papier-maché, and remembering how much pleasure every boy takes in
constructing a boat, I will give a few more explicit directions for the
benefit of those of my readers who have ponds and brooks within easy
access of their homes.
Having cut from soft wood a good model for the hull, smear it well over
with sweet-oil or lard, and rub it well into the wood; then cut your
paper into strips an inch or so wide, and paste them longitudinally
around the model from stem to stern, in very much the same manner that
the boards are put on a real boat, but not so evenly, as the arrangement
will not show when the boat is completed. Continue this process until
the coating of paper is as thick as very heavy pasteboard, and let it
remain until perfectly dry; then with a sharp knife cut off the edge
evenly at the top, and sand-paper the whole surface till it is smooth
and hard.
Cover both inside and out with two good coats of oil paint, making sure
that every point is protected by this medium from the invasion of the
water, which would soon ruin it if allowed to reach the paper surface.
Now cut two supports or braces out of 7/8-inch board, which will just
fit into the body of the boat, across it from side to side. These are to
give proper strength and, at the same time, form supports for the masts;
while into a post at the stern two small iron sockets can be driven from
the outside through the paper, for holding the rudder in place. The
others are placed, one fore and the other aft, in the position the masts
are finally to occupy.
As these boats are necessarily very light, some ballast or a keel is
indispensable for their sailing well. If a ballast is used, it must be
fastened in place by wires on the inside; but as a keel is most
satisfactory in the end, I should strongly advise its use. As it is
molded from lead, you will be obliged to construct your own mold, which
can be done by digging out a piece of wood in the proper shape, or, what
is easier, by nailing on a flat piece of board two narrow strips at a
suitable distance from each other, and closing the form by nailing other
and shorter strips across the ends of the first. A little trough, as you
will see, will be the result, and if after passing into this your melted
lead you place two sharp nails with their heads imbedded in the mass, at
the same distance from each other, and in the same relative positions as
your wooden supports, your keel will, when hard, require only a few
blows with the hammer to fix it in place. Care must be taken to place
the nails so that they will enter the supports after passing through the
paper bottom; as the keel would not otherwise hold in place. Next cut
from the cigar-box wood a deck for your craft; this is easiest done by
simply laying the model upon the wood bottom upward, and marking around
the edge with a sharp-pointed lead-pencil. This deck must necessarily
fit in your boat if your lines are followed in the cutting. Mark upon
the deck the positions of the supports, and bore holes through it and
into them, for the accommodation of the masts, which should be two in
number for a schooner, or three for a full-rigged ship; fasten a
bowsprit in its place, and arrange your sails and stays to suit the
style of your boat.
After the keel, deck, and bowsprit are in place, it would be well to
give her another good coat of paint, and when that is perfectly dry, to
varnish her thoroughly with the shellac spoken of before in this book.
This boat is a great improvement on the ordinary dug-out hulls most boys
are in the habit of making; for aside from taking less time in making,
and sailing more rapidly, it has the advantage of being duplicated; that
is, of having a dozen if you wish, made just like it on the same model,
while it would be almost impossible to make two alike by the old,
laborious method. In forming your model be careful to make it largest at
the top, so that it can be removed without trouble from its papier-maché
covering.
―――――◀▶―――――
THE TOY STEAM-BOAT.
[Illustration]
Among the many mechanical toys a boy of ordinary ability can make, the
steam-boat is perhaps one of the most satisfactory of them all.
As a scroll-saw takes an important part in its making, some knowledge of
one, or friendship with the owner of it, is desirable, if not absolutely
necessary, for complete success.
[Illustration: Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
This toy is composed principally of five pieces of board, of different
degrees of thickness, which are first cut out as follows:
The first piece, or hull, is eighteen inches long by three and one-half
inches wide, with a shape like that indicated by Fig. 1, and made of
wood seven-eighths of an inch thick.
