Lightly connect these divisions with faint lines parallel to the North-south line.

Now consult your map if you do not know your approximate latitude (within an error of five degrees)’ and starting on the East-west line which is zero, come up for North, down for South, along the circle till you can roughly pinpoint your present latitude North or South of the Equator.

Mark off where this point comes to on the North-south line. You now have to draw an ellipse which will touch this point and also touch the East-west line where it intersects the circle. To do this put two pins (or pegs, if you are working on the ground) on the East-west line directly in line with the two latitude points on the circle. (By directly in line is meant parallel to the North-south line.) A thread or cord is tied to each of these pins or pegs, with its length embracing the pin or peg on the latitude on the North-south line.

A pencil (or back of a knife if working on the ground) is put inside this loop, which is removed from the pin on the North-south line.

This will draw a perfect ellipse. On this ellipse mark in the hours, starting with the 12 on the North-south line, and reading to 6 p.m. of the East side, and from 6 a.m. on the West. (This is because the sun in the East throws the shadow to the West and vice versa.)

These hours are permanent and can be marked in ink, or with pegs or stakes if on the ground. (Roman figures are most suitable.)

The half and quarter hour intervals can be estimated by you with reasonable accuracy, and also marked in.

Now you must put in a declination circle to find out where the shadow stick or gnomen should be placed for any day of the year.

Mark off the outer circle where the 23½ degree position is, and transfer to the North-south line. Using this as a radius, draw a circle from the centre of the big circle you drew first. Mark this off and set your shadow stick on the North-south line opposite the appropriate date. This shadow stick should be vertical, and should be set up with a plumb-bob.

The shadow will fall across the elliptical line, and where it falls is Solar Time. This must be correct for the Equation of Time (see method), and also corrected for longitude.

Note

A sun compass-sun clock drawn on an ‘ordnance’ (military) map can be used to obtain time accurately by orienting the map with the recognisable ground features, and then with the gnomen on the correct position, and the correction for time and the longitude corrections made, it should be possible to obtain accurate standard time within a minute or so.

INDEX

‘A’ Frames, 27

Absyle, 2

Animals, senses, 212-20

Anchor, “1-2-3,” 30; anchoring peg, 30; anchoring ropes, 202-3

Bacteria (food decay), 113

Baits and lures, 221-23; 233-79

Balance of nature, 228-29

Bark: bark rope, 2; eucalyptus, 3; fibre, 2, 4, 14-15; fig. 3; green, 14; for gutters, 68; for lashing. 59

Bats, 216

Beds, 94-99. See also Furniture

Bends, 177-78

Binding, 199-200

Birds: finches, 135; flesh-eating, 209; fruit-eating, 208; grain-eating, 136; ground-feeding, 208; hopping, 207-8; insect-eating, 207; snares, 232; tracks, 207-9; walking birds, 209; water birds, 209; wild pigeons, 136

Bitterness, in plants, 128

Boats: bark canoe, 306-8; coracle, 304-6; rafts, 303

Brazier, 148

Broom, 103

Burns, relief for, 150

Calamus, 2, 14

Candle shield, 102

Canes, 14; splitting, 14; tying, 24

Clouds, 296-97

Cooking, 82-86; utensils, 73, 82-83

Coolamin, 83

Cooler, 104

Cords. See Ropes Cranks, spinning, 6, 8

Distance, measuring, 28

Direction: bearings, 315; cardinal points, 315; east-west line, 316-17; measuring, 330-37; north-south line, 312-13, 316; quadrants, 323-26; shadow stick, 316

Drum sling, 188

Ducks, rat trap for, 265

Eyes, care of, 310

Feet, care of, 308-9

Fire: building, 167-71; clothing, fire on, 174; cooking fire, 84, 165-67; fire fighting, 173-75; fire lighting, 80-82, 145-66, 170-71; fireplaces, 75-78; fire wood, 153-55; precautions, 172; water and oil fires, 174, 175

