“How to do it,” might very well be the title of this new handy-book for American boys. It is first and last a practical guide, based upon the experience of those who have done what they describe. Results are wanted, not theories in a book of this kind, and careful tests have been applied to secure working results and the certainty that everything will come out all right.
Another point, which has had the most careful attention of a board of editors, is that of selection. It would be easy to include a quantity of sports and games, and also plans for elaborate contrivances neither particularly amusing nor necessary when done. But the object of this book is to show boys how to do accurately things which are quite within their powers, and things also which will be a satisfaction when they are done. The plan followed is to develop a boy’s ingenuity and mechanical ability along lines which will reward him. In short, the book is intended to help a boy to think and act for himself and to have fun in doing it.
The plan of arrangement which is followed is the natural one—to begin at home. The back yard lies immediately at hand. Let us see what can be done there. The aquarium, pet shelters, windmills, and many other contrivances are identified with the home.
Going farther afield we learn the making of coasters and skees, ice-boats and snow cannon, and all that enters into winter sports. There is the air, also, with its invitation to kites and aeroplanes, and there is water, with all the chances for the use of water-power and sport. Fishing itself is something best learned by experience, but the choice and management of tackle afford a most instructive theme. And water naturally has an importance which requires an entire division of the book wherein boat-building and boat-management of all kinds are thoroughly and practically explained.
Camping out, which appeals to every healthy boy, is treated from every point of view in the fourth division of the book, which includes also trapping, taxidermy, and tree huts and brush houses.
In all these general divisions the aim of the editors and author has been to show in the simplest and most accurate way how to do things which are amusing to do and valuable when done.
The principal contributor to this book is an amateur carpenter, boat-builder, and mechanician as well as an artist and writer. One editor has had a wide practical experience in almost everything that has to do with out-door amusements. Another has camped and fished in the four corners of our country and in Canada. All their experience has been combined to prepare a convenient out-door handy-book free from unnecessary words and details, and filled with the latest and best methods, which will be indispensable to every American boy who likes the fun of doing things for himself.
Since home is the natural centre of life, it will be most helpful if we find out what we can do just outside the house. In large cities there is usually no front yard, and even where such space exists its use as a play-ground is apt to be undesirable. But the back yard even in cities often affords some chances not only for gardening on a small scale but also for making and using a variety of things which will furnish constant amusement.
For boys who like to “play Injun” in the back yard, here are some ideas for tepees and wigwams that may easily be followed cut at a very small cost for the poles and canvas.
Canvas can be bought at a dry-goods or country store, and poles may be cut in the woods; or one-and-one-half-inch-square spruce sticks may be purchased at a lumber-yard and dressed round with a draw-knife and plane. When cutting poles for a wigwam it is necessary to select very straight ones, preferably of pine, for crooked or knotty poles are unsightly and make an uneven exterior.
The real Indian tepee is made from buckskin or other strong hides lashed together with rawhide thongs; but as this covering is beyond the reach of the average boy, the next best thing to use will be heavy twilled canvas or stout unbleached muslin that can be had for about ten cents a yard. The regulation wigwam is perhaps the most satisfactory kind of a tent, for it is roomy, will shed water, and it is about the only tent in which a fire may be built without smoking out the occupants. The tepee will not blow over if properly set up and stayed with an anchor-rope, and it is easily taken down and moved from place to place.
A WIGWAM
For a party of three or four boys the wigwam shown in Fig. 1 will afford ample room, and it is not so large as to be unhandy. Select thirteen straight poles, not more than two inches thick at the bottom, and clear them from knots and projecting twigs. They should be ten feet long and pointed at the bottom so as to stick into the ground for a few inches. Tie three of them together eighteen inches from the top, and form a tripod on a circle five feet and six inches in diameter. Place the other poles against this tripod to form a cone, as shown in Fig. 2, and lash them fast at the top with a piece of clothes-line. From unbleached muslin or sail-cloth (light weight) make a cover as shown in the diagram Fig. 3. Lay out a sixteen-foot circle on a barn floor, or the grass, with chalk, and indicate an eighteen-inch circle at the middle. Around the outer circle or periphery measure off nineteen feet and chalk-mark the space. From these marks to the centre of the circle draw straight lines, and within these limits the area of the wigwam cover will be shown. It should correspond with the plan drawing in Fig. 3. The muslin should be three feet wide and with it this area can be covered in any direction, sewing the strips together to make the large sheet; or the muslin may be cut in strips three feet wide at one end and tapering to a few inches at the other, as shown in Fig. 4, the seams running up and down the canvas instead of across it. The outer edge of the canvas cover should be bound with clothes-line or cotton rope, sewed securely with waxed white string; then thirteen short ropes should be passed over this rope so that the canvas may be lashed fast to the foot of each pole to hold the cover in place. The doorway flaps are formed by stopping the lacings three feet up from the ground. With short ropes and rings sewed to the cover the flaps may be tied back, as shown in Fig. 1.
