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Title: Things Worth Doing and How To Do Them
Author: Beard, Lina, Beard, Adelina B.
Language: English
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THINGS WORTH DOING AND HOW TO DO THEM
THE BEARD BOOKS FOR GIRLS
By LINA and ADELIA B. BEARD
=Things Worth Doing= and How to Do Them. Illustrated by the
authors. $2.00.
=Recreations for Girls.= Illustrated by the authors. $2.00
(postage extra).
=What a Girl Can Make and Do.= New Ideas for Work and Play.
Illustrated by the authors. $2.00.
=The American Girl’s Handy Book;= or, How to Amuse Yourself
and Others. Illustrated by the authors. $2.00.
THE BEARD BOOKS FOR BOYS
By DANIEL C. BEARD
=The Field and Forest Handy Book.= New Ideas for Out of
Doors. Illustrated by the author. $2.00.
=The Jack of All Trades;= or, New Ideas for American Boys.
Illustrated by the author. $2.00.
=The Outdoor Handy Book.= New and Cheaper Edition of The
American Boy’s Book of Sport. Illustrated by the author.
$2.00.
=The American Boy’s Handy Book;= or, What to Do and How to
Do It. Illustrated by the author. $2.00.
[Illustration:
THINGS
WORTH
DOING
AND
HOW
TO DO THEM
BY
Lina Beard
and
Adelia B. Beard
_New York_
Charles
Scribner’s
Sons
1906
]
COPYRIGHT, 1906 BY
CHARLES SCRIBNER’S SONS
SPECIAL NOTICE
The publishers hereby give warning that the unauthorized
printing of any portion of the text of this book, and the
reproduction of any of the illustrations or diagrams, are
expressly forbidden.
TO
OUR
LITTLE NIECE
BARBARA BEARD
PREFACE
WE know our girls. We know and sympathize with their restless longing
for activity. The normal girl simply must be doing something, and
this ceaseless energy, at times rather appalling to her elders, is
but natural and right. It is in the young blood coursing so swiftly
and joyously through her veins, and it must find vent in one way or
another. But there is no need of doing that which brings neither true
pleasure nor the joy of accomplishing something worth while, for the
world is full of delightful things really worth the doing. We have only
to open our eyes and ears to find them crowding forward to claim our
attention, and the choice is between better and best.
There are merry frolics and active games that stimulate the health and
renew the vitality of the body and there are scores of charming things
for willing hands to make which are not only worth the making but which
bring skill to the fingers and breadth and energy to the mind.
In this, our fourth book for girls, we are giving some of the things
we have found well worth the doing, and it is our hope that our girl
friends will also see their worth and find in them inspiration for
further experiments in pastime and frolics.
THE AUTHORS
July 3, 1906.
CONTENTS
PART I
PARTIES, SHOWS AND ENTERTAINMENTS
CHAPTER I
PAGE
A FOURTH OF JULY LAWN FROLIC 3
Ground Decoration, 3; Firecracker Invitation, 4; Pantomime
Charades, 6; To Make the Sun-bonnet, 7; Shuffle Race,
10; Hurling the Lance, 10; Daylight Fireworks, 11;
Balloon Ascension, 11; The Myth, 12; Pandora Box, 12;
The Balloons, 13.
CHAPTER II
A WONDERFUL CIRCUS AT HOME WITH MOVING ANIMALS 15
Mademoiselle Rosebud, 16; To Give the Horse Power to Move,
18; Bob, the Wonderful Elephant, 20.
CHAPTER III
A NOVEL EASTER PARTY WITH NEW EASTER GAMES 33
Egg Tennis, 33; Number of Eggs, 33; To Prepare the Eggs,
34; Shower of Paper, 36; The Rackets, 38; The Game, 39;
Butterfly Game, 42; Magic Dye Kettle, 43.
CHAPTER IV
A DOORWAY PUNCH AND JUDY SHOW 45
The Stage, 45; To Make Punch’s Head, 46; Punch’s Dress,
50; Judy’s Head, 51; The Baby, 52; Drama of Punch and
Judy, 53.
CHAPTER V
HALLOWE’EN MERRYMAKING 55
Novel Ways of Telling Fortunes, 55; Invitation Rings of
Grass, 55; Black Cats, 56; Pair of Old Slippers, 58;
Cups and Bowls, 59; The Wedding Race, 61; The Vesper
Rite, 65; Bean Bag Test, 66; The Witch Screen, 66; Fairy
Airships, 70; Blarney Stone Game, 71.
CHAPTER VI
DANCE OF TITANIA, QUEEN OF THE FAIRIES 75
The Stage, 75; Titania, 79; Costume, 82; Wings, 83.
CHAPTER VII
THANKSGIVING PARTY 85
Apple, Orange and Pumpkin Games, 85; Game Court, 90; The
Game, 92; Rapid-Transit Thanksgiving Story, 92; Pumpkin
Lantern, 93; Forfeit, 95.
CHAPTER VIII
IMPROMPTU MOVING PICTURES FOR THANKSGIVING 97
Puritan Woman’s Dress, 98; Puritan Man’s Costume, 98; The
Properties, 101; A Pantomime, 102.
CHAPTER IX
A VALENTINE ENTERTAINMENT WITH ORIGINAL VALENTINES 103
The Post-Office, 104; Valentine Stamps, 107; When the Bell
Rings, 107; Heart Valentine, 109; World Valentine, 109;
Daisy Valentine, 110; Love’s Palette, 111.
CHAPTER X
THE WILD WEST SHOW ON A TABLE 113
A Panorama, 113; Pasting Pictures, 120; The Performers,
120; A Tent, 123.
CHAPTER XI
ROOF PICNIC WITH BROOK TO CROSS AND FLOWERS TO PICK 127
Sunflowers, 127; Hollyhocks, 129; Roses, 130; Peaches,
Plums and Apples, 130; On the Roof, 131; Country Picnic,
132; Crossing the Brook, 133; Japanese Tag, 134.
CHAPTER XII
THE MAGIC PEEP SHOW 137
The Slides, 138; The Cow Jumped Over the Moon, 139; Life
in Fairy Waters, 141; Easter Chicks, 143; Three Blind
Mice, 144; Dance of the Dolls, 145; The Bouquet, 147;
The Little Sun-bonnet Girl, 149.
CHAPTER XIII
PLANT YOUR GARDEN IF YOU CAN 153
A New Flower Game, 153; Marking Out Flower Beds, 157;
Flags, 157; The Rackets, 158; The Game, 159; A Tally
Card, 159; To Determine Choice of Sides, 160.
CHAPTER XIV
JOLLY LITTLE SANTA CLAUS WITH HIS REINDEER AND SLEIGH 163
The Sleigh, 164; Reindeer, 165; Santa Claus, 168;
Christmas Gifts, 170; Christmas Cards, 172.
CHAPTER XV
A LIVING CHRISTMAS TREE 173
How to Prepare, 173; The Peaked Hat, 174; To Decorate, 177.
CHAPTER XVI
HOW TO GET UP A GIRLS’ FAIR 179
A Managing Committee, 179; Blackbirds, 181; Packages for
the Blackbirds, 184; Express Office, 186; Letters, 187;
Post-Office, 187; Decorations, 187; Postmaster, 192.
CHAPTER XVII
CAMPING OUT IN YOUR BACK YARD 194
Camping Outfit, 194; Tent, 197; Table, 198; Safe, 199;
Spring, 200; A Fine Pail, 201; Camp-fire, 201; A Boat,
202; Out Fishing, 204.
CHAPTER XVIII
OUTDOOR FUN WITH HOME-MADE TETHER BALL 207
The Pole, 207; The Cover for the Ball, 207; A Court on the
Grounds, 211; A Pattern for the Rackets, 214; The Object
of the Game, 215.
PART II
MINIATURE SEVEN WONDERS OF THE WORLD
CHAPTER XIX
THE PYRAMIDS OF EGYPT 219
Cheops’s Home, 219; The Pyramid, 220; Carving the
Wonderful Sphinx, 225; Making the Date Palm, 227; Making
the Camels, 228.
CHAPTER XX
THE COLOSSUS OF RHODES 233
Island of Rhodes, 233; To Make the Colossus, 234; Mark the
Features, 238; The Pedestal, 240.
CHAPTER XXI
THE PHAROS OF ALEXANDRIA AND THE MAUSOLEUM OF
HALICARNASSUS 245
The First Lighthouse, 245; The Building Lot, 246; The
Foundation, 248; The Marble Steps, 252; An Artificial
Island, 254; The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, 255.
CHAPTER XXII
THE STATUE OF ZEUS AT OLYMPIA 259
Throne of White Cardboard, 263; Upper Dais, 264;
Footstool, 265; Inlaying the Throne with Ebony, 267; The
Drapery, 267; Winged Victory, 268.
CHAPTER XXIII
THE TEMPLE OF DIANA AT EPHESUS 269
Ionic Column, 269; The Ground Plan, 270; The Outer Row
of Columns, 271; A Cella, 271; The Goddess Diana, 272;
Marble Steps, 274; The Side Steps, 276.
CHAPTER XXIV
HANGING GARDENS OF BABYLON 279
The King’s Wife, Amytis, 279; The Foundation, 280; To
Make the Twelve Openings, 281; The Babylonian Arches,
283; Last Platform, 285; To Find the Centre, 285;
Planting Shrubs and Trees, 287; Building the Steps, 289;
Stone Broad-fronted Bulls, 293; Two Statues, 294; The
Shrubbery, 297.
PART III
THINGS TO MAKE FOR HOME, GIFT DAYS AND FAIRS
CHAPTER XXV
NEW CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS 303
Paper, 303; Holly, 304; Holly Berries, 307; Wreaths, 310;
For Mistletoe, 310; Stems, 311; Ropes of Evergreen, 312.
CHAPTER XXVI
DOLL HOUSE OF PASTEBOARD 315
Windows and Doors, 316, 317; Doorknobs, 317; Window Glass,
318; Window Sash, 319; The Frieze, 322; A Rug for the
Living Room, 323; Book Shelves, 324; Tissue Paper
Curtains, 324.
CHAPTER XXVII
THE MAKING OF A BAYBERRY CANDLE 326
Bayberry Bushes, 326; The Leaves, 329; The Berries, 330;
Ready for the Candles, 330; Bayberry Wax, 331; Candle
Moulds, 331; Candlewicks, 334.
CHAPTER XXVIII
WATER TOYS—LITTLE WAX PEOPLE THAT SWIM AND RIDE ON RAFTS 338
Patterns for the Little People, 338; A Toy Life Rope, 340;
The Bathing Place, 341; For the Raft, 341; A Little
Lumberman, 344; Launching the Raft, 345; Making the
Mermaid, 345.
CHAPTER XXIX
HOW TO WEAVE WITHOUT A LOOM 349
Method Invented by the Author, 349; A Weaving Board, 349;
Directions for a Blue and White Cotton Rag, 350; To
Weave, 352; To Lengthen the Warp, 353; To Make a Heavier
Rug, 357.
CHAPTER XXX
HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN EASTER CARDS AND GIFTS 358
[8.6] Cards Representing Easter Flowers, 358; The Cross,
360; The Tulip Bud, 361; The Dainty Bloodroot, 363;
Easter Egg Card, 363; Easter Bells, 364; To Make the
Turtle, 366; The Pig, 367; The Spoon, 368; An Umbrella,
369; The Doll’s Chair, 370; Strawberry, 371; Doll’s
Cradle, 372; Bird’s Nest, 373; Sail Boat, 373; Napoleon,
375; Josephine, 379.
CHAPTER XXXI
HOME-MADE CANDLESTICKS 385
The Clay, 385; Modelling Tools, 387; Strong Table, 387;
China Saucer, 388; A Close Coil, 389; The Handle, 393;
Blending of Decoration, 394; How to Preserve Unfinished
Work, 395; Glazing, 395; Other Methods of Coloring
Pottery, 396.
CHAPTER XXXII
WHAT TO MAKE OF BANANAS, ORANGES AND APPLES 399
An Orange-skin Coracle, 400; A Canoe Made from a Banana
Skin, 401; Apple Lantern or Fairy Lamp, 403.
CHAPTER XXXIII
LITTLE PAPER COLUMBUS AND HIS PAPER SHIP 405
Columbus’s Ship, 406; To Make the Mizzenmast, 408; The
Bowsprit, 408; The Forward Deck, 409; Deck-Fence, 410;
A Spar, 410; The Mainmast, 411; The Sails, 411; A Paper
Flag, 412; Main-Topsail, 412; Crow’s Nest, 412; The
Jigger Sail, 413; Wigwams, 416; Ferdinand and Isabella,
417.
CHAPTER XXXIV
HOW TO MAKE FRIENDS WITH THE STARS 418
Ursa Major, 418; Ursa Minor, 420; A Fairy Tale about the
Starry Bears, 421; Cassiopeia, 421; Leo, the Lion, 422;
Northern Crown, 423; Castor and Pollux, 423; Orion, 424;
Taurus, 425.
CHAPTER XXXV
STENCIL PAINTING AND HOW TO MAKE THE STENCILS 426
Dyes, 426; A Portière, 427; To Make a Design for
Stencilling, 428; Stencilling Cheese-cloth Curtains,
433; The Tassels, 435; Laundering, 438.
PART I
PARTIES, SHOWS, AND ENTERTAINMENTS
CHAPTER I
A FOURTH OF JULY LAWN FROLIC
THIS is not to be a formal lawn party, but a genuine, fun-provoking
Fourth of July frolic with every one in comfortable dress appropriate
for active games. There is to be no dancing, no tennis, nothing in the
way of ordinary entertainment except, perhaps, the refreshments, and
they too should be as nearly in keeping with the day as possible.
Prepare your guests for something novel by issuing your invitations in
the form of giant firecrackers.
=Decorate Your Grounds=
and make them as festive as possible with fluttering flags, floating
streamers, red, white, and blue bunting, and Japanese lanterns. Also
provide a number of small flags, one for each guest, to be worn in the
hat, hair, belt, and buttonhole. This little touch of uniform will
not only make the scene gayer and more exhilarating, but, like badges
of an order, will have the effect of dispelling the stiffness of new
acquaintances, and bringing the party closer together as members of one
band of merrymakers.
=For the Giant Firecracker Invitations=
you will need several sheets of bright red tissue paper, more of white
tissue paper, and some white unlined writing paper. A ball of soft
white cotton string will also be required.
[Illustration: Fig. 1.—Lay the paper cylinder on the red tissue paper.]
Cut an oblong of red tissue paper, a circular piece of white tissue
paper, and a square of writing paper for each invitation. Make the red
oblong six inches long and three inches wide, the circle six inches in
diameter, and the writing paper four inches square. Of the paper square
make a cylindrical roll that will measure about three-quarters of an
inch across the end. The easiest way to do this is to roll the paper
on a candle, keeping the end edges even, and paste the side edge down
while still wrapped around the candle. Pull the candle out of the paper
and you have a perfect cylinder. Place the paper cylinder on the red
tissue paper oblong so that there will be an even inch of red paper at
each end (Fig. 1). Paste one long edge of the red paper to the cylinder
and roll it on the table, bringing the opposite edge up smoothly, then
paste that edge also in place (Fig. 2).
[Illustration: Fig. 2.—Cylinder in red paper cover.]
Now prepare and write the note of invitation to be put in the
firecracker envelope.
=With Short Brush Strokes,=
from inside to edge, paint an irregular band of blue, half an inch
wide, around the edge of the tissue paper circle, using water colors
for the purpose. Write the invitation with red ink around the circle
just inside the blue border, or straight across above and below the
centre.
Although the party is to be informal, a note written in the first
person does not harmonize with the impersonal nature of a firecracker,
therefore it is better to word the invitation something like this:
Miss Mary Brown requests the pleasure of the Misses Green’s
company at an informal lawn frolic on Wednesday, the Fourth
of July, from four to six o’clock. Active games.
[Illustration: Fig. 3.—The note of invitation looks like this.]
When the ink is quite dry pinch the paper together at the centre,
making it look something like a paper flower, twist it a little, and
tie on the point a piece of the white cotton string. The string should
be about ten inches long and must be tied at the middle (Fig. 3). Drop
one end of the string through the cylinder and, taking hold of the
end, draw the invitation into its envelope. Crush in the extra red
paper at each end until it fills the opening and leaves the string
extending from the centre (Fig. 4). Write the address and the words,
“Pull the long string,” on the outside of the now almost perfect giant
firecracker, and deliver by hand, for such an invitation would be
broken and spoiled in going through the mail.
[Illustration: Fig. 4.—Giant firecracker with invitation inside.]
The following
=Order of Entertainment=
is well adapted to the Fourth of July lawn frolic:
Out-of-door Pantomime Charades.
Shuffle Race.
Hurling the Lance.
Daylight Fireworks.
The programme opens with the not too vigorous game of
=Pantomime Charades.=
This will give all the opportunity of taking part and alternately
acting and resting. Stake out the four corners of your stage with
groups of flags, driving their sticks into the ground to hold them
upright. Provide seats for the audience in front of the stage and at
the back or side arrange a screen as dressing and green room for the
actors.
[Illustration: Making Hay While the Sun Shines.]
Divide the party into two sides of equal numbers and let the first
side choose a proverb to be acted out in pantomime and guessed by the
opposite side, which is taking the part of audience. When the proverb
is guessed the actors must retire and the other side take the stage.
If the subject of the first charade is not guessed the same side must
present another proverb, putting new actors in the place of those who
have just taken part. Not a word must be spoken in the charade, but the
actors must make their meaning as clear as possible by good acting.
Our first illustration shows the out-of-door pantomime charade in
progress. The proverb is: “Make hay while the sun shines.” This
requires but one act as the first part, “Make hay,” and the last part,
“while the sun shines,” are both represented. Making hay is acted out
and that the sun is shining is implied by the quaint sunbonnets and
wide-brimmed hats worn by the actors.
=The Costumes Are Impromptu,=
and may be prepared in a few minutes. The odd and most charmingly
becoming bonnets, somewhat resembling Dutch caps, are made of
newspapers, pinned in shape. The men’s wide-brimmed hats are simply
ordinary hats with wide brims made of wrapping paper. Black derby hats
were worn on this occasion, but straw hats are better. The girls’
dresses are turned up in front and pinned at the back. If checked
gingham aprons are worn looped up at one side they will add to the
color effect of the costume.
=To Make the Sun-bonnet,=
take one folded sheet of a newspaper and turn the folded edge back four
inches (Fig. 5). Fold down the corners like Fig. 6, put it on the head,
bring the straight edge together at the back and pin it with a large
pin. Bend out the laps at the sides and you have made Fig. 7; Fig.
8 gives the pattern of the boy’s hat. Cut a large circle from rather
stiff, new wrapping paper; press it down upon the top of the crown of a
man’s straw hat; crease it along the edge of the crown, then cut a hole
in the centre two inches within the creased line. Slash from the inner
edge to the creased line as shown in Fig. 8, fit the paper brim over
the crown of the straw hat and pin in place to the hat band.
[Illustration: Fig. 5.—Fold the newspaper for the bonnet like this.]
[Illustration: Fig. 6.—Fold down the two corners.]
High peaked hats, wide collars, and even short capes may be quickly
manufactured from paper and the effect of the impromptu costume is
marvelously good.
[Illustration: Fig. 7.—A most becoming newspaper bonnet.]
[Illustration: Fig. 8.—Cut the boys’ hat brims like this.]
=The Shuffle Race,=
next in order, is new and it is funny. Its requisites are, for the
girls, short skirts, held well above the ankles, and low shoes or
slippers many times too large, worn over ordinary shoes. Unless the
foot can be lifted out of the shoe without touching it with the hands
the shoe is too small. For the boys you must provide the largest sized
slippers obtainable, having uppers only at the toes.
The course should be about one hundred feet over a smoothly shaven
lawn. The contestants must stand in line at the starting point and
at the word “go,” start off on the race, shuffling along as fast as
possible. The boys have no advantage over the girls in this game,
for it is no easier for one to cover the distance quickly, shuffling
along in the large shoes, than for the other, and both look equally
ridiculous in their absurdly frantic efforts to win the race.
After resting from the shuffle race allow your guests to try their
skill at
=Hurling the Lance.=
From the limb of a tree have suspended five or six feet from the ground
a small wooden hoop, about eighteen inches in diameter, covered like a
drumhead with white tissue paper.
Provide each player with a round, green, tapering stake, white tipped
and five feet long—the kind used for propping up plants. On the blunt
end of each stake, or lance, should be tied streamers of red, white,
and blue, which will make streaks of color as they are sent hurtling
through the air.
[Illustration: Hurrying Along in the Shuffle Race.]
Clear the space on the far side of the hoop that no one may be hurt
by the falling lances, then have each player in turn throw his
or her lance with the object of piercing the paper and sending the
lance entirely through the ring. Each player may have three trials in
succession, and unless her lance passes through the hoop at least once
she is counted out. There are three rounds and the player wins who, at
the end, has succeeded most frequently in sending her lance through the
hoop.
Let the farewell be a
=Burst of Daylight Fireworks.=
Strings of firecrackers stretched from tree to tree, bunches hidden
under barrels, harmless torpedoes for your guests to explode, and any
other fireworks that do not need darkness for a background may be used.
It is a good idea to make
=The Balloon Ascension=
an especial feature of the display. In the early days of our country
“Independence Day” was not to be thought of without a balloon
ascension, and the time-honored custom may be observed, but in a new
way. This part of the programme should come as a complete surprise, and
all the preparation for it be kept secret, that none of your guests may
suspect what you have in store for them. The old observances always
included a patriotic speech, and that, too, should form a part of the
ceremony, being used as an introduction to the balloon ascension. You
may make the speech yourself or get some one to do it for you, but in
either case let it be quite short. Balloons should not be mentioned,
but in some way the old Grecian myth of Pandora and her wonderful box
must be brought in.
=The Myth=
can be used quite appropriately and effectively for, as you will
remember, it was to punish Prometheus, and mankind in general, for
stealing fire that Zeus commanded Hephæstus to form from earth this
most beautiful Pandora, in order that by the charms with which the
other gods endowed her, she might bring trouble and vexation upon them.
It does not appear to have been altogether her charms, however, that
worked the mischief, for we are told it was curiosity that induced her
to open the box, or cask, which was filled with winged blessings for
men, thus allowing all of the blessings except hope to escape. As the
remarks are being brought to a close have your
=Pandora Box=
carried out and placed in front of the speaker.
In this case the box is to be a good-sized sugar-barrel, wrapped in
flags, or red, white, and blue bunting, and having a lid that is easily
lifted. With the final words let the speaker step forward and suddenly
raise the lid of the barrel. This will set free not the things that
were in the original Pandora box, but a number of gas-filled, rubber,
toy balloons, that will burst out like a volley of fireworks, for a
moment filling the air with color and movement, then sailing upward and
away to finally disappear from view in the blue sky overhead.
In preparing your Pandora box choose a barrel that is perfectly smooth
inside, without long splinters or nails to pierce the fragile balloons.
Then see that the cover has a handle or knob by which it can be lifted.
A spool fastened on with a screw will serve very well and is easily
grasped by the hand.
=The Balloons=
are the kind one sees for sale on the streets tied in great bunches by
their long strings. Red is the most common color, but sometimes they
vary. Frequently there are white ones with red or yellow lettering and
bands, and again, just before the Fourth, red, white, and blue ones may
be found. Have all the colors possible, and crowd in as many as the
barrel will hold, cutting the strings off close to the balloons that
they may not become entangled, and taking great care that they do not
escape, like the blessings, before their time.
[Illustration: CIRCUS
THE MODERN TRIUMPH
CONTINUOUS PERFORMANCES—NOVEL FEATURES
MADEMOISELLE ROSEBUD
_IN HER_
THRILLING AND DARING HORSEBACK FEATS
UNPARALLELED TRICKS
_OF_
BOB, THE TRAINED ELEPHANT
_COME AND SEE_ ==== _FUN FOR ALL_
DON’T MISS THE SHOW]
CHAPTER II
A WONDERFUL CIRCUS AT HOME WITH MOVING ANIMALS
MAKE your poster as nearly as possible like the one on the opposite
page. Paint the lettering in gay colors on a big sheet of paper and a
day before the show tack it up in a conspicuous place where all the
family will see it, for, of course, your show must have an audience,
and if you follow out all directions very carefully it will be well
worth seeing.
Have your circus on top of a large table, or on the floor, or out of
doors on the bare ground. Almost any place will do where there is a
good-sized level surface.
Make the circus ring about forty inches in diameter, outline it with
chalk and cover the marked line with either sawdust or dry corn meal
built into a narrow ridge similar to that of earth around the large
rings; then your circle will look just like the ring of a real circus.
Be sure to have some kind of music at your show, if only music on a
comb. Place a piece of paper over the comb and play a lively march. Let
all the music be sprightly and gay.
Following the method given for making the horse and elephant, you can
make various other moving animals.
Fig. 9 shows
=Mademoiselle Rosebud=
standing firm and upright without the slightest tremor as her Kentucky
charger leaps high in the air over an outstretched banner.
Fig. 10 gives the pattern of the horse and rider, which you can trace
on stiff cardboard, not too heavy. If enlarged to twice the size given
they will be more imposing, but this is not necessary, as the size of
pattern is very good.
When outlined cut out the design, let the horse remain white, and with
pen and ink draw the lines which give him form, shaping the head and
neck, and separating the legs, as in Fig. 9.
[Illustration: Fig. 9.—Making the high jump.]
[Illustration: Fig. 10.—Pattern of horse and rider.]
Paint Mademoiselle’s face, arms, and neck flesh color; her waist,
skirt, stockings, and slippers light blue; make a full double
tissue-paper skirt of the same color by gathering a strip of
light-blue tissue paper through the lengthwise centre, folding the
edges together and tying this double skirt around the little lady’s
waist. Cut a narrow strip of the same blue paper and fasten one end
around each wrist that it may float freely in the air as she gallops
around the ring.
=To Give the Horse Ability to Move,=
pierce four holes through the body with a large needle, as in Fig.
10. Be sure to have the holes in the right places that the horse
may balance perfectly; then when the threads are in position there
will be no difficulty in making the horse stand and walk alone, as a
well-trained steed should.
Use four pieces of strong black thread, all of the same length, about
forty inches, for leading the horse. Tie all four ends of the thread
together, and make a large knot in each strand seventeen inches from
the joined ends. Run each thread through a separate hole in the body
of the horse. Slide the horse against the knots tied in the thread and
then tie a second knot in each thread close up to the other side of the
horse.
Be very particular about these knots; they should rest against the body
of the horse, that the animal may be firmly inserted between eight
knots, four knots tight up against each side of his body. Sew a tag of
black tape on the thread where the ends are tied together and pin the
tag down to the floor in the centre of the circus ring.
=Tie the Ends=
E and F (Fig. 11) together and fasten them to a piece of pasteboard;
do likewise with the ends of the threads G and H, then hold the two
threads which are near the front of the horse, E and F (Fig. 11), in
one hand and the other two threads, G and H, in the other hand while
you walk slowly around the outside of the ring, allowing little Rosebud
to ride demurely around in a circle, as such performers always do when
they first enter a real circus ring.
[Illustration: Fig. 11.—Threads showing how to make the horse dance.]
After the audience has been duly impressed by the novel sight of a
paper horse and rider moving, apparently without aid, around the ring,
the black threads being practically invisible, let the horse stand
alone while you bring out two or three brightly colored tissue-paper
banners, with each end of each scarf pasted on the top of a spool.
Place the banners at various distances around the ring; then again take
up the threads and
=Make the Horse Run and Jump Over Each Banner.=
This done, remove the banners and let the horse with his pretty rider
dance around the ring, sometimes on his hind feet, as in Fig. 12, and
again on his fore feet (Fig. 11), while little Rosebud easily retains
her footing, looking more than ever like a real circus rider.
[Illustration: Fig. 12.—Horse and rider dancing around the ring.]
[Illustration: Fig. 13.—Pattern of Bob the elephant.]
Fig. 13 gives the different parts of
=Bob the Wonderful Elephant.=
Make them all of stiff cardboard and larger if possible than the
diagram; then with pen and ink draw the ears, eyes, and tusks (Fig.
14); waterproof drawing ink is best for this purpose, but common ink
will do. When the ink is dry give all parts, except the tusks, a light
wash of India ink, to turn the animal a natural dull gray color. With
black thread fasten the leg A on the far side of the elephant, running
the thread through the hole A in the elephant and tying the thread
into a large knot on the leg, then making another knot on the near
side of the body; the leg and body are fastened to each other in
this way between two knots of thread. Have the pieces close together,
but loose enough to allow the leg to move easily. Attach the next leg,
B, on the near side of the body at the hole B. The leg C goes on the
far side of the body at the hole C, and the leg D on the near side at
the hole D. The legs A and C are on the far side, and B and D on the
near side of the animal (Fig. 14). Sew one end each of two strands of
black thread to a small piece of black tape. Make a large knot in each
thread, eighteen inches from the tape, run the free end of each thread
through one of the two holes high on the elephant’s body (Fig. 13), and
slide the elephant on the threads close to the knots. Make other knots
on this side of the body, in the same way you managed the Kentucky
charger, then pin the tape to the centre of the ring and
=Start Your Elephant on a Walk=
around the ring.
[Illustration: Fig. 14.—“I’ll walk.”]
[Illustration: Fig. 15.—“Won’t go another step.”]
[Illustration: Fig. 16.—“See me sit up.”]
[Illustration: Fig. 17.—“I can dance.”]
If the horse and rider interfere, take them away and let the
unparalleled animal have the field to himself. When Bob goes around the
ring he always gets tired and draws back, declining to move another
step. Make him do this by gently pulling the back thread backward. Bob
is very comical when assuming this pose (Fig. 15). Raise the front
thread and the little fellow will sit up (Fig. 16). Slowly and
gently raise both threads a trifle and Bob will begin to dance (Fig.
17). Raising the back thread a little, not enough to take his foot from
the ground, and at the same time lowering the front thread, will cause
Bob to crouch and crawl along (Fig. 18). Fig. 19 shows Bob when he is
in a hurry. Make this by lowering the front thread of Fig. 18.
[Illustration: Fig. 18.—“I am coming.”]
[Illustration: Fig. 19.—“Hurry! Get out of the way.”]
[Illustration: Fig. 20.—“Here goes.”]
[Illustration: Fig. 21.—“How is that?”]
[Illustration: Fig. 22.—“Difficult, but I can do it.”]
=Now Stand a Spool in the Ring=
raise the clumsy little fellow up on his feet and walk him over to the
spool, where he will naturally rest one foot on top while he takes a
long breath before climbing up (Fig. 20). Move the threads carefully
and the elephant will climb on the spool (Fig. 21). Lift the back
thread, and Bob will slowly and cumbersomely raise up until he balances
himself on one fore foot on top of the spool (Fig. 22). By cautiously
moving the threads you can make the elephant lower himself and step
down and off (Fig. 23). When the animal is entirely off the spool,
raise up and back the front thread and he will sit down upon the top of
the spool to rest (Fig. 24). Without any trouble Bob can stand erect on
the spool, as in Fig. 25.
[Illustration: Fig. 23.—“I’m coming down.”]
All the poses given were taken direct from those actually assumed by
Bob while he performed to the accompaniment of music, when rehearsing
to a small but appreciative audience, preparatory to appearing before
the public in print. The Kentucky charger also went through all his
acts to the same music.
[Illustration: Fig. 24.—“Must rest.”]
Remember to mark and color the wrong side of each figure as it should
appear, so that the animals and rider may look well from all sides of
the ring.
[Illustration: Fig. 25.—“Just balance like me.”]
The horse can go rapidly, but the elephant, to be lifelike, must move
slowly. When the circus is over roll the threads on their respective
pieces of cardboard and bits of tape to avoid tangling them, and have a
box ready in which the animals may lie flat until again needed.
This little circus will make a fine parlor entertainment, or would
do admirably as a side show at your next fair, when a small extra
admission could be charged and wee glasses of lemonade and tiny popcorn
balls passed around to the audience in true circus style.
CHAPTER III
A NOVEL EASTER PARTY WITH NEW EASTER GAMES
THERE are no end of delightful things to do at an Easter party, and
every game may be in keeping with the season.
The game of
=Egg Tennis=
is particularly pretty. As you play this new Easter game, showers of
color will fill the air, sometimes descending in sparkling bits of
orange, again reds, then greens or blues, yellows or purples, with
all their beautiful tints. Quivering and shimmering, down the colored
rain will fall, lightly covering your hair, clothing, and surrounding
objects, while you stand, racket in hand, watching the result of your
stroke. Your companions, seeing your success, will be eager to try
their skill, also, with one of the pretty magic eggs. These colored
showers do not even look wet, and they will not injure the most
delicate of fabrics, for they are composed of countless bits of bright
tissue paper.
=The Number of Eggs=
needed for the game depends upon the number of players. There should
be three eggs provided for every two players. In case the first player
succeeds in breaking two eggs in succession, the third egg will not be
used during the game, but may do duty at another time in another game.