To insure making both sides of these pieces alike, it would be well to
first draw, on thick brown paper, a straight line from the bow to the
middle point of the stern, and carefully mark out one-half the piece on
the right side of this line; then, folding the paper on the line, cut
through the outline, and the pattern is ready for use on your wood. Do
this with all the parts, and you will find less difficulty in putting
them together.
The second piece is made of a half-inch board, and is nineteen inches
long, by five and one-half inches wide opposite the slits for the
wheels.
The dotted line _d e_ across this is just nine and one-half inches from
the bow, and is placed there to show where the slits _a a_ are to begin.
These slits are for the wheels, and are four and one-quarter inches
long, five-eighths of an inch wide, and three-eighths of an inch from
the edge. The sides opposite these slits must be straight, or parallel
to a line drawn from bow to middle of stern. The hole in the middle is
three inches long by two inches wide, with an extension two inches long
by one wide on the forward end. The middle of the main hole forms a line
with the middle point of the paddle-wheel slits. Remember and mark out
one-half of this on paper, double, and cut both sides at once; do 3, 4,
and 5 the same way.
The third piece is made of seven-eighths-inch wood, fourteen inches
long, and corresponds in shape to the second board from the dotted line
_b c_, Fig. 2, to just aft of the slits for the paddle-wheels. Here the
edge forms a line parallel to that of the second board, but one inch
from it all the distance around, as indicated by the dotted lines on
Fig. 2. Its shape is given in Fig. 3, and the point _d_ is intended to
fall over _e_ in Fig. 1. The rear, _f_, in the second board, indicated
in Fig. 2, extends an inch beyond, and forms the base for the flag-staff
to stand upon, and a hole is made at _g_ for another flag-staff to rest
in (_see_ engraving). The slits and central hole are the same size as in
second board, and correspond to them in shape and position. (The
position which three occupies in connection with two is indicated on
Fig. 2 by the dotted lines.)
Fourth piece: Cut it like Fig. 4 in shape, and out of a board one inch
in thickness. Its position is indicated by the inner set of dotted lines
on Fig. 3. This piece is ten inches long and two and three-quarter
inches wide, with a central hole the same size and shape as in the other
pieces. At three-quarters of an inch forward from the slits for
paddle-wheels, cut in three-quarters of an inch and finish in a
semicircular shape at each end.
The fifth piece is made of half-inch wood, in shape like Fig. 5, and
fifteen inches long by two and three-quarter inches wide, with the
middle opening corresponding in length to the other three, but only
three-quarters of an inch wide. Its position is indicated on Fig. 3 by
the outer set of dotted lines. When referring to these pieces hereafter,
I will call them Numbers 1, 2, etc., as indicated by the figures.
The smoke-stack next claims our attention: this is six inches long, and
seven-eighths of an inch in diameter across the top; its position is
indicated at _g_ on Fig. 5.
The pilot-house is cylindrical, and cut to correspond in form to that in
the illustration. It is one and one-half inches in diameter and two
inches high from base line to tip of point on the top.
The walking-beam is rather less than one-quarter of an inch thick, and
is two and three-quarter inches long by one and one-quarter inches wide.
It should be cut in the shape represented in Fig. 6, and a small hole
bored in either end.
[Illustration: Fig. 6]
The supports for the walking-beam are two in number, made of
quarter-inch wood, cut in the shape of _d_, _e_, _f_, Fig. 6; the base
line, _d f_, is one and one-half inches, and the height of the support
just two inches.
The wheels are made from three-eighths-of-an-inch wood and are circular
in form, with a diameter of three and three-quarter inches.
At this stage of the work it would be well to bore in each of these two
holes to allow the passage of a good-sized wire; one hole through the
center, and the other a quarter of an inch one side of it. This is so
arranged that the wire can be brought through the center of one wheel
and allowed to project a few inches. Then bend the projecting end twice,
in such a manner that it may enter the second hole in the wheel when
that is pushed back upon it. This arrangement is seen at _B_, Fig. 3, in
which the dotted lines show the final position of the wheel.
