CHAPTER XXIV

CONCERNING MANY THINGS

$A Simple Shelter.$--A very easy way to rig up a shelter from sun or rain is given in the accompanying sketch. Two poles with a deep notch in the top of each, a rope, two pegs, a sheet, and a few large stones complete the shelter. An ingenious boy could arrange an end, or two if he needs them.

$A Calendar on Your Fingers.$--This is the way that an old-timer manages to keep account of the days of the week that months open with. It will be found correct and interesting to people who have a memory for such things:

"What day of the week did January come in on?" asked Grandfather Martin. "If you can tell that, I can tell you the day that any month will come in on, by help of a little lingo I learned from my father when I was a boy. Friday, did you say?" and he held up his hand preparatory to counting his fingers. "Now, April is the fourth month; let us see--'At Dover dwelt George Brown, Esq., good Christopher Finch, and David Frier.' We go by the first letters of these words--1, 2, 3, 4: 'At Dover dwelt George'--G is the letter, and it is the seventh in the alphabet. January came in on Friday you say, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday--seven; April comes in on Thursday. Take February--second month: 'At Dover.' D is the letter, and fourth in the alphabet. Friday, one; Saturday, two; Sunday, three; Monday, four; February comes in on Monday.

"If you make no mistake in using the rule, it will give you the answer every time."

"But it did not give the answer for April," said Harry, who had been referring to an almanac. "April began on Friday."

"To be sure, boy! This is Leap Year, is it not?" Leap year requires the addition of one day for the last ten months, to allow for the 29th of February. So All Fools' Day came on Friday this year.

"I never knew anybody outside of my father's family," continued the old gentleman, "who knew this little lingo and how to use it. He taught it to his children, and I have tried to teach it to mine, but they seem to forget it, and I am afraid it will get lost. When father used to go to Presbytery, fifty years ago, it often happened that a question of dates and their relation to days would come up, and no almanac at hand; in fact, the question might be as to some day of the next year; but almanac or not, my father could always find the fact wanted with just the little key of the first day of the year."

$Leap Year.$--Divide the year by 4. If nothing remains it is leap year. For instance 1876 / 4 = 469 so that 1876 is leap year. If 1, 2 or 3 remain these figures give the years after leap year. Remember, leap year lapses once a century.

$Spiders and the Weather.$--If the weather is likely to become rainy, windy, or anything but fine, spiders fix the terminating filaments, on which the whole web is suspended, unusually short. If these filaments are made unusually long we may expect a spell of fine weather. In proportion to their length is the fineness of the weather. Spiders are generally indolent in rainy weather. If they are active in rain the rain will not long continue.

$A Barometer.$--Put two drams of pure nitre and half a dram of chloride of ammonia, reduced to powder, into two ounces of spirits of wine, or pure alcohol, and place this mixture in a glass tube, ten inches long and about an inch in diameter, the upper extremity of which must be covered with a piece of skin or bladder, pierced with small holes. If the weather is to be fine, the solid matters remain at the bottom of the tube, and the alcohol is transparent. If rain is to fall in a short time, some of the solid particles rise and fall in the alcohol, which becomes somewhat thick. When a storm or even a squall is about to come on all the solid matters rise from the bottom of the tube and form a crust on the surface of the alcohol, which appears in a state of fermentation. These appearances take place twenty-four hours before the storm comes, and the point of the horizon from which it is to blow is indicated by the particles gathering most on the side of the tube opposite to that part whence the wind is to come.

