CHAPTER XXI

WORK AND PLAY AT THE BENCH

$Wood Carving.$--The best kinds of wood include white holly, walnut and sycamore, and pieces of empty cigar boxes, often Spanish cedar, are not to be despised. A pocket-knife, some bradawls, a few files, flat, round and triangular, a fine saw and some coarse sandpaper complete the tools needed for most of the work.

Draw very carefully upon paper the design with which you wish to ornament some article you may have made with wood. When you have at last drawn the design quite accurately there are many ways in which you may transfer the drawing to the wood. It may be pasted upon the wood so that paper and wood will be cut away together in those parts that are to fall below the general surface of the wood and at the end the paper that remains may be washed away. Another way is to cut out the design with scissors, lay it upon the wood and go carefully round the edges with a lead pencil; or you may without cutting it out place it upon the wood and prick through the design or at any rate the principal points with a pin. If you were to scribble with crayon, coloured chalk or pencil upon the back of the paper and were then to lay the paper upon the wood and go over the design with a hard point, using some pressure, the design would be transferred to the wood, or still another way would be to use carbon paper (see Chap. XXIV.) between the paper and the wood instead of scribbling upon the back of the paper.

However, we will suppose the design in some way or another has been placed in pencil upon the wood. Now with regard to every part in which the intention is to take out the wood completely from front to back bore a hole. Then take your fret-cutter's saw or dentist's saw and unfastening one end put this end through the hole and fasten it again. Saw perpendicularly.

At this stage the young carver will need to decide whether he will follow the pencil lines exactly. If he is a very expert sawyer he may, but it is much safer to leave a little wood to be removed by pocket-knife, chisel, or file. It is easy to do this; but if he saws out a little too much wood, if he transgresses the pencil line, he cannot put back the wood he has wrongfully cut away. After the filing a little rubbing with sandpaper will complete the work. Sometimes it is an advantage to adjust the saw in its frame with the teeth inside or sideways.

$How to make a Schooner.$--Take a block of wood two feet four inches long, eight inches wide, and eight inches deep. We name this as a convenient size; but a boy may if he likes make his boat twice this size, or half this size, and so long as he makes his alterations in proportion it will not matter. Try to get the wood without knots or other faults. White pine or deal with a straight grain is the best, for this wood is easy to cut into shape, and it is light.

Before the schooner is shaped it should be hollowed. Draw a straight line with pencil along the centre of the upper surface of the block A B (Fig. 1). If the breadth of the block is eight inches then the centre will be four inches from each edge. Next, in a similar way divide the length of the block into two equal parts with a pencil line C D. If the length is two feet four inches then this line will be one foot two from each end of the block. Now divide the length into three equal parts by the lines E F and G H. One third of two feet four inches is nine inches and one third of an inch, so that each of the three parts will have this measurement. Draw now the line I J C B and when this line is of the right shape make a tracing of it, and from the tracing a cardboard model. By placing this model upon the other side of the line A B and drawing round its edge you will get the line B D K I and it will be exactly like I J C B, a very important matter. With a knife, gouge, and chisel the boat may now be hollowed with care, and we may repeat that it is easier to hollow the block before its outside has been shaped than afterwards, because it stands now more firmly upon the table or bench.

The shape of the outside is shown in Fig. 2, and it should be noticed that the line L M N is not straight but curves so that M is the lowest point and L and N the highest. Upon the counter at O a hole must be bored for the stern-post, which will come through at P in Fig. 1.

It is well from time to time to try the boat in water to see if it floats evenly, or if more has been taken from one side than the other. These little matters should be corrected, and a number of little touches will be needed here and there with tools or sandpaper before the vessel is right inside and out. Then put a deck of thin wood over the hollowed part. This should be fitted very carefully so that no water can pass into the hold of the ship. If bulwarks are desired the deck may be half an inch or an inch below the edge of the vessel, but if the deck is flush with the sides of the hull there will be no place for water to lodge.