The pieces for the paddle-boxes, four in number, are semicircular, with
a base line or diameter of four and one-quarter inches. The form is seen
in Fig. 8, which also is intended to assist in the decoration.
[Illustration: Fig. 7]
Fig. 7 represents a front view of the walking-beam and its supports; the
line _a b_ is a short piece of strong wire, which passes through the
hole made in the center of the walking-beam, and rests in two holes made
in the sides of the supports near the top, and extending nearly, but not
quite through to the outer side. This is plainly seen in the figure, the
black line indicating the length of these holes. _C_ in the same figure
is a small piece cut from a quarter-inch wood and intended to hold the
supports in place, and to keep them a sufficient distance apart to allow
free motion of the walking-beam.
The forward and aft flag-staffs are of large wire, and the two masts are
of tough wood nearly as large round as a lead-pencil.
Having all the parts now cut out in the proper form and size, take each
piece and bore holes for the screws which hold them together. The
position of these is indicated in each figure by the heads of the screws
placed at precisely the best points; these screws should be of different
lengths, as those passing through No. 4 require a length of one and
one-half to one and three-quarter inches, while those for No. 2 need not
be more than an inch in length. In No. 3 make four small holes,
indicated by _a_ in Fig. 3, for slender screws which are to hold the
outer paddle-box pieces in place. In Fig. 3, the lines _b c_, _b c_,
indicate grooves, cut down in the sides five-eighths of an inch deep,
and reaching across in a straight line from the middle of one slit to
the middle of the other; these should be large enough to admit an easy
play of the wire which is to form the axle of the wheels. Holes should
also be made at _a_ and _b_, in Fig. 5, for the wire forming the
flag-staffs to pass up through, and for the screws at _c_ and _g_, which
are to hold the pilot-house and smoke-stack in place.
Having smoothed off all these pieces and sand-papered those parts
needing it, we now proceed to the painting, as it is much more
convenient to paint each piece separately, and then put them together,
than to leave it till the last, as is generally the custom.
No. 1 simply needs a thick coat of white paint.
No. 2 is also painted white. It seems unnecessary to add that those
parts not seen when the steam-boat is put together, need no paint.
No. 3 is first painted white, then the windows are stenciled on in the
same manner as given in the directions for making toy cars, in another
part of this book. These should be black, while the name should be
either dark red or brown.
No. 4 is also white, with windows stenciled on in black, as in No. 3,
while No. 5 is painted a buff color, both on the top and under-side.
The smoke-stack is black, while the base is a deep yellow; and the
pilot-house is white, with windows stenciled around its sides, while its
pagoda-shaped top is a bright, light green.
[Illustration: Fig. 8]
In Fig. 8, the two outside pieces of the paddle-box are given; and the
manner in which they are to be painted is indicated; these four pieces
need be painted only on one side, with a thick coat of white; two of
these may now be laid aside, but the other two, after drying, should be
decorated with radiating lines of red extending from the central
semicircle, to the dark-red line running around the top at a short
distance from the edge. These radiating lines should be alternated with
light blue ones near the circumference; and the small semicircle at the
bottom is a rich dark blue, with a star cut from gilt paper pasted on to
give it the desired brilliant effect.
The walking-beam, Fig. 6, should next be treated; this is first covered
with a bright green, and when dry marked with black, as indicated in the
cut. The supports are first painted buff, the same color as the top, and
afterward striped with black, as seen in Fig. 6.
The wheels must not be forgotten, for although showing but slightly,
they would give the whole boat an unfinished appearance if left
unpainted. These may be dark, or Indian red, with lines of black
radiating from the center to the edge.
After all the parts are perfectly dry, fasten No. 2 and No. 1 in
position, then having a sufficient length of wire, about the size of a
large knitting-needle, fasten it in the first wheel, as indicated at
_B_, Fig. 3. Then bend it into a crank, as shown by dotted lines in the
middle opening of Fig. 3. This crank should be one and one-half inches
wide and three-quarters of an inch deep; make the points, where it
bends, as near right angles as possible; then pass the end through the
other wheel, and with pliers bend it in place; next fasten the end of
the wire, as in the first wheel, taking especial care meanwhile that the
wheels are fixed the proper distance apart, and that the center of the
crank comes in the middle of the opening.