The real Indian wigwams are decorated with all sorts of emblems, for even the uncivilized red men had their crests and totems, and the boys who make these tepees can easily invent some mark which will distinguish their tent abode from all others. The ornamentation should be done with paint and should be carried out before the canvas covering is stretched over the poles.
A square tepee, as shown in the illustration Fig. 5, is another form of rear-yard tent that is easily made. Twelve poles are selected and four of them are lashed fast and spread apart on a square of six feet. Two poles are added to each side and all are lashed together at the head. Four pieces of canvas or heavy unbleached muslin are cut and made on the plan as shown in Fig. 6, the strips being cut from goods a yard wide. These pieces are six feet long, one foot wide at the head, and six feet at the foot. The seam through the middle of one piece is left open for three feet to form the doorway flaps, then the four sides are securely sewed together with waxed white string. This cover is slipped about the pole frame, tied at the front, and held down by means of short ropes that are lashed fast to the foot of each pole. The cover is decorated with paint to give it the Indian appearance, and when the flaps are tied back it is easy to go into and come out of the tepee.
A ridge-pole tepee is shown in Fig. 7, and is a very easy and simple one to make, for it is of one piece of canvas with two flaps sewed at each side to form the ends.
One ridge and two upright poles make the framework, and they are held in place by the canvas, which is drawn and lashed fast to stakes driven in the ground, as may be seen in the drawing. The ridge-pole is eight feet long, one and a half inches thick, and four inches wide. Two inches from either end a half-inch hole is bored to receive the iron pins that are driven in the ends of the uprights as shown at Fig. 8 A and B. The upright poles are eight feet long, and when set one foot of the lower end should be embedded in the ground. The sides are in one piece of muslin made by sewing widths of it together. The sheet measures seventeen feet long and eight feet wide; and when stretched over the ridge-pole and fastened down at both sides an inverted shape will be the result. It is ten feet across at the bottom, seven feet high, and eight feet long at each side. For the back it will be necessary to make a triangular piece of canvas the right size to fit the opening, or two flaps may be cut, divided at the middle, and tied back, or laced, to close the tent. The apron or part enclosure at the front is formed from pieces of canvas two feet wide sewed along the edges and caught together at the middle over the opening.
Ten pegs eighteen inches long and two inches wide are cut from hard-wood as shown at Fig. 8 C. These are driven in the ground at an angle and ropes attached to the lower edges of the canvas sidings are lashed fast to them. This tepee is long enough to swing a hammock from pole to pole, and on a warm summer night makes an ideal place for sleeping out-of-doors. The covering, like that of the other wigwams, may be decorated with Indian emblems, and if a party of boys are going to camp in the back yard their tepees can be inscribed with different crests and totems to indicate individual ownership.
A practicable rear-yard fountain may be made with a brick or concrete basin, an underground pipe-line and an overflow, thus insuring a continuous flow and discharge.
In Fig. 9 the basin, pipe, and trap are shown with the inlet pipe fitted for a hose connection. Three plates of different sizes are used for the traps, and if care is taken in drilling the holes an opening may be made in the bottom of each plate so that it will slip over the stand-pipe. Tin or enamelled iron plates will answer the purpose very well for a while, but the tin plates would soon rust unless frequently painted. The white earthern-ware plates will present the best appearance and will last indefinitely.
Dig a circular hole thirty inches across and twelve inches deep, and with cement and sand make a hard bottom or bed. Use a trowel and smooth the cement so that the top surface is smooth. With some bricks form a circle, as shown at Fig. 10. With a cold-chisel and mallet cut away the edges of two bricks so that the overflow pipe will pass between them, as shown at A in Fig. 10.
The pipe should be half or three-quarter inch galvanized water-pipe, and it may be purchased at a plumber’s shop for a few cents a foot.