We now come to the masts, of which there will be two. For the foremast make a hole through the deck at Q on Fig. 1. It is about an inch from the line G H. At R two inches from the line E F a similar hole should penetrate the deck for the main mast. The circumference of the lower masts should be one inch and three quarters, but an inch will serve for the topmasts. The bowsprit and the booms should measure one inch and a quarter round, and the gaffs an inch.

A Bobstay. B Bowsprit. C Forestay. D Stay Foresail. E Foremast. F Gaff Foresail. G Fore Gaff. H Fore Boom. I Mainmast. J Mainsail. K Main Boom. L Main Gaff. M Main Topmast. N Gaff Topsail. O Main Topmast Stay. P Fore Peak Haulyards. Q Fore Throat Haulyards. R Main Peak Haulyards. S Main Throat Haulyards. T Mainsheet. U Foresheet. V Stay Foresheet. W Rudder. X Lead Ballast. Y Forecap and Cross Trees. Z Maincap and Cross Trees.

Linen will serve for the sails, and odds and ends of fishing lines for the ropes and rigging, with stouter cord like whipcord for the shrouds. The caps, deadeyes, blocks and such things may be made, but the process is wearisome and difficult and perhaps the better way is to buy them. The following measurements will be useful:--

inches Bowsprit 3-1/2 Foremast 15 Mainmast 16 Topmast 6 Fore boom 8-1/2 Fore gaff 8 Main boom 12 Main gaff 8

The sails should be made to fit these. If the schooner has been properly made she will sail well with the rudder but slightly turned to one side. If it is necessary to turn her rudder much she will lose speed and will not rank in the first class. To steady the schooner it is necessary to nail or screw along her keel, a strip of lead as ballast. Err upon the side of making this too heavy, because it is easier to cut and file away than it is to add.

$The making of a Cutter.$--Having made a schooner it will not be difficult to make a cutter from the appended diagrams with a few particulars regarding the measurements.

The cutter has but one mast reaching about fifteen inches above the deck. This is surmounted by a seven-inch top-mast, so that the complete height above the deck is twenty-two inches. Here are the other measurements.

Bowsprit, 9 inches from the stem of the vessel to the end.

Main gaff, 9 inches long.

Main boom, 15 inches.

A Bobstay. B Bowsprit. C Forestay. D Foresail. E Jib. F Topmost Stay. G Mast. H Topmast. I Mainsail. J Main Boom. K Main Gaff. L Gaff Topsail. M Peak Haulyards. N Throat Haulyards. O Main Sheet. P Rudder. Q Lead Ballast. R Jib Sheets. S The Cap. T Cross Trees.

$A Sleigh that can be Steered.$--With the sketches we shall give, a boy unaided, or with a little assistance from a carpenter, will be able to make a sleigh that he can steer. Take a piece of board 9-1/2 feet long, six inches wide and 7/8 of an inch thick. Ash is excellent. Avoid large knots. Let Fig. 1 represent the face of the board. From B measure three inches to C. Connect A C. From A measure two feet, four times. These measurements will give you D E F G. From C repeat this process and you will have H I J and K. Saw from A to C; from D to H; from E to I; F to J, and from G to K. You will have now four pieces of wood like the piece in Fig. 2 and some wood to spare for a purpose that will be explained soon. With regard to your four pieces of wood which are to serve for runners remember that two will be right-hand runners and two left-hand runners, because the treatment of each kind varies a little.