It is a matter of some difficulty to adjust these wheels, as they should
not be crowded against either side of the slit, but turn easily when the
boat is drawn over the floor.
After the crank is bent in shape, wind around it the end of a piece of
smaller wire about six inches long, as shown in Fig. 3. This wire is to
connect the crank to the walking-beam, but it is not to be fastened to
the latter until the boat is put together.
The outside of the paddle-boxes should next be attached to No. 3 by the
small screws already spoken of, which are to pass up from the under-side
through the holes _a a_, _a a_, Fig. 3, into their lower edge. The
extremities of these boxes should form a line with the ends of the
slits, and the outside of these and the edge of No. 3, which contains
the name, should form a continuous flat surface.
The other two sides of these paddle-boxes are to be secured against the
sides of No. 4, their bottom line forming a continuation of the bottom
of the piece, and their position determined by placing the part on top
of No. 3, as indicated in Fig. 3, and making their ends form a straight
line with those of the outside pieces and the slits; this is also
indicated by the dotted lines on the outside of Fig. 4.
Having fastened No. 3 in its position over No. 2 (see Fig. 2, dotted
lines), place the wheels in their slits and let the wires rest in the
_bottom_ of the grooves; they will then extend a fraction of an inch
below the bottom of the boat. This arrangement is intentional, as the
toy is intended to be drawn over a floor or carpet, and it is the
friction these wheels encounter that moves the walking-beam, and thus
gives it the natural appearance of a boat moving through the water.
After these wires are pushed to the bottom of the grooves, insert wedges
of wood above, deep enough to nearly touch them; make these of tough
hard wood, so that there shall be no danger of the wheels riding up out
of their proper places.
Place No. 4 in position, first drawing the wire attached to the crank
through the opening, and screw it firmly down upon No. 3. There is now
no danger of the axle of the wheels getting out of order, if the wedges
were firmly fixed, and deep enough to keep the wire in place.
The smoke-stack should now be fastened with a strong and very long screw
from the under-side of No. 5, at _g_. It should be very firmly attached
in its place, as little children frequently use this as a handle to take
the boat from the floor. Fasten on the pilot-house in the same manner at
_c_, on Fig. 5. Having the walking-beam and its supports perfectly
dry—and it would have been well to have given both a good coating of
shellac dissolved in alcohol—take a wire or piece of knitting-needle
nine-sixteenths of an inch long, and having fixed one end in the hole
made near the top of the support to hold it, pass it through the central
hole in the walking-beam, and insert the other end in the second
support, then screw the piece marked _c_, in Fig. 7, in its place, which
will of course hold the walking-beam firmly fixed. Now glue the supports
inside the slit of No. 5, and in such a position that when the
walking-beam is extended in a horizontal direction, the hole in the end
toward the stern shall be exactly above the line of the axle of the
wheels—that is, a line running across the boat from the center of one
wheel to that of the other. These supports should also be caught
underneath with nails, that there may be no danger of their falling
through into the opening in the center.
Having fixed these in place, fasten the loose end of the wire connected
with the crank through the small hole in the end of the walking-beam, so
that when the crank is in a horizontal position, the walking-beam will
also be in the same position. Attach a piece of wire four or five inches
long to the other end of the walking-beam, and let the loose end fall
through the opening in the top.
Now cover the open spaces at the top of the paddle-boxes with pieces of
tin just wide enough to reach their edges, and catch it in place with
tacks. Paint them with the light buff used for the deck.
Fasten the two wire flag-staffs to bow and stern, and pass a wooden one
seven inches long through _a_, Fig. 5, down into a hole in No. 2, as
shown in Fig. 2, at _g_. With fine wire attach a topmast five inches in
length to this, allowing them to lap about an inch.