Should the first player fail in breaking the second egg, then all three
eggs will be required.
[Illustration: Fig. 26.—Carefully bore a hole in each end of the shell.]
[Illustration: Fig. 27.—Fold the paper like this.]
[Illustration: Fig. 28.—Cut the paper in fringe like this.]
=How to Prepare the Eggs=
Select eggs as nearly of a size as possible; take one egg at a time
and with a very coarse needle carefully bore a hole in each end by
pressing the point of the needle against the shell and then turning the
needle around and around until a little hole appears. Be very careful
when boring not to press the needle with too great a force, as there
is danger in so doing of cracking the shell and rendering it useless.
When both holes are made, increase the hole on the large end of the egg
until it is about as large around as the head of a common hat-pin (Fig.
26), then place the small end to your lips and blow out the contents.
[Illustration: Playing the New Easter Game of Egg Tennis]
[Illustration: Fig. 29.—Cut off the ends of the fringe.]
[Illustration: Fig. 30.—Gilt paper disk.]
[Illustration: Fig. 31.—Fold the disk through the centre.]
[Illustration: Fig. 32.—Fold the disk a second time.]
[Illustration: Fig. 33.—Fold once more.]
[Illustration: Fig. 34.—Cut out the point.]
=After the Shells Are Emptied=
leave one white and color all the others, making each shell of a
different color. When this is done, allow the inside of the shells
to become thoroughly dry; then fill them with pieces of tissue paper
cut in small squares a quarter of an inch or less in size. These can
be quickly made by folding the tissue paper like Fig. 27 and cutting
it into strips of fringe (Fig. 28); then cutting off the ends of the
fringe little by little (Fig. 29). Fill the red egg-shell with bits
of red paper, the yellow shell with yellow paper, and so on, making
=The Shower of Paper=
in each egg-shell correspond to the color of the shell. Fill the white
shell with squares of white tissue paper, and when the shell breaks in
mid-air, the shower will resemble the dainty petals of cherry blossoms
as they fall when shaken from the trees by a light breeze. The effect
is very pretty, calling to mind the Feast of Cherry Blossoms in Japan,
when the girls and boys accompany their elders to see the cherry trees
in full bloom.
=Cut Gilt Paper Disks=
two inches in diameter (Fig. 30); fold each disk through the centre
(Fig. 31), then fold again crosswise through the middle of the first
fold (Fig. 32). Fold once more (Fig. 33), and, following the dotted
lines on Fig. 33, cut the points as shown in Fig. 34 and you will have
the eight-pointed star (Fig. 35). While the point is still folded with
a sharp pair of scissors clip off the point (A, Fig. 34). This makes
the hole in the centre of the star (B, Fig. 35). Through the hole in
each star thread the two ends of a strong string. Cover the under side
of the star with paste, separate the two ends of the string and hold
them down on each side of the egg (Fig. 36), then draw the star down
on to the shell over the strings, and press tightly in place until the
paste holds (Fig. 37). Clip off the ends of the string that extend
below the star.
[Illustration: Fig. 35.—The star unfolded.]
[Illustration: Fig. 36.—Hold the two ends of the string down on each
side of the egg.]
[Illustration: Fig. 37.—Draw the star down and press tightly in place.]
When the paste is quite dry and the paper firmly attached to the shell,
=Hang One of the Eggs=
directly in the middle of a wide doorway so that the egg will be about
as high as the shoulders of the players. If there is a curtain pole in
the doorway tie the string to the pole; if not, drive a tack on top
of the door frame and suspend the egg from that. Where the doorway is
quite wide, like the old-fashioned doors between two parlors, two eggs
may be hung and four players take part at one time. In that case you
will need four rackets; ordinarily two rackets are sufficient.
=Make the Rackets=
of flat rattan, taking two pieces, twenty-seven inches long for each
racket. Soak the rattan to make it pliable, then bind the two pieces
together with string as in Fig. 38. Bend the now double rattan to form
a loop, bring the four ends together and wrap them into a straight
piece for the handle (Fig. 39).
[Illustration: Fig. 38.—Bind the two pieces of rattan together.]
[Illustration: Fig. 39.—Bring the four ends together to form a loop.]
Lay the frame you have just made down on a large piece of strong
writing-paper and mark a line on the paper one inch from and entirely
surrounding the outer edge of the frame down to the handle. Draw
another line close to the outer edge of the frame, then cut out the
design along the outside line. Slash the edge up to, but not across,
the remaining pencil line (Fig. 39). Cover one side of the slashed
border with paste or glue, and, again placing the frame on the paper,
turn the flaps, one at a time, over the edge of the frame and attach
them firmly to the frame and to the inside of the paper (Fig. 40). When
the paste is perfectly dry, make another paper cover in the same manner
and paste its slashed edge over the frame on top of the first, putting
one cover directly over the other and so making it double; this will
make the racket quite strong and firm.
[Illustration: Fig. 40.—Turn the flaps of the border over the edge of
the frame.]
[Illustration: Fig. 41.—Finish with a bow of ribbon.]
Wind a strip of paper one-half an inch wide around the handle, pasting
it as you wind, and turn the end of the paper up over the end of the
handle (Fig. 40). Finish with a bow of ribbon, tying it on where the
handle joins the racket. Fig. 41 shows the completed racket right side
up.
=The Game of Egg Tennis=
is played in couples, and the object is to break the egg-shell and send
the paper rain flying in the air. The sport is adapted to all ages,
from the little child scarcely large enough to wield the racket to
grown girls and boys, and even older people will become excited as they
try to strike the fragile toy.
The players must stand facing each other at equal distances from and
on opposite sides of the suspended egg. The distance is decided by
swinging the egg and then placing the players within easy reach of it
before it swings above their heads. This is done by the umpire, who
takes charge of the game and decides any disputes.
Promptly at the signal,
=“Ready,”=
given distinctly by the umpire, the player who has been appointed
starter gently swings the egg outward toward her opponent, and the egg
is then “in play.” The other player immediately tries to strike the
egg with her racket, using sufficient force to break the shell or send
it flying swiftly toward the first player, who in turn promptly hits
or misses the egg. Whether struck or not, the egg will return to the
other player, who will surely be able to strike it the second time it
comes to her, if not the first. And so the egg is kept swinging rapidly
back and forth between the two players until the shell is broken. With
the breaking of the shell comes the beautiful shower of tissue paper
which is sent flying through the room by the stroke, and the player who
releases it wins a point in the game.
=When the First Egg is Broken=
a second one must be put in its place, and the unsuccessful contestant
has another opportunity to make good her record, playing with the same
opponent. If the breaking of the second egg proves a tie—that is, if
it is broken by the player who was at first unsuccessful—a third egg
must be suspended and the same couple continue to play until that,
too, is broken. Then the unsuccessful player drops out of the game, and
the winner of two points to his opponent’s one steps aside to await
his final play after the other couples have had their turn. Should one
player win two points in succession the third is not played, for two
points lost sends a player out of the game.
When all the couples have played, the successful competitors alone
remain in the game. These form new couples and play as before, each
in his order. This time there is but one egg for each couple, and the
player who fails to break the shell must withdraw, giving his place to
the next player, while the successful one holds his place until another
breaks the egg. In this way but one player comes out victorious.
When space allows two eggs to be hung in the doorway and two couples
take part at the same time, there must be two umpires, one for each
couple, for in the excitement of the fray, one person cannot watch all
the play.
RULES OF THE GAME
1. The umpire may not take part in the game while acting as umpire. She
shall keep tally and decide all questions which arise regarding the
game.
2. The egg shall not be struck except with the flat face of the racket.
3. When an egg is broken by striking against the surrounding woodwork,
or in any other manner other than with the face of the racket, it
counts one against the player who made the stroke and scores one for
his opponent.
4. Two points scored during one play declares the successful competitor
the victor.
5. A play consists of any number of trials until the two eggs are
broken.
6. Two eggs shall constitute a play when there is no tie; in case of a
tie there shall be three eggs.
Butterflies as well as eggs are appropriate for Easter and the
=Butterfly Game=
will come in well as second on your programme.
All the girls are butterflies in this game and all the boys are
collectors. The collectors are stationed in different parts of the
room and stand some distance, at least six feet, apart. They may not
move their feet to step in any direction, but, standing in one spot,
may reach out on all sides with their hands as they try to catch the
butterflies flitting past them.
=Each Butterfly=
must lift the skirt of her dress with both hands and move it back and
forth as she flies among, around and between the collectors. This
moving of skirts as mimic wings makes the game appear very pretty
to the onlookers, and the collectors find it difficult to grasp the
fluttering draperies.
=It is the Part of Every Collector=
to catch as many butterflies as possible and as each butterfly is
caught she must stand close behind the collector to whom she belongs.
The second captive stands behind the first with her hands on the
shoulders of number one. The third takes her place behind number two
with her hands on the shoulders of number two and so on to
=The Last Captive=
The game becomes exciting when but one free butterfly is left, darting
about, skilfully evading the outstretched hands of the collectors, each
intent upon capturing this last and greatly valued prize. For in the
count the last butterfly captured is equal to two of the others.
The game ends when all are caught and the winner is he who possesses
the greatest number of butterflies, counting the last one caught as two.
=The Magic Dye Kettle=
will be a unique, amusing and mystifying feature in the entertainment
of your guests. For this some preparation is necessary.
First you must have the tinsmith remove the bottom of a new,
inexpensive, tin kettle, one that has a lid to fit and will hold
several quarts. Then in the bottom of a square wooden box, about as
large as a small table, have a hole cut a trifle smaller than the
bottom of the kettle. Knock out one side of the box, stand it bottom
side up so that the round hole will be on top, place it in the position
it is to occupy, and throw over it some kind of a cover which will
reach to the floor and hide the box completely on all sides. In this
cover you must cut a hole to fit the hole in the box, and place the
hole in the cover directly over the hole in the box. Place the lid on
the kettle and stand the kettle over the hole and it will appear to be
merely sitting on the table, as there will be nothing to indicate the
opening beneath.
=Under the Box,=
ready for use, place a shallow tin pan larger around than the bottom of
the kettle, and cover the bottom of the pan with sawdust; also place
under the box a basket filled with hard boiled eggs of various colors,
three eggs of each color.
In another part of the room have ready another basket containing the
same number of hard boiled eggs but all uncolored.
While the Butterfly game is in progress let some one who is in the
=Secret of the Magic Kettle,=
hide under the improvised table and at a given signal lift the shallow
pan and hold it tightly under the hole in the box.
Explain to your guests that you have for the occasion a magic kettle,
which, while they wait, will color eggs for them without water and
without heat. Pass around the basket of uncolored eggs and invite each
one to take an egg. Tell three members of the party to decide upon a
color they wish their eggs dyed (all three must be the same color)
then, as you raise the lid, to shout the color in unison, and carefully
place their eggs in the kettle.
As soon as the eggs are in quickly replace the lid and wave your hands
back and forth over the kettle. Apparently you will be working a charm,
but in reality you will be keeping the too curious from taking a peep
into the kettle to see what process is going on.
When the uncolored
=Eggs are in the Kettle=
and the lid is on, your assistant underneath must gently and without
the least noise lower the pan she is holding, and in which the eggs
have been deposited, remove the uncolored eggs and substitute three
others of the color she has heard wished for. Then lifting the pan she
must again hold it close under the kettle until
=The Colored Eggs are Taken Out=
and three more put in to be dyed.
Give your assistant several minutes to make the exchange of eggs,
then lift the lid and allow the eggs, so quickly and so marvellously
colored, to be lifted out by their owners.
When all the eggs have been dyed lead your guests from the room without
allowing any investigation of the workings of the magic kettle and
while they are out have box, kettle and eggs taken away so that the
charm of mystery may not be broken.
CHAPTER IV
A DOORWAY PUNCH AND JUDY SHOW
EVERYBODY laughs when he sees Mr. Punch, with his funny long nose, and
his wife Judy in her frilled cap. The show is all fun, every bit of it;
even the little baby seems to understand and appears actually pleased
when Punch and Judy toss him back and forth, as they might a rubber
ball. When the infant happens to fall, he is never hurt; the accident
is but a good joke and part of the sport. One great charm about the
show is, that you can make Punch and his family do exactly as you
please and say exactly what you want them to say, for so long as you
are showman they yield implicit obedience to your will.
The only material necessary for
=The Stage=
will be a piece of plain solid-colored cloth, which must reach across
an open doorway, be tacked upon each side and extend down to the floor,
where it should be again fastened that there may be no danger of its
blowing aside. Put this curtain up high enough in the doorway to reach
a trifle above your head, for you must be completely hidden from the
audience. The full-page illustration shows the back of the stage and
gives the manner in which Punch and his family are made to move about
in the opening between the top of the doorway and the curtain. It is
this opening which constitutes the stage. The illustration also shows
a band of cloth stretched across the extreme top of the doorway, and
short side curtains added to the outside of the stage to improve its
appearance.
[Illustration: Fig. 42.—Draw Punch’s head like this.]
=To Make Punch’s Head,=
cut a piece of unruled white writing-paper eight inches long and five
inches wide, to allow a generous margin, and on it draw Fig. 42, making
the head 6 inches across one way and 4 inches the other. Paste a strip
of thin cloth over the neck which includes the entire space between the
four corners marked A-A-A-A, and over this cloth paste two more cloth
strips in the spaces marked B-B and B-B. The cloth strengthens the neck
and prevents it from tearing while the head is in motion. Carefully
mark the features, copying them also on the right-hand side of the
face (D). Cut out the head, including flaps, and the ears along their
outer edge. Cut the line of the chin into each side of the neck as far
as the second strips of cloth (B-B and B-B). Roll the neck until it
fits loosely on your first finger, then paste it together like a ring.
Paste the tips of each side of the nose together, also those of the
chin.
[Illustration: Behind the Scenes in the Doorway Punch and Judy Show.]
[Illustration: Fig. 43.—The top of his head is open.]
Bend the flaps at the dotted line on the edge of the face and paste the
other side of the face part way over the flaps, covering the spaces
C-C-C-C. If the head seems too narrow, bend the paper out to make it
appear wider. Roll an extra piece of writing-paper and fit it inside
the head. Be sure that the roll lies evenly and is close up against the
inside of the head; then bend out the ears, paste the paper lining in
place and paint the entire head pink except the eyes and teeth. When
the first color is dry, paint the markings on the ears red; the hair
and eyebrows, markings for teeth and the eyes black; the lips, nose,
chin and cheeks a brilliant red.
[Illustration: Fig. 44.—Make the hand in the shape of a mitten.]
The top of Punch’s head is open (Fig. 43), but we will cover it with a
high, pointed cap, and the uncovered space where the chin comes forward
beyond the neck will not be noticed when Punch is dressed, for the
double ruffle around his neck hides all deficiencies. Make each arm of
a roll of writing-paper pasted together along the edge. The roll must
be about four and three-quarter inches long. Flatten and paste together
one end of each arm, and on these flat ends draw the outline of a
mitten, which will serve as a hand; when the paste is dry, cut out the
mitten (Fig. 44). Paint the hands and arms pink.
[Illustration: Fig. 45.—Cut Punch’s dress after this pattern.]
[Illustration: Fig. 46.—Your funny old Punch.]
The arms should fit loosely over the ends of your thumb and forefinger.
Fig. 45 gives the pattern of
=Punch’s Dress=
Make it much larger, according to the dimensions given on patterns, and
let it be of soft material in very bright, gay colors. The front and
back are exactly alike, and the two pieces are sewed together at the
sides, the seams extending to within two inches of the bottom of the
skirt, leaving the sides split up that distance. Slide the paper arms
up in the sleeves and fasten them in place at the top with a drop or
two of glue. Make a wide, white double ruffle, slip it on Punch’s neck
and push it up against the head. Then gather the top of the dress so
that it will fit Punch’s neck, and fasten it on under the ruffle with
strong glue, allowing the bottom of the paper neck to extend down below
the gathered top of the dress. Make a high cap of brilliant red cloth
to fit Punch’s head; trim it with a turned up band of vivid green
edged with white and glue the cap to the head. With a stitch or two
or an elastic band fasten an inked paper lighter in his right hand to
serve as a stick.
[Illustration: Fig. 47.—Judy will look like this.]
Now slip the first finger of your left hand up in Punch’s neck, run
your thumb and second finger of the same hand in the paper arms, and
make Punch turn and twist his head while he gesticulates with both
arms. You will laugh before you know it, and be delighted with your
funny old Punch (Fig. 46).
=Make Judy’s Head=
by the pattern used for the head of Punch, but omit the ears and cut
off the ends of both nose and chin. They should not be so long for
Judy. Strengthen the neck with cloth and fasten the head together as
you did that of Punch. Make blond hair of two pieces of yellow tissue
paper pasted in narrow irregular folds on the inside of the top opening
of the head; then bring over and down on the outside as if combed
loosely over Judy’s ears. Paste the lower ends of the paper hair above
the neck on the back of the head. Paint Judy’s eyes blue. In all other
respects than the details mentioned, make Judy’s head the same as you
did that of Punch. Make her arms and hands the same, the double ruffle
for the neck the same, the dress the same cut but of contrasting
color. Cut Judy’s cap from thin white material, make it circular and
gather it entirely around, about one inch from the edge. Attach strings
of the same material, and tie them under Judy’s chin (Fig. 47).
=The Baby=
must be quite light in weight. Make it of a piece of pink tissue paper
about eight inches square. Draw the paper through your hands several
times to crush it into small folds, then, while it is crushed together,
double at the middle and wind a thread around near the folded end to
form a neck, leaving half an inch above for the head. Gather a piece of
white tissue paper around the baby’s neck to make its dress, and cut a
straight strip of white tissue paper for the baby’s cap. Lay it flat on
top of the head and bring the two ends down straight on each side of
the face. Gather the cap at the back, add strings and fasten it on the
baby’s head. Features may be marked on the face with paint, but be very
careful not to use much water with the colors, for water will melt the
tissue paper face.
=When All is Ready=
slip Judy on one hand, Punch on the other hand, and make them talk and
act to the best of your ability. Assume deep tones of voice when you
talk for Punch, and high, shrill tones for Judy; make the play short,
full of life and action, and as funny as possible. Of course, you will
have to practise with Punch, Judy and the baby in front of a mirror
before giving your show in order to see how they will look as you make
them act, and to learn just how to manage them.
=Drama of Punch and Judy=
PUNCH (_below_): Wait a minute, sha’n’t be long putting on
my new boots (_pops up singing_). Trala-la-la-la-la-la-la.
Hello, there! Watch me dance (_dances, singing a lively tune
to music; music stops and he leans down, calls below_).
JUDY! JUDY! JUDY, come here.
JUDY (_pops up_): Well, Mr. PUNCH; what do you want? I’m
dreadfully busy just now.
PUNCH: Oh! nothing, only want to know if you’d like a box of
French candy, the delicious kind that melts in your mouth;
but never mind, I can get it for you next Christmas (_Punch
turns his back and walks off_).
JUDY (_running after Punch_): Punchy-munchy, I wish I had it
now; do, Punchy, give it to me.
PUNCH (_turning_): You must give me a kiss first (_they hug
each other and have a merry time dancing and singing to
lively music_).
JUDY: Oh! Oh! I forgot the baby. I’ll go and get him
(_disappears_).
PUNCH (_calling after her_): Well, hurry up, and don’t
forget our dog Toby (_calls_). Toby! Old dog Toby—come
and jump over my stick (_bangs his stick about, striking
everything, accidentally strikes his nose_). Oh! Oh! Oh!
my poor nose, my best Sunday nose, my beautiful long nose
(_calls_). JUDY! J-U-D-Y, where’s the baby? (_Enter_ JUDY
_with baby_).
JUDY: Here, PUNCH; catch him (_tosses baby to_ PUNCH, _who
catches him; dances about, then tosses the baby back to_
JUDY, _who fails to catch him_).
JUDY: PUNCH! PUNCH! Where’s the baby?
PUNCH: Gone down-stairs. I’ll fetch him up (_disappears_).
JUDY: Just think! the little dear went down-stairs all alone!
(PUNCH _reappears_.)
PUNCH: Here’s the little darling; pity his nose is not
longer. Do you think it will grow, JUDY? (_baby cries_;
PUNCH _tosses him up in the air singing_). He didn’t dance,
dance, dance; he didn’t dance all day nor yesterday.
(JUDY _tries to catch the baby_.)
PUNCH: Take him! Now we will both sing while I keep time
with my stick. Begin, I say; quick, hurry, quick! (JUDY
_runs away with the baby while_ PUNCH _is talking and not
watching her; turning_, PUNCH _finds himself alone_).
PUNCH (_calls_): Baby! Baby! Come and see your daddy’s
beautiful nose (_baby is tossed up from below_). See! See!
my boy can fly through the air (_knocks with his stick, then
calls_). JUDY! Why don’t you come? (JUDY _appears with baby,
walks back and forth_).
JUDY: I must get this child to sleep.
PUNCH: Nonsense, I’ll amuse him (_grabs child and disappears
with him; baby heard crying, “Mama! I want my Mama!”_).
JUDY: Just listen to that (_waves her arms frantically
around and disappears_.)
PUNCH (_reappearing with a flag in each hand_): We haven’t
given you our flag dance. JUDY! girl, come along.
JUDY (_jumps up with a flag in each hand_): Hush, PUNCH,
you’ll wake the baby.
PUNCH: Now let’s dance. (_The music plays and the two
dance and sing some popular air, then together bow to the
audience, saying_:) Good-by little girls and boys, good-by,
everybody. We’ve had such a good time. Good-by, good-by.
The flags may be of home or store manufacture, but they must be
fastened on paper sticks, made like Punch’s paper-lighter stick. They
can all be American flags, or three other nations may be represented,
or each flag can be of solid color, differing from all the others, as
red, green, yellow and blue.
If a companion will help with the show by taking complete charge of
Judy while you attend to Punch, the management will be much easier, for
then you will have only one doll to make talk and act.
CHAPTER V
HALLOWE’EN MERRYMAKING
=Novel Ways of Telling Fortunes=
THIS year the annual festival of the fairies is to be celebrated with
wilder pranks and madder mysteries than for many a long season, and if
we enter heartily into the spirit of the fun and make preparations for
them, the little folks will surely reveal many secrets the future holds
in store for us.
Ask the fairies, gnomes and elves to your Hallowe’en frolic; they will
be delighted to come, though of course, you cannot invite them in the
usual fashion. Instead of writing notes, you must braid three
=Invitation Rings of Grass—=
fresh grass is best, but the dried will do—and hang the rings on bushes
(Fig. 48), or lay them on the outside window-sill, making a wish on
each grass ring as it is put into place. To insure the fulfilment of
the wish, you must not see the rings again until after Hallowe’en. The
fairy troupe will find the green circles as they come floating along
through the air on gay-colored bubbles from the magic spring waters of
Fairyland. During the last days of October fairies are always looking
for such invitations.
[Illustration: Fig. 48.—Hang the rings on bushes.]
Here are some of the ceremonies and games newly revealed to me by the
old witch who lives in the black clouds that sail southward on the
northwest wind.
=Black Cats,=
the friends and companions of witches, are wonderful creatures to
conjure with, but all cats can work a charm, and it is cats, or
preferably kittens, you must have for the first rite. There must be a
pussy in hiding for each girl and boy present at the Hallowe’en frolic.
With different colored bright ribbons tie a tinkling bell around the
neck of every cat, leaving one end of the ribbon one yard long. Seat
your Hallow-e’en guests in a semicircle around the room. Ask them to
sit quietly for a few moments, and suddenly put out the lights. With
the room in total darkness let absolute stillness ensue for a second;
then say very slowly and distinctly:
[Illustration: Kittens Telling Who Will be the First to Marry.]
“Hold out your right hand and there will come to each one of you
a disguised gnome or fairy. Be very gentle and kind to the little
creature (here pause for a moment); for if by any chance ill befall
the disguised sprite the fairies will be angry and will do nothing for
you until next Hallowe’en.” Again pause; then say: “So I caution you
once more—be kind and gentle.”
Have some one keep the kittens near by, in readiness, so that you
may lead all into the darkened room without a moment’s delay. Hold
the ends of the ribbons in one hand while with the other you take
one ribbon at a time, and as you pass along the line place it in the
outstretched hand of each successive guest, saying as you do so, “Hold
fast this magic clue.” The instant the last ribbon has been given to
a guest, turn on the lights and while the girls and boys are looking
with surprise at the little creature they hold captive and laughingly
exchanging comments, you must pin a piece of white tape on the floor
across one end of the room about four feet from the wall. Request
the guests to kneel, with their funny little gnomes, in a row on the
enclosed space next to the wall, and face the tape. Announce that there
will now take place the race of fate. Each player must hold his or her
pussy with its fore paws directly on the tape, and at a given signal
all the girls and boys must exclaim in unison, “Run!” at the same time
releasing the kittens that they may scamper away in any direction they
choose. The guests should remain stationed back of the tape line and
watch them as they scatter wildly over the room trailing their bright
streamers. No one may touch or in any way molest a kitten after the
signal has been given to let them go. The girl or boy whose pussy first
reaches the centre of the room, which has previously been marked with a
second strip of tape, will be the first to marry.
Do not wait for the other kittens to make the goal, but gather up the
little creatures and lead them away to be seen no more, or the spell
will be broken.
Old shoes possess strange and occult powers as we all know, else why
should we throw them after the coach of a newly wedded couple? So we
must have a
=Pair of Old Slippers=
After the last cat has disappeared, bring out the slippers; any kind
except toy ones will do. Place the slippers on a sheet of white paper
laid on the top of a table where all present may see.
[Illustration: Fig. 49.—Place one slipper on top of the other.]
Explain to the girls and boys that they must take one turn each in
trying their fortunes by putting one slipper crosswise on top of the
other, both right side up (Fig. 49), and while holding them so, repeat
the following verse:
These slippers I toss into the air.
Will my love be dark? Will my love be fair?
What future is mine? I pray you show
By the turning of sole or the pointing of toe!
Lift the paper and give the slippers a slight upward toss to fall on
the floor as they may, and the manner in which they reach the floor
indicates the fortune:
When both slippers land upside down and do not touch, the player will
be a great traveller and have no settled home.
When both slippers land right side up and do not touch, the player will
go on the stage.
When the right slipper is upside down, the future mate will be cross
and selfish.
When the left slipper is upside down, the future mate will be unselfish
and kind.
When the slippers are crossed there will be an early marriage.
[Illustration: Fig. 50.—Decided difference of opinion between husband
and wife.]
[Illustration: Fig. 51.—Very congenial.]
When the toes of the slippers point in opposite directions, there will
be decided difference of opinion between husband and wife (Fig. 50).
When the toes of the slippers point in the same direction, husband and
wife will be very congenial (Fig. 51).
When the soles cross, lying one on top of the other, the player will
own a gold mine.
=Cups and Bowls=
have supernatural power on this night and exercise a peculiar influence
over marbles placed under them; consequently you must get three china
cups and three marbles, a crystal (clear glass marble), a commie
(ordinary brown marble), and a china (a white marble crossed by
different colored lines).
Set three cups in a row (Fig. 52), under one place a “crystal,” under
another a “commie,” and under the last a “china.” Blindfold each player
in turn and let the girl or boy raise one of the cups. If the marble
under the lifted cup is the crystal, the husband or wife will be young
and life will be easy and full of sunshine. If it is the china, the
husband or wife will be middle aged and life will be hard but famous.
If the commie, the husband or wife will be old, and life will be filled
with adventure. The marbles must be changed into different cups after
blindfolding each player.
[Illustration: Fig. 52.—Set three cups in a row.]
As no Hallowe’en ceremonies are complete without
=The Apple,=
there must be a dish of apples and a box of wooden toothpicks.
With the apples and toothpicks you can ascertain for your guests the
nationality of their future mates.
[Illustration: Fig. 53.—You will marry an American.]
[Illustration: Fig. 54.—Your future partner will be English.]
[Illustration: Fig. 55.—Your future mate will come from France.]
Give every one an apple and a wooden toothpick. Each player may
push the toothpick in any part of the apple; the spot occupied by
the toothpick tells the fortune, but the apple must be kept in one
position, and on no account turned after the toothpick is once in. When
all have inserted the toothpicks each boy and girl in turn must hold
up his or her apple that all may see while you read the fortune.
When the toothpick stands straight and erect in the top of the apple,
the life partner will be an American (Fig. 53); if in the left side
of the apple, the mate will be English (Fig. 54); in the right side,
French (Fig. 55), in the back, German; in the front, Italian; sideways
at the top of the apple, the mate will be a West Indian; sideways
in the right side, the mate will be a Japanese; in the left side, a
Russian; in the front, Spanish. When the toothpick breaks the player
will not marry.
[Illustration: Fig. 56.—You must prepare a card like this for the
Wedding Race.]
Now comes the fun of forecasting to learn where the wedding will take
place, so prepare for
=The Wedding Race=
For this you must have a card like Fig. 56; fill in the spaces under
“The way you go” with the following words according to the numbers: (1)
Walk slowly,(2) Walk backward, (3) Walk on toes, (4) Walk on heels, (5)
Run, (6) Walk fast, (7) Skip, (8) Walk without raising feet, (9) Run on
toes, (10) Walk on toes of one foot and the heel of the other, (11) Run
on heels, (12) Walk sideways.
In the spaces under “Wedding” insert: (1) Church, (2) On shipboard,
(3) Boarding house, (4) Hotel, (5) Home, (6) Friend’s home, (7) Top
of mountain, (8) Minister’s house, (9) Tent, (10) Out of Doors, (11)
Courthouse, (12) Cave. Inform the guests that each in turn must go
the length of the room. He or she may walk slowly, walk fast, walk
sideways, walk backward, walk on toes, walk on heels, walk on the toes
of one foot and the heel of the other, etc., etc.
If many guests are present, start two at a time crossing the room,
one from each end. Write the initial of every player on the line of
the card corresponding to the manner in which he or she crosses the
room; for example, if the first player’s name is Barbara Carter, and
she runs across the room, put down her initials B. C. on the line No.
5 on which is written the word “Run.” If the second player’s name is
Jamie Bartlett and he also runs write his initials J. B. on the same
line of the card, but, should Jamie decide to go backward across the
room his initials would then belong on line No. 2. When all the girls
and boys have crossed the room, and quiet again reigns, read to them
the various places where the different players will be married, for
instance, if referring to your card you find the initials of Jessie
Douglass on line No. 12, you should read, “Because Jessie Douglass
walked sideways across the room, she will be married in a cave. Won’t
that be romantic?” Always add some pleasant remark after reading
each record; such remarks make things run easier and add to the fun.
Probably you will be able to think of many delightful little speeches,
but in case you find any difficulty, the following list may be of some
assistance. Remark for line No. 1: There could not be a better place.
No. 2, How charming. No. 3, Better there than not at all. No. 4, I
wonder if that will be a runaway match. No. 5, The dearest spot on
earth. No. 6, A friend in need is a friend indeed. No. 7, I hope we
will all be invited. No. 8, An elopement, you may be certain. No. 9,
Delightful. So gypsy-like. No. 10, I am sure there will be room for us
all at this wedding. No. 11, Many a happy marriage has taken place in a
court-house. No. 12, Won’t that be romantic?
[Illustration: The Vesper Rite.]
The communicative old witch of the northwest wind imparted so many
methods of Hallowe’en fortune telling you can take your choice. Here
are the rest just as she told them.
=The Vesper Rite,=
if observed with due solemnity, will disclose the principal
characteristics of any one submitting to the test.
Take six large potatoes and cut them in half. Shape each half into a
candlestick by scooping out a round hole in the small end, making it
large enough to hold a candle.
Place a half candle in each of the potato candlesticks and pin around
each candle a strip of paper on which is written one word indicating a
trait of character, such as “modesty,” “bashfulness,” “vanity,” etc.
Then form a magic ring of the candles in the centre of a dimly lighted
room. The ring should be about three feet in diameter.
Blindfold one of the players and have the entire party join hands and
run three times around the lighted candles.
Then, leaving the blindfolded player standing two feet from and facing
the ring, let the others fall back while a chair is placed before her,
a fan is handed to her and she is told to make three trials at fanning
out the candles over the back of the chair.
After the third trial she must remove the bandage from her eyes and
examine the papers on the candles that are left burning, reading aloud
the words which reveal her character.
To avoid any danger of skirts catching fire, care must be taken that no
one approaches the candles too closely after they are lighted.
Another game is called the
=Bean Bag Test=
Into a bag that will hold four or five quarts, pour three quarts of
dried beans and in their midst hide a ring, a thimble and a brass
button.
Have ready a bright new tin cup and let each player in turn dip into
the bag and take out a cupful of beans which must be emptied into a
plate.
If either a girl or boy finds the ring in the beans it is a sign of an
early marriage. If a girl gets the thimble she will be an old maid, and
when the thimble falls to the lot of a boy he will marry an old maid.
