Posted by Robert Hill on October 13, 1998 at 19:06:50:
Mention of charcoal in the "copper" thread reminds me that on about
3 occasions in the last 5-10 years I have seen items about
present-day charcoal burners in TV programmes.
In each case the item was about people here in the UK
who had taken to small-scale, low-tech charcoal production in the
woods, in a way slightly reminiscent of the charcoal burners in
S&A and Swallowdale.
However, none of them used an earth mound. All of them used a
(rusty) iron or steel container in the shape of a large squat
cylinder on legs.
None of them had a wigwam and, as far as I can remember,
none of them had a snake.