by Frank Stoll
February is a particularly eventful time for all Woodcrafters. During this month were born Washington and Lincoln, whose influence has been so great in American life.
Both were trained in the outdoors and knew how to take care of themselves in
it. They had the seeing eye, the hearing ear, and the thinking hand. To them a jackknife and an
ax were fundamental tools with which they could build a cabin and make a table,
a spoon, or almost anything they required, from the woods around them.
Handicraft is fine training for young people and the finest recreation for
older people.
We have all heard of withes. Can you make one?
Hickory Withes. Select a green branch of Mockernut, Shagbark, or Pignut
hickory, of diameter to give strength required. One-half inch is a practical size
for hand work. The longer, straighter, and more uniform the branch, the better
it
will serve your purpose. Carefully trim off all lateral twigs if any exist. Holding
the branch firmly in both hands, bend it from butt to tip and in every direction,
gently at first to avoid kinks. Continue this "working up" process until the
entire stick is supple, taking care not to leave stiff or unworked sections.
Now tie it into an overhand knot, large at first, then reduce the size of the
bight by sliding along the end and standing (tip and butt). Continue to wrap the
ends around the original loop until they are used up. A good withe when completed should have three
strands in every part, be free from kinks and nearly circular. Such a withe will withstand an outward strain
of from 100 to 1,000 pounds.
We know that withes (sometimes spelled wythes) have been in use by civilized
peoples for the past four hundred years, and beyond a doubt they were used by
the ancient tribes. Bacon relates the story of a condemned Irish rebel early in
Queen Elizabeth's reign, or about 1560, who requested of the deputy that he
"be hanged in a withe, not a halter." Withes in those days were made
of willow or osier. The hickories are American trees and supply our best
material where great strength is required. Ax and hammer handles, as well as
wooden axles, whiffletrees, and ox yokes, are examples. This wood will not,
however, withstand exposure to the weather.
The uses of withes are too many and varied to enumerate in detail, but in
general they have served the purposes which ropes and iron bands now serve. A
few suggestions follow: For hoops or bails on tubs, pails, or baskets; as a
binder for the top of a tripod for open-fire kettle, poles for tepee, or for
derrick; for holding banisters and railings in place or for shackles in the game
of "Stung."
Woodcrafters might try substituting withes wherever ropes are needed as
binders, and report the uses.
Did you ever make a rope? It is an ambition worthy of every Woodcrafter.
"But," you say, "how can we make ropes? The materials from which they are made are found
in distant
lands." Commercially and generally speaking, that is true, although cotton,
of which the United States produces 60% of the world supply, is used extensively
in the manufacture of cords and lines. Cotton is perhaps the most flexible of the
commercial materials and is sufficiently strong for the smaller cordage. Common
hemp is superior, possessing the combination of strength, flexibility, and
durability.
Custom among sailors has decreed that the term "rope" indicates
that the diameter is one inch or more. Other authorities agree that the diameter
may be one-half inch or more. However, we hear cords of one-quarter inch
diameter called "rope."
The principal rope materials are: common hemp, Manila hemp, sisal hemp,
Phormium hemp, Sunn hemp, Jubbulpore hemp, jute, coir, flax, agave fiber, and
cotton, all of which are vegetable.
A rope is composed of a certain number of strands, the strand itself being made up of a number of single threads
of yarn. Three strands twisted together form a "hawserlaid" rope. The prepared
fiber is twisted or spun to the right hand to
form the yarn; the required number of yarns receive a left-hand twist to form a
strand; three strands twisted to the right make a hawser; three hawsers twisted
to the left form a cable. Thus the twist in each operation is in a different
direction from that of the preceding one. The yield of rope from a given length
of yarn is about three-fourths of the length of the yarn composing it.
The material from which you make your rope is, for the purpose of learning,
of less importance than the method employed. Almost any available fibrous
material will serve your purpose. The young, inner bark of most shrubs and trees
is very adaptable. The accompanying illustration is made from such bark of the
hickory, is about the color of Manila paper, is reasonably flexible and very
strong. The length of the individual fibers is of little consequence, since in
hand-made rope additional pieces are twisted into the "strand" as
required to maintain a uniform size.
Having selected your material, make three little bundles of uniform size.
Around each bundle, near one end, wrap a single thread of the material. Now
place the three bundles parallel, with binding threads at the same point, and
again wrap a thread around the three directly outside of the first three
threads. These bundles are your strands. Holding this foundation firmly in the
left hand, with thumb and finger tips at the band, take one strand in the right
hand and twist it to the left; meanwhile wrap it outside of the other two
strands to the right. Hold this one in place with the thumb of the left hand,
while the same twisting and wrapping operation is practiced on strand number
two. Now hold the two in place, retaining the twist, while the third strand is
twisted and wrapped. All that now remains is to repeat the process, introducing
additional threads to the strands as others are used up in your progress
