A letter from Joe Morchauser, printed in Table Top Talk Volume 1, Number 8 (Nov-Dec 1962)

“… I make my trees out of sprigs of plastic artifical evergreen sold at the 5 and 10 stores. They cost about a dime each, and when cut and trimmed make two to three trees. Also, there are ‘filler’ ferns offered at these stores, that make excellent 30mm scale palm trees… I put the stem in a dab of clay, and stick it to the ground…

I use chalk for raods, try taking a damp cloth on the chalk marks… let it dry, and the chalk will not come off when used during a war game. Sometimes it is hard to get off the table top, unless you scrub good…”

Well, there you have it – things really have not chganged all than much in the last 45 years! We still make trees out of plastic bits we find at craft stores, or bakey supply shops, and we still use chalk for roads…