$Another Simple Barometer.$--Take a common phial bottle, and cut off the rim and part of the neck. This may be done by means of a piece of string, or better still, whipcord, twisted round it, and pulled strongly in a sawing position by two persons, one of whom holds the bottle firmly in his left hand. Heated in a few minutes by the friction of the string, and then dipped suddenly into cold water, the bottle will be beheaded easily. Let the bottle be filled now with water, and applying the finger to its mouth, turn it quickly upside down. When you remove your finger it will be found that only a few drops will escape. Without cork or stopper of any kind, the water will be retained within the bottle by the pressure of the external air. Now let a bit of tape be tied round the middle of the bottle to which the two ends of a string may be attached so as to form a loop to hang on a nail. Let it be thus suspended in a perpendicular manner, with the mouth downwards. When the weather is fair, and inclined to remain fair, the water will be level with the section of the neck, or perhaps elevated above it, and forming a concave surface. When the weather is disposed to be wet a drop will appear at the mouth, which will enlarge till it falls, and then another drop so long as the humidity of the air continues.

$How to go to Sea.$--Decide first whether you will go by wind or steam, as steamboat seamen and sailing-ship sailors are distinct, the former having little to do with actual seamanship, the latter everything. Consequently, most parents are well advised to send their boys on sailing ships only. Parents generally are at their wits' end to know what to do with boys with the sea "craze." Therefore they are, as a general rule, "rushed" into paying exorbitant sums for apprenticing fees, only to find, after a voyage, their sons refuse to go again, having had enough to tire them of it. Now, the best and safest way to get boys comfortably berthed as apprentices is to see by the daily papers, or the _Shipping Gazette_, the names of the largest firms advertising Australian voyages, or voyages to the East Indies, and write them particulars briefly, enclosing a stamped envelope for reply.

The large firms keep a book or register, where boys' names are entered, so that when an apprentice is required the first on the page has the preference. This is the simplest and safest way, for there are always plenty of sharpers advertising for boys in the London and Liverpool journals, offering midship berths and other "baits" at the moderate sum of from £10 to £50. This is by no means a high estimate, for by some of the gentry larger sums are asked, and these reap golden harvests. These sharpers act as intermediates between the office people and themselves, sharing the bounty. Now, few are aware that when apprenticing boys to the sea a trial voyage is necessary. A number of lads after one voyage prefer shore. Therefore, before any binding moneys are paid, be careful to see that the indentures are made out clearly, as often they are carefully worded, or "blinded," as it is called at sea; so that if by chance money were paid down the difficulty would be to get it refunded, for if this is not stipulated, and a wish is afterwards expressed to cancel agreements, the purchase-money is forfeited.

An excellent plan is to have a paper drawn up and signed by both parties, witnessed, and the indentures made up after the first trial trip; but it must be understood that the time of the first voyage, if it be a long one, makes a difference, as unless lads are apprenticed off-hand the "time" is counted as nothing.

There is a pamphlet sold by mercantile stationers at one shilling containing much information, showing parts, and describing the various builds of sea-going craft. The contents of this should be completely mastered before any boy joins a ship, as it will help him to know part of his duties in addition to the nautical language, thereby showing to his officers that he is not a "know-nothing" lad. It will also help him in a variety of ways, it being in point of fact the A B C of ship life. "Do as you are told with a will" is an expression often made use of, and in fact it must be practised by all contemplating sea life. "Ship shape" is another saying suggested by the rigid discipline exercised by mariners.

On one large vessel the following maxim was painted on the walls of the midship quarters: "There is a place for everything; put everything in its place." One of the things a captain or the mates dislike to see is a boy clambering over the rigging in port; time and circumstance will soon teach him that part of his duties, so that while he is in port a lad should busy himself in tidying up the deck, or by doing the work allotted to him.

A boy does well to be on board his ship a day or two before departing, so as to get acquainted with the various parts, also to get himself known, and somewhat used to the deck.

Apprentices are expected to have a stout chest made for the purpose of storing clothes and sundries. Some companies provide the articles necessary for the mess-room use, but it is well to inquire of berth-mates, or the steward, and arrange accordingly.

A stout tin box, capable of holding linen is necessary, and the following articles must be procured:--

White shirt, collars, and a uniform suit for shore wear. This must be made in accordance with the rules of the company, the coat and waistcoat brass-buttoned, and the cap embellished with the house flag design and gold cordage.

