Improvised binders may be made from rods of live brush; hickory or hazel is the best. Place the butt under the foot and twist the rod to partially separate the fibers and make it flexible. A rod so prepared is called a withe. To use a withe, make a half-turn and twist at the smaller end. Pass the withe around the brush and the large end through the eye. Draw taut and double the large end back, taking two half-hitches over its own standing part.
A fascine revetment is made by placing the fascines as shown in Plate 31. The use of headers and anchors is absolutely necessary in loose soils only, but they greatly strengthen the revetment in any case. A fascine revetment must always be crowned with sod or bags.
Plate 31.—Fascine revetment.
In all brush weaving the following terms have been adopted and are convenient to use:
Randing.—Weaving a single rod in and out between pickets.
Slewing.—Weaving two or more rods together in the same way.
Pairing.—Carrying two rods together, crossing each other in and out at each picket.