The brass button in a girl’s cup of beans denotes that she will marry a
widower, but in a boy’s cup it is a bachelor’s button and shows that he
will be a bachelor all his life and will sew on his buttons himself.
Each player can have but one trial, and if only beans fall to her
share, it signifies that her fate is still undecided.
Here is another test called
=The Witch Screen=
[Illustration: Fig. 57.—Through the lengthwise centre of the cloth cut
two slits for each player.]
Across the end or corner of the room fasten a breadth of inexpensive
cloth for the witch screen; old muslin or any material most convenient
will answer the purpose if not too thin. Through the lengthwise centre
of the cloth cut two slits for each player. Fig. 57 has eight slits
and is intended for four players. Seat the company in a row near to
and facing the witch screen, adjust it so that the slits will come
on a level with the hands of the players, then, standing behind the
screen and looking over the top, say, “I have some wonderful treasures
which the witches have loaned us for this evening, but, as the objects
are very valuable and must be returned, I ask that you use the utmost
caution in handling them, and take great care not to drop or break any
of the things while passing them from one to another down the line.
[Illustration: Fig. 58.—The lava from Mt. Pelee.]
[Illustration: Fig. 59.—Slip your hands through openings in the witch
screen.]
“The first charm is
=A Piece of Lava=
brought from Mt. Pelee in a witch’s pocket (Fig. 58). If you will all
kindly slip both of your hands through openings directly opposite you
in the witch screen (Fig. 59), you may have the pleasure of passing the
lava from one to another. Receiving and giving the lava according to
rule means a successful year, but woe to the one who drops it, for to
him will come disappointment.”
After you have made your little speech, sit down and, hidden by the
screen, take from a tray at your side a hot potato (Fig. 58), which has
been in the oven only long enough to become thoroughly heated; place
it in the hand at the head of the line with the words, “I give you the
charmed lava; pass it on.” Though the girls and boys may not see what
they have, they can assuredly feel it, and there comes in the fun, for
each in turn will be sorely tempted to drop the hot potato and yet not
dare to do so, and no hint being given, the next neighbor will in turn
be equally startled. When the lava reaches the last player, some one
back of the screen at that end must receive the precious object and
store it away on a tray.
[Illustration: Fig. 60.—The wonderful Japanese crystal.]
[Illustration: Fig. 61.—The baby porcupine.]
As soon as the hot lava is disposed of, arise and tell the company that
the next charm is a piece of
=Wonderful Japanese Crystal=
(Fig. 60). It will enable them to see and understand everything more
quickly and clearly; it will also gain new friends and delightful
surprises. To drop the crystal brings dulness of comprehension, no
friends and no surprises. Use a piece of ice for this. The third charm
is a rare natural history specimen, called
=The Baby Porcupine=
(Fig. 61). The little creature signifies difficulties successfully
overcome, but if dropped the fortune will be reversed. The porcupine
is in reality a chestnut bur.
=A Harmless Serpent=
forms the fourth charm; it renders all girls and boys proof against
fear of wild animals, and imparts the faculty of taming and making pets
of many inhabitants of the forest, but the charm will be lost with one
failing to pass it on its way. The serpent is a snake made of soft
dough.
One of the best fairy gifts is
=A Treasure from the Great Blue Sea=
It means a joyous ocean voyage to new and beautiful lands, but if
dropped, the player will encounter storms and perils. Hand the first
player a slippery raw oyster.
When all the charms have been tested, announce that before returning
the treasures to the witches you will place them on exhibition; then
turn back the witch screen and let the girls and boys gather around the
tray of queer charms, where they can laugh and exchange comments to
their hearts’ content. The effect of the witch screen may be enhanced
by using a breadth of brilliant-red muslin and pasting on it black
moons, stars, cats, etc. Erect at each end of the screen a comic
pumpkin lantern head, with white paper fastened on the inside over the
features to light them up, instead of a real light placed inside. Slide
each pumpkin head on the end of a pole, and rest the pumpkin firmly on
four long, strong nails driven in around near the top of the pole. The
lower end of each pole may be steadied and supported by being inserted
in a hole bored through the centre of a heavy piece of plank, where it
must form a very tight fit; or you can sink the pole into a deep pail
of stones and earth. If it is possible to have the only light in the
room placed back of the screen, the effect produced will add to the
mystery and enchantment. Make all decorations as funny as you like, but
avoid anything grotesquely unpleasant. Let every item be agreeable,
from the least to the most important arrangement for the evening’s fun.
A very pretty way of telling fortunes is with
=Fairy Airships=
made of feathers. Take as many fluffy feathers as there are girls and
boys in the party and paste on each feather a prophecy written on a bit
of paper, such as:
Yes,
No,
Sometime,
Possibly,
Never,
At twenty-five,
Probably,
Depends on myself,
If I can,
I’ll try,
When the time comes,
Of course,
Three times,
Before you know it,
Not if I can help it,
Certainly,
Doubtful,
Surely.
Put all the fairy airships into a pasteboard box-lid, which you have
previously punched full of holes, and, standing on a stool or chair,
hold the box-lid high in the air while you slowly and impressively say
to the company: “These fairy airships will decide your fate regarding
marriage. Will you marry?” At the word “marry” launch the ships of
fate by fanning vigorously under the box-lid with a large palm-leaf
fan, which will send the ships flying in every direction; as they sail
through the air each player must endeavor to catch one before it falls.
When order has been restored and all have their airships, each girl
and boy in turn must read aloud the prophecy brought by the fairy
vessel.
All the party will enjoy the
=Blarney Stone Game=
Place a large, clean stone on a doily-covered fancy plate which rests
on a table in the centre of the room, and tell your guests that a
certain spell cast on the famous Blarney Stone in Ireland caused
the virtues of that wonderful stone to be transmitted to the stone
in the very room where they stand, and that if a girl or boy, when
blindfolded, can walk up to the table and kiss the Hallowe’en Blarney
Stone, she or he will ever after be jolly and happy and prove a most
agreeable companion. Then tie a handkerchief across the eyes of each of
the players in turn and let them walk up to and try to kiss the stone
before the witches come to take away the magic spell, which they will
do long before the clock strikes twelve at midnight.
During the evening be sure to try fortunes by the
=Fortune Jingle=
On different sheets of paper write one of the following verses:
“One is good fortune,
Two a light heart,
Three is a carriage,
Four is a cart,
Five is a new dress,
Six, a new hat,
Seven is a pet dog,
Eight, a pet cat,
Nine is a letter,
Ten is a pleasure,
Eleven is a great joy,
Twelve is a treasure.”
Place each verse in a separate envelope and hang all on a string
stretched and tied to the backs of two chairs. Distribute squares of
paper each marked with a number beginning at number one. The player
receiving number one has first choice of envelopes from the line. Two
brings second choice, and so on. When all missives have been taken
and the signal given for opening the envelopes, the player receiving
verse one reads aloud, “One is good fortune”; immediately after the
person with number two reads, and the other verses follow in numerical
succession, every envelope bringing its gift to the recipient.
[Illustration: Titania Stands on Her Toes, She Floats, She Drops to the
Floor in a Deep Curtsy.]
CHAPTER VI
DANCE OF TITANIA, QUEEN OF THE FAIRIES
TITANIA is a graceful little fairy, dancing as though she had learned
the art from the bending of the grass in a summer breeze, the swaying
of the trees or the flitting of butterflies from flower to flower.
Light, airy, with gossamer wings and filmy dress, looking as though she
needed nothing more substantial than silvery moonbeams to dance upon,
the little queen leaves her home in the deep, wild woods and comes to
do your bidding.
=Have Titania’s Stage Ready=
that she may not be kept waiting, for queens and fairies will brook no
delay (Fig. 62). Find a wooden box 18½ inches long by 13 inches wide or
larger (Fig. 63). With a heavy hammer or a hatchet pry up and knock off
the top and one of the long sides (Fig. 64). The open side forms the
front of the roofless stage.
[Illustration: Fig. 62.—Titania’s stage.]
[Illustration: Fig. 63.—The wooden box for Titania’s stage.]
[Illustration: Fig. 64.—Knock off the top and one of the long sides.]
The coloring of the stage should be a light sage green. If possible,
procure this color in cartridge wallpaper wider than the stage. With a
string measure the distance across the back wall of stage from top to
bottom (A to B Fig. 64), continue the measurement in the same straight
line across the floor of the stage from back B to front C. After
allowing five extra inches for turning the paper over the top edge of
the back wall A and front edge of floor C, cut the length according
to measurement. To make the strip of green paper the required width
measure the exact distance across the inside back wall from side wall
D to side wall E, then fold the paper evenly along each lengthwise
edge, making it the width needed; unfold and adjust the paper against
the back wall over its top edge and over the floor of the stage. Cut
short slits on each side of the paper where the floor and wall meet,
that the extra width may lie flat up against the side walls. Bend the
top edge of the paper over the top of the back wall, again slashing a
little on each side to make it fit top edge of wall. In the same way
bend the paper over the front edge of the floor; see that the paper
lies perfectly smooth, then fasten it in place with small tacks, using
three tacks on the outside at the back, one at each corner and one in
the middle; two tacks where floor and wall meet, and three underneath
front of floor. Measure the side walls, cut paper to fit and fasten the
paper on the walls with as few tacks as possible.
[Illustration: Fig. 65.—Back wing for stage.]
[Illustration: Fig. 66.—Forward wing for stage.]
[Illustration: Fig. 67.—Fasten the wings to the side wall of the stage
like this.]
When the inside papering is finished, cover the outside of the stage
with pretty cretonne. Make four inside wings, two for each side of the
stage, to represent the foliage of trees. Cut two like Fig. 65, from
paper of a darker green than the walls of the stage and reverse one of
them that they may face each other. Then make two wings, like Fig. 66,
from paper of a lighter green than the walls, and reverse one of these
also. The walls of the stage with the two sets of wings will make
three different tones of green forming the background. Cut the wings
long enough to extend up as high or higher than the side walls of the
stage. Bend each strip lengthwise at dotted line and paste the bent
margin of one wing from Fig. 65 on each side wall, running the wing up
from the floor to the top of the wall about four inches from the back
wall. In the same manner fasten the wings (Fig. 66) on each side wall
three inches in front of the first or back wing (Fig. 67).
[Illustration: Fig. 68.—The arch.]
[Illustration: Fig. 69.—Tack the ends of the arch at the top of the two
side walls.]
[Illustration: Fig. 70.—Pasteboard extension for front of stage.]
Cut the arch (Fig. 68) of stiff pasteboard. The cover of a pasteboard
box will do. Make the arch long enough to span the space across the
front of the stage and let the lower edge of the curve in the centre of
the arch be five and a half inches higher than its two ends (see dotted
line, Fig. 68). Cover both sides of the arch with green paper, gluing
it on only along the edges. Tack the ends of the arch to the top of the
two side walls (Fig. 69).
[Illustration: Fig. 71.—Tack one piece of pasteboard on the front edge
of each side wall of the stage.]
Cut two pieces of pasteboard like Fig. 70, making each six inches wide
and almost as high from floor of stage as is the top of the centre of
the arch. Paper these also with green, both front and back. Tack one
piece of the pasteboard on the front edge of each side wall of the
stage, allowing it to extend out from and beyond the side wall (Fig.
71). Bore a hole with a gimlet through the centre of the back wall of
the stage five inches up from the inside floor, and your stage will be
finished.
[Illustration: Fig. 72.—Titania.]
=Make Titania=
(Fig. 72) of light-weight cardboard. When finished she should be ten
inches in height from her toes to the top of her head. Fig. 73 is the
diagram of the body and arms, measuring three and five-eighths inches
from top of head to lower edge of body. Cut the two upper portions of
the legs (length two and one-half inches, greatest width one inch) from
Fig. 74, and the two lower portions (length three and three-eighths
inches) from Fig. 75. Join the two parts of each leg together,
according to the dots, with a strong thread and needle, and fasten
with a knot on front and back, so that the two pieces will be strung
upon the same thread and sandwiched between two knots of the thread.
Attach the legs to the body in the same manner. The small circles A,
A on the doll’s body (Fig. 73) give the exact spots where the thread
should pass through, and the curved line above each letter shows where
the upper edge of the top part of the leg should reach. Dot B marks
the point on the upper part of the leg (Fig. 74) where the thread goes
through, joining the leg to the body. Have all the joints of the doll
securely fastened and only loose enough to move easily.
[Illustration: Fig. 74.—Two upper portions of legs.]
[Illustration: Fig. 73.—Cut the body and arms of Titania like this.]
[Illustration: Fig. 75.—Lower part of legs.]
Find a pretty head in some old paper or advertisement, cut it out and
gum it on the pasteboard head. Remember, though, that the printed
head must not be of very heavy paper, as the upper part of the doll
should be lighter in weight than the lower, otherwise the figure will
not balance. If you cannot find a head in colors, you must paint the
printed black-and-white one; give the face, neck and arms a flat wash
of light-pink water-color paint; color the lips and cheeks red, the
eyes blue and the hair brown. Make the long stockings a darker pink
than the light flesh tones, and paste slippers of gilt paper on the
feet.
Puncture a hole with a coarse needle through the centre of the
belt-line (C, Fig. 76). For
=Titania’s Costume=
make a skirt of plain white tissue paper. Cut it sixteen inches wide
and three and a half inches long, after creasing the skirt by gathering
up the fulness with your fingers and drawing the skirt lengthwise from
top to bottom through your partially closed hand. Gather the top of the
skirt with thread and needle, and fasten it on the doll, then slit up
each side from the lower edge to allow of the free motion of the doll’s
limbs.
[Illustration: Fig. 76.—String the doll together in this way.]
Make the dress of pink chiffon. Cut the dress skirt three and
three-fourth inches long and one yard wide, press it in knife-blade
plaits, running up and down, then gather and tie it on the doll over
the white tissue-paper skirt. Do not attempt to hem any portion of
the clothing, as the object is to keep it all light and airy. Fashion
the waist of a smooth strip of pink chiffon tied with narrow pink
ribbons at the shoulders and brought down to the belt-line into a
point back and front, and sewed in place. Form a silver girdle of the
tinsel ruching used on Christmas trees; place the tinsel around the
Queen’s waist, allowing the two free ends to hang down over the front
of the dress. Glue a little of the same tinsel around the front of her
dark hair, where it will shine like a crown of diamonds. Make Titania
daintily hold up and out each side of her dress. Do this by stretching
out the sides of the dress skirt and gumming the material to each wrist.
Cut a scarf of pink chiffon four inches wide and sixteen inches long,
fasten one end in each hand of the fairy Queen and let the scarf fall
in a graceful loop.
=Queen Titania’s Wings=
must be of the pink chiffon cut shawl shape, two sides straight and
one bias (Fig. 77). Plait the bias edge (Fig. 78) and gum the wings in
place on the Queen’s shoulders at the back.
[Illustration: Fig. 77.—Cut the wings shawl shape.]
[Illustration: Fig. 78.—Plait the bias edge.]
Take a needle threaded with black thread, two or three yards long; run
the needle through the centre of the belt-line of the dressed fairy
at the point C (Fig. 76); then thread it through the gimlet hole at
the back of the stage and tie a button on the end of the thread which
extends outside of the back wall. Pull the thread on the inside of
the stage until the button lies tight up against the outside of the
back wall. Allow sufficient length of thread to bring the Queen within
about three inches of the front edge of the stage, then make a knot in
the thread immediately back of and another in front of the Queen to
prevent her from slipping either forward or backward. Tie the long,
loose end of the thread on a small empty spool, that it may be wound up
and kept from tangling when not in use.
=Place the Stage on a Chair=
facing the light and, carrying the thread in your hand, take your
station two yards or more away from and in front of the stage; then
practise moving Titania by means of the thread until you can make her
glide, pose and dance in many graceful attitudes. She will lean to the
right and to the left, will stand on her toes, then curtsey, making
her dress touch the floor; she will move gently and slowly, again
faster and faster until her feet seem to fairly twinkle over the stage
floor; she will pass back and forth almost as if floating from side to
side of the stage, or stand in the centre and dance. Titania is ever
fascinating, beautiful and graceful in all her movements. Ask some one
to play on the piano while you make the fairy Queen dance and she will
keep time to the music. When you have learned to make Titania dance her
prettiest invite your friends in to see the little fairy.
CHAPTER VII
THANKSGIVING PARTY
=Apple, Orange and Pumpkin Games=
WE must have six little yellow pumpkins for our new Thanksgiving game,
but we may hunt high and low, far and near, for real ones the required
size, and not find them, because natural pumpkins are much too large.
So we shall have to make oranges and apples into
=Little Pumpkins=
[Illustration: Fig. 79.—Stand an apple on a square of paper.]
Select apples about two inches in diameter, all as near of a size as
possible and preferably somewhat flattened at top and bottom. Cut
a square of orange-colored tissue paper and stand an apple, stem
uppermost, on its centre (Fig. 79). Bring one side of the tissue paper
up to the top of the apple and take a wee plait in the paper, at the
same time smoothing it up from the bottom of the apple (Fig. 80). Make
several more plaits and bring the nearest corner of the paper up to the
apple top. Continue plaiting the tissue paper around the apple (Fig.
81) while constantly smoothing it up from the bottom and over the apple
until the apple is completely covered and all the edges and corners of
the orange-colored paper are folded and brought together at the top
of the apple (Fig. 82). Hold the covered apple in your left hand and
with your right hand twist the ends of the tissue paper around the stem
(Fig. 83).
[Illustration: Fig. 80.—Take a plait in the paper.]
[Illustration: Fig. 81.—Bring the nearest corner of the paper to the
top of apple.]
[Illustration: Playing the Pumpkin Game.]
[Illustration: Fig. 82.—Constantly smooth it up from the bottom until
the apple is covered.]
[Illustration: Fig. 83.—Twist the ends of the paper around the stem.]
[Illustration: Fig. 84.—Wind the long end of the thread tightly around
the apple.]
[Illustration: Fig. 85.—Pinch a square of green tissue paper over the
stem.]
Examine the apple and make sure there are no raised ridges in the paper
and that the entire covering lies flat and smooth. Tie one end of a
piece of brown thread around the base of the stem. Wind the long end of
the thread once tightly around the apple, giving it a twist around the
stem to secure it in place (Fig. 84). The thread must pass across the
exact centre of the blossom end of the apple. As you wind the thread
turn the fruit and watch the thread that it may not swerve either to
this side or that. A second time wind the thread around the apple,
making the first encircling thread band double. Cross this double band
with another double band, marking the apple into quarters, secure the
thread about the stem, and again wind it around the apple, dividing two
opposite quarters each into two pieces.
[Illustration: Fig. 86.—Tie a thread around the base of the stem.]
[Illustration: Fig. 87.—A little yellow pumpkin.]
Divide all the quarters in the same way, then pinch a small square of
bright green tissue paper over the covered stem (Fig. 85), smooth it
down close and tight and tie a thread around the base (Fig. 86). Bend
the extreme end of the stem until it curls, and the result will be a
cunning little yellow pumpkin (Fig. 87). Fig. 88 shows how the cross
threads should meet at the centre of the blossom end of the fruit.
[Illustration: Fig. 88.—Shows how the cross threads should meet.]
An ordinary pastry-board about twenty-six inches long and nineteen
inches wide must do duty for
=The Game Court=
(Fig. 89). Find the centre of the board by running two straight lines
diagonally across from corner to corner, the spot where the two lines
meet and cross marks the centre of the board (Fig. 90). Make a small
circle two inches in diameter around centre spot, surround this circle
with a larger circle seven inches in diameter. Erase the diagonal lines
within the circles and run straight lines radiating outward midway
between the diagonal lines from the edge of the larger circle across
the face of the pastry-board. With four more lines cut off the four
corners of the court, number the divisions as in Fig. 91, and the game
court will be finished.
[Illustration: Fig. 89.—A pastry-board for the Game Court.]
[Illustration: Fig. 90.—Run two straight lines from corner to corner.]
[Illustration: Fig. 91.—The Game Court is finished.]
Stand the little pumpkins, at equal distances apart, on the larger
circle of the court, and on the small circle stand a natural, large,
round apple without tissue paper cover.
=The Game=
may be played by any number. The object of the game is to spin the
apple so that it will hit one or more of the surrounding pumpkins and
roll or shove them on to the highest marked divisions of the game-court.
Each player is allowed only one trial at a time, turns being taken
successively by the different players. The spinning of the apple
must always be started on the small central circle where the apple
is stationed. When the apple rolls off the board the player may have
another trial; if the apple rolls off on the second trial she simply
loses her turn, there being no other penalty. When a pumpkin lands
on one of the dividing lines it counts ten against the player. Often
an apple will strike several pumpkins, sending them off on different
divisions. Every pumpkin then counts the number in the division on
which it stops; sometimes more than one pumpkin will land in the
same division, and each pumpkin so landing counts the number in that
division. When the apple sends but one pumpkin, the player scores
merely the number of that one division on which it lands. After each
play the pumpkins must be replaced in the circle ready for the next
player.
Five rounds constitute a game and the highest record scored wins. When
played by sides there must be an equal number of players on each side.
The side making the highest score wins the game.
For the next game let all the players sit on the floor in a ring and by
the light of only wee pumpkin lanterns tell a
=Rapid-Transit Thanksgiving Story=
The leader must begin the tale, which may or may not be original. He
must speak for only a few minutes, then stop, when his right-hand
neighbor, without hesitation, must take up the story and carry it
on for a few moments. In this way the story goes the round, each
right-hand player in turn telling his part. Every player has the
privilege of making his portion of the tale original, even though the
preceding part may not be so. It is also the privilege of every one
to change the story to a dream, or a fairy tale. Quotations may be
introduced, verses recited, or snatches of song sung; in fact, the
oftener the story is twisted and turned the greater the interest; but
there must always be some connection between the part being told and
that which has gone before. The entire romance must be finished before
the light in the wee pumpkins burns out. If a player should fail to
continue the story when his turn comes, he must pay a forfeit, and when
the story is finished, redeeming the forfeits adds to the fun.
If many guests are present, divide them into small groups for the
rapid-transit story.
Make a miniature
=Pumpkin Lantern=
for each girl and boy present. Take a symmetrical apple which stands
firm and steady on the blossom end. Select the best side for the face,
and with the small blade of a penknife cut on it a crescent with ends
turned upward for the mouth. Cut a triangle for the nose, two small
squares for eyes, and two short crescents, points turned upward, for
eyebrows (Fig. 92).
Turn the apple over and cut an opening in the back as shown at Fig.
93. Be extremely cautious not to break or tear the edges of the apple
skin while cutting the features and back opening. With the small blade
of the penknife inserted at the back opening cut away the inside of
the apple little by little, taking great care not to drive the knife
far enough into the apple to puncture the skin. When you reach the
core, screw the large blade of the knife around until the core is
sufficiently broken to allow of being cut away without danger of
injuring the apple skin by accidental stabs.
[Illustration: Fig. 92.—Cut features in the miniature pumpkin.]
[Illustration: Fig. 93.—Cut an opening at the back.]
After most of the inside has been removed turn the apple around and
look at the features; if you cannot yet see daylight through them,
insert the small blade from the outside of the apple, through each
feature in turn, and by degrees cut away the meat, without enlarging
the openings of the different features. Should this prove ineffectual,
again turn to the back of the apple and work from the inside, removing
more of the contents and making the layer of apple thinner next to
the skin. Then once more try through the features from the outside.
This time the result should be distinctly clear openings for all the
features. You cannot help smiling when you look at the apple now, for
you see such a comical little face.
[Illustration: Fig. 94.—Cut a section from a candle.]
[Illustration: Fig. 95.—Make the bottom larger than the top.]
Cut a short section from an ordinary wax candle (Fig. 94), shave down
the sides, making the bottom heavier and larger than the top (Fig.
95). Run a pin through the centre of the candle from bottom to top;
then pull it out. Fit the candle inside on the centre of the bottom of
the apple, hold it in place while you run the pin up from the outside
of the apple, through the skin and into the pinhole in the centre of
the little candle. The pin should hold the candle firmly in place;
if it does not do so, pull the pin out and see what is the matter;
possibly the candle needs hollowing out a trifle at the base in order
to fit the slight rise in the apple on which the candle stands. Put
on your thinking cap, examine and _make_ the candle stand absolutely
straight and firm.
[Illustration: Fig. 96.]
[Illustration: Fig. 97. Orange Lanterns.]
Manufacture all the other individual pumpkin lanterns in the same way,
and when story-telling time arrives set a lantern in front of every
girl and boy in the circle and light the candle in each little pumpkin.
The effect will be charming and inspiring for the story-tellers.
Oranges with all the pulp extracted also makes very pumpkin-like
lanterns when cut in a similar way to the apple lanterns (Figs. 96 and
97).
Anything may be given as
=A Forfeit=
and the forfeits are redeemed in the good old way. The leader is
blindfolded and seated. A girl or boy stands back of the leader, and,
taking one of the forfeits, holds it over her head, while repeating
these words, “Heavy, heavy hangs over your head.” The leader replies
with the question: “Fine or superfine?” If the forfeit belongs to a
girl, the answer is “superfine,” if to a boy, “fine.” The same player
adds, “What shall the owner do to redeem it?” The leader names a
penalty, such as, kneel to the prettiest, bow to the wittiest, or, look
angry, then smile your sweetest. The leader may inflict one of these,
or any other, making the penalty as funny as she desires, but it must
never cause a player to feel in the least uncomfortable, for every girl
and boy should be given just as good a time as possible, that all may
return to their homes from the Thanksgiving games happy and pleased
with their evening’s fun.
CHAPTER VIII
IMPROMPTU MOVING PICTURES FOR THANKSGIVING
THIS entertainment is one that girls can get up themselves, though of
course boys may take part. It is very funny if well carried out and
will give every one a hearty laugh, which we all know is a good thing
after the Thanksgiving dinner.
First make the poster, to be hung in a conspicuous place in hall or
parlor. Print it in large black letters on a good-sized sheet of
wrapping paper:
There Will be To-night
An Exhibition of
The World-Renowned
Moving Pictures
Taken by Madam Moselle at Great Risk of Life and Property.
No Expense or Effort Being Spared to Obtain the
Real Characters and Settings
of a
Puritan Thanksgiving
And Other Scenes from the Life
of Our Forefathers.
Make the picture screen by stretching a large white sheet on the back
wall of the room where the performance is to be held, as you would for
a magic lantern exhibition. Then get your costumes ready. These may be
made up very quickly from materials at hand.
[Illustration: Fig. 98.—This is the way to cut the Puritan’s collar.]
[Illustration: Fig. 99.—Cut the wide cuff like this.]
[Illustration: Puritan Costumes for the Moving Pictures.]
=The Puritan Woman’s Dress=
as well as that of the man must be entirely of black and white, and to
carry out the effect of black and white pictures their faces and hands
should be made perfectly white with chalk, their eyebrows blackened
and black wigs made of fringed tissue paper. Only a little of the
woman’s hair will show but the man’s should be long and hang down to
his shoulders. A tight black waist and skirt nearly to her ankles; a
long white apron, white kerchief and cuffs (cut from old muslin) and a
tightly fitting little black cap with a turned over edge of white form
the costume of the woman. With these should be worn low black shoes and
white stockings. For the
=Puritan Man’s Costume=
have short, full, black trousers, long black or white coat with wide
white collar and cuffs, a high-crowned, broad-brimmed black hat and low
shoes with black stockings. A black leather trunk strap buckled across
one shoulder may be added, also a long black cloak and staff. Cut the
man’s collar and cuffs like Figs. 98 and 99, and the woman’s cuffs
like Fig. 99. Fig. 100 shows how the Puritan hat is made of stiff brown
paper over an ordinary straw hat. Fig. 101 is the brim, Fig. 102 the
crown, which must be pinned together along its straight edges.
[Illustration: Fig. 100.—Put the Puritan’s hat together in this way.]
[Illustration: Fig. 101.—This is the hat brim.]
=The Properties=
for the Thanksgiving dinner scene are a long, narrow table spread for
dinners, and chairs enough for the actors, six or eight taking part.
[Illustration: Fig. 102.—This is the crown of the Puritan’s hat.]
Before showing her pictures Madam Moselle should stand in front of
the screen and say a few words extolling the pictures she is about to
present.
The girl who represents Madam Moselle should deliver an amusing little
speech, giving a foreigner’s idea of our first Thanksgiving, and it can
be made absurdly funny with its many ludicrous mistakes.
At the close of her address the lights must be put out and the scene
quickly arranged close to the screen, all the actors except two being
seated at the table. Thus remain two empty chairs.
As quickly as possible the light should be turned on and at the same
time the actors must begin
=A Pantomime=
of eating, drinking and talking.
They should express anxiety for the safety of the tardy guests, some of
them leaving the table to appear to look out of a door or window.
All the while (this is the great point) the actors must shake and
quiver in imitation of the queer trembling and quivering always seen in
the moving pictures; and their movements must be very rapid.
Soon the missing couple should appear, coming in hurriedly and by
gestures telling of an encounter with the Indians.
Their clothes should be pierced with arrows, and the Puritan’s hat must
be bristling with them.
All this will be very laughable if the acting is good, and absurd
little by-plays introduced; but the whole thing will be spoiled unless
the constant quivering and shaking is kept up by all of the actors.
The picture can be “flashed off” the screen by simply turning out the
light, and others may be shown giving various incidents in Puritan life
or the early history of our country.
CHAPTER IX
A VALENTINE ENTERTAINMENT WITH ORIGINAL VALENTINES
THE fun of the Valentine party begins with the invitations, which are
in the shape of a heart. The message on the outside (Fig. 103) leads to
the opening of the invitation (Fig. 104), and on the inside are found
the time and place where the frolic is to take place and the names of
those who are to give the party.
[Illustration: Fig. 103.—The invitation closed.]
[Illustration: Fig. 104.—Invitation opened.]
To make the design, fold through the centre a square piece of paper
measuring five and one-half inches along each edge. Fold this oblong
crosswise through its centre, and you will make a small square of four
layers of paper. On one side of this square mark the outline of a
heart, allowing the corner of the small four-folded square, which is
also the centre of the large square of paper before it is folded, to
form the point of the heart (Fig. 105). Cut out the top of the heart
through all four layers of paper, also the curves of the sides of the
heart; cut these only part way down as shown by A and A (Fig. 105). The
dotted lines in Fig. 104 represent creases.
[Illustration: Fig. 105.—Cut out the top of the heart through all four
layers.]
Answers to the invitations might read:
“My dear Miss Darling and Miss Love, too,
I’ve opened your heart and will come to you
On the day you’ve appointed, the pleasure is mine,
And I hope you’ll accept me as your Valentine.”
Make as many valentines as there are guests, that all may be sure of
receiving at least one. Address each of the girls’ valentines “To My
Sweetheart,” and each of the boys’ valentines, “To My Valentine.”
Let either a girl or a boy be selected to run
=The Post-Office=
which you can make of a clothes-horse draped with sheets. Place a table
inside across the opening, and on the table, resting on a pile of large
books, stand an empty wooden box minus top and bottom. Set it up on one
end to serve as the post-office window. The table and space on each
side of the window should be screened with sheets. Across the outside
top of the window fasten a pasteboard sign marked in large letters:
ST. VALENTINE’S POST-OFFICE
and decorate the white sheets covering the clothes-horse with red paper
hearts of various sizes fastened on singly, doubly and in festoons.
On the table at the right-hand side of the window place the girls’
valentines and on the left-hand side of the window the boys’ valentines.
[Illustration: Sending Her Valentine.]
Ask all the girls to form in line and march around the room to the
post-office, while some one plays a suitable lively air on the piano.
Each girl in turn must stop at the post-office window, where a box
of St. Valentine’s stamps is set before her with one of the boys’
valentines. She must close her eyes and take one stamp from the box,
then open her eyes, read the stamp and on it sign her name at the
right-hand corner, then fasten the stamp on the valentine with paste
given her by the postmaster, and move onward to give place to the next
girl in line.
When all the boys’ valentines have been stamped, the girls take their
seats and the boys form in line and stamp the girls’ valentines in the
same manner.
=The Valentine Stamps=
should be previously prepared. They are made uniform in size of small
squares of white writing paper, on which is written any kind of a wish
which may add to the fun, such as:
I wish you would smile at me.
I wish you would sing me a song.
I wish you would tell me a funny story.
I wish you would sit by my side now.
I wish you would walk around the room with me.
I wish you would recite poetry to me.
When entering the room each guest is given a card. On one card is
written,
=“When the Bell Rings=
once go to the post-office”; on another, “When the bell rings twice
go to the post-office,” and so on, each card designating a specified
number of rings. The postmaster sounds the bell at intervals, giving
a different number of taps at each ring, until every girl and boy is
supplied with a valentine; then each boy seeks the girl who has signed
the stamp on his valentine and she asks that the wish be fulfilled.