For ship wear no complete list can be given, the principal articles being the following: oilskin suit, one pair of sea boots, one or two pairs of half Wellingtons; flannel shirts, and as many pairs of trousers and shoes as can be procured, the limit of these being at least three pairs. The numerous small articles may be left to discretion.

Another word of warning--do not deal with slop-shop outfitters advertising "rig outs" at low figures, but rather go to respectable tailors and traders, and purchase, or have made, the articles separately.

With strict obedience, promptitude, and a cheerful disposition a lad can hardly fail to get promoted.

$To Make Your Own Toffee.$--To one pound of the best Demerara sugar add about a quarter of a pint of cold water and a pinch of cream of tartar. Go on boiling it until when you drop a little into cold water it goes hard. You may look for this stage in about ten minutes. Next take it off and add three ounces of butter cut into small pieces. Boil again and test in the same way for hardness. At this stage put in lemon juice to flavour it and then pour the mixture into oiled tins. When it is nearly cold mark it into squares, and when it is quite cold divide it according to these marks.

$Steam Rings.$--When the kettle is boiling and sending steam from its spout gently raise the lid and then shut it down again deftly. This will force the steam rapidly from the spout in the shape of very pretty rings which will rise in the air, growing larger and larger.

$Skeleton Leaves.$--Leaves from which the reader intends to derive the skeleton should be gathered fresh from tree or shrub, and put in an earthen pan filled with rain water and placed in the sunshine. When the substance of the leaf becomes soft and easily detached, they should be removed to another pan, containing clean water, in which they must be shaken about until the soft tissue breaks away from the skeleton. Wash again in fresh water, and so continue until only the ribs and nervures remain. A soft tooth-brush, carefully used, will assist in the final part of this operation, the leaf being held in the palm of the hand during the process. Now for the bleaching. Purchase two pennyworth of purified chloride of lime, and dissolve it in a pint of water. In this solution put your skeleton leaves, and keep them under observation. As soon as one has become quite white it should be taken out and rinsed in clear water, then carefully dried. The softening process will take weeks, in some tougher species of leaf it may take months. This period may be lessened by using a small quantity of either muriatic acid or chloride of lime, but with either of these agents there is danger of rotting the skeleton. The rain-water process is the safest and most permanent.

$To Imitate a Nightingale.$--Many years ago a clever Frenchman analysed the song of the nightingale and made out that it consists of the following sounds:--

Temee temee temee tan Spretu zqua Querree pee pee Teeo teeo teeo tix Quteeo quteeo quteeo Zquo zquo zquo zquo Zee zee zee zee zee zee zee Querrer teeu zqula peepee quee.

$Pith Beads.$--A little boy we know amuses himself by threading pieces of pith and then painting the pith with water colours. When his mother wears the necklace he has made in this way people are very curious to know what the beads are, and fancy they must have been made by the natives of foreign parts, probably of the South Sea Islands.

$Hints on Handwriting.$--Although typewriters are excellent things, they are comparatively useless just in those particular cases where distinct handwriting is of the greatest importance, and where it is so very rarely met with. By some strange process of reasoning, it has come about that almost any sort of writing is thought good enough for a postcard, telegram, or medical prescription. The same man who would make a very fair performance when engaged on a long communication, in which the context would be almost certain to help the reader to decipher a queer word here and there, will dash off the most puzzling penmanship when writing a short but urgent note or postcard. The very brevity of the communication adds to the difficulty of understanding it. When the present writer was at school, it was impressed upon us that, whatever else might be faulty, the addressing of the envelope should be as near perfection as we could make it. The postman of the present day will tell you that this arrangement is now reversed, and, with the exception of letters sent out by business firms, the addresses he has to grapple with are very badly and incompletely written.

