Another wild creature is a shell fish which the ordinary motor camper would never think of. We refer to the crawfish which is found in almost all the muddy streams of the Mississippi Valley, and can be netted, or caught on a hook. This little animal when boiled gets red like a boiled lobster, and tastes better than lobster. Of course, almost everywhere along the seashore one may find clams, mussels and the like for food. Shell fish may also be found in some fresh-water streams.
The fish or game after being scaled or skinned and dressed may be fried in the skillet, or even boiled in the sort of wooden pot already described. However, the most satisfactory way to prepare it if you are motor camping wild is to roast it on a wooden spit. The spit may be a wooden rod or stick from which the bark has been peeled. This may be thrust through the fish or game, and the roasting done in front of or over the camp fire. Fish should be secured to the spit by being tied on [[166]]with string or strips of bark. Otherwise as it cooks it is likely to fall off into the fire, or to the ground.
Jerusalem Artichoke a Food
The resourceful and observant wild motor camper will discover many sources of food in addition to those already alluded to. In many parts of the country he will find the tall stalks of the Jerusalem artichoke (really a variety of sunflower), also known as the Indian potato. The potato-like tubers of this plant were eaten by the Indians who cultivated the Jerusalem artichoke for these tubers. They are good boiled, and even raw they taste much better than raw Irish potato. This plant has a yellow flower, looking somewhat like the yellow daisy or black-eyed susan, except that the central button is yellowish green.
Acorns Can Be Made Edible
Still another source of food for the wild motor camper are the nuts. These, of course, are not available until fall. The most easily obtainable nuts, if we may call them nuts, are the different varieties of acorns. Some of them are quite astringent, but acorns from the white oak are least so, and even those most astringent may be dried over the fire, pounded up, placed in a cheese-cloth bag, and leached by pouring water through the mass until it runs clear without any yellowish tinge. Boil what [[167]]remains to a mush and it will be found quite eatable and nourishing.
Late in the summer the globular mushroom may be found on grassy slopes. It is called the beef-steak mushroom. When dried it becomes the common puff-ball. Sliced and fried it is better and more nourishing than the egg plant. It is not untasty raw. When old and dry, this mushroom makes a valuable fire-punk and will carry fire for a long time. When young and fresh, it is solid white all the way through, and may be easily peeled and sliced.