The request is, of course, laughingly and courteously granted. The
valentines being sealed with St. Valentine’s stamps, the mystery of the
sentiment enclosed cannot be revealed until the wish on the stamp is
granted, and neither the girls nor the boys are aware of the contents
of the valentines they stamp. Later in the evening the girls find the
boys who have signed their stamps, and then, entering into the spirit
of the fun, they grant the boys’ wishes as written on their stamps.
The guests may bring extra valentines made especially for and directed
to either hostess or guests. These are not sent through St. Valentine’s
post-office. The hostess keeps one door of the parlor closed for the
benefit of those desiring to send special valentines. A sign posted
upon it reads:
CUPID’S DOOR
and quantities of paper flowers with gilded pasteboard hearts, bows and
arrows adorn it, giving it a very festive appearance. Each guest is at
liberty at any time during the evening to slip from the company, make
her way through the hall to Cupid’s door, slide her valentine under the
door, give a quick knock and scamper off before she is caught. Only the
hostess has the privilege of opening Cupid’s door, and to her belongs
the pleasure of delivering these valentines to the various guests for
whom they are intended.
There are many styles of valentines which you can make. Fig. 106 is
effective and requires only a few moments to manufacture. For
=The Heart Valentine=
use a plain white card about four and one-half inches long and three
and one-half inches wide for the foundation. Make four hearts graduated
in size, the largest of red paper, the next gold, then green, and the
smallest of blue paper. Cut a small slit in each heart a short distance
from the top centre (Fig. 106). String the hearts on a narrow ribbon
and tie one end of the ribbon through two slits cut in the lower
left-hand corner of the card, and run the other end of the ribbon
through two slits in the upper right-hand corner, then tie. Write
across the top of the card, “Make your choice.”
[Illustration: Fig. 106.—Which heart will you take?]
Beneath it write this verse:
“The Red Hearts take without return,
The Green with envy always burn,
The Blue are cold and hard and small,
The Gold ask nothing but give all.”
[Illustration: Fig. 107.—Shade a little to suggest roundness.]
=The World Valentine=
is another design. For this use a circular piece of white paper about
four inches in diameter. Shade it around the edge a little to give
an idea of roundness (Fig. 107), then with ink draw on the disk the
outlines of North and South America to represent the world (Fig. 108).
Paint the continent a light yellow. Put the lettering on in bright
colors, placing an awl drawn in outline (Fig. 109) and a figure 2 in
the position shown in Fig. 110. Paint the awl red.
[Illustration: Fig. 108.—North and South America.]
[Illustration: Fig. 109.—The awl.]
[Illustration: Fig. 110.—You are all the world to your valentine.]
[Illustration: Fig. 111.—The daisy valentine.]
This message is a rebus and reads: “You are all the world to your
Valentine.”
=Next Comes the Daisy Valentine=
(Fig. 111). On a piece of paper six inches long and three and a half
inches wide draw a circle near the top, making it not quite three
inches in diameter. Paint the circle bright green as a background for
the white daisy. Make the daisy of three or four layers of white tissue
paper folded like Fig. 112 and cut along the scalloped outline shown
in Fig. 112. Unfold the petals and they will be like Fig. 113; but as
the number should be odd, you must cut off one of the petals. Sew the
centre of the daisy to the centre of the green circle, then paste a
small yellow paper disk (Fig. 114) over the stitches. Paint a small red
heart at each upper corner of the valentine and paint a narrow blue
ribbon tied to each heart and looped between, as in Fig. 111. If the
valentine is intended for a girl write under the green circle in red
letters:
“Pluck the daisy petals off, saying first: ‘He loves me.’
With the next: ‘He loves me not.’
Then again: ‘He loves me.’
With the fourth: ‘He loves me not.’
Going on: ‘He loves me,’
Till the last when torn away
Tells you this: ‘He loves you.’”
[Illustration: Fig. 112.—Paper folded ready for making daisy.]
[Illustration: Fig. 113.—Petals of daisy.]
[Illustration: Fig. 114.—Yellow center for daisy.]
When the valentine is for a boy substitute the pronoun She in place of
He.
=Love’s Palette,=
the last valentine (Fig. 115), is to be made of light cardboard cut in
the shape of a palette. The palette should be about six inches high
and four and one-half inches wide at the broadest part. Beginning near
the top, cut short slits in pairs in the palette, placing the pairs
one inch and a half apart (Fig. 116). Get a quarter of a yard each of
narrow blue, red, white, yellow, pink and green ribbon, and slipping
the ends through the slits in the palette tie them in bows as shown in
Fig. 115. In the centre write in red ink, “Love’s Palette,” and on the
back the following lines:
“This ribbon blue means I am true.
The knot of red says, ‘Will you wed?’
The bow of white, ‘You’re pure as light.’
The yellow, too, means thoughts of you.
The tie of pink is love’s own link.
The loops of green say, ‘Youth so keen
Must conquer all and win his queen.’”
[Illustration: Fig. 115.—Love’s palette.]
[Illustration: Fig. 116.—Slits cut in palette.]
CHAPTER X
THE WILD WEST SHOW ON A TABLE
CITY people, country people, young people, old people, busy people,
idle people, all come flocking to the Wild West Show when it posts its
gay pictures and spreads its fascinating white tents for the benefit of
the public.
But did it ever occur to you that the show could come to you—that
is, you might organize a show of your own and arrange things to suit
yourself? If you want the Wild West Show first and a circus after you
can have them. Should you prefer both shows at the same time they are
yours, for you can make the entire affair—horses, riders, Indians, wild
animals and tent. You may do even more—you can cause all the performers
actually to move, and that by the mere turn of your wrist, because your
show will be in reality the moving pictures of
=A Panorama=
[Illustration: Fig. 117.—An old broom for rollers.]
Get a common old house-broom (Fig. 117) and saw the broom part off
evenly from the handle at the dotted line A; then saw two pieces of
equal length from the handle at dotted lines B and C, making each
piece fourteen inches long. These we will call the rollers.
[Illustration: Fig. 118.—Box for show with holes in top and bottom.]
[Illustration: Fig. 119.—Broom stick rollers fitted in box.]
[Illustration: Fig. 120.—Blocks of wood across each end of bottom of
box.]
Find or make a wooden box about twelve inches high, eighteen inches
wide and eight inches deep; carefully pry off one of the eighteen-inch
sides and cut two round holes through the top of the box, one at each
end, two inches from the front and one and one-fourth inch from the
end; then turn the box over and cut corresponding holes through the
bottom; reverse the box again, bringing the right side up (Fig. 118).
The holes on the bottom must be exactly under those on the top and all
four holes must be only large enough to allow the roller to slip in,
and while in, to turn easily (see Fig. 119). Remove the rollers and
nail a strip of wood two inches thick across each end of the bottom of
the box (Fig. 120). Then hammer two strong staple-tacks on each roller
two and one-half inches from the top, or smaller end, and on opposite
sides of the stick; guide the tacks so they will incline very
slightly upward while being hammered in (Fig. 121).
[Illustration: The Wild West Show Performance.]
[Illustration: Fig. 121.—Tacks in roller.]
[Illustration: Fig. 122.—Spool on strip of wood for crank.]
Fit an empty spool on one end of a piece of wood, one inch wide, three
inches long and not less than one-fourth of an inch thick. Slide a
large-headed screw in the hole of the spool until the screw rests
on the block of wood; then screw it down tight, fastening the spool
securely on the wood (Fig. 122); screw a second spool on another piece
of wood of the same size as the first (Fig. 123, D and E). Fit the free
end of the block of wood over the top of the roller and mark off the
space on the block occupied by the end of the roller; with a gimlet
bore a hole through the centre of this space, and also in the centre
of the top of the roller; place the block of wood over the top of the
roller, bringing one hole on top of the other, and fasten the roller
and block together with a screw. In like manner screw the other block
to the top of the second roller; these blocks and spools form the
crank-handles for turning the rollers (Fig. 124).
[Illustration: Fig. 123.—Top of box and the crank ready to be fastened
on box.]
Unscrew the blocks from the rollers and carefully remove the
staple-tacks, in order that
=A Strip of Cloth=
may be tacked to the rollers and the rollers replaced in the box.
[Illustration: Fig. 124.—Box ready for tent front.]
[Illustration: Fig. 125.—Lapped ends of strips of cloth sewed.]
Purchase two yards of low-priced white cambric dress skirt lining;
fold the cambric lengthwise into three equal divisions; then cut the
folds apart, making three lengths each two yards long and about eight
and one-fourth inches wide; sew the pieces together along the end
edges, lapping one over the other that the seam may be as thin and flat
as possible (Fig. 125). This will give you a strip almost six yards
long for the panorama. Do not hem either the top or bottom. Allow a
blank space of white cloth, sixteen and one-half inches long, at the
beginning of the panorama; then commence
=Pasting Pictures=
on the strip. Colored newspaper pictures are best, because the paper is
thin and easily pasted on the cambric. Almost all leading newspapers
publish in their issues from time to time colored pictures of wild
animals, rough riders, Indians and circus performers.
When you have a collection of the pictures you want, cut each one out
neatly. When all are ready, sort them over, selecting the one you wish
to come first on the panorama; then the second picture and so on. Have
them all in order so you need waste no time hunting for a print while
pasting the pictures on the cambric.
Make a good paste of flour and water, allowing it to boil well before
using. A drop or two of oil of cloves mixed with the paste after it has
cooked will keep it fresh a long time.
Select an attractive, comical picture for the first design on the
panorama; but save the best and most startling picture for the very
last.
You should arrange
=The Performers=
in your panorama in much the same way as a story is written or a play
put on the stage. Always begin with something which will cause the
audience to want to see more; then paste on various pictures, but
toward the last lead up to the best and most exciting design; the last
picture stands for the climax in a story or a play.
When placing the pictures on the strip of cambric, remember not to
have them close together; keep them apart, allowing a little blank
space between each successive object, so your audience will have an
opportunity of enjoying every one of the performers and wild animals as
it first appears peeping from behind the roll at one side of the tent,
showing only its head, then coming in full view and passing slowly
before them until it finally disappears around the roll at the other
side (Fig. 123).
=When the Pictures Are All Pasted=
on the strip, turn over and crease down half an inch of cambric along
the edge of the first end of the panorama; tack this end on one of the
rollers. If the thickness of the top of your box is one-half an inch,
tack the end of your panorama fully four and one-half inches below the
top or smaller end of the stick. Should the thickness of the lid be one
inch, the cambric strip must be tacked on still lower—about five inches
from the top.
You cannot be too particular about having the edge of the cambric
perfectly even and straight on the roller, so the strip will lie at a
true right angle to the roller when laid out flat (Fig. 126).
[Illustration: Fig. 126.—Cloth fastened on roller.]
Having tacked the cambric on, gradually roll it around the stick,
keeping the strip running over, not under the stick, so the roller
will stand behind the cambric; have the cloth perfectly even as it
winds around and around. When the end of the cloth is reached, turn in
one-half an inch of the end edge and tack the cambric to the second
roller as you tacked the beginning on the first roller (Fig. 127).
Use the same precaution and wind in the same manner but in an opposite
direction when rolling the cambric on the second stick. With a strong
hammer strike the top or lid of the box along the edges from underneath
until it loosens and can be removed; take it off and slide the rollers
with the attached panorama into the holes on the bottom of the box
(Fig. 123).
[Illustration: Fig. 127.—Method of rolling cloth on the broom-stick
rollers.]
Replace the lid of the box, passing the top ends of the rollers through
the holes, and nail the lid down to the sides of the box; then refit
the staple-tacks in their respective places and see that they are in
tight; restore the crank-handles on top of the rollers and rescrew them
in position (Fig. 124). Now the panorama is ready to go into
=A Tent=
[Illustration: Fig. 128.—Pasteboard tent front for box.]
[Illustration: Fig. 129.—Manner of covering tent front with white
cloth.]
Cut a stiff piece of pasteboard box like the tent design (Fig. 128)
with an opening to fit the strip of muslin, spanning the space between
the two rollers; the edges of the opening must cover both top and
bottom edges of the cambric. Cover the pasteboard with white muslin
cut into four pieces—one piece for the top, one for the bottom and
one for each side. Cut the bottom piece into a strip to fit, slashed
on all edges (Fig. 129, A). Paste this on the tent (Fig. 128) first,
turning the slashed portion over and fastening it on the back of the
pasteboard; then fasten a curtain on each side (Fig. 130) and paste
the top piece of the tent on last; scallop this along the bottom edge
and paste it only along the two slanting slashed top lines; turn the
slashes over on the wrong side of the pasteboard and paste. When dry,
fit the tent over the front of the box and tack it firmly in place.
Make three little flags of gay paper, paste on sticks and glue the
sticks to the top peak and sides of the tent (Fig. 130); paste strips
of paper over and across the flag handle to the pasteboard to hold the
flag more securely on the tent (Fig. 131). Your show will then appear
to be moving inside of a white circus tent.
[Illustration: Fig. 130.—The Wild West Show with side curtains
attached.]
Set the box upon a table with the entire panorama wound on the second
roller, leaving only the blank portion of the cloth visible, and while
the audience is seated in front, begin slowly turning the crank-handle
of the first roller; at the same time telling in clear, well enunciated
words all about your Wild West Show. Do not try to have your remarks
sound as though learned from a book; that would be stiff and unnatural.
Talk in an every-day way, exactly as though you were speaking only to
your most intimate friend, and wanted to tell her all about the strange
sights and queer people, and the funny bears who are not afraid of any
man woman or child.
If you have been to a real Wild West Show, that will give you ideas, or
if you have traveled way out West and seen the actual Wild West life it
will be an inspiration for your show. Even to have read about the life
with its daring riders, wild horses, buffaloes, hazardous stage coach
drives, Indians and their war dances will be an immense help in aiding
you to enter into the spirit of the show.
[Illustration: Fig. 131.—Method of fastening flagpoles on tent.]
[Illustration: A Picnic on the Roof.]
CHAPTER XI
ROOF PICNIC WITH BROOK TO CROSS AND FLOWERS TO PICK
INVITE your friends to an afternoon picnic, and in the morning prepare
the grounds for the frolic. Have a lot of growing flowers and growing
fruit to give the place an attractive and festive appearance. The fruit
must be real, not make-believe; it must be ripe and ready to pick; but
the flowers may be of tissue paper, cheerfully bright and large in
size. The aim should be more for general effect than detail in making
these outdoor decorations.
[Illustration: Fig. 132.—Cut the sunflower petals this way.]
[Illustration: Fig. 133.—Fold each petal through centre.]
=Sunflowers=
can be fashioned rapidly by cutting orange-colored tissue paper into
strips twenty-five inches long and six inches wide, pointing the
strips into petals three inches deep and two and a half inches wide
at the base (Fig. 132), ten petals to each strip; then creasing each
petal lengthwise through its centre to give stiffness (Fig. 133), and
gathering each strip separately along its straight edge with needle and
thread (Fig. 134); in this way forming the two strips into two pointed
circles (Fig. 135). These circles, together with a brown centre, make
one sunflower.
[Illustration: Fig. 134.—Gather the strip of petals.]
[Illustration: Fig. 135.—One gathered circle of sunflower petals.]
[Illustration: Fig. 136.—Sunflower centre.]
[Illustration: Fig. 137.—Paper sunflower growing on broom-stick.]
Cut a strip of brown tissue paper nine inches long and two inches wide
for the centre, gather the paper tightly along one lengthwise edge and
tie it close up under and against the head of a slender nail (Fig.
136). Around the nail under the brown centre, slide on first one,
then the other, circle of gathered yellow petals, taking care to have
the petal points of the lower circle lie between and not over those
of the top circle. Finish by driving the nail which runs through the
sunflower, into one side of a stick or broom-handle, with the lower
end sharpened (Fig. 137).
[Illustration: Fig. 138.—Paper hollyhock tied on stick.]
[Illustration: Fig. 139.—Paper crimped for pinks.]
[Illustration: Fig. 140.—Paper disk for making poppy.]
[Illustration: Fig. 141.—Paper poppy.]
=Hollyhocks=
of every color can be made of circles of tissue paper five and a half
inches in diameter, held at the centre, two circles one inside of
the other, and the centre pushed and squeezed together, causing the
edges to fold and turn until they resemble the real flower (Fig. 138).
Smaller circles, crimped by drawing the paper through the partially
closed hand (Fig. 139), can be made into pinks, and you may have
brilliant, nodding poppies in the same way, only these are of smooth,
uncrimped circles (Fig. 140), placed one inside the other, with a small
circle of dark-green paper for the centre, and all three layers pinched
together at the extreme centre (Fig. 141). Large peonies are similar
in construction to some of the flowers you have made, so try to work
these out yourself.
A simple way to make
=Roses=
is to cut tissue paper into strips two and a half inches deep; cut the
square-cornered slashes two inches wide, then with knife or scissors
blade curl the sharp corners of each separate division, making the
slashes into rose petals. Curl the corners of the petals along half of
the strip inward, and those along the other half, outward. Fold two or
three plaits in the straight bottom edge of each petal; then begin with
the half where the petals curl inward and wind the strip around the end
of a slender stick. The first petals form the central group and are
curled inward; the remainder, curled outward, form the outward circle
of petals (Fig. 142). Make a generous supply of blossoms and tie them
on bushes. Let each bush bear but one kind, that the flowers may appear
natural and as if actually growing.
[Illustration: Fig. 142—Paper rose.]
=Get a Variety of Fruit, Peaches, Plums, Apples=
or any other sort you may prefer. Tie the fruit to those bushes which
have no blossoms, allowing each fruit bush to bear only one kind of
fruit.
In case there are no bushes, or if the bushes are too few in number,
use branches or sticks with natural foliage, or leaves made of green
tissue paper; make the latter of paper in several layers, that a number
may be cut at a time like the pattern (Fig. 143). Crimp through the
centre by folding lengthwise over a hat-pin and pushing the folded
centre together (Fig. 144). The method is quick and gives satisfactory
leaves (Fig. 145). Cut leaves in different sizes as you will need some
larger than others.
The sticks used as bushes should be of varying heights sharpened at the
lower end and driven into the ground.
Pretend the sticks are fruit trees and flower bushes and plant them
where they will appear to best advantage.
[Illustration: Fig. 143—Pattern for green leaf.]
If your yard happens to be
=On the Roof=
of the house, as often occurs in large cities, there will probably be
no earth in which to plant things; then you must fill flower pots and
deep boxes with earth, sand, or gravel, and plant your make-believe
trees and shrubs in them; such a garden will be entirely different from
all others.
[Illustration: Fig. 144.—Crimping green leaf.]
[Illustration: Fig. 145.—Green paper leaf.]
Build a wooden fence over which the girls and boys climb to enter
the picnic grounds; even though the improvised fence may not closely
resemble the real article, it will help to render the feeling of being
in the open country more realistic.
Make the fence by sinking the legs of two strong kitchen chairs
partially but firmly into the earth. Place the two chairs facing each
other and a short distance apart; then run a large, strong pole or
narrow board for a rail, across the chair seats, allowing the rail to
extend out beyond the back of the chairs. Lash the rail securely to the
chairs with the heaviest twine or slender rope, and place very heavy
weights on the seat to keep the chair steady, and avoid all possibility
of the rail slipping or chairs tipping.
If possible get either a swing, a teeter or a jogging board; all these
will afford a lively time for your guests, as will also a wheelbarrow
in which the girls and boys may take turns in riding and pushing or
wheeling each other.
If you want to make the affair seem just like a regular
=Country Picnic=
let each guest bring his or her own little basket of lunch.
As your guests arrive, usher them into the house and do not let them
even see the yard if it can be avoided; keep the grounds for a pleasant
surprise a little later.
Form the girls and boys into a single file and lead them marching
around the room while they join in singing some lively air. After
winding in and out among the chairs and tables, open the door, let them
look out into the pretty garden, and, while still singing,
=Climb Over the Fence=
and march among the flowers and fruit trees; end the procession by
circling around the spot chosen for your dinner table, where all must
deposit their lunch baskets. Of course you will not have an actual
table, as the tablecloth must be spread on the ground and the girls and
boys sit around it.
Mark the four corners of the space reserved as a table with sticks
about forty-six inches high, decorated with bright flowers (Fig. 146),
and the sharpened ends planted in the earth, or in flower pots.
=Spread the Tablecloth,=
bringing each corner to meet a garland pole; then let the guests take
from their baskets the different articles. Reserve some space at the
centre of the table for fruit, and let each boy and girl in turn walk
about the grounds and select one piece of fruit, pick it, bring it to
the table, and lay the chosen piece on the centre of the tablecloth.
No person may pick more than one piece of fruit during one turn.
Each player is privileged to place his fruit in any way he desires,
remembering always that each piece goes to form the centre-piece, which
should always be made as decorative as possible.
[Illustration: Fig. 146.—The decorated pole.]
=Crossing the Brook=
is a lively game and great fun. Get a number of flat stones that will
lie steady, and are large enough to step upon; arrange them about
eighteen or twenty inches apart, in an irregular line, over a stretch
of ground twenty or more feet across. Let the players in turn tip-toe
on the stones just as though they were crossing a brook of running
water, each girl and boy being obliged to pay a forfeit for every
misstep into the make-believe water. If stones are not to be had, use
blocks of wood, or, if need be, pieces of paper in place of stones. As
each player crosses the brook, the rest of the party must call to her
to be careful, not to fall, that she is going too fast, that she is
going too slow, or make similar comments. They can cheer her, and in
many harmless ways try to confuse the player with their calls, but it
is against the rules to touch or even go nearer to her than two yards.
After all the girls and boys have taken their turn at crossing the
brook, try
=Japanese Tag=
Each player must keep her hand on the spot where she was last tagged,
making the game present a most laughable appearance, with all the young
people dancing about in strange attitudes, holding a hand on the top of
the head, on the knee, chest, back, or foot, as it happens. The players
are not allowed to remove the hand until tagged in another spot. When
tagged in the middle of the back or any spot difficult to reach, the
player may hold a stick in his hand with one end resting on the spot
where he was tagged.
In starting
=The Game=
any person who first shouts, “Pick her up and stone holder,” may hold
both hands in front of her, each doubled up tight and one clasping a
small stone, immediately some one calls out “First knock,” another
player cries “Second knock,” another “Third knock,” and so on,
according as they are able to get the call in after the preceding cry.
The player calling
=“First Knock”=
taps one hand of the girl or boy holding the stone; if the hand touched
contains the stone, the player knocking is “it,” and the game begins,
but if the hand is empty, the player is free and the stone-holder puts
her hand back of her while she does or does not change the stone to the
other hand; again stretching her clinched hands forward, she allows the
player calling “Second knock” to try her luck by tapping one of the
outstretched hands. The trials are continued until a player taps the
hand holding the stone and becomes “it,” then
=The Others Scatter=
and “it” endeavors to tag some one, who in turn becomes “it,” and so
the game goes on.
After the players have grown tired of this game, there are many others
which will suggest themselves to the young people, and it will be found
a good plan to alternate the livelier kind with those of a more quiet
nature.
When the picnic is over give each guest one of the pretty paper flowers
to carry home, and your roof or back-yard picnic will have been an
event long to be remembered.
[Illustration: The Magic Peep Show.]
CHAPTER XII
THE MAGIC PEEP SHOW
FIND or make a simple pasteboard box, twelve inches long, ten inches
wide and nine inches high, or you can have it a little smaller if you
like, for your Magic Peep Show.
[Illustration: Fig. 147.—Back end of box opening.]
[Illustration: Fig. 148.—Slit cut in side of box.]
Cut a large square opening in the end of the box, leaving a margin
one-half inch wide at the top and sides (Fig. 147). Make a small round
hole in the centre of the front of the box, only large enough for one
eye to look through, and cut a slit a quarter of an inch wide on each
side of the box half an inch from the open end and half an inch from
the top; extend the slit to the bottom of the box (Fig. 148). Fig. 149
shows the box with the front, sides, and back cut.
[Illustration: Fig. 149.—Peep-hole cut in front of box.]
[Illustration: Fig. 150.—Peep show ready for slides.]
If the bent-down edges of the box-lid are wide, cut them off within
half an inch of the top; then put the lid on the box and it will be
ready for the slides (Fig. 150).
=The Slides=
must be stiff and perfectly opaque, so they will appear black when held
up to the light. Make them of pieces of pasteboard boxes cut to fit in
the side slits and long enough to extend a trifle beyond on each side
of the box (Fig. 151).
[Illustration: Fig. 151.—Slide in box.]
Draw the different designs given here on separate slides, and with a
sharp penknife cut them out, leaving holes in the slides exactly the
shape of the designs. The holes should appear with clean-cut edges.
Of course, the complete designs on the slides must be drawn much larger
than in these printed diagrams, but you can enlarge the drawings by the
system of squares. Explained in Chapter XIV.
[Illustration: Fig. 152.—Cow jumps over the moon.—Front side of slide.]
[Illustration: Fig. 153.—Wrong side of slide.]
After the designs are cut out, paste colored tissue paper over the
openings, and when you look through the little hole you will see
wonderfully bright and gay scenes all in transparent colors. An
ambitious red cow will be found jumping over a yellow moon, and instead
of being accompanied by the usual dish running away with a spoon, you
will find an energetic wood sprite dressed all in Lincoln-green. The
sprite has tied a rope of wild grape-vine to the cow, and, clinging to
the rope, is sailing through the air and over the moon with his queer
steed. Fig. 152 shows
=“The Cow Jumped Over the Moon”=
Cut out the group and paste a piece of dark-red tissue paper over the
entire cow with the exception of the horns. Across these paste white
tissue paper. Cover the moon with one piece of yellow tissue paper and
the sprite with green, all except his face; have that pink. Cut out a
thin line for the rope and paste a bit of brown tissue paper over it.
Fig. 153 shows the wrong side of the slide and explains how the work
is done; dotted lines designate the openings, which are covered with
tissue paper, in the manner described.
The tissue-paper coverings may be cut in any shape, but each piece must
cover well the opening of the figure or portion of figure intended to
be the color of the paper. Have the white paper across the horns lap
less than one-eighth inch over the red paper of the cow (Fig. 154), and
manage the pink paper of the sprite’s face in the same way where it
meets the green of his cap and clothing.
[Illustration: Fig. 154.—White paper over horns.]
[Illustration: Fig. 155.—The jumping cow.]
In making the other slides, follow this method throughout whenever two
pieces of tissue paper come in contact on the figure, and when pasting
paper over designs on the remaining slides always use one large piece
of paper in preference to several small pieces for covering different
parts of the design, which are the same in color. Figs. 155, 156 and
157 give the cow, sprite and moon for you to copy or trace.
[Illustration: Fig. 156.—The green sprite.]
[Illustration: Fig. 157.—The moon.]
=Life in Fairy Waters=
Fig. 158 shows how dark the slides appear when seen in the peep show
and gives an idea of the decided contrast of the light design against
the dark background, only the black and white print cannot give the
charm of the clear, bright, transparent coloring of the mermaid feeding
her many-hued pets as she rides her sea-horse in the fairy waters.
[Illustration: Fig. 158.—Life in fairy waters.]
The different parts of the composition are Figs. 159, 160, 161 and 162,
and the food merely little oval-shaped holes covered with white tissue
paper. Make the mermaid’s hair and ribbon brown; her face, arms and
body to the waist line, pink; the remaining portion of the mermaid’s
figure orange-color. The fish, scarlet, purple and white. Paste wee
round pieces of black paper on the fish for the eyes.
[Illustration: Fig. 159.—Mermaid on sea-horse.]
[Illustration: Fig. 160.—Fairy fish.]
[Illustration: Fig. 161.—Fairy fish.]
[Illustration: Fig. 162.—Fairy fish.]
As soon as you finish the slide, fit it in the peep show box, turn your
face to the light, then peep through the hole and find how pretty the
bright group looks with all the eager fish gathering around the little
mermaid as she calls them to breakfast.
Next comes Fig. 163, the
=Easter Chicks=
Make Fig. 164 light yellow; Fig. 165, blue; Fig. 166, orange chick,
white shell; Fig. 167 A, green, B, purple; Fig. 168, white chick,
scarlet shell; the broken shells (Fig. 169) red, blue and white. The
poor little chicks are glad to escape from the shells even though the
shells have been gayly painted.
[Illustration: Fig. 163.—Easter chicks.]
[Illustration: Fig. 164.—Light yellow chick.]
[Illustration: Fig. 165.—Blue shell.]
[Illustration: Fig. 166.—Orange colored chick—White shell.]
[Illustration: Fig. 167.—Green egg.—Purple egg.]
[Illustration: Fig. 168.—Scarlet shell.]
[Illustration: Fig. 169.—Pieces of red, blue and white shell.]
=In the Three Blind Mice=
(Fig. 170), which are pursued by the knife belonging to the farmer’s
wife, the first mouse can be orange-color; the second, white, and last
one brown. The blade of the knife, scarlet, and its handle green, or
any other colors which may please your fancy. Remember, this is a magic
peep show, and often the natural color of animals is changed to more
brilliant hues in order to secure a more vivid effect.
[Illustration: Fig. 170.—Three blind mice.]
[Illustration: Fig. 171.—One of the three blind mice.]
You can make all three mice from one outline (Fig. 171) and the knife
from Fig. 172. Set the slide of mice in place in the box, peep through
the hole and “see how they run!”
[Illustration: Fig. 172.—The butcher knife.]
The next illustration will undoubtedly prove to be the most amusing of
all, and will bring forth gales of laughter from your little brothers,
sisters or friends. It is the
=Dance of the Dolls (Fig. 173)=
On Fig. 174 paste orange-colored hair, a scarlet dress and green shoes;
then over all paste one large piece of white tissue paper which will
make the doll’s face, neck, arms and stockings white. The layer of
white paper placed over these colors does not affect them in the least.
[Illustration: Fig. 173.—Dancing toys.]
Cut a circular hole for the ball and cover it with brown tissue paper.
Dress Fig. 175 in the same manner as the doll just described, but in
other colors. For instance, make her hair brown, her dress light
purple, her shoes yellow, and her face, arms and stockings white. If
you want features on the faces, use a very soft lead-pencil and draw
eyes, nose and mouth, though features are not really necessary, and, as
a matter of fact, the dolls look very well without.
[Illustration: Fig. 174.—Girl to dance on ball.]
[Illustration: Fig. 175.—Dancing doll.]
Let Jumping Jack (Fig. 176) be all in blue, except his face—make that
white. Joints on all the toys, as seen in the illustrations, are
indicated by pasting thread lines of black paper and pin-head dots of
black paper over the places where joints should be, according to the
outlines and dots at the elbows of the girl dolls and the shoulders and
hips of dancing Jack.
=The Bouquet=
(Fig. 177) consists of a red tulip (Fig. 178); a deep-yellow ox-eye
daisy with a brown centre pasted over the yellow—in this case it can be
done (Fig. 179)—a bluebell (Fig. 180); and a white daisy with yellow
centre (Fig. 181). You will find that this piece, with all its bright
colors, will be one of the prettiest of your designs. Fig. 182 is a
branch of green leaves.
[Illustration: Fig. 176.—Jumping Jack.]
Cover each blossom with its respective color, and then paste one piece
of green tissue paper over all the leaves and stems and the effect will
be very natural.
[Illustration: Fig. 177.—Floral slide.]
[Illustration: Fig. 178.—The red tulip.]
[Illustration: Fig. 179.—Ox-eyed daisy.]
[Illustration: Fig. 180.—Bluebell.]
[Illustration: Fig. 181.—White daisy.]
[Illustration: Fig. 182.—Green leaves.]
=The Little Sun-bonnet Girl=
(Fig. 183), playing with a lot of bright-colored balloons, forms the
last slide. Make the little girl’s dress blue, her sun-bonnet white
and her hands, feet and ankles pink (Fig. 184). Let the strings of
the balloons be of white tissue paper and each balloon of a different
color from all the others; one may be dark red, the others green, pink,
purple, light yellow, blue, scarlet, orange, brown, light green, white
and vivid yellow. The slide will be very brilliant.
[Illustration: Fig. 183.—Little sun-bonnet girl.]
Invent other designs yourself. Think of something you would like to
see and try it on a new slide; when you succeed with one, you will want
to make another and another. The more slides you have for your magic
peep show the longer the fun will last, and you will be able to give no
end of pleasure to your little friends.
[Illustration: Fig. 184.—Sun-bonnet girl.]
When exhibiting the peep show set the box on top of a table where the
light will shine through the slides and let the party take turns facing
the window and peeping through the little hole at the novel, brilliant
scenes beyond.
[Illustration: Champion of the New Outdoor Game]
CHAPTER XIII
PLANT YOUR GARDEN IF YOU CAN
=A New Flower Game=
BRIGHT summer days are the time to be out of doors in the sweet, fresh
air, with the birds and flowers, where there is plenty of space to run
and have a good time. What a lot of games can be played in the open.