Here are a few short hints, the acting upon which will vastly improve the most slovenly handwriting in a week, if persevered in. In the first place, reduce the slope of your handwriting until it is almost, if not quite vertical. Then break yourself of the habit of crowding your letters too closely together, on the one hand, and sprawling them out unduly, on the other. Instead of sprawling the letters out so, write each character compactly, but join it to the following one by a distinct link-stroke, as it were. This is the sort of writing approved of by the Civil Service Commissioners. At one time much stress was laid upon the importance of thick and thin strokes, hair strokes, and so on. Excepting in the case of professional engravers, and for artistic purposes, all these refinements are out of date. What is of vastly more importance is the making of a careful distinction between the letters m, n, and u, and again between the letters e and i. Good test-words to practice with are these: union, commence, ounce, suit, sweet, manumotive, immense, unite, untie. Characters which extend above or below the line should not do so more than is sufficient to prevent their being mistaken for other letters. All the i's should be dotted and the t's crossed. Finally, the last letter of every word should be written distinctly, no matter in what hurry you may be, for it is wonderful what an aid to legibility the observance of this simple rule will afford. Those who follow these hints may never write a pretty hand, but they can scarcely fail to write a legible one, no small accomplishment in these days, when so many of us can do almost any out-of-the-way thing, but find it difficult to sign our names distinctly.

$Secret Writing.$--Mix well some lard with a little Venice turpentine, and rub a small part of it equally on very thin paper by means of a piece of fine sponge, or in some other way. Lay this with the greasy side downwards upon a sheet of note-paper, and write your message upon the plain side of the greasy paper with a style or the thin end of your pen-holder, using a little pressure. Nothing will be seen on the note-paper; but what you have written may be made visible there by dusting upon it some pounded charcoal or other coloured dust. Shake or blow this dust away and there will remain as much of it as has fallen upon the parts where your style pressed the lard upon the note-paper.

$Resin Bubbles.$--If the end of a copper tube or of a tobacco pipe be dipped in melted resin at a temperature a little above that of boiling water, taken out and held nearly in a vertical position, and blown through, bubbles will be formed of all possible sizes, from that of a hen's egg down to sizes which can hardly be seen. These bubbles have a very pleasing appearance and are permanent.

$Etching on Glass.$--Cover the glass with a thin coat of beeswax, and draw your design with a needle cutting down through the wax to the surface of the glass. Place the glass in a shallow bath, and cover it evenly with fluor-spar to the depth of an eight of an inch. Now pour sulphuric acid diluted with three times its weight of water upon the spar. Let this remain three or four hours. Pour away the acid, remove the spar, and clean the glass with turpentine, and your design will be found upon the glass.

$How to make Carbon Paper.$--Carbonic paper for use with order books, and for other purposes, is made as follows: Cold lard well mixed with lamp-black is well rubbed into the paper with a soft piece of cotton rag. When evenly and thoroughly done, wipe the surface gently with flannel until the colour ceases to come off; it is then ready for use. To obtain similar papers but of other colours, substitute ordinary paint powders for the lamp-black. The most suitable colours will be found to be Venetian red, Prussian blue, chrome green.

$The Making of Paste.$--There are so many occupations with which boys amuse themselves that need paste that we have included a few recipes.

A SIMPLE PASTE.--For a breakfast cup full of a simple paste, needed for use at the moment, and not required to be kept for many days, take a heaped tablespoonful of flour. Mix it thoroughly with cold water as though you were mixing mustard, then fill the cup with boiling water, pour the whole into a saucepan, and let it boil gently for a few minutes. It is then ready for use. You may use starch instead of flour.

A LARGE QUANTITY THAT WILL LAST.--In a quart of water dissolve a teaspoonful of pure powdered alum. Into this stir as much flour as will make a thick cream, and keep on stirring until the mixture is smooth and until every lump has been removed. Thoroughly mix with this a teaspoonful of powdered resin, and into this mixture pour a cup of boiling water. Keep on stirring, and if the mixture does not thicken from the action of the boiling water assist it to thicken by placing it upon the fire for a minute or two. Afterwards add a few drops of oil of cloves to preserve it from going sour. Pour the paste into some vessel that has a cover, and keep it covered and in a cool place. In this form it will be thicker and stronger than is necessary for general use, but take a little as you need it and reduce it to its right consistency with warm water.