The supply-pipe is three-eighths-inch galvanized water-pipe, and should be set in place under the concrete bottom of the basin before the cement is poured in. The upright, or stand-pipe, is thirty-six inches high from the elbow, B (Fig. 10), in the ground. The cross-pipe leading out is eighteen or twenty inches long, and the short upright that comes to the surface outside the basin is fifteen inches long and is to be provided with a hose connection so that a garden hose may be attached to it. The stand-pipe in the basin and the cross-piece should be embedded in the cement concrete, and when it is dry and hardens around the pipes it will hold them securely in place. When the circle of bricks is complete, fill in the crevices with equal parts of cement and sand mixed into a mortar. This will lock the bricks together; then plaster the cement all around the inside of the circle and some at the outside so as to make a water-tight basin.
Earth is to be put back into the hole outside the circle of bricks and the sod replaced, so that grass will grow right up to the edge of the basin rim, which should project an inch or two above the surface of the ground.
From a plumber or gas-fitter obtain some old pieces of brass tubing an inch in diameter, cut one of them fourteen inches long, and slip it down over the stand-pipe. The lowest and largest plate rests on this. Next cut a piece of tubing nine inches long and slip it over the pipe. The second plate rests on this and the top plate is supported by a piece of the tubing cut six inches in length and slipped over the pipe. If porcelain dishes are used, make the first hole in them as follows:
Obtain a stout, three-inch steel wire nail, a block of wood about three inches square, having an inch hole bored at one end, and a small hard-wood mallet. Place a plate on the block of wood, inverted so that its centre will be exactly over the hole. Place the point of the nail on the plate, taking care to get it in the centre; then give it a sharp, quick blow with the mallet. If this is properly done a small piece of the porcelain will be driven out, but remember that if the blow is not properly centred it will break the plate. For this reason it is best to practise first on a broken plate; or if the porcelain seems to be impossible, the painted tin or enamelled plates will have to answer. A perforated porcelain plate is shown in Fig. 11 A. The ragged hole can be smoothed out or chafed away with an old rat-tail or half-round file. A brass reducer and a gas pillar should be screwed fast to the top of the stand-pipe so that a jet of water about a quarter of an inch in diameter will shoot above the pipe.
If a little wooden ball is to dance at the top of the jet, a half-circular basket will be necessary to catch the ball when it falls, so that the stream of water can pick it up again. This is made from brass or galvanized wire, and where the wires cross bind the joint with fine copper wire and solder the joints so as to make them rigid. A small brass ferrule or short piece of pipe should be soldered to the bottom of this basket, so as to hold it in place when slipped over the pillar or nozzle. This basket and its shape is more clearly shown in Fig. 11 B. It should be six or eight inches in diameter and three inches deep, with the wires close enough together to prevent the ball from falling through.
If it is not possible to get the bricks of which to form the basin, a concrete wall can be made instead. Dig the hole as before described; then construct a cylinder of wood twenty-four inches in diameter and eight inches thick. Floor over the bottom of the hole with concrete, after the stand-pipe is in place, and around the edge of the concrete floor and outside the cylinder embed some small stones so that the filling will hold fast. This is shown at c c in Fig. 12. Slip the wooden cylinder over the stand-pipe so that it will occupy the position as shown in Fig. 12. Make a mixture of coarse sand or gravel and cement, half and half, and add a shovel or two of small stones, preferably cracked, such as are used for the under-dressing to macadam roads. Tamp this down in the opening in the ground so as to fill up the ditch or moat as shown at Fig. 13. The outside of the cylinder should be thoroughly coated with lard or some heavy grease before the concrete is poured in, so that the wood will not absorb the moisture from the concrete and cause it to bind in the hole. As a precaution it would be well to make the bottom of the cylinder an inch smaller in diameter than the top, so that it may draw out easily after the concrete has set. The two slots shown in the top of the cylinder are hand holes to grasp it by.
With nearly clear cement, having but a small portion of sand added, finish the inside of the basin and the rim with a trowel so as to give it a smooth and even surface. The force of water may be regulated with a faucet.
There is nothing difficult in the construction of a glass-and-wood aquarium like the one shown in Fig. 14, and the boy who is handy with tools and careful in joining wood-work accurately will be able to knock it together in short order. The best size will be twenty-four inches long, fifteen wide, and ten inches high. This will be generous enough in proportions to accommodate a dozen or so of small fish, some baby eels, crawfish, a turtle or two, and some water-lizards.
