I read a book in the early 60's about a family that travel by wagon from town to town. [ They may have been gypsies or traveling from circus to circus] There were 3 kids I think and they were allowed one day a year to misbehave. There was a time in the book when they tied a handkerchief to the wheel to figure the time/distance to see how long it would take to get to a particular place. I think the book had a long title.