the latch-string is always out, except when it's in

In Little House in the Big Woods, in the chapter where Ma slaps the bear and Pa hits one over the head with a big stick (or thought he was, at least until that first whack), does Ma pull in the latch-string because she doesn't want the bear to get inside or because it's night-time and Pa isn't home yet? If there's a bear outside and Pa comes home, mightn't he need to get inside in a hurry? Of course we know Ma's worried about Pa. He's late, there's a bear, and Pa doesn't have his gun.

In Little House on the Prairie, Laura Ingalls Wilder goes into great detail about how to make a door and latch . So does Daniel Carter Beard - one of the founders of the Boy Scouts of America - in his 1914 Shelters, Shacks, and Shanties: The Classic Guide to Building Wilderness Shelters (reprinted in 2004 by Dover Paperbacks). This handy book gives you detailed instructions in how to build everything from a fallen tree shelter to a log cabin, and how to safely use the axe that will help you build them. The best part is the over 300 illustrations; see one of the drawings of latch and latch-string assembly below. Not only does Beard show you the latch from both inside and outside the door, but from the side of the door as well.

- posted by pioneergirl at 6:30 PM