From a carpenter obtain a piece of white-wood twenty-seven inches long, seventeen inches wide, and one and a half inches in thickness. This must be of selected stock, hard and free from knots or sappy places. Cut four battens of hard-wood two inches wide, an inch thick, and fifteen inches long, and with brass screws attach them securely to the underside of the board to prevent its warping from the action of the water. Obtain a stick one inch and a half square and four feet long; cut this into lengths of eleven inches each and also prepare one eight feet long, two inches wide, and seven-eighths of an inch thick. With a groove-plane having a quarter-inch blade cut into the square stick on two sides as shown in Fig. 15 A. The edge of the stick between the two grooves may then be planed off so that an end view of the stick will appear as shown at Fig. 15 B. A groove should be cut at one side of the long stick three-eighths of an inch from one edge so that when turned groove side down an end will appear as shown at C in Fig. 15. This stick is to be cut in lengths fifteen and twenty-four inches respectively for top rails.
In the four corners of the white-wood board cut a hole with bit and chisel three-quarters of an inch square as shown at Fig. 16. Saw the bottom of each square stick so as to cut away about a quarter of an inch of wood on each side as shown at the lower part of A in Fig. 15. This is made so that the uprights will fit snugly into the holes and the shoulder formed by the saw-cuts will rest on the top of the base board.
With straight rule and pencil mark parallel lines connecting each hole as shown at D D in Fig. 16. These lines should correspond in position with the grooves cut in the posts; then remove the posts and with grooving-plane or chisel and mallet cut the grooves about three-eighths of an inch in depth. The glass sides fit into these grooves, and the top rails made from the long stick cap the upper edges of the glass sides. The ends should be lapped and screwed down to the top of the corner-posts to bind the glass and wood-work in one compact framework.
Before any of the wood-work is put together give it three successive thin coats of black asphaltum varnish, which can be purchased at a paint or hardware store. Each hole and the plug ends of the corner-posts are to be coated with thick asphaltum varnish, and when wet with the varnish the posts are to be driven into the holes. Screws passed in through the sides of the base board will hold them securely in place.
From a glazier or hardware store purchase two panes of double-thick glass ten by fourteen inches, and two measuring ten by twenty-two inches. Give the grooves a thick coat of the asphaltum varnish, slide the glass down into the grooves, and screw the top rails in place. When the glass is in place and before the top rails are put on, the glass should stand a quarter of an inch above the top of the corner-posts. When the rails are laid in place the top edge of the glass should be caught by the groove in the rails, otherwise the glass, having no support at the top, would bow out on account of the pressure of water, and either cause the glass to break or the joints to leak. Press the glass sides against the outer edges of the grooves and lightly insert some wooden wedges into the grooves to hold the glass in place temporarily for a day or two or until the varnish sets. Then fill the open spaces in the grooves with a putty made from whiting and asphaltum varnish. This you will have to make yourself with a putty-knife on a plate of glass, marble, or slate, for you cannot purchase it. Common putty is not hard enough and will not dry for months, while the special putty will set quickly and dry hard in a few days. When all the work is completed about the aquarium allow it to stand for at least a week, in which time the putty and varnish will harden.
At a paint store purchase some marine paint, also known as “copper paint,” and give the wood-work two or three thin successive coats, allowing it to dry for a few days between each coat. Scrape the paint from the glass where it may have been smeared, and the complete aquarium is ready for water and stock.
Another way in which to construct the framework is to take a curtain-pole one and a half inches in diameter, and at a planing-mill have a quarter section sawed out, as shown at Fig. 17, so that an end rim will appear as shown at B. The part of the wood-work the buzz-saw cuts away will correspond with the grooves cut in the square sticks.
Four holes one and a half inches in diameter, or the same size as the stick, are bored half-way-through the bottom-board of the aquarium and V-shaped channels are cut in the board connecting the holes (Fig. 18). The wood-work is treated in a manner similar to that already described, and the corner-posts are held in place by long brass screws driven up through the bottom and into the lower ends of the posts. The top rail is made the same as shown in Fig. 15 C, and the glass is set as described. At the corner-posts the lap is well smeared with asphaltum varnish and putty and the angle strips are screwed fast to the posts as indicated at A in Fig. 17. While this is somewhat easier to make it is not quite so substantial for large tanks as the square post and channels.