$Rice Glue.$--Mix rice flour well with cold water, then simmer it gently over the fire. This makes a fine kind of paste, durable and effective. Mixed thickly it may be used as a modelling clay, and when it is dry it takes a high polish.

$Dressing the Skins of Small Animals.$--Different dressings have been recommended, most of which contain arsenic or corrosive sublimate, which are deadly poisons; but really all that is necessary is simple alum, a pound of which can be bought for three-halfpence. Stretch the skin fur downwards on a board, and fasten it with tacks. Put powdered alum over it, and rub it in well. Continue to do this every two or three days for a fortnight. Then remove the alum, and with a knife scrape carefully off any bits of flesh or fat that may be left on the skin. When dried, to render it soft, rub a little yolk of egg or oil into it, and draw it backwards and forwards across the edge of a blunt knife, fixed for the purpose. Drawing through a ring, or well rubbing between the hands will also serve to soften it.

$Casts of Medals and Coins.$--Cut a strip of brown paper about six inches long by one inch deep. Rub a little oil or grease all over that side of the coin you wish to reproduce, cleaning off all superfluous grease with a little cotton wool, but still leaving the surface greased. Then roll the paper round the edge of the coin so that it resembles a pill-box with a metal bottom, and fix the loose end with a dab of sealing wax. Into this pour a mixture of plaster of Paris and water made to the consistence of cream, tapping the box lightly on the table to cause the plaster to settle down free from bubbles. When the plaster is set quite hard, strip off the paper, and you have your plaster mould. By soaking this with oil and fastening a strip of paper round it as round the coin, you have a complete mould into which you can pour plaster and so take a cast exactly like the original except in colour, which however may be imitated with water colours. Another plan is to make the mould of a different substance, such as isinglass; thoroughly dissolve isinglass in spirits of wine, then pour upon the coin as before, and set aside for a day or two. When quite hard it will separate easily and be found as clear as a bit of glass.

$Removal of Ink Blots.$--Ink-blots can be removed from paper by painting over with a camel-hair brush dipped in a solution of 2 drachms muriate of tin in 4 drachms of water. When the ink has quite disappeared, rinse the paper in clean water; then dry it.

$Grease removed from Paper.$--To remove grease spots from paper, gently warm the greasy part and press it, under and over, with blotting-paper. Repeatedly change the blotting-paper until most of the grease has disappeared. Then heat a very little oil of turpentine until nearly boiling, again warm the paper, and apply the turpentine to the grease spot by means of a camel's hair brush, on both sides of the paper. Repeat this process until the grease has _quite_ disappeared. Finally, with a clean brush, dipped in spirits of wine, again brush over the spot, and as the spirit evaporates the paper will be left free from grease or stain. Remember that oil of turpentine is very inflammable. It would be safer to heat it in the oven.

$Invisible Ink.$--Take an ounce of oil of vitriol, and mix with a pint of rain water, and when cool write with a clean pen. When it is cold it will disappear. Heat it and it will appear in black ink. Here are some other inks which appear and disappear at the writer's will:--

Solution of nitro-muriate of cobalt, when heated turns green; solution of acetate of cobalt, with a little nitre becomes rose-colour when warm. Inks which remain visible when heated, but do not disappear when cooled include, onion-juice, yellow; equal parts of copper and sal-ammoniac in water, yellow; aquafortis, spirits of salt, oil of vitriol, and salt and water, yellow or brown. Inks which appear when exposed to light may be made with diluted solution of nitrate of silver, or with diluted solution of terchloride of gold.

$How Leaves Keep Clean.$--While leaf shapes have formed a subject of study ever since botanical science has existed, it is only recently that one of the most remarkable purposes which the points of leaves serve has been clearly brought out.

