Back when I was a kid, we'd be just about ready to head off on our annual summer camping trip at this time of year.  School would have ended and we'd look forward to the open road.  For us, camping trips were no mere weekend affairs - we'd pack up and hit the road for a month.  Occasionally, we might indulge in the luxury of a motel, but most of that time was spent in a tent.

Looking at the advice in this month's issue on how to "camp" Victorian-style, I look back on our own efforts as being just a little less primitive than I thought.  At least we didn't have to create  bed from a board and branches or straw!  Mind you, I really have no desire to return to those days of cots, leaky air mattresses and sleeping bags, but they were an improvement. 

On the other hand, cooking over an open fire probably hasn't changed much in thousands of years, let alone a hundred or so.  Our article explains how to cook fresh-caught birds "hunter style" - which makes spaghetti from a can sound pretty good!  Of course, we did try to supplement our diet with fresh fish, but... we weren't terribly good at it.  That only tended to happen when some other group of campers, whose menfolk were dedicated fishermen, would pull up stakes and offer us their supply of leftover trout when they moved on.  (Actually, we ended up with quite a lot of fish that way.) 

Today, I'm sure that my camping experiences and methods would sound just as primitive to the "modern" camper as Victorian methods sound to me.  Someday, perhaps, I'll write up my own account, so that campers of tomorrow can get a good laugh!

In the meantime, here's what we have for June:

• The Pigeons of London (The Strand, 1894) Where to find them, and chats with London pigeon-feeders.
• Table Appointments; June Fruits and Vegetables (Ingalls'  Home Magazine, 1889) A look at new fashions in table services (colored glass is giving way to cut glass!), along with fruit and vegetable recipes recipes for June.
• Pavement Artists (CFM, 1884) A look at London chalk art and artists.
• A "Sugaring Off" Party in Canada (CFM, 1889) A British couple experiences a maple sugaring party in Canada.
• Model Menu for June (GOP, 1893) What to offer for this month's dinner party.
• Out-Door Games From Over the Sea: Going to School (GOP, 1892) A six-part series that looks at children's outdoor games from around the world, including some marvelous folklore about counting rhymes and other verses! (Warning: Victorian children's rhymes, especially from America, were not always politically correct!) 
• Art Needlework (GOP, 1888) Beautiful embroidery patterns that work just as well today as they did more than 100 years ago.
• Children's Pleasures (CFM, 1876) How to keep the young ones entertained (along with tips on what to avoid).
• What's in a Name? Local Names for Familiar Flowers (GOP, 1888) From "the devil's currycomb" to "cows and calves," a look at some of the curious names for common flowers across Britain.
• A Little Friend (CFM, 1878) More adorable drawings and mixed feelings about the mouse (the author, like myself, finds them awfully cute...).
• Camp Life (Ingalls' Family Magazine, 1889) Everything you need to know -- and pack -- for a camping excursion in Victorian days!
• Wrinkles from the Laundry (GOP, 1896) Some unusual craft ideas inspired by... the laundry room!
• June Lore (ILA, 1846) Country lore, customs and feast days.
• The Aprons of Today (GOP, 1892) The aprons of 1892 borrow lavishly from the fashions of earlier times!

Visit http://www.victorianvoices.net/VT/issues/VT-1606.shtml to download this issue!

Download it from DropBox: https://www.dropbox.com/s/mnw2phspygkilg8/VT-1606.pdf?dl=0