When catching the stock for the aquarium it is best to use a drop-net. This is made of two iron hoops fifteen or twenty inches in diameter and held one below the other with cord as shown at Fig. 19. Mosquito-netting is drawn across the lower hoop and sewed fast; then a band of it is sewed about both hoops to close in the sides, to form a cylinder open at the top only. Some bait is placed in the bottom of the net, and then it is lowered into the water so that the top hoop drops down and the whole net lies flat on the bottom of a pond. When a number of fish are around the bait a quick haul will raise the upper ring; then pull the net up with the fish captives within the cylinder. You can quickly select the ones you want, and these may be placed in a pail partly filled with water.
For turtles, crawfish, and lizards a scap-net will be necessary. This may be made from stout wire, a broom-handle, and some netting. The ring may be almost any size, from six to twelve inches in diameter, the ends being sharpened with a file and turned so that they may be driven into the end of the stick, which should first be bound with wire to prevent it from splitting. The bag of mosquito-netting is made on the hoop and sewed fast, as shown at Fig. 20. When changing the water in the aquarium it is not necessary to empty it all out. A siphon made of a small rubber tube will answer very well to drain off a portion. The part of the tube in the tank should be held close to the bottom so as to suck up any dirt or sediment that may be there. Good ventilation, light, healthy aquatic plants, clean sand, and a proper proportion of fish to the volume of water are absolutely necessary to the successful aquarium. A few tadpoles and snails are advantageous in an aquarium, as they consume decaying vegetable matter and help to prevent the formation of algæ on the glass.
For the aquarium large enough to contain them, some artificial rockeries may be made from cement, gravel, and stones, as shown in the illustrations of the concrete rockeries Figs. 21 and 22. They should be made with openings beneath for the fish to swim through, and pockets should be made at the top to hold sand and the roots of aquatic plants. The rockeries should have a good flat base so as to rest securely on the bottom of the aquarium. Always have plenty of pebbles and river-sand at the bottom of the aquarium to make the fishes feel at home.
It is generally supposed that it is necessary to change the water in an aquarium at least once a day; but that is not the case. The true principle on which an aquarium should be conducted is not to change the water at all, but so to aërate and refresh the original supply as to maintain it always in a pure and perfect state. There are several means by which this may be done. The healthy growth of plants is very important, and active and brisk contact with the air of the atmosphere will greatly freshen the water. Motion in the water is absolutely necessary. In large aquaria this is obtained by an arrangement of tanks into which the water is pumped, and from which it flows rapidly, circulating through the tanks where the fish live. In its passage through the air it absorbs considerable oxygen, without which no fish can live. Fish placed in water that has been boiled die in a very few minutes.
The first thing to be done in the formation of a fresh-water aquarium is to start your plants in proper soil at the bottom of your tank, fill the tank with water, and leave it undisturbed until the plants begin to grow and the little bubbles of oxygen are to be seen rising to the surface of the water.
Choose your plants from such as you may collect from rivers or brooks or ponds anywhere in the country. Plant them, and then cover the surface of the soil with pebbles and small bits of rock, or anything that is suitable and in keeping with the rest of your arrangements. Never put sea-shells into a fresh-water aquarium.
Now fill your tank with water poured through a siphon or funnel, being very careful not to disturb the soil or the roots of the plants. You should have some clean river-sand in the bottom of your tank, and your pieces of rock should be so arranged as to form little caves and hiding-places for your fish. It will take perhaps two weeks to get your tank into a proper condition for fish to live in. Every bit of dead or decaying vegetation should be carefully removed. Keep your tank shaded from the heat of the sun, and expose it to the bright light only once in a while.
In order to manage your aquarium properly you will require a few simple tools. A little hand-net that can be bought for a few cents, or made for even less out of a bit of wire and a small piece of mosquito-netting, is useful for catching the fish or shells without putting your hands into the water. A pair of wooden forceps, like a glove-stretcher, will be found most convenient for nipping off bits of decaying plants or for catching objects that may have accidentally fallen into the water. Glass tubes of various sizes are also useful. If you want to catch any small object in the water with the tube, place the tube in the water with your finger over the hole in the top. Until your finger is removed the tube will remain full of air. Place it over the bit of refuse or whatever it is you want to catch, remove your finger, and the water will rush in, carrying the object with it into the tube, which should then be closed at the upper end by placing your finger over it as before. A glass or hard-rubber syringe is necessary with which to aërate the water thoroughly at least once a day, and oftener if possible. Fill the syringe, hold it high above the tank, and then squirt the water back again.