It has been shown, as the result of some special investigations made in Germany, that the long points quickly drain off the excess of moisture deposited upon the foliage in heavy rains.

This ready method of disposing of a surplus of moisture is important to some plants. It also serves as a means of cleaning the surface of the leaves.

Round leaves do not so easily get rid of the rain water, and it has been noticed that they remain dusty and dirty after a shower, the escape of the water by evaporation not tending to cleanse them, while long, narrow, pointed leaves are washed clean and bright.

THE END

INDEX

Alcohol and Athletics, 21

Alphabet, Deaf and Dumb, 428

Angling, 67

Apple Mill, 402

Aquariums, 131

Artist, The boy as, 157

Æolian Harp, An, How to make, 363

Balloons, Bubble, 396

Balloons, Fire, To make, 389

Barometers, Simple, 418

Barrel, Hammock made from a, 362

Beads of Pith, 422

Binding Books, 255

Blotting Pad, 271

Boat Race, Game of, 328

Boats made of Pasteboard, 401

Books, How to bind, 255

Boomerangs, 329

Bottle, The inexhaustible, 382

Boxing, 55

Boxing by Electricity, 399

Bubble Balloons, 396

Bubbles of Resin, 424

Budgerigars, 246

Bust in Clay, How made, 175

Butterflies, 117

Cage Birds, 242

Calendar, A, on your fingers, 416

Camera Obscura, A, 407

Camp, Cooking in, 112

Canaries, 242

Candle, The chemistry of a, 370

Canoes, 84

Canoes, Steering of, 100

Carbon Paper, How to make, 424

Card Tricks, 220

Casting Coins and Medals, 426

Cavies, 228

Chess, How to play, 273

Chicken, The wonderful, 408

Coins, How to cast, 426

Coloured Fires, 387

Concert, Game of, 327

Conflagration, A seeming, 385

Conjuring, 208

Consequences, Game of, 327

Cooking in Camp, 112

Cremated Alive, 208

Crystals, Beautiful, 385

Crystals, Brilliant, 384

Curling, 60

Cutter, Model, How to make, 354

Cyr Louis, 21

Dancing Figure, 406

Deaf and Dumb Alphabet, 428

Digging, 150

Distorted Landscapes, 409

Dogs, 249

Donkey, The lively, 407

Draughts, How to play, 292

Draughts, The losing game, 321

Drawing, 157

Drop Ball, 148

Dumb Bells, 8, 12, 13, 15

Egg and Bottle Trick, 379

Electricity, Boxing by, 399

Electrical Machine, An, How to make, 365

Enlargement of Photographs, 264

Etching on Glass, 424

Fight for the Flag, 145

Filter, How to make a, 268

Fire, A well of, 384

Fire Balloons, To make, 389

Fires, Coloured, 387

Fire Designs, 380

Fishing, 67

Fives, 143

Flying Machine, 404

Football, 49

Fountain, A novel, 383

Fountain, How to make a, 269

Fox, 148

Fox and Geese, 331

French and English, 144

Fugleman, 149

Game, An amusing, 330

Games, 138

Gardening, 150

Ghost, To make a, 385

Glass, Etching on, 424

Glue made of Rice, 425

Golf, 52

Gravity, The centre of, 386

Grease, To remove, 426

Guinea Pigs, 228

Gymnastics, 7

Haloes, Three, 385

Hammock, How to make a, 362

Handwriting, Hints on, 422

Harp, Æolian, An, How to make, 363

Hectograph, How to make, 267

Hedgehog, The, 252

Hockey, 26

Hoops, Games with, 147

Hop-Scotch, 145

Horizontal Bar, 9, 12

Horse, A prancing, 401

Hurdle Races, 5

Hygrometer, A, 271

Illusions, Optical, 409

Index, How to make, 258

Indian Clubs, 8, 31

Ink, Invisible, 427

Ink, Removal of, 426

Jackdaws, 251