With regard to Fig. 2 draw the curved line A E. No rule can be given for this except that B E represents eight inches. Cut the curve from A to E, round off the angle C D B a little, and you will have a runner from which the three remaining runners may be made. This runner however is not yet finished. From C in Fig. 2 measure 2-1/2 inches to F, then another 2-1/2 inches to G. Make F H one inch deep and G I. Then connect H I. Measure 8 inches from G to J and then mark off J K L M making it like H G F I. Now direct your attention to the upper edge of the runner represented in Fig. 3. Two points will have been fixed already. M J, G F. To find the remaining points N O, P Q draw the lines M N; J O; G P and F Q making the angles N M J; O J M; P G F and Q F G the same as the angle B D C in Fig. 2. Now saw and chisel out carefully N O M J L K and P Q G F I H making what joiners call mortices. In repeating this process upon the other runners remember to have the narrower end of these dovetails inside the sledge. The arrangement will be as in Fig. 4.

The next thing is to connect your four runners with cross bars (Fig. 5) which are each fourteen inches long, two and a half inches broad, and one inch thick. Of these cross bars there are four. The distance from A to B and from C to D is one inch in each case. These ends are shaped to form what joiners call dovetails, and they should fit exactly into the mortices upon the upper edges of the runners. The black dots represent screws. One of the cross bars does not appear in Fig. 13. The runners should be shod with iron by the blacksmith.

He will need eleven-and-a-half feet of half round 5/8 inch rolled iron, divided into four, a piece for each runner. Each piece will be 34 inches long pierced for screws as in Fig. 6. A and B are an inch from centre to centre. C is eight inches from the end, D another ten inches; E a further ten inches. F G are like A and B.

Take now a piece of board one foot wide, fifteen inches long and one inch thick (Fig. 7). Find the centre by connecting B and C and A and D by straight lines. The place where they cross, E, will be the centre. This board should be placed lengthways upon the cross bars of the front portion of your sleigh and should be fixed very securely in position with long screws. It should be at A in the completed sleigh, Fig. 13. Now for the long board upon which you sit, the board that connects the two pairs of runners, the board marked B in the completed sleigh, Fig. 13. Its width is sixteen inches, its length 7-1/2 feet, its thickness 1-1/2 inches. It is known as the reach board and should be of seasoned pine. This board is represented in Fig. 8. Fix your compass at A and describe a semi-circle, and then at B. A and B are each seven inches from the end of the board and seven inches from the sides. By the aid of these lines you will be able to give your board rounded ends as in Fig. 9.

Having decided which end of this board you will have forward measure underneath 8 inches from the front extremity and at that point draw the line A B (Fig. 10). Now take the piece of wood you spared from your runners and saw it lengthwise into two equal parts. Make each part precisely as long as your reach board is wide. Screw one at C D in Fig. 10 so that its outer edge is close to the line A B. The screws go through the reach board into the cross piece. In the centre of the cross piece bore a hole with a half inch bit right through cross piece and reach board, this is for the bolt. Now take that other piece of runner wood and fix hinges upon it as shown in Fig. 11. The hinges should be 4×4 hinges, and should move round to their full extent each way. Leaving the reach board for a few minutes we go to the pair of runners that will be at the back of the sleigh. It will be seen that we connected these with two cross pieces. It is upon the back cross piece that we have to place our piece of wood that has the hinges upon it. Lay it upon the cross piece and when the two are even all round fasten the remaining flap of the hinges with screws upon this cross piece of the runners. These two cross pieces of wood will be separated only by the thickness of the hinges if the work has been deftly done. Place the reach board so that the outer edge of the cross piece shall come exactly to a line we may draw now upon the under-side of the reach board five inches from its backward end as in Fig. 12.

Fasten there the reach board to the cross piece with screws. The front pair of runners is fastened by passing a half inch bolt through the half inch hole we bored in the reach board and in the top of the front pair of runners. Here you will need a few washers and a nut. Each back runner should be fastened to the reach board by a loose chain as shown in the completed sleigh. Foot rests of bent iron or of wood are a great advantage. Place these where you need them. The sleigh is steered by means of two strong cords. Fig. 13 is merely general. Some of the details do not appear there.