If a green film begins to gather on the side of the tank that is most exposed to the light, it should be cleaned away every day, and the sides of the glass polished carefully. A small piece of clean sponge tied on the end of a stick will answer the purpose very well, and, if used daily, you can keep the glass clear with very little trouble; but if the scum is neglected and left to accumulate, you will find it almost impossible to remove it from the glass even by hard scouring.
It is best to have only small fish in your aquarium, and for this reason trout are not desirable. Although very beautiful and intelligent, they grow so rapidly that they are likely to become in a short time too unwieldy for your tank. Goldfish and minnows are very good, and the common little sunfish or “pumpkin-seed” is excellent.
You must keep careful watch over the fish in your aquarium, and if any one of them appears to be sick he should be removed at once, very gently, with the hand-net, and placed in fresh water, where he will often recover. If, however, the little sufferer is doomed to die, it is better not to run the risk of his doing so among his healthy companions. It is best always to have a hospital for your sickly pets, and as soon as one of them, whether a fish or a bird or any animal, shows signs of ill health, he should be taken away from the others and placed by himself.
Certain varieties of snails live well in fresh water, and will be found useful in clearing away the green film that is almost certain to collect on the side of the glass; but you must be careful or they will devour your plants as well; and if your tank is very small it is hardly worth while to try to keep them.
Water-beetles and water-spiders also thrive well, and their habits are most interesting to watch; but water-beetles fly by night, and unless you are careful to cover your tank you are likely to discover some morning that a number of your tenants have taken French leave.
You must be careful not to overstock your aquarium, for your fish will not thrive if they are overcrowded. Remember, also, that heat and dust are fatal to your pets. The water must be kept clean and cool at all times, and all foreign matter and every particle of decaying vegetation should be removed immediately.
To manage an aquarium successfully, no matter on how small a scale, requires a good deal of care and time, but you will find it time well spent, and the pleasure and knowledge the study of your pets will give you will be an ample return for the time you spend on them.
A great deal of fun may be had with a merry-go-round in the rear yard, and while it may not be run by an engine or its motion accompanied by an organ, hand power will turn the table and music can be made with an old accordion or concertina. The only difficult thing about the whole affair is the bevelled gear, the shaft and crank; but if an old reaper can be found at a blacksmith-shop the difficulty is solved, for a pair of bevelled gears are on every reaping-machine. Of course a machine-shop or foundry would contain gearing of various sizes, and a five and twelve inch gear wheel will answer the purpose very well.
In the practical back-yard merry-go-round shown in Fig. 23 the revolving post is four inches square and may be of spruce or white-wood planed on all sides and provided with a ferrule at both ends. These may be taken from old buggy-wheels, and will prevent the wood from splitting when the pins are driven in. The lower cross-beams a a in Fig. 24 are of spruce, eight feet long and two by three inches. The beams b b are six feet and six inches long, and on these four the cross-plates are made fast that hold the top or deck planks. The six cross-timbers are of spruce, one by four inches, and are from two to eight feet in length, according to their location. The beam plan (Fig. 24) shows quite clearly how these supporting beams are arranged. They are held together with steel wire-nails driven down from the upper beams diagonally into the lower ones.
A MERRY-GO-ROUND
The longest beams are securely spiked to the revolving shaft, and in securing them in place take care to see that they are perfectly true, so that the outer edge of the platform will not dip and rise as it revolves. Drive a three-quarter-inch rod in the top of the shaft and another one in the bottom having a bevelled point as shown at Fig. 25. At the lower end of the shaft arrange the larger gear wheel and pin it fast so that it is fixed to the shaft and will not move.
An iron base-plate with an upright arm welded to it will hold the shaft and the smaller gear, which is to be arranged the right height to lock in with the teeth of the large gear. This plate is shown in Fig. 26; and through the four holes at the corners long screws are passed to bolt the plate securely to a wooden base, which last is set in the ground as shown at A in Fig. 27. The shaft B, to the end of which the small gear wheel is made fast, extends out beyond one of the upright posts, and at the outer end a crank and handle C are made fast, so that by hand-power the platform and shaft may be revolved.