Jay, The, 251

Jig Saw Puzzle, 408

Jingling, 149

Jumping, 5, 24

Kite, How to make a, 139

Knots, How to tie, 432

Landscapes, Distorted, 409

Lantern Slides, 266

Leap Year, 417

Leverage, An experiment in, 386

Leaves, How they keep clean, 427

Leaves, How to use, 180

Leaves, Skeleton, 421

Levy, Mr. E. Lawrence, 14

Mac, A Whirling, 403

Macgregor, John, 84

Magazines, How to bind, 255

Magician, The boy as, 208

Magic Lantern Slides, 266

Magpie, The, 251

Medals, How to Cast, 426

Mice, White, 251

Modelling with Clay, 175

Moths, 117

Mouse, The, In the Trap, 409

Musical Glass, A, 329

Needle, The floating, 380

Net Making, 261

Newspaper Cuttings Book, 258

Nickie Nickie Night, 138

Nightingale, To imitate a, 422

Nine Men's Morris, 331

Optical Illusions, 409

Paperchasing, 48

Parallel Bars, 10

Pasteboard, Boats made of, 401

Paste, How to make, 425

Pea, The jolly, 414

Perspective, Rules of, 161

Pets, 228

Photographic Enlargements, 264

Pith Beads, 422

Polyphony, 201

Portrait Bust, How made, 175

Posting, 147

Potatoe Mill, 402

Prisoners' Base, 144

Puzzles, 333

Puzzles, 408

Puzzles, Answers to, 342

Pyrography, 189

Quaternions, How to play, 324

Rabbits, 232

Rackets, 141

Raven, The, 251

Resin Bubbles, 424

Rice Glue, 425

Rings, Exercises with, 8

Rings of Steam, 421

Rob Roy Canoe, 84, 86

Rowing, 43

Running, 3, 23

Sailing on Skates, 57

Schooner, Model, How to make, 351

Scrap Book, How to make, 258

Sculling, 45

Sea, How to go to, 419

Secret Writing, 424

Seed, How to sow, 153

Serpent, A revolving, 415

Shadow Buff, 328

Shaving Papers, Case for, 270

Shelter, A simple, 416

Silkworms, 252

Skates, Sailing on, 57

Skating, 57

Skeleton Leaves, 421

Sketching, 157

Skins, How to dress, 425

Skip-Jack, The, 413

Sleigh for Baby, How to make, 360

Sleigh, How to make, 356

Slides for Magic Lantern, 266

Smoke produced at Will, 383

Spiders and the Weather, 417

Sprinting, 23

Steam Rings, 421

Steeplechasing, 5

Stencilling, 163

Swimming, 42

Syphon, The, 269

Tent, A simple, 416

Toffee, To make your own, 421

Top, A simple, 402

Training for athletics, 1

Trapeze, 11

Turnpike, 147

Vacuum, A, What it can do, 386

Ventriloquism, 191

Walking, 5, 21, 22

Water boiled by Coldness, 380

Water boiled in Paper Bag, 384

Water, Illuminated, 384

Water Polo, 46

Water upside down, 382

Weather, The, and Spiders, 417

Weston's Walk, 21

Whirling Mac, A, 403

White Mice, 251

Window Box, 154

Wine Glass, The magic, 380

Wood Carving, 350

Woodman, The working, 410

Writing Pad, 271

Writing, Secret, 424

Writing, The magic, 382

Writing, The, on the wall, 385

Yachts, 84, 107

Zebra Finches, 243

PRINTED BY THE LONDON AND NORWICH PRESS, LIMITED LONDON AND NORWICH

Transcriber's Notes:

The symbol [|3] represents a reversed numeral three.

Missing punctuation has been added in several places.

The symbol [A | B] represents an A printed vertically above a B.

The oe ligature is rendered as [oe].

Italics are rendered between underscores, e.g. _italics_.

Bold text is rendered between dollar signs, e.g. $bold$.

Small caps are rendered with ALL CAPS.

The following table lists other changes made by the transcriber.

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