$Baby's Sleigh.$--In Fig. 1 we have the sleigh as it looks when it is finished. To upholster it would add to our difficulties, so we will depend upon an abundance of cushions for baby's comfort. In Fig 2 we have a piece of strong board A B C D 3/8 of an inch thick, two feet long and one foot wide. From C to E is three inches, from C to G seven inches and from D to F three inches. The curve from A to G must be drawn according to the taste of the young joiner. When this side has been cut out it is easy to make the other from it.

Now for the backboard. In Fig. 3 A B C D we have a piece of wood fifteen inches square. The inside lines at the bottom are one and a half inches from D and C. E and F are three inches from A and B. Put your compasses at I for a centre and draw the curve E F. If your compasses are not large enough a piece of pencil tied to a string will serve. The front board may be made like the lower half of the back board. Nail or screw the parts together and put on a bottom that fits. Inside, the seat rests on two strips, one screwed upon each side. These strips are of wood three eighths of an inch thick, an inch wide and eight inches long. The seat may be about a foot wide. The runners come next. In Fig. 4 A B C D, we have a board three quarters of an inch thick, three feet long and seven inches wide. The distance from D to E is eight inches. From A measure eight inches along the upper edge to G, then two inches to H and from H draw the line H F. Draw the curve A H. F should be three inches from the line B C. From F draw a straight line to C. Cut out the runner and use it as a pattern for the making of another. To connect the two runners use a couple of cross bars of hard wood each an inch and a half wide, one inch thick and a foot long. Cut the ends as shown in Fig. 5, the cuts being three quarters of an inch deep. Carpenters call an arrangement of this kind a tenon. The front cross bar will connect the two runners fifteen inches from the front and the back cross bar will be fifteen inches further back than that. The method of fixing them is shown in Fig. 6. The cuts A and B--mortices, joiners call them--are half an inch deep. Having placed the tenons in the mortices fasten them there with screws. Now get a board ten inches wide, half an inch thick and two feet long and screw this to the bars. If you want the runners shod with iron the blacksmith will do this for you. Place now the car in position upon the runners, and bore two quarter-inch holes in the centre of the bottom, one under the seat and the other in front. Make two corresponding holes in the board of the sleigh and so with two bolts and nuts secure the car to the runners.

$A Hammock from a Barrel.$--Look round for a clean barrel. Perhaps an apple barrel will be as easy to find as any. Strip off the hoops and draw all the nails. Measure three inches from the top, and three inches from the bottom of the barrel, and draw thence a line round the top and a line round the bottom of the barrel, keeping it three inches from top or bottom all the way round. Upon these lines, and upon each stave, bore two holes with a brace and bit. Place the holes so that they are about the same distance from each other and from the edges of the staves. If some of the staves are wider than others, each will need slightly different treatment. A stout rope should be threaded through these holes in the manner shown in the diagram. About twenty feet of rope will be sufficient. An inch or thereabouts should be left between each stave. Cushions add to the comfort of this simple hammock.

$An Æolian Harp.$--Make a shallow box of thin dry pine. The top piece should be free from knots and three-sixteenths of an inch thick. This is the sounding board. The sides and bottom of the box may be of wood one quarter of an inch in thickness. The harp should be two inches shorter than the width of the window in which you are going to place it. The width of the box itself may be ten inches, its depth two and a half inches. The ends should be of hard wood, for they have to bear the strain of the strings. In one end put studs or rings or eyes to which are fastened the wires or catgut strings. At the other end should be a corresponding row of violin pegs if you use catgut, or iron piano pins if you use wire. If you do use wire it should be of steel. In the diagram you will see the two bridges of hard wood glued diagonally across each end for the strings to rest upon. If steel wire is employed a piece of wire should run along the top of each bridge to prevent the other wires from cutting into the wood. Four holes, each an inch in diameter, in the sounding board improves the harp. The tuning may be harmonics, thirds, fifths, and octaves. Raise the sash of the window, and place the harp so that the wind blows across the strings.