Sink a mast four inches in length into a hole bored through 5 and well
into 4, so that its top will be about three inches above the deck, and
fasten the stays in their positions, as seen in the cut. On a piece of
blue cambric paint white stars, cut it in the shape of a flag, and
attach it to the forward pole. A small “one cent flag” will do for the
stern, while the name of the boat painted in red or vermilion upon a
white ground, should float from the tall staff in front of the
pilot-house.
Before the flags are placed, the whole surface of the boat should be
washed, if she has become soiled while being put together, and after the
flag-staffs and stays are painted and have dried, the whole should be
covered with the shellac dissolved in alcohol. Be sure and use white
shellac, as the other would stain the white to a light brown and spoil
the whole effect.
A hole is bored horizontally through the bow three-quarters of an inch
from the extreme end, of sufficient size to admit a piece of large
fish-line, the ends of which after it is inserted can be tied together
to give a better hold for the hand.
This boat is modeled after the ordinary bay and river excursion boats
common to the northern and middle Atlantic sea-coast, but if any boy
residing in the West should care to make one resembling those he is
accustomed to see, he will find little difficulty in modifying these
directions to suit his own particular taste in naval architecture.
―――――◀▶―――――
THE BOTTLE IMP.
[Illustration]
Take one or more small bottles, such as are generally used by
homeopathic physicians for their pellets; cover them with a bit of
closely-woven white cloth, and fasten it with a string around the
middle. With oil paint make a grotesque face upon the upper part, and
draw stripes or figures to represent a clown’s dress upon the lower and
loose portion of the covering of each. Varnish this with the shellac,
dissolved in alcohol, and when perfectly dry they are ready for use.
Have a large-mouthed, perfectly clear glass jar nearly filled with
water; then, after filling the little bottles about one-third full of
the liquid, place the finger over the opening and immerse them, one at a
time, bottom upward, into the jar. Be sure and keep the finger over the
tiny mouth till they are well under the surface of the water. Should
they sink in the jar, you have too much water in them.
The quantity of water they contain should be such that they will barely
float, that is, the bottom of the little inverted vials should just
touch the surface. This adjusting of the equilibrium is a matter of some
delicacy; a single drop will make a difference: but by half-filling the
bottle, placing the finger over the mouth, and removing it an instant to
allow a drop or two to escape, the proper degree of buoyancy may be
attained. Three or four of these bottles, in masquerade, should be
introduced into the jar, and if they are, as they doubtless will be, of
slightly differing degrees of buoyancy, the amusing effect will be
enhanced. Now stretch a piece of thin rubber, such as toy balloons are
made of, across the mouth of the jar, and tie it down, as seen in the
illustration.
To make the imps dance, one has only to press upon the rubber top, as
the air, in the top of the jar, is thus forced downward, the water is
driven up into the small bottles, compressing the tiny quantity of air
they contain, and they, in consequence, fall lower in the jar; but when
the pressure is removed, the air in them expands, and they instantly
rise to their normal position again.
[Illustration]
Quite a pleasant evening’s entertainment can be derived from this simple
toy. You may first adjust your imps and make sure they are in good
working order; then prepare a slight introductory speech, in which you
can pretend to mesmerize the little images, not letting it be known they
are bottles, and by some wonderful power you are supposed to possess,
can make them obey your slightest wish. This will be very simple, as
they will naturally descend when you press upon the top. This pressure
should be exerted in such a manner that it is not noticed by the others
in the room. You might stand with your left hand resting upon the top of
the jar as if by accident, but in such a manner that you can easily
press down upon the rubber with one or more fingers, and while telling
of the wonderful things these little fellows can do, you can make
graceful gestures with your right hand, and motion with it what you
require them to do; it will thus seem that they are obeying the motions
of that hand, and will serve to mystify more than ever those of your
audience who are unacquainted with the secret.
―――――◀▶―――――
TELESCOPE WHICH A BOY CAN MAKE.
First, obtain two lenses; the larger having a long and the smaller a
short focus.