There is Hide-and-Go-Seek, Catcher, Tag, Hop-Scotch and many more. You
will be able to add a number to the list. Probably, though, you have
played all of them over and over again, so we will try and think of
something new. We must have a game that will be lively, interesting,
and at the same time require a certain degree of skill, and the game
must be one where we can enjoy the making of things requisite for the
sport; but the material must not cost more than a few cents.
I have it! A game of flowers with roses that will not wilt or fade but
last for a long time fresh and bright. We will call it “Plant Your
Garden if You Can,” because one cannot always be absolutely sure of
planting the flowers, and that is part of the fun.
=Two Dozen Roses=
will be needed for this garden game, half a dozen white, half a dozen
red, half a dozen yellow and half a dozen pink. The flowers are of
tissue paper and very pretty.
Cut squares measuring twelve inches along each of the four sides, from
white, pink, yellow and red tissue paper; the dotted lines on the
diagrams indicate where the paper must be folded (Fig. 185). Fold each
square across the centre (Fig. 186). Fold again crosswise through the
centre, forming a small square of four layers (Fig. 187). Again fold,
this time diagonally (A to B, Fig. 187), and you will have a triangle
(Fig. 188). Fold once more diagonally (Fig. 188) A to C; this will give
Fig. 189. Cut straight across from E to dot D (Fig. 189), then cut a
slash an inch and three-quarters deep in the centre of the edges as
shown by the line F in Fig. 190. Open out the paper (Fig. 191). The
slashed edges will form the petals of the rose. Curl each corner edge
of every petal with a blade of a pair of scissors according to dotted
lines on the petal (Fig. 192).
[Illustration: Fig. 185.—Square 12 inches each side.]
[Illustration: Fig. 186.—Square folded once across centre.]
[Illustration: Fig. 187.—Square folded twice.]
[Illustration: Fig. 188.—Four layer square folded diagonally.]
[Illustration: Fig. 189.—Triangle folded diagonally through centre.]
[Illustration: Fig. 190.—Second triangle slashed on edges.]
[Illustration: Fig. 191.—Unfolded triangle with slashed edges for rose
petals.]
[Illustration: Fig. 192.—Section of paper for rose showing one curled
petal.]
Begin by holding one corner of one petal between the thumb of your
right hand and one blade of the scissors; gently pull your thumb
and the scissors blade outward, sliding them along each side of the
petal, while you hold the remainder of the paper steady with your left
hand. The thumb rubs over the petal; at the same time the edge of the
scissors blade scrapes the under side of the petal, which causes the
paper to curl. Fig. 192 shows one petal with both of the side corners
curled. When you have curled around the first half of the circle, turn
the paper over and curl the petals around the other half of the circle
in an opposite direction. Fig. 193 gives two petals curled forward and
two backward, representing two petals on each half of the tissue-paper
rose. After all the petals are curled lay the centre of the tissue
paper out flat and place on it three level teaspoonfuls of flour; then
gather up the edges of the rose and wind a strong thread several times
around below the petals and above the flour-bag formed by the centre of
the paper (Fig. 194). Tie the string, adjust the petals and the rose
will be finished (Fig. 195).
[Illustration: Fig. 193.—Two curled petals on each half of rose.]
[Illustration: Fig. 194.—Flour in centre of paper and string around
below rose petals.]
[Illustration: Fig. 195.—Finished rose and flour bag.]
=Mark Out Two Flower Beds=
where the roses are to be planted. Each bed must measure three yards in
length and one yard in width. The beds must run parallel to each other
and be separated by a space of three yards. Each of the two flower beds
must then be divided crosswise through the centre, making four flower
beds in all, two on each side—one for every player. Fig. 196 shows the
plan with flower beds divided. The circles denote the station points
or places where the players stand, and the dotted line the direction
the roses should take when played by the girl or boy stationed at the
position marked “Barbara.” The other players send their roses in like
manner over the intervening space to the flower bed diagonally across
from their position.
[Illustration: Fig. 196.—Plan of flower bed for game.]
That there may be no mistake regarding each particular enclosure where
the different-colored roses should be planted,
=Use Flags=
to designate the color of the various flower beds. From inexpensive
cotton cloth of a solid red color cut a flag eighteen inches long and
twelve inches wide; hem the raw edges; then tack one end of the flag
on a slender stick one yard or more in length; sharpen the free end of
the stick and push it down into the earth at the outer back corner of
the flower bed intended for the red roses. Have the flag stand straight
and firm. Make a white, a yellow and a pink flag in the same way. Erect
each in the outer back corner of its own bed, which will be the bed
where roses of corresponding color are to be planted. All the flags
must be of equal height.
[Illustration: Fig. 197.—Tape in clothespin for pegging to ground.]
If the game is played at the seashore on a smooth, hard beach, mark out
the flower beds by running the end of a stick along in the sand. If the
game takes place on a level lawn, use white tape for marking the beds;
peg the tape down to the earth with common wooden clothespins (Fig.
197), first sliding the tape in the clothespin (Fig. 198).
[Illustration: Fig. 198.—White tape outlining flower bed.]
=The Four Rackets for the Game=
are ordinary flat palm-leaf fans, one fan to each player.
The game is played by sides, and calls for four players, two on each
side.
=The Game=
is that each player in turn shall plant as many roses in her own garden
as she can. Every player has six roses of one color; the two holding
respectively the white and the red roses are on one side, while the two
with the yellow and the pink roses take the opposite side. When all is
ready and the players are at their stations, a signal is given and the
game begins.
The first player holds one of her roses out with the left hand, strikes
it with the fan-racket held in the right hand, and endeavors to send
the rose flying and land it in her own garden. If she succeeds, the
rose is said to be “planted,” and scores her one point, but should
the rose go beyond the boundary line of her flower bed, fall short of
it, or the flour-bag of the rose be broken, the play is a “failure”
and scores one point for the opposite side. When a rose falls on the
boundary line of its own flower bed, the play is a “fault,” and the
player may try again with the same flower. After the first player has
had her turn, a player on the opposite side tries her skill, for the
turns must alternate from side to side. The game ends with the playing
of the last rose, and the side scoring the greatest number of points
wins the game. All roses when played must remain where they fall until
the close of the game, with the exception of those falling on the
boundary line of their own beds.
=A Tally Card=
will be required for keeping a record of the game. Make one of white
pasteboard (Fig. 199). The initials can be changed to those taking
part in the sport. Every point scored must be written under the color
and initial or name of the person who scores it. When, because of the
failure of one player, the opposite side scores a point, the score
must be recorded in the third column belonging to that side on the
tally card under the word “Won.”
[Illustration: Fig. 199.—Tally card.]
=To Determine the Choice of Sides,=
which shall be first, and the distribution of colors, draw straws for
the colors and toss for position of sides. To draw straws, take four
straws of varying lengths, and grasp them in your hand in such a way
that the extending ends of the straws seen by the other players are the
same in length, while the uneven ends are closed within the hand; allow
each player to draw a straw. The girl or boy taking the longest straw
has first choice of colors; the player holding the straw next in length
has second choice, and so on.
To toss for position of sides means that a player from each side shall
toss a small stone toward a stick laid on the ground two yards distant
from the spot where the players stand. A twig placed on the spot may
mark the point from which the stones are to be tossed. The stones must
be tossed in turn, not at the same time, and the player whose stone
comes nearest to the mark wins the right for his side to the choice of
position on the grounds, also the right of first play.
One charm of this game is that the roses when volleyed by the players
invariably land on the ground blossom uppermost, and these twenty-four
bright blossoms scattered over the green lawn or sandy beach, with gay,
colored flags outlining the four corners of the garden court, and, best
of all, the group of merry boys and girls, make a very attractive and
pretty scene.
The game, though intended for four players, may also be played by
either two or eight players. When only two take part, each must play
the twelve roses belonging to his side; in other respects the rules are
the same as in a four-handed game. When there are eight players, four
must stand on each side and each player have three roses, two players
necessarily playing the same color, but not in the same bed, as the
garden on both sides must be divided into four beds that every player
may plant roses in a separate flower bed; otherwise the original rules
hold good.
“Plant Your Garden if You Can” may be adapted to the house when chill
Autumn days appear and the weather grows cold and rainy. When played
indoors the beds may be marked out by white tape as on the green lawn,
only in this case wooden clothespins would be of no use, and thumb
tacks, such as are used by artists, must take their place to fasten the
tape down on a bare wooden floor, and safety-pins when the floor is
carpeted.
[Illustration: Fig. 200.—Home-made Santa Claus as He will Appear on
Your Hearth Christmas Morning.]
CHAPTER XIV
JOLLY LITTLE SANTA CLAUS WITH HIS REINDEER AND SLEIGH
DO you want to see—actually see!—Santa Claus seated in his sleigh
filled with toys, and driving his famous reindeer? You may do so and
have him come to your home. Even if there is no chimney and open
fireplace for Santa Claus to climb through, the blithe little fellow
can be induced to appear, sleigh and all, and he will keep his turnout
standing perfectly still that all the family may have a good, long look
at him. But you must carefully follow directions and help Santa Claus
get ready for your Christmas (Fig. 200).
It would be difficult to say positively how long Santa Claus has lived,
or when he first made his appearance, but we all know just how he looks,
“His eyes twinkle, his dimples are merry,
His cheeks are like roses, his nose like a cherry.”
We know that he is sure to come every Christmas, and the girls and
boys look forward gladly to his visit. The little Hollanders name
our Christmas Saint Santa Claus, the same as we do, though sometimes
we call him Kris Kringle. In England he is both Santa Claus and St.
Nicholas, in Switzerland Samiklaus, in Russia he is St. Nicholas. But
no matter by what name he may be called, he is always the same, always
the jolly little fellow bringing good cheer to every one. Santa Claus
takes great delight in driving his tiny reindeer and sleigh full of
toys over roofs of houses for the special benefit of the girls and boys
he knows, and that includes all of them.
[Illustration: Fig. 201.—Ordinary sled.]
Possibly Santa Claus will drive only two reindeer in his sleigh this
year. He is willing, however, to bring them all if you wish.
[Illustration: Fig. 202.—Box for top of sled.]
[Illustration: Fig. 203.—Santa Claus sleigh ready for fur robe.]
An ordinary sled (Fig. 201) will do for the foundation of
=The Sleigh,=
and a box for the body of the sleigh (Fig. 202) to set on the sled
(Fig. 203). Find some furs to use as robes to hang over the sides and
back of the sleigh; any kind will do—boas, collars, circulars or rugs.
Fit them in and over the sides of the box. If you have no furs, try
plush or colored blankets. Tack gay-colored paper over those portions
of the box which are not concealed by the robes, and lay a small,
light board over the top front of the box, resting the ends of the
board on the sides of the box to make the seat on the sleigh. Cover the
board with the same paper as that tacked on the box.
[Illustration: Fig. 204.—Extensions on each hoof.]
Make two
=Reindeer=
of stiff pasteboard like Fig. 204. Now, do not think you cannot make
the deer because you may not be skilled in drawing, for you can do
so easily. Take a large sheet of paper and draw on it an oblong
forty-eight inches wide and thirty-six inches high; divide the oblong
into squares measuring six inches on each of the four sides, which
will give eight squares in width and six squares in height. With the
aid of these squares it will be fun to copy the reindeer. Number the
side lines of your oblong and letter the top and bottom lines as in
Fig. 205. Examine the lower corner space of Fig. 205 enclosed by the
lines A-5, and you will find the hind hoof and part of the hind leg
stretching diagonally across the space. Use a soft lead-pencil and
begin copying the deer by drawing a slanting fine from the extreme
outward lower corner upward about one-third of the distance from the
bottom to the top of the space A-5. This short slanting line forms the
bottom of the hoof, the little space, enclosed between the hoof and the
long toe above it reaches very nearly to the centre of the lower part
of the square A-5. Make yours so. Draw the upper edge of the long toe;
then run a slanting line up to the top line of the square space A-5,
and make it touch the top line 5 less than one-quarter the distance
from the side line A to the opposite line of the same square. Return
to the lower part of the hoof already begun and draw the inside line of
the hoof and portion of the leg in the same space, A-5.
[Illustration: Fig. 205.—Reindeer enlarged enclosed in squares.]
In the space 4-5, immediately above the space A-5, you will perceive
that only a lower corner is drawn in and that all the four squares
above the square 4-5 are vacant, so continue your drawing on the bottom
space A-B. The extreme upper corner of this is cut off by a short
straight line; then a shallow scallop extends entirely across the upper
part and runs into the third lower space B-C. If you notice closely
the space enclosed by the lines 4-5, A-B, immediately over the one you
have been working on, you will see that the corner on the line 4-A is
vacant, while all three of the other corners are occupied by portions
of the hind leg, and that the empty space extending from the vacant
corner 4-A forms almost a square with two lines slightly curved and the
corner diagonally across from the vacant corner 4-A, on the line 4, cut
off by a short line bent bow-shaped. Draw it in the same way over the
corresponding space on your paper. Look at Fig. 206, following the line
on the space 4-5, A-B, and you will discover that it is the same as in
Fig. 205, only smaller, and by carefully comparing the two diagrams,
Fig. 205 and Fig. 206, you will find the lines are formed alike in
each, differing only in size; thus you will understand how you can make
your deer very much larger simply by drawing it on larger squares.
Continue as you have begun, taking one square space at a time, and copy
on your large squares the outline of the entire deer as given on the
squares of Fig. 206.
[Illustration: Fig. 206.—Reindeer enclosed ready to be enlarged].
When the drawing is finished, go over all the pencil lines which form
the deer with black paint or ink, making the lines heavy and plain,
that they may be seen from across the room. As soon as the paint is
absolutely dry erase the pencil-lined squares.
To make sure that the deer will stand firmly, extend downward a
slanting line from the top of each hoof and draw another level line out
from the bottom of each hoof to meet it, according to dotted lines in
Fig. 204.
Cut out your deer and with pins or thumb-tacks fasten him out flat
on another large sheet of paper; then with the soft lead-pencil run a
line on the paper around the deer, which will give you the second deer;
outline the markings on this like those on the first deer; then cut it
out. If you want six deer for Santa Claus’ sleigh make them as you did
the second deer. Back each deer with very heavy, stiff pasteboard and
nail a thin strip of wood on each of them. Let the wood reach from the
middle of the head to the edge of the hind leg (Fig. 207). Fasten the
two animals together with three narrow flat sticks tacked across from
deer to deer, one stick at the centre and one on each of the two ends
of the slanting strips of wood fastened on each deer. The framework
will then rudely resemble an inclined ladder. Stand the reindeer in
front of Santa Claus’ sleigh and see how fine they look.
[Illustration: Fig. 207.—Reindeer re-enforced by strip of wood.]
[Illustration: Fig. 208.—Santa Claus’ boot.]
[Illustration: Fig. 209.—Santa Claus’ trousers.]
[Illustration: Fig. 210.—Santa Claus’ coat.]
[Illustration: Fig. 211.—Santa Claus’ cap.]
[Illustration: Fig. 212.—Cap trimmed with ermine.]
[Illustration: Fig. 213.—Santa Claus’ wig.]
[Illustration: Fig. 214.—Santa Claus’ whiskers and eyebrows.]
To represent
=Santa Claus,=
make a large rag doll stuffed with straw or excelsior. It is not
necessary to spend much time on making the doll, as it will be used
only once, and will then be almost entirely covered, showing only the
upper portion of the face for which you can mark easily with features.
Make the boots (Fig. 208) like stockings of black muslin; have them
long and loose enough at the ankle to form wrinkles. The trousers (Fig.
209) should be of scarlet cotton flannel, fleece side out; the coat
(Fig. 210) cut of the same material; the cap (Fig. 211) of the red
cloth cut melon shape, and sewed together. Santa Claus’ costume must
be trimmed with bands of fur. Ermine will look best, and it is easiest
to make. Cut strips of white cotton flannel and mark them with black
ink to represent the little black elongated spots on real ermine. Trim
the tops of the boots (Fig. 208), the neck, sleeves and edge of the
coat (Fig. 210) and edge of the cap (Fig. 212) with fur. Make the wig
of raw white cotton, and fasten it on the doll’s head (Fig. 213), then
the beard, moustache and eyebrows also of raw cotton (Fig. 214), and
glue them on the face. Paint Santa Claus’ face pink, his cheeks and
the end of his nose bright red, and his eyes blue. When dressing him,
bring the fur-topped boots up over the trousers (Fig. 200).
With tacks and string fasten Santa Claus in an upright sitting position
on the seat of the sleigh. Tie a long, narrow red ribbon around the
neck of each reindeer and pin or tie the ends of these ribbon reins on
to the mitten-covered ends of the arms which form his hands. He will
then seem to be gayly driving his reindeer.
Fill the box of the sleigh with
=Christmas Gifts=
wrapped in bright colored tissue paper. Any article liable to break
should receive special attention. A cup and saucer (Fig. 215) is one
of the most difficult articles to manage, and if you can wrap this up,
properly, the wrapping of all other gifts will be easy.
[Illustration: Fig. 215.—Christmas cup and saucer.]
Take the saucer first, place it on the centre of a piece of tissue
paper (Fig. 216), fold the paper up around it, bringing the ends
together at the centre (Fig. 217). Do the same with the cup (Fig.
218); then crush down the top of the paper over the saucer and set the
paper-covered cup on it (Fig. 219). Now place the two on more paper and
wrap up both together (Fig. 220).
[Illustration: Fig. 216.—Saucer in centre of tissue paper.]
If there are not enough gifts to fill the box of the sleigh, open
newspapers and crush them into the bottom of the box to fill up the
extra space; spread white paper over the top of the newspapers, and
fill in with the prettily wrapped gifts. Each parcel should be tied
with a ribbon and decorated with holly, mistletoe or evergreen (Fig.
220). Cover the top of the paper parcels with various toys (Fig. 200),
and Santa Claus with sleigh and reindeer will be ready to surprise the
family early Christmas morning.
[Illustration: Fig. 217.—Tissue paper over saucer.]
[Illustration: Fig. 218.—Cup in tissue paper.]
[Illustration: Fig. 219.—Wrapped cup and saucer together.]
[Illustration: Fig. 220.—Cup and saucer ready for the sleigh.]
Try to have as many home-made gifts in the sleigh as possible.
=Your Christmas Cards=
can be plain white pieces of cardboard decorated with the head of Santa
Claus made of an almond on which is inked a face; the long hair and
beard of refined white cotton being glued on the nut and a red peaked
cap fastened on the top of the head; this makes a fine Santa Claus. The
head should be glued on the left side of the card, and on the blank
portion should be inscribed the greeting, “Merry Christmas.”
CHAPTER XV
A LIVING CHRISTMAS TREE
THIS Christmas tree is not planted in a tub or fastened to a stand;
it does not remain just where it is put, neither is it attached to a
mechanical device that makes it whirl and spin around dizzily as they
sometimes do in the shops. It is a living Christmas tree, a green
Christmas tree all covered with glittering ornaments and bright colored
toys, with little bells at the bottom that tinkle musically as it
moves, and on the topmost point a brilliant star that sends out tinsel
rays from every point. Then, a little distance below the star, a face—a
laughing face with shining eyes that reveal the guardian angel of the
tree.
You can keep the preparation of the living tree absolutely secret and
make it a complete surprise, for it does not have to be set up where
all may see in order to be decorated, and no hint of its existence
need be given until the time arrives, the door is thrown open and the
beautiful, sparkling Christmas tree glides slowly into the room.
=How to Prepare the Living Christmas Tree.=
Choose quite a tall girl for the angel of the tree and from dark green,
undressed cambric cut a long, plain cloak that will fit smoothly over
her shoulders and hang like an inverted cornucopia from neck to feet.
=Make the Peaked Hat=
out of stiff brown paper, cutting it like Fig. 221, and pasting it
together like Fig. 222. Cover the hat with some of the green cambric,
allowing a cape of the material to fall from hat to shoulders at the
back (Fig. 223). Get three or four quires of moss-green tissue paper,
cut it into strips six inches wide and cut each strip into rather
coarse fringe, leaving a solid strip for heading at the top, two inches
wide. Beginning at the bottom sew the fringe around the cloak, allowing
it to reach just to the edge of the cloth.
[Illustration: Fig. 221.—Cut the hat after this pattern.]
Above the first row of fringe, and overlapping it, sew the second row,
bringing its lower edge within three inches of the bottom edge of the
first row.
In this way put on row after row of fringe, always overlapping it,
until the cloak is entirely covered, then cover the hat and its cape in
the same manner.
[Illustration: Fig. 222.—Paste it together like this.]
Take a light wooden hoop—one of the kind the children roll on the
pavements in “hoop time,” and, turning the edge of the cloak up once,
fit the hoop in the fold and hem the edge over it. This will hold the
cloak out firmly at the bottom and it should hang smooth and straight
from the shoulders with a generous lap where it closes in front.
[Illustration: The Living Christmas Tree.]
Pin the fronts together, leaving an opening only large enough to slip
over the head.
Now suspend the cloak on a waisthanger in such a way that you can reach
it from all sides, and proceed
=To Decorate=
Around the bottom sew a row of small bells, and here and there all over
the cloak, sew large dress hooks, on which to hang the fragile glass
ornaments and small presents. Pin on the tinsel decorations and strings
of popcorn with safety pins and leave the finishing touches until the
angel has entered her tree.
The tall hat, tipped by its bright star, may be completely trimmed and
put safely away until needed. All decorations and presents must be
light in weight.
[Illustration: Fig. 223.—Cover the hat and leave a cape of the
material.]
On the eventful night let the Christmas tree angel slip into the tree,
and, after it is nicely adjusted, hang around her neck strings of
colored glass balls, and suspend from the hooks the glass ornaments and
presents. Put the peaked hat on her head, and the living Christmas tree
will be ready for her triumphant entry. To avoid the danger of accident
do not allow the tree in a room where there are unprotected gas lights,
candles or open fire, and let the cloak be put on the angel in a room
adjoining the one in which she is to appear, for going up or down
stairs incased in the cloak is not to be thought of.
[Illustration: One of the Booths at the Girls’ and Boys’ Fair with
Articles Made by Themselves.]
CHAPTER XVI
HOW TO GET UP A GIRLS’ FAIR
LET two or three young friends help you get up the fair. Tell them
that this is not to be an ordinary fair, it will be more interesting
and unique; that buyers will find things which cannot be purchased
elsewhere for any amount of money, as all articles for sale and even
the decorations will be made by the girls and boys themselves, and
duplicates are not to be found in the stores. Inform the young people
that a prize will be given to the girl and to the boy whose work is the
best.
=Form a Managing Committee=
and talk over arrangements with them.
If the fair is to be large, you will need either one large room or
several small ones.
When the question of place has been settled to the satisfaction of
all, make out a list of the various girls and boys who will help with
the entertainment, and divide the list into as many parts as there
are young people on your managing committee, including yourself. Give
each member of the committee his or her portion of the list, with
instructions to see every person whose name is on the paper and find
out what each particular one will promise to make for the fair. Do not
confine the soliciting to young people of your own little circle, ask
for contributions from all the girls and boys your managing committee
are able to reach. Some may want to make several articles each, others
may wish to do the decorating, and so on. Space must be provided on the
list of names for writing down under each name the articles promised
(Fig. 224).
[Illustration: Fig. 224.—List of promised articles.]
Let each contributor understand that every article sent in must have
the name, age, and address of the sender written in ink and fastened
securely on each separate article, that every girl and boy may receive
full credit for what she or he has made (Fig. 225).
[Illustration: Fig. 225.—Card ready to attach to one article.]
In addition to the attractive booths you should have the ever popular
grab-bag and the
“Four and twenty blackbirds
Baked in a pie”
will be just the thing.
[Illustration: Fig. 226.—A tub like this for the blackbird grab-bag.]
Take an ordinary wooden tub (Fig. 226), cover the outside with gay
tissue paper laid on in flat plaits from top to bottom. Paste the
paper along the inside of the top edge, carry it over on the outside
down under the bottom edge. Cover the handles with the same paper, and
fasten ribbon bows on the outside of the handles (Fig. 227). If the tub
is covered with pink tissue paper, tack pink ribbons on the handles; if
red paper is used fasten green on the handles.
[Illustration: Fig. 227.—The grab-bag tub covered with colored paper.]
[Illustration: Fig. 228.—Package ready for grab-bag.]
Fill the bottom of the tub with large, lightly crushed pieces of
newspaper, cover these with a double layer of smooth paper, leaving
sufficient space at the top for a layer of sawdust, bran or sand, deep
enough to cover the different sized articles intended for the grab-bag.
Each separate article must be wrapped in paper and tied with a string
(Fig. 228).
Make as many
=Blackbirds=
as you can place conveniently, without too much crowding, on top of the
pie.
[Illustration: Fig. 229.—Pattern of blackbird.]
Use medium stiff cardboard or smooth water color paper, not too
limber, for the birds. Cut them from an enlarged pattern of Fig. 229,
as the birds must be life-size. Paint or ink the bird black on both
sides and, when it is dry, bend up the tail in a curve. Bend up the
neck at dotted line of Fig. 229. Pinch together the beak and bend it
downward, bringing the head forward at dotted line of Fig. 229. Turn up
the wings according to dotted lines on Fig. 229, and curve them over
and outward at the top (Fig. 230). Puncture two holes in the back of
the bird at the dots A and B (Fig. 229).
[Illustration: Fig. 230.—Blackbird bent in shape.]
[Illustration: Fig. 231.—Bend one end of a hairpin into a square hook.]
[Illustration: Fig. 232.—Top of hook bent into handle.]
There must be a handle for lifting the blackbirds; make it of a
hairpin. Bend one end of a wire hairpin into a square hook (Fig. 231)
and slide the longer end up through the foremost hole on the underside
of the bird; tie the centre of a string, nine inches long, on the
horizontal bend of the hooked end of the hairpin; then push the short
end of the hook up through the other hole in the bird, bringing the
string up close against the bird’s breast. Bend the short end of the
hairpin down on the bird’s back and flatten it with a hammer. Curve
the top of the hairpin into a handle (Fig. 232) and fasten the hooked
end of the hairpin more securely to the breast and back of the bird by
pasting a piece of paper over the short portion of the hairpin lying
over the back (Fig. 233). Push the paper up tight around the edge of
the wire. Paste another piece of paper over the short length of hairpin
on the bird’s breast in the same manner (Fig. 234).
[Illustration: Fig. 233.—Hairpin fastened to back of bird.]
[Illustration: Fig. 234.—Hairpin fastened to breast of bird.]
Set the blackbird away until next day, when it will be perfectly dry,
and you will find the hairpin secure in its place, standing straight
and steady.
Tie the two ends of the string together into a hard knot; then bend
one half of another wire hairpin into a hook (Fig. 235) and fasten it
securely on the string at the end of the loop; twist the long handle
of the hairpin hook (Fig. 235) around and over the string, as shown in
Fig. 236.
[Illustration: Fig. 235.—Make a hook of another hairpin.]
[Illustration: Fig. 236.—Fasten the hook to the string.]
Instead of making one complete blackbird at a time, it will be much
quicker and easier to make a pattern and cut out all your blackbirds
first; then ink or paint them all, and continue working on them in this
way until all are finished about the same time. It will not take long
when once you have the pattern enlarged, and you can make the pattern
the proper size by the system of squares, large and small, as explained
in Chapter XIV.
When the birds are made and ready for the pie, hook
=A Package on Each Blackbird=
(Fig. 237), and hide the parcel and string down under the sawdust,
resting the bird on top of the pie; then when any one wants to purchase
a “grab” let him lift any bird he chooses from the pie by means of the
hairpin in the bird’s back.
[Illustration: Fig. 237.—Blackbird with package ready for pie.]
The girl or boy in charge must take the parcel from the hook, give it
to the purchaser, quickly slide another package on the hook and sink it
down in the pie in place of the first one. While the purchaser is left
entirely free to choose, she should take care not to disarrange the
packages in the pie.
[Illustration: The Blackbird Pie.]
Extra packages must be kept in a covered box or basket at one side,
back of the “Blackbird Pie.”
Another original idea for your fair will be
=The Express Office=
At this table each article must be daintily tied up in white paper
and the package labelled with the Christian name of one of the young
people. Wrap up a number of articles that your friends may find parcels
waiting for them when they call at the express office. The packages
should also bear the name of the city from which they are supposed to
have been sent. For instance, if you have a friend named Mary, and Mary
happens to be acquainted with some young people in Cincinnati, mark the
parcel for her with the name Mary and the place Cincinnati, Ohio. The
addition of the name of some city will add greatly to the interest and
excitement when the package is received.
Though a package may be intended for a certain person, any one with the
same Christian name may purchase the article, but it cannot be sold to
a buyer bearing another Christian name, and should some one come for
an express package and the express agent be unable to find a parcel
labelled with the purchaser’s name, the would-be buyer must leave the
office empty-handed.
The uncertainty of finding a package at the express office lends a
certain charm to this table, for every one will feel some curiosity to
ascertain for a surety whether he or she is included with the fortunate
ones whose names appear upon packages.
Arrange all your articles for the express office in alphabetical order,
those on one side of the table for girls, and on the other side for
boys; then the parcel bearing the name called for may be quickly handed
out to the inquiring purchaser.
=Letters to Girls=
and letters to boys are easy to write. Ask as many friends as possible
to write one or more letters to any companions they choose whom they
think will attend the fair. The letters must be signed by fictitious
names, never the writer’s own name or the name of any real person; then
those receiving the missives will have the sport of trying to find out
which of their friends actually wrote the letters.
Several days before the fair opens all the mail, after being addressed
and sealed, should be sent under additional cover to you personally.
=The Post-office=
must be made very attractive, though it need not occupy much space.
A mere corner of the room screened off with dividing drapery of
turkey-red cotton cloth or any gay material will answer the purpose.
Open the drapery at the centre division and make a three-cornered
tent-like window in front between the two curtains with the aid of a
chair. Place a box on the chair reaching to the top of the chair-back,
set the chair between the two curtains, turn its back toward the people
and cover it with the same material used for the curtains; then pin
this drapery to the curtains on each side.
=The Decorations=
must be very simple and inexpensive; something which can be made easily
and quickly, and when finished they should be bright and effective.
Have your decorating committee cut a number of flags from different
colored tissue paper or low priced muslin varying in length, anywhere
from ten to fifteen inches, and in width from five to nine inches
(Fig. 238 and Fig. 239). If the ceiling is very high the flags may be
larger.
[Illustration: Fig. 238.—Pattern of flag.]
[Illustration: Fig. 239.—Pattern of pennant.]
Paste the straight dotted edge of each flag over a strong string long
enough to extend in a graceful loop from the centre of the ceiling to
the side wall (Fig. 240). Place the flags about twelve inches apart on
the string and make four strings to reach to the four corners if the
room is small, if large, a dozen or more flag-strings, according to the
size of the room. Have a generous supply.
[Illustration: Fig. 240.—Flags for decoration.]
Tie one end of each of the flag-strings close to the ceiling on the
chandelier or lamp hook. Wind an extra string tight around and over
the string-knots on the chandelier to hold the strings in place and
keep them from slipping down. Tie the free ends of the flag-strings to
picture-hooks and fasten the hooks on the picture-moulding. In this way
you can obtain good results without the slightest injury to the walls.
Should there be no picture-moulding, fasten the strings to large,
strong tacks or small wire nails driven in on the top ledge of the
window and door frames where they will do no harm.
[Illustration: Fig. 241.—Fringe cut for tassel.]
[Illustration: Fig. 242.—Winding top of fringe into tassel head.]
[Illustration: Fig. 243.—Tassel ready for decoration.]
Fasten extra strings from top of window and door frames, and draw them
taut along the walls, then tie the intervening flag-strings on these
and the effect will be much the same as with picture-moulding, almost
like a tent of small flags.
Hang a long, gay tassel on the wall at the end of each flag-string.
Make the tassels of bright tissue paper. Take the once folded sheets
of the variously-colored tissue paper as they come from the store, and
cut them into long fringe, lengthwise of the folded sheets (Fig. 241),
making each separate strand of fringe not less than one inch wide.
Pinch the twenty-inch-length fringe together at the top, wind and tie
it with a string (Fig. 242), allowing one end of the string to extend
out at the top; wind farther down and tie again to form the head of the
tassel four and one-half inches from the extreme top (Fig. 243).
These large tassels tied to picture-hooks by eight or twelve
inch lengths of string wound with gay paper and attached to the
picture-moulding at the end of each line of flags make a fine finish
and form a decoration for the walls.
Let your tables be of different sizes, and cover them with white cotton
sheets folded in such a way that the sheet will fall within one inch of
the floor at the front and at the two sides.
Decorate the white covering in various ways, making the tables gay with
inexpensive colored cambric, or crimped tissue paper. The plain tissue
paper will not be strong enough to use for this purpose.
The first covering of white gives value to the colors, causing
them to appear even more brilliant than they are in reality, and
it also renders it possible to use much less colored material than
would otherwise be required, in this way lessening the outlay for
decorations. But in order not to tear the muslin sheets while fastening
on the decorations, paste must be used in place of tacks or pins.
