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Mount Gretna, Pennsylvania, in 1912. Relaxing at National Guard training camp. View full size. National Photo Company Collection glass negative.
Can't you just smell it? Anyone who has ever slept in a canvas tent knows what I mean - the cotton fabric is usually coated with some sort of boiled linseed sealant which, when combined with a winter's worth of mildew, gives off a very distinctive aroma when unfurled to dry in the sunshine. Burlap and hay also have "earthy" smells. I once used old burlap coffee bags to "wallpaper" a room in a college rooming house. Though it was very bohemian and cool, the room smelled like a feed store. Chicks didn't dig it.
I wonder what the cylindrical bags hanging on the post are all about. They appear to have leather bottoms and notched straps. Canteens, maybe? I've seen canvas water bags used for radiator water slung from the hood ornaments of old cars...maybe these are the ancestors of today's military's personal hydration systems.
[Those are cavalry feed bags. - Dave]
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