canoe voyages have subsequently been made.
The Canoe Club is now a considerable institution, many of whose members
make yearly improvements in the designs of their crafts. Although canoes
are delicately built and apparently fragile, experience has amply proved
that they can stand an extraordinary amount of hard usage in the hands of
careful travellers. As a general rule, it is by no means the heaviest and
most solid things that endure the best. If a lightly-made apparatus can
be secured from the risk of heavy things falling upon it, it will outlast
a heavy apparatus that shakes to pieces under the jar of its own weight.
A hole cut in the square sail enables the voyager to see ahead.
To carry on Horseback.--Mr. Macgregor, when in Syria, took two strong
poles, each 16 feet long, and about 3 inches thick at the larger end.
These were placed on the ground 2 feet apart, and across them, at 3 feet
from each end, he lashed two stout staves, about 4 feet long. Then a
"leading" horse was selected, that is, one used to lead caravans, and on
his back a large bag of straw was well girthed and flattened down. The
frame was firmly tied on this, and the canoe, wrapped in carpets, was
placed on the frame. This simple method was used for three months over
sand and snow, rock and jungle, mud and marsh--anywhere indeed that a
horse could go. The frame was elevated in front, so as to allow the
horse's head some room under the boat's keel. Two girth-straps kept the
canoe firmly in position above, and carpets were used as cushions under
its bilge. A boy led the horse, and a strong man was told off to hold
fast to the canoe in every difficulty. It will be seen, that in the event
of a fall, the corners of the framework would receive the shock, not the
canoe.
Boating Gear.--Anchors may be made of wood weighted with stones. Fig. 1
shows the anchor used by Brazilian fishermen with their rude boat or
sailing-raft already described. Fig. 2 shows another sort of anchor that
is in common use in Norway.
Mast.--Where there is difficulty in "stepping" a mast, use a bar across
the thwarts and two poles, one lashed at either end of it, and coming
together to a point above. This triangle takes the place of shrouds fore
and aft. It is a very convenient rig for a boat with an outrigger: the
Sooloo pirates use it.
[Fig. 2--sketch of anchor].
Outrigger Irons.--Mr. Gilby informs me that he has travelled with a pair
of light sculls and outrigger irons, which he was able to adapt to many
kinds of rude boats. He found them of much service in Egypt.
Keels are troublesome to make: lee-boards are effective substitutes, and
are easily added to a rude boat or punt when it is desired to rig her as
a sailing-craft.
Rudder.--A rude oar makes the most powerful, though not the most
convenient rudder. In the lakes of North Italy, where the winds are
steady, the heavy boats have a bar upon which the tiller of the rudder
rests: this bar is full of small notches; and the bottom of the tiller,
at the place where it rests on the bar, is furnished with a blunt
knife-edge; the tiller is not stiffly joined to the rudder, but admits of
a little play up and down. When the boatman finds that the boat steers
steadily, he simply drops the tiller, which forthwith falls into the
notch below it, where it is held tight until the steersman cares to take
the tiller into his hand again.
Buoys.--An excellent buoy to mark out a passage is simply a small pole
anchored by a rope at the end. It is very readily seen, and exposes so
little surface to the wind and water, that it is not easily washed away.
A pole of the thickness of a walking-stick is much used in Sweden. Such a
buoy costs only a rope, a stick, and a stone. A tuft of the
small-branches may be left on the top of the pole.