Make the colored material into wide strips cut into points or fanciful
designs and paste the strips at their upper edges along the top of
front and sides of the white covered tables, allowing the lower edge to
hang entirely free, except where pendant portions are inclined to stand
out; these may be fastened in place with a little paste.
[Illustration: Fig. 244.—Red paper folded for cutting design.]
[Illustration: Fig. 245.—Unfolded red paper ready for decorating fair
booth.]
[Illustration: Fig. 246.—Folded paper for green decoration.]
[Illustration: Fig. 247.—Green decoration cut and opened.]
Cut some of the strips about fourteen inches wide; others wider, a few
narrower; and make each strip long enough to reach around the front
and two sides of one table. Lay a brilliant red strip eighteen inches
wide down on a flat surface and fold crosswise through the centre; fold
again and again until the piece is of the desired width, about two and
one-half inches; then cut according to dotted lines (Fig. 244). Open
out and cut off every other lower ornament and you will have Fig. 245.
Attached to a table this decoration gives the effect seen in the first
illustration.
Fold and cut a green strip fourteen inches wide like Fig. 246. Open and
it will be Fig. 247. Another design of orange color is given in Fig.
248 and Fig. 249.
[Illustration: Fig. 248.—Orange design ready to cut.]
[Illustration: Fig. 249.—Orange design open.]
You can devise many other decorative designs fully as attractive as
these, and it is well to experiment with pieces of old newspaper,
cutting them into various designs until you find just what you think
will make good patterns. In this way your originality is brought out
and in a measure your artistic sense developed.
Select a cheery, happy girl for
=Postmaster=
—one who cannot help giving a bright smile with every letter, and try
to induce her to make some pleasant appropriate remark when handing out
the mail, as this will add much to the enjoyment of the occasion.
More important though than anything else will be the large, the small,
the useful, the beautiful and the odd articles for sale made by the
girls and boys. There should be a lot of original valentines, May
baskets, Easter-egg novelties, paper fireworks, Hallowe’en games,
funny and instructive toys, tiny log cabins, scenes from Japan, Russia,
the Philippines, and many other interesting things, not forgetting the
Punch and Judy shows, the circus, the seven wonders of the world, and
the home-made rugs, candles and candlesticks.
The post-office entails little or no extra expense and money taken in
for letters will be almost clear gain. Expense incurred by the entire
fair need be but slight and all the proceeds might be devoted to some
charitable purpose.
One of the best of objects for the money obtained by your fair is the
“Fresh Air Fund,” which helps the poor little suffering city children
to a breath of pure fresh air and saves the lives of many frail girls
and boys. Think how glad you can make some of these young people; then,
of all the enjoyment your own companions will have in getting up the
fair, and how proud and happy your parents and teachers will feel when
they see the result of your work. If a “Fresh Air Fund” does not exist
in your locality there are other methods of using your profits to good
ends. Really there is no telling how much good your fair may accomplish
in many ways.
CHAPTER XVII
CAMPING OUT IN YOUR BACK YARD
WHO is ready to go out on a camping expedition to Make-Believe Land?
It is a wild land, full of wild creatures if you choose to believe in
them. Cats you will probably meet on the trail, and they are wild ones
if you will. Wolves, too, may prowl around, for what else are Tramp and
Nipper, your own dearly loved dogs, but descendants of the wild wolf.
There will be plenty of sailing, fishing and outdoor sports. Guides can
be secured at headquarters and you will not have to travel far, for the
camping ground is your own back yard.
You must have your
=Camping Outfit,=
as all campers do, and it is the proper thing to think, plan and talk
much about this same outfit. As the trip is to be made overland and you
will have no camping wagon, use bags for carrying the various articles
needed in camp. Old flour bags are just the thing. Into these you can
put all your things except perhaps the camp kettle. The camping party
should be supplied with a tent, a hatchet, a camp kettle, coffee pot,
tin plates and cups, old knives, fork and spoons, a tin pail and dipper
and a tin wash-basin; all these, as well as provisions must be taken on
the journey in true campers’ fashion, for there should be no running
back from Make-Believe Land to get forgotten articles. Shawls and
blankets to spread on the ground if it seem too damp will be a welcome
addition to the outfit, and the party should be provided with sharp
pocket knives for whittling stakes and for other needs.
[Illustration: Camping in Make-believe Land.]
[Illustration: Fig. 250.—Tie the corners of the sheet with tape.]
[Illustration: Fig. 251.—The sheet is ready to put up for the tent.]
Select the site of your camp and pitch your tent with reference to the
clothes line, for the line is to support the tent and act as a ridge
pole.
=Make the Tent=
of two muslin sheets sewed together along two of the edges, one edge
on each sheet, which run from the wide hem at the head to the narrow
hem at the foot of the sheet. Tie a tape on each of the four corners
(Fig. 250) and tie a tape at the centre of the ends of the tent
sheet-covering. This will give three tapes on each side of the tent—six
tapes in all (Fig. 251).
[Illustration: Fig. 252.—This is the wooden tent peg.]
Make six wooden pegs resembling Fig. 252. You can have them either
round, square, three-cornered or irregular; the only essentials are
that the pegs be strong and large enough to hold the tent securely.
Have a notch cut near the top for the tape and a point whittled at the
bottom that the peg may be easily driven into the ground.
Look about carefully and decide exactly where you want the tent
placed on the clothesline; then hang the crosswise centre of the
covering evenly over the line. Hold the top ridge centre in place with
clothespins while you stretch one side out away from the clothesline,
and peg it to the ground by tying the tapes around the pegs and pushing
the pegs slantingly into the ground, with the peg head running from and
the point directed toward the tent (Fig. 253). Remove the clothespins
and peg down the other side of the tent in the same way.
[Illustration: Fig. 253.—This is the way to peg your tent to the
ground.]
[Illustration: Fig. 254.—The sticks are laid across the table legs
ready for the board.]
[Illustration: Fig. 255.—Your little camp-table.]
[Illustration: Fig. 256.—Nail the cleats inside the box for the
shelves.]
[Illustration: Fig. 257.—This is your camp-cupboard made of a box.]
Find the best place near the tent for
=A Table,=
and make the table in true woodsman fashion. Take four strong forked
sticks, sharpened on the lower end, and drive two of them into the
ground in a straight line about one foot or more apart, and the
remaining two in a line with, and two feet from the first sticks (Fig.
254). Have the sticks stand above the ground about two feet, or the
height you want the table, and keep the crotch, or angle where the two
forks separate, on all the sticks at an equal height from the ground.
Lay a stick across each pair of forked sticks. Get a piece of board,
rest one end on each of the supports you have just made, and you will
have a rustic table, strong and suitable for any camp (Fig. 255). Use
wooden boxes for seats. Select one box for your
=Safe or Cupboard=
in which to keep supplies and camping utensils. Fit one or two shelves,
made from a side of another wooden box, in the cupboard. Do this by
first nailing strips of wood, for cleats, on the inside of each side of
the cupboard at equal distances from the bottom (Fig. 256). Slide in
the shelves, resting each on two pieces of wood (Fig. 257). Set a lot
of lids of tin cans in the cupboard to serve as camping plates, also a
few tin spoons, an old table knife, a kitchen fork or two, three tin
cups, and a smooth, clean, folded piece of white paper for a tablecloth.
[Illustration: Fig. 258.—Sink the pail part way into the ground.]
[Illustration: Fig. 259.—Bank the earth up around the pail for the
spring.]
Now for
=The Spring=
Ask your mother to let you have a large, clean pail suitable for
drinking water. Carry the pail to the opposite side of the yard from
your tent. There dig a hole large enough to sink the pail down about
half its height (Fig. 258). Bank the loose earth up all around the
pail (Fig. 259), and cover the earth with leaves, grass, moss and
vines; hiding the pail completely with the greenery; then fill the pail
with fresh, cool water, and lo: there is your mountain spring (Fig.
260).
[Illustration: Fig. 260.—Like a country spring in your back yard.]
A clean tomato can, free from rust, with the top removed, will make
=A Fine Pail=
for carrying water. You can make a hole in the tin, near the top on
each side of the can, by hammering a good-sized wire nail through, and
then form a handle to the pail by threading one end of a piece of twine
through each hole and tying a large knot on the outside to prevent the
string from sliding out of place (Fig. 261). When you need water in the
camp, always go to the spring for it, and carry the water in the little
tin pail.
[Illustration: Fig. 261.—The camp-pail is made of a tin can.]
It is not necessary to have a real
=Camp Fire,=
but you can pretend there is one. Drive two forked sticks in the ground
a short distance from each other; lay a stout stick across from one to
the other forked stick; then pile up some dry twigs midway between the
stakes. Tie a strong cord on the centre of the cross stick, leaving
one end long enough to loop down and under the handle of a pail or
kettle and reach up and tie to the short end of the cord. You can put
various things into the camp kettle and pretend to cook them over the
make-believe fire (Fig. 262).
[Illustration: Fig. 262.—You can pretend to cook over the make-believe
fire.]
[Illustration: Fig. 263.—A low wooden packing-box for the boat.]
[Illustration: Fig. 264.—The box with its pasteboard ends.]
Of course you must have a boat, for there are lakes in Make-Believe
Land and plenty of fish to be caught, so
=Make a Boat=
for your camp. Select a rather long, narrow wooden packing-box (Fig.
263), and on each end tack an extra pointed pasteboard end (Fig. 264).
To make the pasteboard end you will have to measure the height of the
packing-box, and cut from an old pasteboard box a strip of pasteboard
wide enough to fit the height of the wooden box and long enough to
allow for tacking on the end of the wooden box and extending far enough
out beyond the box to form half, or one side, of the pointed end with
two inches over. Score the extra two inches and bend (Fig. 265); the
bend A forms the extreme end when the pasteboard point is bent in
shape. Cut another strip of pasteboard two inches shorter than the
first strip, and sew it on the two-inch bent flap of the first strip
(Fig. 266). Score the two ends of the long strip and be careful to
score them on the side that will cause the pasteboard to bend outward
in the right direction, then bend (Fig. 267).
[Illustration: Fig. 265.—The pasteboard strip with end bent.]
[Illustration: Fig. 266.—The second pasteboard strip is sewed on first
strip.]
[Illustration: Fig. 267.—The pasteboard is now ready to be tacked on to
box making pointed end.]
Tack the pasteboard strip on the end of the wooden box and make another
pasteboard point for the other end of the box (Fig. 264). Cover both
pasteboard ends with stout paper by gumming the paper over and down on
the outside top edge of the pasteboard points.
Make the boat seats of short boards laid across from side to side of
the wooden box and nailed in place (Fig. 268). Use broom-sticks for
oars, and make believe the boat is off on the water, a long distance
from the tent.
[Illustration: Fig. 268.—With the seats in place it is a boat.]
[Illustration: Fig. 269.—The row-boat is turned into a sail-boat.]
If you want to play that you are
=Out Fishing=
in the boat, take any kind of long sticks or walking canes for fishing
poles, with common string for line and a bit of paper tied to the end
of the string for bait. When you want to turn the row-boat into a
sail-boat, you can tack a three-cornered piece of white cloth on the
end of a pole and rig up a sail (Fig. 269). Cut a hole in the forward
centre of the bottom of the boat immediately next to the covered bow,
run the pole through the hole down into the earth until it is well
planted in the ground and stands straight and steady; then tie a string
to the free end of the sail and fasten the string to the boat to keep
the sail stretched out, just as if there were truly a good stiff breeze
and you were sailing along at a rapid rate with the spray dashing upon,
and at times over, the sides of the boat.
If your back yard is large and you need more tents for friends, erect
several, one on each stretch of the clothesline. Should the line be
fastened to four posts, a tent can be put up on each of the four turns
of the clothesline, making a little settlement of tents.
[Illustration: Playing Tether-Ball with the Home-Made Game.]
CHAPTER XVIII
OUTDOOR FUN WITH HOME-MADE TETHER-BALL
WITH an outlay of a few cents you can make this entire tether-ball game
and make it well. The common hollow rubber ball should be two and a
half inches in diameter—about the size of a tennis ball. You will not
need any money for the two rackets, which are cut from old boxes or
shingles.
=The Pole=
may be a stationary clothesline post, a small, unused flagstaff, an
extra long clothesline pole, a long curtain pole, or a very long,
straight bean pole, and for smaller children the handle of an old
long-handled broom will answer.
Use strong, soft twine to make
=The Cover for Your Ball=
Cut twelve pieces, each twenty-four inches in length; place all the
lengths straight and evenly together; then tie a string around the
entire bunch, an inch and one-half from the centre (Fig. 270). In this
figure and several other diagrams the single strands of twine are not
drawn in detail, because, should every separate thread be outlined,
much confusion might ensue.
[Illustration: Fig. 270.—Tie all the strands of the string together.]
[Illustration: Fig. 271.—Tying the strings for the tether-ball
covering.]
[Illustration: Fig. 272.—The braid for ball loop.]
[Illustration: Fig. 273.—Untie and remove the string.]
[Illustration: Fig. 274.—Braid into one braid.]
After tying the lengths of twine together, separate the longest part
into three divisions of four strands each (Fig. 271). Braid these
strands together in one braid, beginning close to the string tied
around the bunch; continue braiding firmly and tightly for the distance
of two and a half or three inches (Fig. 272), then untie and remove
the string from around the bunch (Fig. 273); bring the two ends of the
braid together, and joining all the loose strands into three bunches
of eight strands each, braid all into one braid (Fig. 274). When this
larger braid is one inch long, with another string tie the loose ends
of it firmly together close up to the braid. You will then have a
braided ring on a braided stem. Wind the stem with an extra string;
then tie a hard knot and cut away the ends of the string (Fig. 275).
[Illustration: Fig. 275.—The strands are ready for netting the ball
cover.]
[Illustration: Fig. 276.—First step in tying string covering for the
ball.]
[Illustration: Fig. 277.—Tie the knots in this way.]
Divide the loose strands into bunches of three strands each, making
eight bunches (Fig. 275). Pin the stem down to something stationary and
firm; then take three strands, or one bunch, in each hand, and pass the
first finger of your left hand between the two bunches; hold it there
while you carry the bunch in your right hand across the bunch in your
left hand; this forms a loop. Do not take your finger out of the loop
until the entire double knot is made. Bring the bunch from your right
hand under and through the loop formed by the crossing of the bunches;
this will give Fig. 276. Pull the strings until the tie is a short
distance from the stem; then tie the same strands again to form a firm
knot. Fig. 277 shows the method.
Tie together two more bunches, and two more, until all the bunches have
been used and you have made four knots (Fig. 278).
[Illustration: Fig. 278.—First row of knots in ball cover.]
[Illustration: Fig. 279.—The uncovered tether-ball.]
[Illustration: Fig. 280.—The second row of knots in ball covering.]
[Illustration: Fig. 281.—Covering of tether-ball almost complete.]
Fit the network over your ball (Fig. 279), allowing the covering to
remain on the ball while you tie the bunches of strands into another
row of four knots below the first row. Look at Fig. 278. The bunches
are all numbered, showing how they are to be united. Corresponding
numbers must be tied together: 1 with 1, 2 with 2, and so on. The
result will be like Fig. 280.
[Illustration: Fig. 282.—Tying final knot on the bottom of the ball.]
Keep the ball in the net and make another lower row of knots, which
will give you Fig. 281.
Now turn the ball over and tie two opposite bunches of strands up tight
and firm against the bottom of the ball (Fig. 282 A). Bring together
the remaining two bunches, B and C, and tie them over the knot A. Again
tie in a hard, firm knot; then bind all the strands together by winding
with a separate piece of string. Fasten securely.
It is necessary for the ball to be covered, so that it may have a
strong yet harmless ring at the top, for no metal may be used on the
ball. [Illustration: Fig. 284.—The tether-ball court.]
[Illustration: Fig. 285.—Cut a notch near the top of the pole.]
[Illustration: Fig. 286.—The tether pole is erected and ready for the
game.]
[Illustration: Fig. 283.—Mark out the tether-ball court in this way.]
Before erecting the pole you must mark out
=A Court on the Grounds.=
Drive a stick in the earth where you want your pole to stand. On this
stick tie a piece of string close to the ground; then sharpen the end
of another short stick and tie the other end of the string on the
second stick near its top; let the string measure two and one-half feet
from one stick to the other stick. Pressing the point of the second
stick slantingly against the earth, run it around and around in a
circle until a circular line is distinctly marked (Fig. 283), then you
can pull out the stake and dig a hole where it stood at the centre, and
plant your pole. Mark a straight line across the centre of the circle
and extend this straight line beyond the edge of the circle six feet
on each side. On opposite sides of each of the straight lines running
out from the circle mark a cross about two and one-half feet from the
circle and two and one-half feet from the line, F and F (Fig. 284). The
cross designates the spot where the player on either side must stand to
serve the ball when the game begins. The crosses are called service
crosses.
[Illustration: Fig. 287.—This is the first step in tying the ball to
the pole-string.]
[Illustration: Fig. 288.—Second step in tying ball to pole-string.]
[Illustration: Fig. 289.—The tether ready to play.]
The length of the tether pole you are to use depends upon your height
and that of your young friends. Make the pole long enough to allow
being planted sufficiently deep to be firm and steady and extend up
above the surface of the ground, vertically, to the height of about
three feet above your head. Cut a notch near the top of the pole before
erecting it (Fig. 285). Tie one end of a long string fast around the
notch. The string must be well waxed, twisted and doubled and waxed
again, and it must reach within two feet of the ground. Tie the ball
on the loose end of the string and erect your pole so firmly that it
will not even tremble when you bat the attached ball ever so vigorously
(Fig. 286). Fig. 287 gives the first step in tying the ball on the pole
string. D is the end attached to the pole, E is the loose end. Pass
E under D, then around back again over D and through the loop (Fig.
288); repeat this stitch over and over, drawing the string very tight
each time. Finish by tying the E end of the string on the D end in
several knots. Examine Fig. 289. It will give you the process of tying,
but the knots are drawn loose that you may see how each is made. Paint
a red ring around the pole just above the height of your head. Make
=A Pattern for the Rackets=
of a piece of paper twelve inches long and five and one-half inches
wide; fold the paper lengthwise through the centre and cut according to
curved line in Fig. 290. Open the pattern and lay it over a shingle,
the handle at the thickest part; draw a pencil line around it and
carefully whittle out the racket. Smooth down the rough edges with
sandpaper (Fig. 291). Make a second racket in the same way. Now let us
thoroughly understand the meaning of the divisions of the court before
attempting the game. Inside the ground circle no one shall go, for it
is not allowable at any time during the game to step on, or within, or
reach over the circle line on the ground surrounding the tether pole.
The straight line is used to divide the ground into two courts, one on
each side of the line, making a separate court for each player.
[Illustration: Fig. 290.—Paper pattern for the racket.]
[Illustration: Fig. 291.—The finished racket looks like this.]
The cross in each court is intended to mark the spot where a player
must stand to “serve” or strike the ball when the game first begins.
The player must stand on the cross of the chosen court while serving;
at other times during the game she may go any place within her court,
but she must stay in her own court on her own side of the line.
=The Object of the Game=
is for each player to strike the ball on the end of the string in such
a way as to cause the string with ball attached to wind completely
around the pole above the red band.
The game is intended for two players, and it begins by each one, in
turn, tossing a small stone or piece of wood as near as possible to the
tether pole while standing at a spot, previously marked, ten feet from
the pole. The girl landing a stone nearest the pole has first turn and
choice of courts; the other player must go in the court on the opposite
side and beyond the circle.
The server holds the ball in her hand and, striking it with her racket,
endeavors to send the ball winding around the pole, but as the ball
approaches the other player or opponent, the opponent tries to stop the
progress of the ball with her racket and send the ball back to wind
around the pole in the opposite direction. As the ball returns toward
the first player, a second time she endeavors to strike it and wind the
string her way around the pole. In this manner the ball is kept going
back and forth between the two players until one player succeeds in
winding the entire string and ball above the red band; this wins the
game, and the girl winning the greatest number of games out of eleven
wins the set.
While playing the game the ball may be struck but once at a time, no
player being allowed to have two or more trials during one turn.
The turns shall alternate between the two players.
If a player fails to send the ball into her opponent’s court on its way
around the pole, the failure is called a fault, and the player making
the fault loses her turn. The lost turn goes to the opponent, who then
stands on the cross in her own court and has a free strike at the ball.
If a player strikes the ball more than once during one turn, she is
guilty of a fault, and loses her next turn. If a player over-steps the
boundary of her own court in any way, she is guilty of a fault and
loses a turn. When the string winds around the handle of the racket, or
winds about the tether pole below the red band, the player so winding
the string commits a fault and loses a turn.
All faults give the opponent a free hit from the cross on her own court.
When grown-up girls and boys play tether-ball, the pole must stand nine
feet high when erected. The red band on the pole must be six feet above
the ground. The circle on the ground around the pole must be three feet
in diameter. The straight line dividing the courts must extend ten feet
outward from each side of the pole, making the entire length twenty
feet. The ball must hang, when at rest, two and one-half feet from the
ground.
This game may be played by sides, of equal numbers.
PART II
MINIATURE SEVEN WONDERS OF THE WORLD
CHAPTER XIX
THE PYRAMIDS OF EGYPT
IF you could have seen a certain little boy who lived so long ago that
it would make you dizzy to try to think back to the time when he ran
about playing and learning many things, you would have thought him a
queer looking little chap. He was not clothed like boys of our day, and
his skin was almost a copper color, resembling somewhat that of the
American Indian. His name was a very odd one, spelled C-h-e-o-p-s and
pronounced Ke-ops—possibly his comrades nicknamed him “Key” when they
played together on the sand. He had another name, Khufu, and it is hard
to tell which the boy liked better.
=Cheops’s Home=
was in Egypt, where there are more crocodiles than you can count, and
doubtless the little brown fellow, at a safe distance, enjoyed watching
the sleepy creatures while he vaguely wondered why crocodiles always
crawled up on the banks to lie so long and still in the sun. There were
many other strange animals and queer Egyptian things—unlike any you
have ever seen—that interested and delighted the child. When Khufu grew
to be a man he was
=A Great Monarch,=
an Egyptian King, and instead of watching crocodiles busied himself
watching and ruling a nation. The King did not bother greatly about the
house he lived in, but spent much energy and many years in building an
enormous pyramid, the largest ever erected at any time. When you grow
older you may possibly take a trip to Egypt and see this
=Wonderful Structure,=
built 900 B.C. It is made of huge stones, most of them thirty feet
long, five feet high and four or five feet wide. How do you suppose men
ever managed to lift such monstrous blocks to build the pyramid? Well,
they were obliged to labor very hard, for it took two hundred layers of
stones for the pile, and all the work was done with the utmost care and
precision.
You must also use care and precision in building your Egyptian
pyramids. Have them exact, and in place of the heavy stone blocks use
=Coarse Sandpaper=
If possible, get it of a tawny yellow hue, that the miniature pyramids
may be the same color as the originals, now that the outside casings of
the latter are off. King Cheops had an army of one hundred thousand men
laboring constantly during twenty long years to pile up his stones. You
can make your Khufu Pyramid in twenty minutes and need employ only ten
fingers instead of one hundred thousand men.
[Illustration: The Great Egyptian Pyramid Cheops, Made of Sandpaper.]
[Illustration: Fig. 292.—Cut one side of the pyramid of sandpaper.]
[Illustration: Fig. 293.—Gum narrow strips of muslin along the right
side edge.]
[Illustration: Fig. 294.—Join all the parts together.]
Cut one side of
=The Pyramid=
from sandpaper (Fig. 292); if the paper is not stiff enough, paste
it on a piece of cardboard; an old box-lid will do. Make two more
sides like the first and gum narrow strips of muslin along the right
side edge of each (Fig. 293). The dotted line shows the edge of the
pasteboard underneath the cloth. Join all the parts together by means
of these strips (Fig. 294). When making the fourth side, extend it
out into the projection (T, Fig. 294) and cut a corresponding slit in
the first side (U, Fig. 294). Place the pyramid down flat on a level
surface under a weight to dry. When ready remove it and cut off the
ends of the strips (S, V, O, Fig. 294); then bend the toy into shape
by bringing the first and fourth sections together and sliding T into
U (Fig. 294). The pyramid must stand erect and firm as in Fig. 295.
Remember that the four sides of the real pyramid are built upon
=A Perfect Square,=
and the base lines of yours should also form a true square. If you
can get some tough paper which will fold together in a flat crease
without breaking, you may make the pyramid of one piece instead of
four, by cutting it the shape of Fig. 296 and bending it evenly along
the dotted lines to form the four slanting sides. The loose ends must
be fastened together by means of extension and slit. If you have no
regular sandpaper make some. Give the paper a thin wash of glue, and
before it dries sprinkle it evenly with sand. An old kitchen pepper-box
filled with sand will make a fine sprinkler. If you cannot get the
pepper-box, take a small empty baking-powder can and punch tiny holes
in the cover by hammering a fine wire nail through the tin in many
places; use it as a sprinkler. You must prepare the paper and have it
evenly sanded before cutting out the design.
[Illustration: Fig. 296.—You may make the pyramid in one piece.]
In Egypt there are three famous structures in addition to the
Sphinx: the great pyramid, the middle-sized pyramid and the little
pyramid—like the big bear, the middle-sized bear and the little wee
bear in the story book. Each
=Pile of Stones=
was set up by a different king, and each one is named for the monarch
who built it. The largest is called for Cheops; the second is named
Chephren (pronounced Kefren) and the smallest has the longest name
Mycerinus (pronounced Me-ker-in-us). Make the colossal Cheops as large
as the dimensions of your paper will admit. The original is like a
mountain, measuring 746 feet each side of the square foundation and
reaching up 450 feet and nine inches in height.
King Chephren did not build his stones quite as high; he was satisfied
with a base, each side of which is 690 feet and nine inches and a
height of 447 feet and six inches. The last, King Mycerinus, must have
grown tired of playing with the stone blocks, for his pyramid is merely
a hill 203 feet high, with each side of the foundation 354 feet and
six inches, not nearly so tall as Cheops’s monument. Build your little
pyramid about half as high as the second one.
After making the Egyptian structures, naturally you might think that
they could be grouped as you pleased to place them, but these pyramids
are
=Different from Ordinary Toys=
and must always be fixed in certain positions. Stand them in a diagonal
row, each one facing exactly E. W. N. S. Fig. 297 gives their correct
positions. The first must stand to the northeast of the second, the
second to the northeast of the third, and the Sphinx east of the second
monument.
[Illustration: Fig. 297.—Stand the pyramids in a diagonal row.]
There, they are finished. Now that we have built the pyramids, let us
=Carve the Wonderful Sphinx=
with its body like a crouching lion and its head, like a man’s,
modelled from that of an ancient Egyptian. The original is an enormous
queer creature hewn from stone and made before the pyramids were built;
consequently, it is very old. It was on the plains more than 4,000
years before the birth of Christ. Little wonder that it now appears
worn and chipped and that, like your small sister’s doll its nose is
broken off.
[Illustration: Fig. 298.—Cut the Sphinx out like this.]
Begin carving the Sphinx by cutting a larger size from Fig. 298 of
stiff sandpaper. Mark the head with ink as nearly as possible like Fig.
299. Should you fail in this, find a print of the head in some old
paper or magazine, cut it out and paste it on Fig. 298. Bend the design
across the dotted line, and the Sphinx will be ready to crouch close
down on your sandy plain. There is no need of carving the body, because
that of the real Sphinx is entirely covered with sand, with only the
head above ground, and we want ours to look like the original.
[Illustration: Fig. 299.—The head of the Sphinx should look like this.]
In parts of Egypt the wind sweeps the sand in great masses against and
over all objects, so the people had their
=Buildings Made with Slanting Sides=
that the sand might slip off when it struck them. Try pouring some sand
on your pyramids and you will understand the reason of the peculiar
style of architecture. The land in Egypt on which the Sphinx and
pyramids stand is the plain of Gizeh; consequently, you must give that
name to the place where you set up your structures. The
=Tall Date Palm=
is a beautiful tree. The leaves are glossy and spread out in a graceful
crown; its stem is marked with old leaf scars, giving it a very
different appearance from the bark of our native trees.
[Illustration: Fig. 300.—Cut this from green paper.]
[Illustration: Fig. 301.—The tall date palm.]
[Illustration: Fig. 302.—Bend the stem where it joins the base.]
Cut Fig. 300 from light-weight green paper, and mark it as Fig. 301;
then cut Fig. 302 of very stiff pasteboard. Paste Fig. 300 on the top
over the letter P; next bend the stem where it joins the base (Fig.
302) and plant the tree almost any place on your plain of Gizeh.
[Illustration: Fig. 303.—Enlarge this camel.]
[Illustration: Fig. 304.—Make the saddle of writing paper.]
Several date palms, either grouped or scattered, would look well and
tend to relieve the severity of the landscape. A thin layer of sand
sprinkled over the plain, the stand of the Sphinx and the paper roots
or stands of the trees will give the place a realistic appearance, and
the scene will then be ready for the camels and Arabs. You may own
=As Many Camels as You Desire;=
all you have to do is to use the old Egyptian method of squares, as
explained in Chapter XIV, and it will enlarge the camel in Fig. 303;
then cut out the figure, lay it down flat on cardboard and run a lead
pencil around its edge. Cut out this second animal and repeat the
outline as often as you want camels. You will then have fine camels
which will stand firm on four feet and be strong enough to carry
burdens.
[Illustration: Fig. 305.—Fold the saddle in this way.]
[Illustration: Fig. 306.—Cut out the Arab like this.]
=Make the Saddle=
of writing paper (Fig. 304). Paint or mark it as in Fig. 308, fold it
like Fig. 305 and fit it on the camel’s back.
[Illustration: Fig. 307.—Fold together at back in this way.]
[Illustration: Fig. 308.—Arab on the camel.]
Cut out the Arab (Fig. 306), being sure to make the short slit in the
back of the drapery so that the man will sit well on the saddle. Along
the dotted lines place a strip of paste and fold the figure at the
back, pasting the two sides together at the centre (Fig. 307). When
dry mark as in Fig. 308 and mount him on the animal. As a harness tie
a string on the camel’s head, ornament it with tiny tassels (Fig.
309) and give the end of the string to the Arab, threading the string
through the hole in his right hand (Fig. 308).
[Illustration: Fig. 309.—Fasten a harness on the camel’s head.]
The trees, animals and men must be placed some distance in front of the
pyramids, that the latter may seem to be a long way off; otherwise,
all your objects will be out of proportion, because when a live camel
stands close up to the Grand Pyramid it looks very small. Have several
=Camels with Men Riding=
them, some free from harness and rider, others held with the halter by
Bedouins seated on paper rocks, which you can make by bending a piece
of cardboard the right height.
All the objects given can be enlarged to any desired size by the system
of squares shown in Chapter 14, and the entire Egyptian scene may be
taken up, each piece folded flat and placed in a large envelope when
not in use.
CHAPTER XX
THE COLOSSUS OF RHODES
PRETEND this is not the twentieth century, but 288 B.C., and that,
with many other young people, your home is hundreds of miles away on a
little island in the Mediterranean Sea called Rhodes. Here the weather
is sunshiny and bright, and children do not have to remain indoors
because of the rain, for on this delightful island the sun comes forth
in all its glory nearly every day during the year. The people think so
much of the sun that they erect statues to it, which they call “sun
gods”; they even have the head of a sun god on one side of their coins,
and on the other side they print a rose, for the citizens of Rhodes are
almost as fond of that flower as they are of the sun. Such quantities
of roses grow on the island that all girls can have as many as they
wish.
Now, we will play that
=Your Name is Chares=
of Lindus, that you are a great sculptor and can model all sorts of
wonderful and beautiful objects, and that the city of Rhodes has
commissioned you to make a gigantic bronze statue of Apollo, their
sun god. So you must pretend that you have built two small islands at
the entrance to the port of Rhodes, and that on each island you have
erected immense stone pedestals fifty feet high, so that your Colossus
need not be obliged to stand in the water. The statue must be made
to span the harbor with “legs wide apart,” as Napoleon stands in the
pictures of history.
Apollo must be very large, about one hundred and eleven feet high, in
order that every ship entering the harbor may pass between the legs of
this
=Towering Colossus=
as a tribute to the god; and when sailors approach the statue and pass
beneath it they will marvel at the beautiful figure of polished metal
and carry news of it all over the world.
[Illustration: Fig. 310.—Enlarge this pattern very carefully.]
Make the Colossus of bronze filled in with stone. Use stiff fine lawn
or fine batiste as the outer bronze covering of the statue; let the
cloth be perfectly smooth, without a wrinkle. Take raw cotton batting
for the stone filling. Enlarge very carefully on stiff, smooth paper
the pattern (Fig. 310); make it measure nine and one-fourth inches
from the tip-top line to the bottom line; then cut it out and lay the
paper pattern down flat over a double fold of the cloth. With a soft
lead pencil run a line on the cloth entirely around the figure; be
particular about having all the curves of the figure correct. Baste
the two layers of cloth together and machine-stitch them around the
outside edge of the pencil outline.
