A cushion of burlap filled with shavings, straw, seaweed, or sweet grass will make this a very satisfactory settee, and the storage space inside will always be available. The outside of the box should be smoothed, all nail holes filled with putty, and the whole thing stained.
Very interesting panelling effects may be obtained by tacking on strips of the same thickness as the outside cleats.
Fig. 231. Chest made from packing case
Where the supply of wood is limited, many similar articles will suggest themselves to the young carpenter. The chair shown at [Fig. 231]a can all be made of wood from packing boxes, except the square legs. These may be obtained by sawing 2 × 4 inch spruce in half and planing smooth. The rails can be put on with mortise and tenon, or they may be gained into the legs and fastened with nails or screws. The seat is built up of several pieces fastened to cleats on under side, with front edges rounded. To make this hard bottomed chair more comfortable, have a thin cushion of canvas or burlap fastened by a canvas cover and tacked to edges. The wide strip across the back may be treated in the same way. One coat of stain, or two of Japalac or some similarly prepared varnish will make a very serviceable finish for camp purposes.
Fig. 231a. Chair
The proportions of a porch settee of the same general character are given at [Fig. 231b]. The legs may be cut out of pieces of spruce studding, and all but the long rails obtained from box material. These long pieces may be cut from 7⁄8-inch siding left over when putting up the cabin. Floor boards with tongue and groove planed off will answer very well.