Construct an overhead framework of six by two inch spruce beams twelve feet long, and set them in the ground twelve feet apart, bracing the uprights well, braced at both sides with angle beams as shown in Fig. 23. The top bar should be well braced also with one or two angle brackets, to prevent the frame from rocking. If the ground props are not strong enough to properly brace the frame, attach heavy wires to the corners and carry them out in both directions, making the ends fast to stout pieces of joist embedded in the ground.
At the middle of the top cross-bar arrange a plate of wood eighteen inches long with a groove cut in it in which the pin at the top of the square shaft may revolve. This plate should be attached to the bar with lag screws, so that it can be removed when it is necessary to unstep the shaft and platform. The outer line of deck planking is shown in the deck plan (Fig. 28), and inside of these boards as many others can be laid down as desired; or the entire frame may be all decked over, leaving a small space near the middle so as to reach the gear and lower pin in order to grease them. Where the shaft passes one of the uprights of the supporting frame an iron strap will hold it in place against the wood, and this bearing will require lubrication from time to time.
Four stout wire guys must be drawn from the top of the shaft and fastened at the outer edge of the platform to one of the beam ends. The anchorage should be made with very stout, strong screw-eyes, and to make it easier to draw the wires taut four small turn-buckles should be purchased at a hardware store and made fast to the lower ends of the wires, the hook on the buckle being caught in the large screw-eyes.
Seats may be made from boxes and nailed to the deck, and as a safeguard to prevent falling from the turn-table ropes should be attached to the stanchion wires and to the shaft as shown in Fig. 23.
It would be well to paint all the wood-work in order to give it a good appearance, and all the iron parts should be coated with asphaltum varnish to prevent rusting.
If the gears are properly adjusted and there is no friction at the bearings, it will not be a difficult matter to move the table with several children occupying the seats. The bevelled point bearing at the bottom rests in a drilled depression in the plate, and the friction there is reduced to a minimum, while at the top the friction will be slight if the weight is properly distributed on the turn-table.
Most boys are interested in pet animals, and at one time or another possess them. Cats and dogs are domesticated and will always stay about the house if they are properly cared for and treated kindly, but rabbits, guinea-pigs, squirrels, monkeys, and reptiles often forget where they belong and will wander away and neglect to come back.
For this reason it will be necessary to build houses and hutches for them, and so safeguard the doorways and screenings that they cannot escape.
It is not possible, of course, to give a lengthy description of pet shelters, since there are so many different kinds in use by boys all over the world; but the illustrations on these pages will give some ideas for the American and English boys to follow in making houses, hutches, and retreats to shelter their pet animals, birds, and reptiles.
In speaking of reptiles, that does not necessarily mean snakes, for under this classification come the horned-toads, lizards, turtles, and many of the beautiful tropical creeping and crawling things that in warm countries take the place of the white mice, rabbits, guinea-pigs, and canary-birds of our northern climes.
Some boys have a natural aptitude for carpenter-work, but there may be ideas in these illustrations and the accompanying descriptions that will be helpful both to them, and to the boy who has as yet to make his first kennel or pigeon-cote.
In the early spring, when the birds return to the north, the martins are among the first to appear, and long before the swallows, whom they closely resemble, begin to nest they have hatched their young and have taken their departure from the southland.
They are cold-weather birds, fly rapidly, and do not stay long in one place. They seldom build their nests in the branches of trees, but prefer to find a hole in a tree-trunk, and there build a nest safe from the wind and storm. The sand-martin burrows a hole in the side of a bank, but never builds a nest in the chimneys as do his brother and sister swallows. The martin, when sitting on her eggs, likes a dark and sheltered place, and for that reason she takes kindly to a martin box in which a hole is made sufficiently large for her to fly in and out of.
In Fig. 1 a small keg is supported at the top of a post and braced at the bottom with two bracket pieces. A hole two inches and a half in diameter is made at each end of the keg, through which the martins can enter, and the post to which the keg is fastened is cut away at the upper end as shown in Fig. 2.
In one side of the bilge of the keg a hole is cut as large as the post is square or round, and at the other side a corresponding hole is cut the size of the upper part of the post. The keg is then dropped down over the post so that the shoulder, formed by cutting away the wood, will rest under the upper side of the keg, in which the smaller square hole has been cut.
If a round post is employed, the upper part should be cut square so as to prevent the wind from blowing the keg round the post. A cross-stick fastened at the top of the post will form a perch on which the birds may alight.