[Illustration: Fig. 313.—Your Colossus of Rhodes will look like this.]
=Do not Sew the Lines Straight=
where they should curve; remember this and devote the best of your
talents to the work.
Leave a half-inch opening at the shoulder of the upraised arm A (Fig.
311). Pull off a bit of the soft, raw cotton and force it in at the
opening A (Fig. 311) between the front and back of the figure. With a
smooth, slender, dull-pointed stick push the cotton well up into one of
the points surrounding the head, which represent the rays of the sun.
When you have the cotton in the tip of the point, pack in another piece
and continue to stuff the point with cotton until it is filled out
firmly. Stuff all the points and the head in the same way; then fill
the opposite shoulder and upper part of the arm which is held down at
the side, and next the uplifted hand and arm, and the body.
[Illustration: Fig. 311.—This is the way to build the Colossus.]
=Begin at the Sole=
of the left foot and stuff the lower half of the partially filled
hanging arm, then the lower part of the body and the entire length of
the leg, and fill in the other leg. Before stuffing the feet take two
strong, stiff hat-pins and break off the heads. If you bend the ends
in removing the heads, hammer them out straight again; the pins must
be perfectly straight. Very carefully work a pin, broken end first, up
each leg well into the body. The dotted lines along the legs in Fig.
311 represent the pins placed inside; the points of the pins extend
not less than an inch and a half below the feet B, B (Fig. 311). C, C
(Fig. 311) shows the raw cotton, which has not yet been packed into
the feet. Lift the figure by the two pin points, and if it is firm
and stiff finish stuffing the feet; if it bends when held by the pin
points, carefully twist out the pins and insert them again, adjusting
them until they keep the figure stiffly upright when held by the points.
Sew up all the openings and
=Cut Out the Statue,=
then slowly punch open the centre of the divisions between the rays
around the head and the uplifted arm, with the point of a blade of the
scissors. Enlarge each hole by twisting the pointed end of a penholder
around and around until the opening is sufficiently large. Turn the
Colossus over on the other side and carefully cut away the fringe
of cloth that surrounds each opening. In like manner open the space
between the body and the arm extending down the side.
When stuffing the figure, use the cotton soft; do not roll it into
hard wads, and be careful not to run the end of the stick through the
cloth covering and tear it; the same care must be taken when inserting
the pins up the legs. With thread and needle stitch an outline between
the fingers and around the lower portion of the raised hand. Filling
in the figure with cotton will give you an idea of the labor your
great-grandmothers expended upon their bedquilts when they stuffed
elaborate designs of grapes and vines on the coverings. Such quilts
are now highly valued. Give Apollo an
=All-over Coat of Varnish=
When the statue is perfectly dry bronze it with liquid bronze, and
if the small openings by the side of the arms seem partially to have
closed, twist the end of the pen handle through each one to enlarge the
spaces.
[Illustration: Fig. 312.—Cut a strip of cloth for drapery.]
Cut a strip of cloth according to Fig. 312 for drapery. Hold one end
against the figure at the side where the arm joins the body and fold
the cloth loosely across the front and around the back of the figure,
bringing the other end of the drapery forward through the space between
the arm and the body. Fasten it in place with a pin (Fig. 313). Bronze
the scarf so that no portion of unbronzed cloth is visible; then
allow the statue to dry, and with sharp scissors trim off any little
ravellings along the edges of the stitching. With pen and ink
=Mark the Features=
on the face. The chin being held up foreshortens the face; this means
that the position causes the features to look as if they were closer
together than they actually are, and that the eyebrows are nearer the
top of the head, which makes all the features seem higher than when
the chin is held level. Do not forget this while inking the face. Draw
rather high on the forehead two curved lines for the eyebrows; under
these mark two curved oblongs for the eyes, a curve for the nose, with
two elongated dots for nostrils, a larger curve for the mouth and a
little one for the lower lip. Practise drawing the face on a piece of
paper before attempting to ink it on the bronze head.
[Illustration: Making the Colossus of Rhodes]
Find or make two boxes of heavy cardboard each about two and a half
inches high, an inch and a half wide, and two and a half inches deep.
Open the boxes and give the outside a thin coating of glue. While the
glue is wet sprinkle with sand, and, when dry, replace the covers and
the boxes will be two stone pedestals for the statue.
=Erect Apollo=
upon the stone foundation by pushing the projecting pin points through
the tops of the boxes; work a cork on the end of each pin point, having
the cork large enough to rest firmly on the bottom of the box after
it is attached to the pin point; then, holding each cork in place,
fasten them in turn to the bottom of the box by pushing a common pin up
through the bottom of the box into the cork. Fig. 314 shows the inside
of the sanded box with the point of the hat-pin firmly planted in the
top of the cork, while the cork is held securely to the bottom of the
box by means of the pin run into it from the outside of the box. Apollo
must stand firm; the statue and foundation boxes should be so securely
fastened together as to seem made in one piece.
[Illustration: Fig. 314.—Fasten the statue’s feet to the boxes in this
way.]
There, the famous Colossus of Rhodes, one of the renowned Seven Wonders
of the World, is completed, and now that you have made the statue you
can never forget it. Pretend that Apollo towers in the air at least
one hundred and fifty feet when on the pedestals. Of course, such a
remarkable piece of sculpture could not be constructed in a moment’s
time, so make-believe that you, the sculptor, Chares, of Lindus, have
been twelve years at work on the wonderful bronze figure. Get a sheet
of blue tissue paper to serve as the water, stand Apollo on it, and
make two or three
=Tiny Paper Boats with Masts;=
set them on the water under the bronze statue that the vessels may be
sailing beneath the statue into the harbor of Rhodes (Fig. 313).
When you have erected the Colossus on a table and everything is ready,
invite the girls and boys in to see the work; tell them all about the
statue’s being one of the “Seven Wonders of the World” and what fun
you had making Apollo, and that you intend to make another of the
“Wonders,” which you will show to them.
Play that the Colossus has stood guard over the harbor of Rhodes for
fifty-six years; then make an earthquake
=Tumble it Down=
Double up your hand and give a hard knock on the under side of the top
of the table, exactly beneath the spot on which Apollo stands. With a
little aid of the imagination the noise produced will sound like the
rumbling of an earthquake, and the shock will cause the earth, or the
top of the table, to tremble and quake violently, and down will fall
the Colossus.
Make believe that
=The Statue is Broken=
in many pieces and that the people of Rhodes allow the fragments to lie
scattered on the ground, for you know that after the real Colossus had
been thrown down, it remained where it had fallen for many centuries,
until the year 656 A.D., when Rhodes was conquered by the Saracens, who
sold many of the pieces of the bronze sun god to a Jew of Syria Edessa.
This man had nine hundred camels carry the fragments on their backs to
Alexandria.
Nearly three centuries after the disaster, Pliny saw the pieces of
the Colossus still lying where it fell: “And even as it lies there
prostrate,” he reports, “it stirs to wonder. Few men can clasp its
thumb with their arms; the fingers alone are greater than most statues;
vast caverns yawn in its shattered limbs; within one sees blocks of
stone by whose weight the builder established it.”
=The Colossus=
cost about $500,000, which was obtained from the sale of the engines
of war presented to the Rhodians by a man named Demetrios Poliorketes,
after they had made him give up the siege of their city, 303 B.C.
There were several thousand statues in Rhodes but none so large as
the Colossus, which is said to have weighed 720,900 pounds. The
famous Laocoön and the Farnese Bull were both modelled in Rhodes. In
Roman time Rhodes was thought the fairest city in the world and is
described by historians as superior to all other cities of its era,
for the beauty and convenience of its ports, streets, walls and public
edifices, all of which were profusely adorned with works of art. Among
the students in its university were Brutus, Cassius, Cæsar and Cicero,
and the first Greek grammar, the one which became the model of Greek
and Latin grammars, was written in this city, so you find that Rhodes
has played a very important part in the world. But the island of Rhodes
is no more a powerful state; it is now a possession of Turkey, and
is ruled by a pasha, who holds office for life, governing also the
adjoining islands belonging to Turkey, and collects the revenues. We
will have interesting news from time to time from this same island, for
one of the newspapers has stated that a Danish scientific expedition
will go to discover all that remains of the Colossus of Rhodes. You
must be on the lookout, therefore, to know how much they find of the
statue and how the pieces look; then you will wish to compare your
Colossus of Rhodes with the facts stated and any pictures which may be
published on the subject to see how closely your Apollo resembles the
original “Wonder” of the world.
[Illustration: Cardboard Pharos of Alexandria]
CHAPTER XXI
THE PHAROS OF ALEXANDRIA AND THE MAUSOLEUM OF HALICARNASSUS
PLAY that you are Sostratus of Cnidus, a great architect, and that you
live in the city of Alexandria, on the coast of Egypt. Here there is
a King called Ptolemy, who desires you to erect a building different
from any ever known; he wants something grand, original and unique, an
immense structure adapted to an entirely new purpose. You must make it
of white stone and do your very best, for you are to have the honor of
building the “Pharos of Alexandria,”
=The First Lighthouse Ever Known=
Think what that means: When it is finished the people from other
countries will see your Pharos and wonder why it never occurred to
them to build a lighthouse, and they will hurry to erect similar
structures on their coasts, that sailors on all the seas may have
guides in times of danger and not be dependent upon bonfires burning
at the entrances of harbors. These chance watch-fires are now the only
kind of lighthouses the people have, so get ready your material and
make preparations for building, that you may help the poor sailors.
Remember, though, that we are living in the third century B.C., and
that we are not in the United States but on the island of Pharos.
[Illustration: Fig. 315.—Foundation of Pharos of Alexandria.]
Select the eastern extremity of the island for
=Your Building Lot=
It happens that your lighthouse will be on an island in the identical
Mediterranean Sea in which the Colossus was reared, only not on the
same side of the water. The island of Pharos has a neck of land, built
by men, which stretches through the water to the city of Alexandria,
making it easy to go back and forth for building material. You must
have plenty of ground space for your new style of beacon-light, because
the foundation is to be very large, about six hundred feet square, and
the building will be many stories, growing smaller and smaller in
size as the stories extend upward. The lighthouse must be five hundred
feet high, that the light may be seen miles out at sea.
[Illustration: Building the Pharos of Alexandria]
Stiff, white paper will answer for the stone.
[Illustration: Fig. 316.—Begin with a piece of paper like this.]
[Illustration: Fig. 317.—Run a line across one side.]
[Illustration: Fig. 318.—Make another line on the opposite side.]
=Cut the Foundation=
piece like Fig. 315 with a square centre measuring five inches along
the dotted lines on each of the four edges. Near two of the edges are
long slits (A A). Extending out from the centre square are the four
sides of the square, each an inch and a half in depth. On one end of
each side there is a flap, C, at the opposite end a slit, B, and two
of the sides have an extra extension, or bottom flap, D. Cut all of
the heavy lines and carefully crease the dotted lines. The best way to
make Fig. 315 is to cut a piece of paper eight inches wide and eleven
inches long (Fig. 316). Run a line lengthwise across one inch and a
half from the outer edge (Fig. 317); repeat the same on the opposite
edge (Fig. 318); then mark a line across each of the ends three inches
from the edge (Fig. 319). Make another line midway between this line
and the edge at each end, which will bring the division one inch and a
half from the edge E, E (Fig. 320). Crease all the lines, bending them
inward. Open out the paper after each folding, and when all lines have
been creased and opened you will find it very easy to mark and cut the
sides and flaps of Fig. 315.
[Illustration: Fig. 319.—A line across each end.]
[Illustration: Fig. 320.—Another line will divide the space at each
end.]
[Illustration: Fig. 321.—First story of Pharos of Alexandria.]
[Illustration: Fig. 322.—Second story of Pharos of Alexandria.]
[Illustration: Fig. 323.—Third story of Pharos of Alexandria.]
[Illustration: Fig. 324.—Fourth story of Pharos of Alexandria.]
Cut three more papers for
=The Next Three Stories;=
divide them with lines like Figs. 316, 317, 318, 319, 320, and cut them
like Figs. 322, 323, 324. The centres of these must each be smaller
than the last, measuring respectively four, three and two inches
square, but the depth of the sides remains the same. The size of your
second-story paper will be ten by seven inches, the third, nine by six
inches, and the fourth, having the bottom flaps, measure one instead
of one and a half inches, as do the others, requires paper seven by
five inches. Figs. 321, 322, 323, 324 are given to show the relative
sizes of the four stories when the paper is cut and laid out flat; the
diagrams are also intended to explain the cutting of the slits on the
centre squares. Notice that in the first story (Fig. 321), as in the
additional three stories, neither of the ends of the left-hand slit
reaches to the edge of the square, while the right-hand slit (H H, Fig.
321) touches at one edge. In the second story (Fig. 322) the right-hand
slit not only runs to the edge of the square, but there turns at right
angles and extends through the edge of the paper (G G). The right-hand
slit of the third story (Fig. 323) differs from the other two; it
runs within a short distance of the edge of the square, where it turns
at right angles, making a straight line to the adjoining side of the
square, there turning again at a sharp angle; the slit reaches entirely
through the edge of the paper H, H (Fig. 323). In the fourth story
(Fig. 324) the slits are cut like those in the first story I, I (Fig.
324), being the long slit. Fig. 325 gives the diagram for the fifth
story, which is the top one.
[Illustration: Fig. 325.—Fifth story of Pharos of Alexandria.]
[Illustration: Fig. 326—The pitch-wood fire.]
=This Room=
has large openings in the four sides to allow the beacon-light to shine
out into the dark night. The centre of the diagram (Fig. 325) is one
inch square; two of the sides have slits cut near each side edge of the
windows; on the other sides of the squares are extending flaps. Cut
all the heavy lines, and bend inward and crease all the dotted lines,
then put the top story together in proper form by sliding the four
side edge flaps through the slits, which will bring the edges of the
sides together, forming the four corners of the room. Bend back and
crease down the portion of the flaps which extend inside of the room;
do this to make the fastenings secure. Use strips of bright-red and
orange-colored tissue paper cut into fringe on one edge and twisted
together into a bunch, as in Fig. 326, for the
=Pitch-Wood Fire=
which is to gleam out upon the treacherous approaches to the harbor.
Having fuel for the make-believe fire, and white stone, or paper, cut
ready for building, your lighthouse may be erected in a few moments.
Pierce a small hole in the exact centre of Fig. 324 C, and bend down
the sides, allowing the side flap of each to extend around the corner
and on the outside of the adjoining side. Slip the end of each flap
through the slit which it covers, shown by B, Fig. 315, and bend back
the end that comes through on the inside; fit the end of the fire (Fig.
326) tightly into the hole C on the top of Fig. 324 and the work will
resemble Fig. 327. Through the two slits on each side of the fire slide
the two bottom flaps of the fifth or top story; flatten the ends of the
flaps up tight to the under side of the top of the fourth story. Be
sure to keep the front side of each succeeding story directly under the
front side of the one over it, that the steps may fit in place. Fasten
each lower story to the one above in the same way that you attached the
fourth to the fifth.
[Illustration: Fig. 327.—Fourth story with pitch-wood fire ready for
fifth story.]
When the Pharos is finished make the three flights of
=White Marble Steps=
leading to the top of the lighthouse. Cut the top flight (Fig. 328)
of stiff white paper. Let it measure one-half inch in width and four
and one-half inches in length, including the top landing. The side
extension K of the landing should be three-quarters of an inch long.
Fold the flat, straight strip of paper back and forth many times,
in fan fashion and crease firmly to form steps (Fig. 329). Slip the
extension K into the slit I on the right-hand side of the top of the
fourth story, and slide the bottom of the stairs into the slit H on
the left-hand edge of the third story. Make the next flight of steps
like the top ones, only longer—five and one-half inches in length
before being creased. Place the end of the platform extension over the
bottom of the top flight; run it through the slit H which turns at
right angles from the edge and fasten the bottom of the steps in the
right-hand slit edge (G) of the second story. Attach the third flight
of marble steps diagonally across the second story in the same manner.
The paper strip for these last should measure when flat seven inches in
length.
[Illustration: Fig. 328.—Top flight of marble steps.]
[Illustration: Fig. 329.—Top flight with steps creased ready to attach
to lighthouse.]
The real Sostratus of Cnidus had a
=Natural Island=
on which to erect his lighthouse, but you may have the fun of making
one for your Pharos. Find a box a little larger than the lighthouse and
cover it loosely with any kind of stiff cloth; have the cloth smooth
and tight only over the space on which the Pharos is to stand. On
all the other portions of the box the covering should be irregularly
placed, so that it will jut out in places; fold in others and have as
much the appearance of an immense rough rock as possible. If the box
is of pasteboard, sew the cover on with a stitch here and there; if of
wood, tack the cover on. When ready glue or
=Tack the Island=
on a foundation of wood or one of heavy pasteboard covered with
sea-blue cloth or paper to represent the waters of the Mediterranean
Sea; give the island a very light coat of varnish or glue, except the
central space reserved for the lighthouse. Be careful not to allow the
glue to dampen the cloth sufficiently to make it limp. While the glue
is moist, sprinkle generously with sand. When dry, glue on the Pharos.
Turn inward the down-hanging bottom flaps and glue them down securely
to the stone. Draw the statue (Fig. 330) on white paper and cut it out.
Then cut a slip up through the centre of its stand, bend the stand at
the dotted line, one half of it forward, the other half backward, and
paste the statue upright on top of the building.
[Illustration: Fig. 330.—Statue.]
If you would like to do just as the real architect Sostratus did, write
your name in this way:
SOSTRATUS OF CNIDUS TO THE RESCUING GODS, FOR THE BENEFIT OF
SAILORS
on one side of the first story of the Pharos; then paint over it with
white paint so that the name cannot be seen. After the paint has dried,
write over the white paint, “King Ptolemy.” Sostratus of old carved his
name deep on the stone wall of the building, then plastered over it
and set the King’s name in the plaster. Instead of the plaster you have
used paint.
Now place the Pharos in the bright sunlight; let it stand between
you and the light, with the corners of one of the front edges toward
you, and see how well it appears, and how closely the colored tissue
resembles real fire burning and shining brightly from the top openings.
Make tiny paper boats, not over an inch in length, with wee paper
sails, and scatter them on the make-believe water. The contrast in size
of the Pharos and boats will give a faint idea of the huge proportions
of the lighthouse. Call in
=Your Friends=
and let them enjoy the lighthouse with you; tell them they must pretend
that the structure is gigantic in size, that the laborers were paid
only twenty cents a day, and even with such low wages, the Pharos cost
over a million dollars. Explain to them how all lighthouses of the
Roman world were named Pharos, after your building, because yours was
the first and marks an epoch in the world’s history. Say to the boys
and girls that this white building you are showing them is one of the
Seven Wonders of the World, and beside being very beautiful, it is one
of the most useful of all the “Seven Wonders.” You must make believe
that your Pharos was completed in the year 282 B.C., and remained
standing sixteen centuries.
[Illustration: Fig. 331.—The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus.]
=The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus.=
Turn a square or nearly square pasteboard box upside down. On the
centre of the top glue a pasteboard cella made like the one in the
Temple of Diana, Chapter XXIII. Surround the cella with paper pillars
made in the same manner as those in Chapter XXIII, and glue them along
the four edges of the box. Cover all with a pasteboard ceiling glued
on; then make a pyramid of white pasteboard, similar to the Egyptian
pyramid, but let this one have a flat top. Fasten the pyramid on top of
the ceiling and paste four paper horses with chariot and driver on a
small box on top of the pyramid. Glue the structure on a board and make
two small boxes for each ground corner. Fasten these in place and paste
a paper horse with rider on top of each box, then your Mausoleum will
be finished (Fig. 331). The building should be white. The original was
a monument in memory of Mausolos, and was built by his wife Artemisia.
It stood in the city of Caria on the southwestern tip of Asia Minor in
the year 353 B.C.
[Illustration: Fig. 345.—Your Little Statue of Zeus]
CHAPTER XXII
THE STATUE OF ZEUS AT OLYMPIA
IMAGINE that you see before you a majestic white statue of gigantic
size, made of ivory, seated upon an immense throne of ebony, ivory,
gold and precious stones, and wearing upon his golden hair a crown of
enamelled green olive leaves. Over one shoulder is thrown a mantle of
glittering gold, embroidered in white lilies, which falls down over his
ivory body across the knees. In one hand he holds the winged figure of
Victory, in the other a long, slender sceptre crowned with an eagle,
and on his feet are rich golden sandals. There: Was not that worth
seeing? You have been looking at Zeus of Olympia, the most beautiful
and wonderful statue ever made by Phidias, who lived ages ago and
modelled Zeus about the year 439 B.C.
[Illustration: Fig. 332.—Make Zeus of a doll.]
You can make a little statue of Zeus, but you must pretend that
=You Are the Sculptor Phidias=
and that you are actually modelling the real giant statue. Make believe
that hundreds of elephant tusks have been sent to you from distant
regions to supply enough ivory for the work, and that you have an
abundance of gold, precious stones and ebony. Make Zeus of a doll (Fig.
332) five and one-half or six inches in length. Pry off its wig, then
give the doll a coat of varnish. Should the arms be flat, round them
out with a layer of raw cotton glued on and paint the doll white all
over. You must make the entire doll absolutely white.
[Illustration: Fig. 333.—Gild hair, beard and mustache.]
[Illustration: Fig. 334.—Gild hair at the back.]
[Illustration: Fig. 335.—Gold sandals on the feet of Zeus.]
[Illustration: Fig. 336.—Fold the paper for cutting crown of olive
leaves.]
[Illustration: Fig. 337.—The crown of olive leaves.]
[Illustration: Fig. 338.—Zeus is ready for his robe.]
[Illustration: Fig. 339.—Make the throne like this.]
=Gild Hair, Beard and Mustache=
on the head (Figs. 333 and 334). Gild the sandals (Fig. 335). Make a
crown of green tissue paper olive leaves. Fold and cut like Figs. 336
and 337, and fasten together on the back of the head with glue. Bend
and bind Fig. 338 into a sitting position with feet crossed; keep the
statue so until you glue it on the throne. Cut the
=Throne of White Cardboard=
(Fig. 339); the back, seat and front from top of centre ornament to
extreme edge of front are six and three-quarter inches. The seat is
one and one-quarter inch wide and two and three-quarter inches long.
The arms are one inch high and the top of arm half an inch wide; the
length of arm is an inch and a quarter. The front is one inch wide,
the feet G and F, on each side are half an inch long not including the
flaps. Length of back of throne is four and one-half inches. Each side
is an inch and one-quarter wide; their greatest length, counting the
entire length of one of the feet, is an inch and a half. The width of
back piece (Fig. 340), not including X and X, is two and three-quarter
inches. The sides X and X are one and one-half inch in length, as they
fit exactly the under side of the throne sides J and J.
[Illustration: Fig. 340.—An extra back-piece for the throne.]
=Lightly Score,=
then bend dotted lines and cut heavy lines. Bend inward the side part A
(Fig. 339) including D and L; then bend forward the top part B; slide
C through D from outside and bend inward the box-like arm at E. Bend
the other arm likewise. Bend backward the sides extending along the
dotted lines F F and G G, then the front along dotted line H; at the
same time slide I and I against the inner sides of the throne J and J.
Bend forward the back of the throne at K. Bring forward the arms and
run L and L through M and M, then pass L and L forward through N and N,
and slide them back through O and O. Bring the extension P, including
T and Q, across the front; run the tongue Q through R. Bend the left
side, passing S through T and U, which fits directly under T; S must go
through the two slits to the under side of the chair.
=Use the Blade of a Penknife=
in sliding tongues and flaps through slits and use it to straighten out
the points of tongues after they are through the slits. Bend down and
backward W and W (Fig. 340); then bend back X and X and fasten Fig. 340
to the throne by sliding V through Y on back of throne. Rest the seat
of throne over W and W and the sides J and J (Fig. 339) over X and X
(Fig. 340). Attach the throne to the
=Upper Dais=
by lower flaps. Fig. 341 shows the upper dais. The four sides are each
one inch high, its top is three and one-half inches on each of the
sides; all four extensions are one inch and a quarter long, tongues not
counted, and the four slits are each an inch and one-quarter from the
edges of the sides.
The two slits marked, one with a square, the other with a diamond, hold
the flaps of the footstool (Fig. 342) marked with same designs. In the
diagrams of footstool and dais the slits are marked with designs like
the designs on flaps and tongues, which slide through them.
[Illustration: Fig. 341.—The upper dais of the throne.]
Bring the two correct parts of the upper dais (Fig. 341) together by
matching them, as heart to heart, etc. Cut heavy lines, lightly score
and bend dotted lines of the upper dais and put it in shape. Make the
top of
=Footstool=
(Fig. 342) an inch and a half long and one inch wide; let the front,
back and sides each be half an inch high, the back extensions one inch
long, the two side flaps each one inch long, front extensions an inch
and a half long, not including tongues. Cut heavy lines, score lightly
and bend dotted lines and slip tongues through slits.
[Illustration: Fig. 342.—The footstool for the feet of Zeus.]
=Attach the Stool=
to upper dais by bottom side flaps; bend the flaps up flat against
the under part of the dais. In the same way fasten the throne on the
upper dais by sliding the four down-hanging extensions through the four
remaining slits on top of the upper dais marked with the same designs.
Bend and put together the lower dais (Fig. 343) and fasten the upper
dais on it. Make the lower dais five inches square on top and one inch
high. Glue the bottom flaps of lower dais down on stiff cardboard or
thin wood, in size about eight by ten inches.
[Illustration: Fig. 343.—The lower dais.]
=Inlay the Throne with Ebony=
by painting a black band across the top, down each side of the back and
down the front of the arms; keep the lines straight and neat. Gild the
centre and two side ornaments on top of the throne.
[Illustration: Fig. 344.—The lion panel for the throne.]
Trace the panel with the two lions (Fig. 344), gild the lions and gum
the panel on the front of footstool; then unbend Zeus and place him on
his throne, bringing him well to the front that his feet may rest on
the footstool. Fasten the statue firmly in place with glue and pins.
Pin one folded end of a strip of smoothly ironed starched cloth on the
back of Zeus, bring the cloth up over the left shoulder down across the
knees in folds like those in Fig. 345, the statue of Zeus, and with
glue and pins
=Fasten the Drapery=
loosely here and there, then gild the entire strip of cloth. Make the
sceptre of a headless hat-pin. Trace the gold eagle from Fig. 346; gild
and cut it out, then taking a stitch through the eagle’s body with the
hat-pin, slide the eagle up to the top of the pin and glue it in place.
Make Zeus grasp the eagle-crowned sceptre by binding his hand and
sceptre tightly together with thread. Add a little glue to make sure
they stick fast; steady the sceptre by running its point down into the
small needle hole that has been previously punctured in the dais, and
paint the sceptre white.
[Illustration: Fig. 346.—Cut out a gold eagle.]
Trace and cut out the
=Winged Figure of Victory=
(Fig. 347), glue it to the empty hand of Zeus and glue the hand tight
on the top of the arm of the throne. Then, to give an idea of the
immense size of the statue, place a one-inch doll in front of the
throne, glue a bit of drapery on it, and let the doll represent a
worshipper at the shrine of Zeus. Play that the ivory, gold and ebony
throne is glittering with precious stones and golden pictures from the
stories of the gods, and that the arms of the throne are supported by
two sphinxes.
[Illustration: Fig. 347.—The winged figure of victory.]
The real statue was in the chief temple of Olympia in Greece, where the
Olympic games were held every fourth year, and Zeus was so large, it
was said, that
=Should He Rise from His Throne=
he would lift the roof off the building; also, that the statue was the
supreme masterpiece of art. Everyone was anxious to see it. The people
believed that should one stand before the figure and gaze upon it, he
would immediately forget all worry and care. Possibly this charm may
be transmitted to your little Zeus. The next time you are worried, try
it, and see if you do not find yourself smiling as you contemplate the
little statues.
You might let your young friends come to see your Zeus for four
successive days and play that each day is a century, because for four
centuries the real Zeus attracted crowds of people, as it was held a
calamity to die without having seen Zeus of Olympia.
CHAPTER XXIII
THE TEMPLE OF DIANA AT EPHESUS
MANY white marble columns, twenty-eight in all, will be needed for
Diana’s Temple, but the columns are so easy to make, that you will
think it fun and wish more were required. Use stiff white paper,
pretending it is marble, and cut all the columns according to Fig. 348.
Keep strictly to the given dimensions, being careful to cut each column
exact and true and perfectly even. Slash up the bottom and roll the
entire column on a long pencil to make it curve, then take it off and
spread strong glue or paste along the marked edge and wrap the column
around a smooth, straight stick two inches in circumference, lapping
the unmarked lengthwise edge over the glue-covered edge of the column.
Press the edges together until they cling tight, then remove the
column; bend out the slashed bottom and roll the two top extensions as
in Fig. 349. Now
=Look at Your Column;=
see how gracefully the capital curves into a roll on each side,
reminding one of a blossom on the end of a stem. The column you have
made is called Ionic, and when you examine the columns or pillars of
buildings, you will easily recognize those with Ionic capitals. It
was principally because of the beautiful rolled capitals crowning its
columns that the temple of Diana was known as one of the Wonders of
the World, for it was the first structure that utilized this beautiful
style of architecture.
[Illustration: Fig. 348.—Cut all of the columns like this.]
[Illustration: Fig. 349.—The finished column.]
[Illustration: Fig. 350.—Ground plan of Diana’s temple.]
Find a piece of extra stiff white cardboard, nineteen by eleven inches,
and on it draw
=The Ground Plan=
of your temple (Fig. 350). The distance from the outside edge of one
ladder-like strip to the outside edge of the other is nine inches. The
strips are each sixteen inches long, two inches wide and divided into
six spaces. Make the spaces by folding a sixteen-inch strip of paper
exactly crosswise through the centre, then folding each half of the
paper three times. Place this strip along the edge of the sixteen-inch
lines on the ground plan and mark the spaces. Draw the oblong for the
cella on the centre (Fig. 350). Make it four inches wide and ten and
one-half inches long, leaving half an inch space between this oblong
and the inner sides of the ladder-like strips. Take one column at a
time and glue the slashed portion firmly on the ladder-like strip.
Begin at A, Fig. 350, and
=Erect the Outer Row of Columns,=
allowing each column to stand immediately along the inside of the outer
line AB, Fig. 350, with its exact centre over the short cross-line, as
in Fig. 351 (circles indicate columns). Each column must stand erect
and plumb. Place the next row of columns just within the long inner
line as in Fig. 352. In the same way erect the second double-columned
row on the opposite side of the foundation and glue together the sides
of the rolled capitals which touch at the top of each pair of pillars
on both rows.
[Illustration: Your Miniature Temple of Diana.]
[Illustration: Fig. 351.—Circle shows where to place first column.]
[Illustration: Fig. 352.—Position of first double row of columns.]
For the oblong centre,
=Make a Cella=
of a coverless white cardboard box minus the two ends (Fig. 353). Let
the cella be four inches wide, ten and one-half inches long, and five
and one-half inches high. When making any article of cardboard, always
lightly score every line intended to be bent; this is very important to
insure good work. Glue the cella or inner temple on the boundary lines
marked for the purpose on the centre of the foundation board, and glue
the outside of the two walls firmly to the edges of the rolled capitals
of the columns which touch them.
[Illustration: Fig. 353.—The cella.]
Cut the dais of cardboard five by three inches, and bend it like Fig.
354; have it three-quarters of an inch high and glue it on the floor of
the cella (Fig. 353) two inches from the back edge with its open sides
facing the walls of the cella. Trace on cardboard and
=Cut Out the Goddess Diana=
(Fig. 355). Bend the extension beneath Diana’s feet half forward and
half backward, then glue Diana on top of the dais in the centre at the
back.
[Illustration: Fig. 354.—Make a dais for Diana.]
Build on the ceiling and roof of the temple. Make the ceiling of
cardboard ten by sixteen inches, and cut the two gables, one for each
end of the roof, like Fig. 356, two and three-quarter inches high and
ten inches long, not counting the extensions on the three sides, which
must be bent and glued to the ceiling and roof. When the gables are
fastened securely on each end of the ceiling, cut the roof of white
cardboard seventeen by twelve inches, bend it lengthwise through the
centre and glue it on top of the ceiling by fastening the ends tight
to the upright gables. Allow the roof to extend a trifle beyond and
over the edges of the ceiling and also project half an inch over front
and back of the temple. Fit the roof-covered ceiling over the top of
the temple; see that everything is properly placed, then remove the
ceiling; drop a little glue on top of each roll of the capitals on all
of the pillars, again adjust the roofed ceiling and hold it steady
until it adheres firmly to the temple.
[Illustration: Fig. 355.—Statue of the Goddess Diana.]
[Illustration: Fig. 356.—The gable.]
