CAMP FIRES AND CAMP COOKING; OR CULINARY HINTS FOR THE SOLDIER: INCLUDING RECEIPT FOR MAKING BREAD IN THE “PORTABLE FIELD OVEN” FURNISHED BY THE SUBSISTENCE DEPARTMENT. BY CAPTAIN JAMES M. SANDERSON, COMMISSARY OF SUBSISTENCE OF VOLUNTEERS. PUBLISHED FOR DISTRIBUTION TO THE TROOPS. HEADQUARTERS “ARMY OF THE POTOMAC,” January, 1862. WASHINGTON: GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 1862. CAMP FIRES AND CAMP COOKING. In making up the following receipts, the author has been actuated by a desire to aid the efforts of those of his countrymen who, with the best intentions, lack the knowledge to utilize them; and having personally assisted in the concoction of the various dishes he treats of, using only camp fires, camp kettles, and soldiers’ rations, he knows that a little attention on the part of any sensible man--and none other should ever attempt to cook--will produce the most savory and gratifying results. CAMP COOKING AND CAMP KETTLES. The utensils and means furnished by government to the soldier for preparing his food are of the most primitive character. The former consist of camp kettles, made of iron, with a handle, and varying in size from four to seven gallons, (they should be made so as to have one slide into the other, in nests of four,) and mess pans, also of iron, about 12 inches in diameter, and sloping to the bottom. The latter consist of a certain amount of wood per diem, which is to be consumed as taste or ingenuity may dictate. The usual and most simple mode is to dig a trench 18 inches wide, 12 inches deep, and from four to six feet long. At each end plant a forked stick of equal height, with a stout sapling, from which to suspend the kettles, extending from one to the other. [Illustration: Diagram No. 1.] This, however, is neither the best nor most economical mode, as it consumes much fuel, wastes much of the heat, and causes great inconvenience to the cook. An improvement can be effected by casing the sides of the trench with brick, adding a little chimney at one end, and, in place of the forked sticks, using iron uprights and cross-bar, to which half a dozen hooks for hanging kettles are attached. [Illustration: Diagram No 2.]