A box with a peaked roof and three divisions, intended to accommodate three families of the birds, is shown in Fig. 3.
An ordinary box may be cut and rearranged with a pitched roof, an inner floor, and the three divisions. A small hole is bored at each side of the box and a round stick passed through it, so that six or eight inches of the wood will project at either side to serve as perches. Another perch can be arranged at the top of the box, and this bird-house is then securely fastened to the upper end of a post and braced there with bracket-pieces nailed both to the bottom of the box and to the post.
The divisions in the box should be not less than six inches square and six or eight inches high. If the box used be square it will probably be an easier job to divide it into four divisions for as many families. Each compartment, of course, must be provided with its separate hole for ingress and egress.
Birds do not always seek the shelter of trees in a storm; they will often gather about the house and under barn eaves and piazza sheds, where they are protected from the rain and the drippings from wet leaves. They like a dry shelter, and structures suitable for their needs can be knocked together from very simple material. In the illustration of a bird shelter (Fig. 4), a canvas or heavy muslin roof is supported on two uprights, and under it five perches are arranged from side to side, upon which a great many birds can rest.
The uprights are one and a half by three inches, and the strips forming the Y braces are two inches wide and seven-eighths of an inch thick.
The perches are three-quarter-inch dowels three feet long. If they cannot be had at a carpenter’s shop or a hardware store, some small scantling may be planed nearly round to answer the same purpose. Where the perches are attached to the uprights and Y pieces, holes are bored half-way through the wood. Into these the ends of the perches are driven and nailed fast.
In Fig. 5 the canvas is left off from one side so that the constructional parts of the upright, braces, and roof strips may be seen. When the wood-work is put together the roof should be covered with canvas, heavy unbleached muslin, or a piece of oil-cloth, and tacked all around the edges.
To make the barrel-hoop shelter, shown in Fig. 6, a flat barrel-hoop is loosely covered with canvas or muslin tacked all around the edge. In the top of a post a wooden peg is driven, and over this the middle of the canvas disk is slipped, having first made a hole in the fabric through which the peg can pass. Four wires are attached to the hoop at equal distances apart, and the lower ends caught through staples or screw-eyes driven in the post a foot or two from the top. Two or three holes should be made through the post in which round perches may be driven.
A shelter for the side of a house or barn can be made from a piece of board, two bracket strips, and three dowels or round sticks to act as perches.
The board should be three feet long and fifteen inches wide. Where it is attached to the house or barn a strip is first attached, and the inner edge of the board is then nailed fast to the strip. The two bracket strips that support the roof at the outer edge should be twenty-four inches long, one inch thick, and two inches wide. Three or four sets of holes are bored in the strips to receive the ends of the dowels or perches.
For the ordinary pigeons that fly about the house and barn some open cotes are shown in Fig. 7 and Fig. 8, but for the more valuable pigeons a large wire enclosure should be made and the lodges placed within them, unless the birds are very tame and will not leave the premises.
In Fig. 7 A, a cote with three holes is shown that is easily made from thin boards. It should measure thirty inches long, nine inches wide, and twelve inches high at the back, while at the front the board with the holes cut in it should be nine inches wide, with the holes five inches high and four inches wide.
The wood is put together as shown in Fig. 9, and the roof boards overhang the ends and front for an inch or two. The upper ends of the two divisions need not extend beyond the height of the front board, and this open space will insure good ventilation. Sticks an inch square are made fast under the ends of the cote, and on the projecting ends a ledge three inches wide is fastened upon which the pigeons may alight.
The cote shown in Fig. 7 B is made from a shoe-case divided as shown in Fig. 10; on each floor the entrances are alternated from front to sides. Outside each entrance a ledge three inches wide is supported on brackets, and under the pitched roof the ninth compartment is arranged.
The large pigeon-cote (Fig. 8) is a more pretentious affair to make and will tax the young carpenter’s skill. This cote can be made a very attractive pigeon shelter if it is carefully put together and nicely painted.
It is thirty-two inches long, twenty-four high to the eaves or thirty-four to the peak, and twelve inches deep. It is divided as shown in Fig. 11, and the ledges are supported with brackets cut from half-inch wood with a compass saw. From the eaves to the peak the front of the cote may be shingled, and above the peak a perch is erected.
This cote may be attached to the side of a barn or supported on stout uprights embedded securely in the ground.