Fish, 115-24, 141

Fishing: hooks, 244, 265-66; spears, 257; traps, 267-77

Flag, fold for “breaking,” 200

Flashing, 60

Food, 110-44; storing, 104-5, 310

Footlock for climbing, 19

Fruit, poison in, 129

Furniture, 87-98; chairs, 90-93; hammock, 99; tables, 87-90. See also Beds

Guttering, 59

Hitches, 178, 180-84, 186

Hoe, 104

Hooks, 73, 79

Huts, 32-69

Kitchens, 75-79

Knots, 24, 68, 69, 176-205; backhand, 185-86; boat, 181; bowlines, 179; button, 193; catspaw, 186; chain, 188; crowning, 190; diamond, 191-92; fancy, 18991; fisherman’s knot, 179; Flemish knot, 179; for grip, 177; gunner’s knot, 186; joining, 177-79; jury knot, 181; lark’s head, 184-85; loops, 179-81; manharness knot, 180; manrope knot, 190; Mathew Walker knot, 191; overhand knot, 177; reef knot, 178; sailor’s knot, 185-86; securing, 187-89; shamrock knot, 192; shortening, 187-89; slip knot, 180; thief knot, 178; thumb knot, 177; Tom Fool’s knot, 87; true lover’s knot, 181; Turk’s head knot, 192; twist knot, 189; wall knot, 189

Ladders: bush, 99; rope, 25, 100, 194-95

Lamp, slush, 101

Lariats. See Plaits Lashing, 195-96; materials, 67-70

Lianas, 2, 14

Lobster traps, 269, 271, 273

Log cabins, 65-67

Log of route, 288-89

Logfalls, 231, 247-53

Loom, 97-98

Lures. See Baits

Maps, 291-93

Measuring. See Distance, Time Meat, 112-18; cooking, 117, 124; preserving, 113-16

Net making, 201-2

Noggin, 102-3

Non-swimmers, 302

Nutrition, 11-12

Nuts, 132

Ovens, 84-85

Pegs, 72; for clothes, 103

Photography, 283-88

Pig stabber, 256

Plaits, 15-19; lariat plait, 205

Plants, for food, 125-33

Poisons: antidotes, 128; in fish, 119; in plants. 127-33; tests for, 128, 130, 133

Rabbits, cage trap for, 263

Rammed earth buildings, 60-65

Rate of travel, 288

Reptiles, 137

Rhubarb, 129

River: crossing, 301-8; non-swimmers, 302

Rocks, climbing, 20-23

Rope making, 2-3, 6, 10-13; materials for, 2-4, 14

Ropes, 1-31; anchoring, 202-3; bridge, 20, 29; feeding, 13; rope ladder, 25, 100; rope walk, 6

Route: aerial photo, 288; choice of, 290; logging, 288-89; plotting, 288-90

Safety line, 29

Salt, 112

Selvedge, 193

Sensitivity. See Animals, senses Sheepshank, 187

Shoes. See Feet, care of Sled, 104

Snares, 233-79

Splices, 197-99

Stakes: cutting, 72; driving, 74

Stars: measurement of time and direction by, 330-37

Sun: position of, 108-9, 320-26; sun clock, 106-9, 293-95; sun compass, 293-95, 313-14, 337-38, 341. See also Time, solar

Thatched huts, 33-70; materials for, 49-50

Thrower, 255

Time, 311-41; compass, 314; solar, 313-24, 326-32

Tracks: animal, 209-11; bird, 207-9

Traps, 229-79

Tree climbing, 22

Vines, 2, 14

Water, 110, 134-44; boiling, 72, 86; condensing, 141-44; purifying, 86, 143-44

Watershed, 45

Weaving, 97-98

Whipping, 199-200

Windlass, 31, 204-5

Wood: firewood, 80-81; woodcraft, 72-74; woodshed, 80