Take a box eleven inches long, nine inches wide and three inches high;
turn it bottom side up and glue your foundation with its stately temple
securely on the box.
Use white passe-partout strips to fasten the box down tight on a
light-weight board, twenty-seven by sixteen inches.
Get medium light-weight, smooth white water-color paper, for making
=The Marble Steps=
on each of the four sides of the temple. Each flight must be made in
two pieces or sections. In all there will be eight sections. Cut paper
for the right-hand section of front steps nine and one-half by six
inches, the left-hand front section nine by six inches. Make the two
sections for back steps the same.
Cut the right-hand side steps in sections thirteen by six inches, and
twelve and one-half by six inches. Make the other side sections the
same.
Now be very careful in your measurements. If your measurements are not
exact your steps will not fit together. Divide each section of paper
lengthwise from side to side into half-inch spaces by drawing twelve
lines across, beginning half an inch from the top of the paper. This
will make thirteen spaces (Fig. 357) which, when creased backward and
forward, fan fashion, will form seven steps, counting top and bottom
landings or treads. Take the longest section of the front steps and
square off one end with lines half an inch apart and of varying lengths
running down across the first line (Fig. 357).
=Begin at the Top=
square, C, and draw a diagonal line across it; continue the diagonal
lines across every other descending square (Fig. 358). Cut away the
squared marked paper from the diagonal lines and the squares marked D
D D D D D in Fig. 358 as shown by heavy line in Fig. 359. This makes
the corner of the stairs. Lightly score all the horizontal lines, then
crease the steps backward and forward along the horizontal lines. Make
the other half section of front steps same as first, with the exception
that the corner must run out to the left instead of the right hand, so
draw the vertical lines (Figs. 357, 358, 359) at the left side of the
section and make that corner like the right-hand one, only reversed.
[Illustration: Fig. 357.—Vertical lines mark the end of the steps.]
[Illustration: Fig. 358.—Draw diagonal lines across.]
[Illustration: Fig. 359.—Cut away the squares as shown here.]
[Illustration: Fig. 360.—Brace for centre of steps ready to be cut.]
=Make a Brace=
for the centre where the two sections join, of a two and one-half
by three-inch piece of cardboard ruled in half-inch squares and cut
like the heavy line on Fig. 360. The steps on this must be cut still
deeper, each one-half inch, according to the heavy lines in Fig. 360,
and the extensions bent over at dotted lines as in Fig. 361. Fit and
glue the straight edge of the left-hand front section of steps on this
brace; have the brace flush with the edge of the steps. The brace
should not reach to the tops as the tread of that step lies upon the
foundation of the temple. When the brace is on, lap the edge of the
right-hand section over the left-hand section half an inch; glue the
two together, and the front flight of steps will be finished.
Make the back flight in like manner.
=The Side Steps=
have no square corner extensions like Fig. 359; the corners are cut
according to the heavy line in Fig. 358. Each of the side flights of
steps must have its central brace, the same as the front (Fig. 361),
and the two sections of each side must be joined together as you joined
the front flight.
[Illustration: Fig. 361.—The finished brace.]
[Illustration: Fig. 362.—Brace for corner of steps ready to be cut.]
[Illustration: Fig. 363.—Corner brace finished.]
Make four more braces, one for each corner, by dividing with horizontal
lines a piece of cardboard for each into six half-inch spaces, then
crossing these lines by vertical lines wider apart, the width being the
exact diagonal distance across a half-inch square, for they must fit
the diagonal edges of the steps at the corners of the four flights.
There must be five of these wider spaces (Fig. 362).
Cut along the heavy lines and bend down the point along dotted lines
(Fig. 363).
=Fit and Glue=
one of these braces at each end of the two side flights, then glue
the side flights on the sides of the temple foundation and the ground
board. Fasten the extensions D D D D D D (Fig. 359) of the corners of
front and back steps to the side steps by binding them over and pasting
them on the side steps. At the same time glue the front and back steps
on the temple foundation and ground board.
Set the temple up on a double pile of books placed on a table. The
temple must be elevated that your friends may look in at the open front
and behold the Goddess Diana. Your beautiful little classic temple will
give some idea of the grand original structure rebuilt in Asia about
356 B.C., whose marble columns numbering one hundred and twenty-seven,
were sixty feet in height and each the gift of a king.
[Illustration: Fig. 377.—The Hanging Gardens of Babylon You Can Make.]
CHAPTER XXIV
HANGING GARDENS OF BABYLON
MAKE believe that you are in a singular place; the city is square,
filled with square lots, on which are square houses, built of square
bricks, and, strangest of all, by the side of the king’s magnificent
square palace there stands a wonderful garden. The garden is also built
square in four mighty steps or platforms, one above the other, each
supported by arches.
These are the famous Hanging Gardens and you are in the ancient city of
Babylon where Nebuchadnezzar is king, and the time is about the year
580 B.C.
=The King’s Wife, Amytis,=
used to live in the mountainous country of Media, and when she married
and came to Babylon, she longed for the sight of a hill, so her
husband, King Nebuchadnezzar, had the Hanging Gardens built for her.
Pretend that
=The Queen Has Invited You=
to explore the gardens with her. Up, up the many flights of marble
steps you go to the tip-top of the beautiful hill, and standing there
by her side you have a splendid view of the surrounding flat country as
well as of the River Euphrates, which divides the city into two equal
parts, half on the east and half on the west side of the river. The
Gardens are built as high as the walls of the city (three hundred feet)
so you can readily look over the walls to the stretch of land on all
sides.
[Illustration: Fig. 364.—Cut a piece of pasteboard exactly square.]
If you will find some very
=Stiff Pasteboard=
we can go to work immediately and build toy Hanging Gardens. Cut a
piece of the pasteboard exactly square, measuring on each of the four
sides eighteen and one-half inches (Fig. 364). Of this we will make a
box-like foundation. Draw a straight line three inches from each edge,
as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 365. Take each line in turn and,
placing the edge of a straight ruler along it, score the line; that
means, run the knife-blade along the pencil line at the edge of the
ruler, cutting the pasteboard only partially through. As each line is
scored, raise the pasteboard and bend it _away_ from you along the
scored line, then allow the pasteboard to lie out flat again.
[Illustration: Fig. 365.—Mark it off like this.]
[Illustration: Fig. 366.—Cut like this.]
After all the lines are properly scored, cut the lines A A and B B
(Fig. 365) only far enough inward to meet the lines C C and D D (Fig.
365). Allowing a scant half-inch extension at each corner on the lines
C C and D D, cut the corners out as in Fig. 366. Bend the four little
extensions, then the sides E and F (Fig. 366). Cover the extensions
with strong glue and, bending the remaining sides G and H (Fig. 366),
glue the extensions, one at a time, securely on these sides.
=Hold Each Extension Tight=
to the side until it sticks fast. In this way the cardboard will be
made into a large, square box, which, when perfectly dry, must have
openings cut through all the sides that it may resemble closely the
foundation platform of the real Hanging Gardens.
=To Make the Twelve Openings=
on each of the sides of the foundation platform, cut a strip of
cardboard twelve and one-half inches long, and three inches wide.
Across the entire length of the strip draw lines half an inch apart,
as I I (Fig. 367). Cross these short lines by a long line running
lengthwise one inch from the top edge, J J (Fig. 367). Between this
line and the upper edge draw another line, running lengthwise, a
quarter of an inch from the line J J, as K K, Fig. 367. You now have
a strip of cardboard twelve and one-half inches long and three inches
wide. Across its entire length you have run two long lines, and across
the entire width many short lines.
=Begin with the Second Division=
from one end of the strip marked by the short lines, and make a dot
on the centre of the line K K (Fig. 367) where this line crosses the
second division. L (Fig. 367) shows the dot.
[Illustration: Fig. 367.—To make the twelve openings.]
[Illustration: Fig. 368.—Stand the box on one side.]
The diagram Fig. 367 is merely intended as a guide, giving only
portions of the twelve and one-half inch strip you are making. Begin at
the lower corner of the small division under L (Fig. 367) and draw a
curved line up to L; draw another curved line from the opposite corner
of the same division up to the same point. The two lines will
=Form an Arch=
as in M (Fig. 367). Skip one division and draw another arch on the
fourth division in the same way that you drew the arch of the second
division. In like manner draw an arch in the space between the lines K
K and J J of every other division on the strip. This will make twelve
arched divisions, leaving a solid division or pillar at each end of the
strip and also between each opening. With the point of your knife-blade
=Pierce Holes=
around the edge of all the arches as shown by the arch N (Fig. 367);
then with scissors cut the two sides of the second division up to the
arch and, holding the cut piece with your thumb and first finger, bend
it backward and forward until it breaks away from the strip, leaving
an arched opening. Smooth the rough edge of the arch by cutting away
the uneven particles. Cut all arches in like manner O O (Fig. 367) and
cut the least bit from across each end of your strip—not more than
a sixteenth of an inch—that the strip may slide inside of the box
foundation. The strip will be a guide in making all of the arches of
your Garden.
=Stand the Box on One Side=
and slip the strip inside of it; lay the strip down flat on top of the
lower side of the box (Fig. 368) and, holding it firmly in place, mark
the divisions and arches on the box by running a pencil line around
the edge of each opening arch of the strip. Remove the strip, and one
side of the foundation will be marked ready for the twelve archways to
be cut out. Repeat the markings on each of the four sides of the box
foundation, cut open the archways as you cut those in the strip and you
will have made a garden foundation like the first story of Fig. 369.
=The Babylonians=
used arches to support their enormously heavy structures because arches
are the strongest kind of foundations. Make another box of a perfect
square of pasteboard measuring thirteen and one-half inches on each
of the four sides, to form the second platform. Mark off the two and
one-half inch sides and your box will be eight and one-half inches
square, with a height of two and one-half inches. After the glue of
this is thoroughly dry, cut the arches. Use the same strip for a guide
that did duty for the first platform arches. Cut four arches from one
end of the strip and shave off the outside edge of the solid fifth
division which forms the end of the strip where the portion has been
taken off. The strip will now
=Fit in the Second Box Platform.=
When this is all complete, make a third box still smaller, of
pasteboard nine and one-half inches square. Measure off a two-inch
border on every side to form the sides of the platform. The box should
be five and one-half inches square and two inches high. Cut arches in
this platform with the aid of the same guiding strip of open archways
after first cutting off three additional openings to make it fit the
new box. You can also trim off the bottom of the pillars along the
lengthwise lower edge of the strip that it may be narrow enough to fit
more perfectly in the third platform.
[Illustration: Fig. 369.—Foundation of the Hanging Garden.]
Make the fourth and
=Last Platform=
of pasteboard six inches square. When finished let the box measure
three and one-half inches square and one and one-quarter inch high.
Two more openings must be cut from your arched strip to shorten it
sufficiently to fit in the last box platform, for this platform must
also be cut into open arches. Build up the four platforms one on top of
the other, as in Fig. 369.
Place the centre of each platform exactly over the centre of the one
beneath it.
=To Find the Centre=
take each platform in turn and lay a ruler very lightly on its top that
no pressure may bend the arched sides; draw a pencil line across from
the upper right-hand corner to the lower left-hand corner P, Q (Fig.
370); cross this line with another drawn diagonally across the square
from the other two corners R, S (Fig. 371). The exact centre of the
square top of the platform is at the dot T (Fig. 371), where the two
lines meet and cross each other. Find the centre of each platform and
very carefully puncture a hole through the centre with a coarse darning
needle. You will have use for these centre marks when fastening the
platforms together.
=The Four Different Floors=
of the original Gardens were supported by pillars and arches, as you
have made yours, only the real platforms had more pillars under them.
Between the pillars which formed the square of the first lower platform
twelve arched passageways ran, entering from each of the four sides
and dividing the ground beneath, equally between pillars and passages.
There were rows and rows of pillars and arches that gave the effect of
a honeycomb with open-sided cells. The arches proper were formed at the
top of the many pillars which supported them, and all were built of the
=Queer Square Bricks=
which had the king’s name stamped on them, with other writing in a
square bounded centre. The bricks were twelve inches long, twelve
inches wide, and three inches thick and looked like Fig. 372. You must
pretend that your pasteboard pillars between each opening are made
of just such bricks and that there are many, many more brick pillars
throughout the entire space beneath the floors.
[Illustration: Fig. 370.—To find the centre.]
[Illustration: Fig. 371.—Cross this line with another.]
[Illustration: Fig. 372.—A Babylonian brick.]
=Cut Light-Green Tissue Paper=
into strips wide enough to extend a trifle over the edge of the
platforms while reaching in across the top far enough to have the inner
edge of the strip covered by the platform resting over it. The tissue
paper should form a flat green band bordering the entire top ledge of
the first three platforms.
Cover the entire top of the fourth and last platform with the green
tissue paper.
Before you can
=Plant the Shrubs and Trees=
you must dig holes in the earth for their roots. Take each platform in
turn and, with a coarse darning needle, puncture holes entirely through
both green paper and pasteboard. Let the holes be in straight rows;
make them on the projection or step of each platform, midway between
the extreme edge and the walls of the next higher story. On the first,
second and third platforms the holes should be an inch and a half
apart. Pierce three holes through the top of the fourth platform, one
at the back on the extreme left-hand corner and one on each side of
that hole, but much nearer the centre.
=You Will Need Ground=
upon which to erect your Hanging Gardens. Get a piece of heavy, stiff
pasteboard which will not bend, or a light board about seventeen
inches wide and nineteen inches long. Cover it with green blotting
paper, allowing the paper to extend over all the edges. Paste the four
turned-over portions of green paper on the under side of the board or
ground.
Now build up the Gardens. First
=Stick a Long Hat-Pin=
through the centre of the fourth or top platform. Then run the hat-pin
through the centre of the third platform; slide this up next to the
top platform, keeping the sides straight and parallel. Add the second
and the first platforms to the others, running the pin each time
through the centre of the top of the platform. Place the structure on
the ground with one of its sides flush with—that is—along the edge
of the ground, and its adjoining side two inches from the adjoining
edge of the ground, leaving about five inches of ground in front and
four inches of ground at the other side of the Gardens. Then stick
the hat-pin firmly down into the ground and leave it there until the
structure is all glued together. In fitting the building on the ground
be certain that it is turned so that the back of the top platform on
which you have pierced the hole at the extreme left-hand corner lies
along the back edge of the ground O (Fig. 373).
[Illustration: Fig. 373.—Place the building on the ground in this
position.]
[Illustration: Fig. 374.—Paste the strip to the side of one box and the
top of another.]
=To Bind the Different Parts=
of the structure firmly together and fasten the whole building to the
ground, cut sixteen strips of white writing paper two inches long and
a scant half-inch wide; fold each strip crosswise through the centre;
then, paste half of one strip on the fourth platform upward from the
right-hand lower corner; bring the free half of the strip out flat on
top of the next platform, which extends immediately beneath it, and gum
down securely (Fig. 374). Bind the other three lower corners of the top
platform down to the top of the next platform in the same manner; then
fasten the third to the second and the second to the first platform,
also the first platform to the ground. When the paste is perfectly dry,
cautiously remove the hat-pin.
[Illustration: Fig. 375.—Cut the first flight of steps like this.]
=Build the Four Flights of Steps=
from stiff white writing paper. Cut Fig. 375, for the first flight of
steps; make them exactly according to the dimensions or sizes of the
different parts given. You will find that the stairs themselves C, C
(Fig. 375) must be four and one-eighth inches long and an inch and
one-eighth wide. The height of the side of the stairs D, D (Fig. 375)
is three inches. The length of the bottom of the side of the stairs D,
E (Fig. 375) is four inches. The top of the side of the stairs D, F
(Fig. 375) is one inch, and the width of the back, one and one-eighth
inch; this should be the same width as the stairs C, C (Fig. 375)
because it is intended to fit on and over the flap H that turns down
from the top landing and is the same width as the stairs C, C (Fig.
375).
[Illustration: Fig. 376.—Your stairs will stand alone.]
[Illustration: Making Our Hanging Garden.]
The height of the back is three inches. The
=Top Landing of the Stairs=
(L, Fig. 375) is one inch by five-eighths of an inch. Cut all of the
heavy lines of the stairs and bend backward all of the dotted lines
except that along the flap G at the bottom of the side which must be
bent forward that it may lie flat on the ground. Open out the stairs
flat and with pen and ink draw straight lines from side to side of C
C; the lines will serve for steps. In like manner make lines on each
of the three other flights of steps. Bend down the two flaps H and J
on the top landing (Fig. 375), then the line F E along one edge of the
steps; turn outward the flap G, bend down the line F L at the head of
the stairs, which will bring the flap J under the top of the side D F.
Turn back the line D D that the back may cover the flap H. Crease
down the flap K tight and flat; let its top M extend around and lie
flat against the under side corner N of the flap H, and your flight of
stairs will be able to stand alone (Fig. 376).
=Gum the Extension=
of the top landing securely along the front edge of the extreme
left-hand corner of the first story of your Gardens and fasten the
flap G to the ground. Make three more flights of stairs in the same
way, only let the second flight run in the opposite direction from the
first, as shown in Fig. 377. To do this, simply bend the dotted lines
forward instead of backward, except the lower flap at bottom of the
side, which should be bent backward; this method of folding turns the
stairs around, bringing the under side of the paper topmost after the
stairs are bent into shape. Let the second flight of stairs measure
in length from C to C (Fig. 375) three and one-half inches, in width
seven-eighths of an inch, height from D to D two and one-half inches,
length D E three and one-eighth inches, length of top of side D F
three-quarters of an inch, height of back two and one-half inches,
width of back seven-eighths of an inch; top landing, three-quarters of
an inch by three-eighths of an inch.
Fasten the
=Second Flight of Stairs=
at the right of the second story as you glued the first on the left
hand of the first story. Crease the third stairway in the same way as
the first, for it is to run in the same direction. Let these stairs
measure in length from C to C (Fig. 375) two and seven-eighths inches,
in width five-eighths of an inch, height from D to D two inches, length
D E two and one-half inches, top of side D F half an inch, height
of back two inches, width five-eighths of an inch; the top landing
one-half inch by one inch. Fasten this stairway at the left-hand corner
of the third platform.
[Illustration: Fig. 378.—Cut out the stone bulls by this pattern.]
Make the fourth and last stairs turn in the same direction as the
second. These are the smallest: Length from C to C (Fig. 375) one and
three-quarters inches, width three-eighths of an inch, height from
D to D one and one-quarter inch, length D E one and one-half inch,
top of side D F one-quarter of an inch, width of back three-eighths
of an inch, height of back one and one-quarter inch. Top of landing
one-quarter of an inch by five-eighths of an inch. Bend into shape and
glue this flight of steps at the right-hand corner of the top platform
of the Gardens.
Now go to work on the
=Stone Broad-Fronted Bulls=
which are to stand in pairs at the landing of each stairway.
Make Fig. 378 of white paper and with ink draw the wings, face and
hat like Fig. 379. Then cut out the strange animal, part bull, part
bird, and part man. Bend at dotted line on top of wings (Fig. 378);
bend outward all four of the extensions under the hoofs and stand the
creature at the top of the first stairway. Paste the extensions out
from the hoofs firmly to the platform. Carve or cut out seven more
stone bulls and place two at the head of each stairway as in Fig. 377.
Gum each stone bull securely in place. One more bull is needed which
must stand up high on top of a stone shaft (Fig. 380). Height of shaft
is three and one-fourth inches, not counting flaps or bull; width of
same pattern at top fully two and one-half inches, width at bottom
three and one-fourth inches. Height of bull from top of wings to bottom
of feet one and one-fourth inch. Mark and fold it along dotted lines
like Fig. 381, sliding the two flaps P P (Fig. 380) through the slits Q
Q; crease the flaps backward to form paper hooks that hold fast. Turn
out the extensions R R, which must be pasted down flat near the right
hand on the back part of the top of the third story. The shaft will
extend up high above the fourth story, as in Fig. 377.
[Illustration: Fig. 379.—The stone bull who will guard your stairway.]
[Illustration: Fig. 380.—The bull on the shaft is made in this way.]
[Illustration: Fig. 381.—Stone shaft and bull.]
[Illustration: Fig. 382.—Use writing paper for the statues.]
[Illustration: Fig. 383.—A tree in the garden of fringed paper.]
[Illustration: Fig. 384.—A palm tree.]
[Illustration: Fig. 385.—A tree in the garden.]
=Make Two Statues=
a little larger than diagram and glue one at the right-hand corner of
the front of the first platform, and the other on the right-hand corner
of the back of the first platform as in Fig. 377. Use two pieces of
white stiff writing paper for the two statues (Fig. 382). Cut all the
heavy lines and bend back all the dotted lines except the extensions
V V; bend these forward. Slip the flap S through the slit T; bend down
and fit in the top U; then glue the statues in place. Color all of the
white extensions of stairs, bulls, and statues with green paint or with
green tissue paper pasted over them.
[Illustration: Fig. 386.—Make fringe like this.]
The Garden will now be ready for
=The Shrubbery=
Use different tones of green tissue paper for the three varieties of
trees (Figs. 383, 384, 385). Make several trees of each kind and have
all of the same variety, made of one tone of paper. For Fig. 383 fringe
the paper as in Fig. 386; have four layers of paper for the fringe and
one layer for the unfringed part; begin with the plain strip and roll
it around and around a slender stick (Fig. 386). Bend the top over to
prevent its unrolling (Fig. 383).
=Plant This Tree=
in the hole you dug for it on the first platform just back of the front
statue (Fig. 377); alternate these trees with the palm trees, extending
the line entirely around the top of the first platform of the Gardens.
Fig. 387 gives the pattern for the palm; cut the six leaves and strip
all in one piece, fold each leaf lengthwise through the centre W, and
fringe as in X; unfold the leaves and double the strip on dotted line Y
and roll it on a slender round stick as you did the first tree.
[Illustration: Fig. 387.—Pattern for the palm tree.]
For the other tree use six layers of fringe which you have cut like
Fig. 386, and afterward crimped with a blade of the scissors. This time
begin at the top of the stick instead of the bottom and with the narrow
top of the fringe roll the paper down to the pointed end of the stick.
This gives the tree a bushy foliage (Fig. 385).
[Illustration: Fig. 388.—Cut circles of green paper.]
[Illustration: Fig. 389.—Fold and cut like this.]
[Illustration: Fig. 390.—The circle cut and opened.]
Cut circles of dark olive-green paper to
=Make Plants=
like Fig. 388. Fold the circle evenly four times and cut like Fig.
389, stopping at dotted line before reaching the centre. Unfold and
the papers will resemble Fig. 390. Hold each of these at the centre,
and twist a few times to make the stems (Fig. 391). Plant the shrubs
between the trees on top of the second platform. Cut a number of light
sage-green tissue paper shapes like Fig. 392 for plants. Holding each
of the plants at the centre, crease by drawing it lightly through the
fingers of the other hand, twist the stems (Fig. 393) and plant between
trees.
[Illustration: Fig. 391.—A shrub for the garden.]
[Illustration: Fig. 392.—This is for a plant.]
[Illustration: Fig. 393.—Twist the stem of the plant.]
[Illustration: Fig. 394.—In formal rows.]
=Arrange Your Plants=
in precise formal rows, a tree then a plant, next a tree and so on
allowing a tree in a higher platform to come between two plants in the
platform beneath as in Fig. 394.
Make vines of rather long, very finely cut and crimped tissue paper
fringe; paste the vines between the row of trees on the first platform,
allowing portions of the vine to hang over the edge. Make a number of
palm trees and plant the roots or ends of the tree trunks in button
moulds. Glue the moulds at equal distances apart and in a straight line
along the ground on the three sides of the gardens.
Play that in the highest platform of the pyramid
=An Engine Pumps up the Water=
from the river Euphrates, that runs along below on one side of the
structure, to supply the garden with fountains which you can make
believe are sparkling and dashing here and there among rare shrubs
and many-colored, fragrant flowers. You must pretend that the spaces
between the arches on the different platforms are made into magnificent
apartments and banquet rooms and below in the vaulted corridors the
money changers and politicians ply their trades, while outside on the
terraces are to be found the simple, sweet pleasures of wholesome
Nature.
PART III
THINGS TO MAKE FOR HOME, GIFT DAYS, AND FAIRS
[Illustration: The Tissue Paper Christmas Greens Look Very Natural.]
CHAPTER XXV
NEW CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS
WREATHES of the spiked leaf holly, branches of white berried mistletoe
and yards of evergreen rope can be made of tissue paper to look so
natural it is difficult to believe Mother Nature did not provide the
material.
=Paper=
enough for the making of Christmas greens to decorate an ordinary room
quite lavishly may be bought for fifty cents or less. One sheet of
tissue paper will make thirty-two holly leaves. One sheet of tissue
paper will make a large bunch of mistletoe and one sheet of tissue
paper will make one yard of evergreen rope. Complete success in this
work depends largely upon the paper used and great care must be taken
in selecting the colors. The quality should be good, else it will lack
the necessary crispness and staying properties.
For the holly and evergreen choose a dark moss-green paper, which is a
yellow green with no tinge of blue. For the mistletoe you must have a
light gray-green, also of a yellow tone, a light cardinal red for the
brilliant holly berries, white for the waxy mistletoe berries and dark
gray-brown for holly stems. One sheet each of the red and white paper
will probably be sufficient for all the berries you will want, and one
sheet of gray-brown will answer for the stems. Besides the paper you
must have a spool of fine wire or coarse thread for winding and some
natural bare branches or twigs, or a roll of heavy bonnet wire for
stems.
[Illustration: Fig. 395.—Cut a sheet of tissue paper in half.]
[Illustration: Fig. 396.—Fold the half sheet of paper.]
[Illustration: Fig. 397.—Fold again.]
Begin with the
=Holly=
and cut one sheet of the dark moss-green tissue paper in half (Fig.
395). Fold the half sheet according to the dotted lines through the
middle and you will have Fig. 396. Fold Fig. 396 through the middle as
shown by the dotted line and there will be Fig. 397. Bring the two ends
of Fig. 397 together, folding at the dotted line, and it will give you
Fig. 398. Again fold along the dotted central line and you will have
Fig. 399. Fold through the middle, along the dotted line, for the last
time and there will be an oblong, one and three-quarter inches wide by
five inches long.
[Illustration: Fig. 398.—Bring the ends together.]
[Illustration: Fig. 399.—Fold once more.]
[Illustration: Fig. 400.—The paper is folded and leaf cut out like
this.]
[Illustration: Fig. 401.—Sixteen leaves like this.]
[Illustration: Fig. 402.—Begin at the top to twist the points.]
[Illustration: Fig. 403.—Pinch the underside to form the mid-rib.]
[Illustration: Fig. 404.—The finished leaf will look like this.]
With a soft lead pencil draw the outline of a half holly leaf after the
pattern (Fig. 400), the fold of the paper forming the straight edge of
the outline. Cut along the pencil line, open the fold and there will
be sixteen leaves like Fig. 401. The dotted line running lengthwise
through the middle of the leaf shows where the paper was folded. Have
a damp sponge ready and slightly moisten the fingers of your right
hand on the sponge—never with your lips in handling green paper. Take
one leaf in your left hand and with the moist fingers of your right
hand twist each point of the leaf into a sharp spike, beginning at the
top of the leaf as in Fig. 402. Twist the lower part of the leaf into
a stem (Fig. 403) and, refolding the leaf down the middle, pinch the
underside of the fold to form the mid-rib, bringing your two hands
together and puffing the paper a little as you do so (Fig. 403). The
finished leaf should resemble Fig. 404. The crinkled appearance given
by pinching and twisting adds much to the natural look of the leaf. You
may vary the size, making some leaves smaller than others, but keep as
nearly as possible to the pattern, for experiment has proved it to be a
good one.
Before putting your leaves on the stems make the
=Holly Berries,=
for they must be fastened on first.
[Illustration: Fig. 405.—Place the cotton in the centre of the paper.]
[Illustration: Fig. 406.—Draw the paper around the ball.]
[Illustration: Fig. 407.—Wrap the three stems together.]
[Illustration: Fig. 408.—Cut off the ragged ends.]
[Illustration: Fig. 409.—Fasten the berries to the end of a twig.]
[Illustration: Fig. 410.—Beginning to wrap the stem.]
[Illustration: Fig. 411.—The stem is wrapped with paper.]
[Illustration: Fig. 412.—Fasten the leaves to the stem.]
From your red tissue paper cut a number of pieces two and a half inches
square, make a little ball of raw cotton a trifle larger than a good
sized pea and place it in the centre of one of the squares of paper
(Fig. 405). Draw the paper up and around the ball, completely covering
it, then twist the remainder of the paper into a stem (Fig. 406). Make
three berries, twisting their stems as tightly as possible and bunch
them. With your fine wire or thread, wrap the three stems closely
together (Fig. 407) and cut off the ragged ends (Fig. 408). Take up a
natural branch and wrap the stems of the berries to the end of a twig
(Fig. 409). Cut a strip of the gray-brown paper half an inch wide and
about four inches long, and, beginning close to the berries (Fig. 410),
wrap the stem with the paper as shown in Fig. 411. Fasten three leaves
to the stem close to the berries as in Fig. 412, and place other leaves
about one inch apart, alternating first on one side then on the other
side of the stem (Fig. 413).
[Illustration: Fig. 413.—Place the other leaves about one inch apart.]
When the holly is to be made into
=Wreaths,=
the branches should not be large and a small wooden or wire hoop should
form the foundation of the wreath. Upon this hoop the small branches of
holly must be bound, overlapping one another and extending out beyond
the hoop to form a generous wreath. A bright red ribbon bow, fastened
at the top of the holly wreath, gives it a still more realistic effect.
[Illustration: Fig. 414.—Bring the two ends of the strip together.]
[Illustration: Fig. 415.—Cut out the mistletoe leaf in this way.]
[Illustration: Fig. 416.—The twin leaves.]
=For Mistletoe=
cut the gray-green tissue paper into pieces eight and one-half inches
long by one and a half inches wide. Bring the two ends of a strip
together, folding through the middle, to form the oblong (Fig. 414).
Fold Fig. 414 lengthwise through the middle along the dotted line and
on it draw the outline of half of a mistletoe leaf, with the straight
edge on the long fold and the stem end on the short fold of the paper
(Fig. 415). Cut along this outline, open the folds and you will have
twin leaves like Fig. 416. Bring the two open leaves together and twist
the connecting part into a stem like Fig. 417. Make a number of white
mistletoe berries according to the directions given for the red holly
berries and wrap them together in pairs; then nestling a couple close
in between two leaves (Fig. 418) wrap them on the stem. The
=Stems=
of the mistletoe should be very irregular and branching, and it may be
necessary to make them of bonnet wire in order to produce the proper
shape.
[Illustration: Fig. 417.—Twist the connecting part into a stem.]
[Illustration: Fig. 418.—Nestle a couple of berries in between two
leaves.]
Fig. 419 shows the branching irregular stem and the position of leaves
and berries. Some of the twigs should be left bare, as they are so
often on the natural mistletoe branch.
Fasten on the leaves and berries by wrapping with fine wire and then
cover the stems with strips of the gray-green tissue paper, wrapping it
as directed in making the holly branch. The only difference being that
while the holly stem is wrapped with paper only far enough to cover
the red stems of the berries and the leaves are put on afterwards, the
mistletoe leaves must be fastened on with the berries and the entire
stem then covered with the paper. You will remember that the stems of
the natural mistletoe are as pale in color as the leaves, so no dark
wood must show in your branch.
[Illustration: Fig. 419.—Put the leaves and berries on the stem.]
Hang your bunch of mistletoe from the chandelier and you will find that
no one will stop to examine it too closely, and the Christmas games can
be played just as merrily under the paper as under the real mistletoe.
There now remains but the
=Ropes of Evergreen=
to complete the time-honored Christmas decorations.
[Illustration: Fig. 420.—Cut this oblong into a fringe.]
[Illustration: Fig. 421.—Begin the evergreen rope in this way.]
[Illustration: Fig. 422.—The evergreen rope is made like this.]
Fold a sheet of the dark moss-green tissue paper crosswise, then fold
again and you will have an oblong a little less than four inches wide
and the length of the paper’s width. Press the folds down flat and
cut them open with a paper knife, then, keeping the strips together,
fold crosswise through the middle; again fold crosswise through the
middle and there will be an oblong like Fig. 420. Cut this oblong into
a fringe, bringing the slits to within one inch of the top edge and
making each strip not more than one-quarter of an inch wide (Fig. 420).
Unfold and separate four pieces to loosen the fringe, then place the
top edges of the four pieces together once more and, taking a long
piece of strong twine, curl the right hand upper corner of the heading
of the fringe over the twine near the end (Fig. 421). From this start
to wrap the fringe around and around the twine forming the rope shown
in Fig. 422.
When you have almost reached the ends of the first four strips of
fringe, paste the ends of the headings of four more strips on to the
first and continue to wrap as before. In this way you may make your
evergreen rope as long as you wish.
There is just one word of caution which must go with the assurance of
the real beauty of these Christmas decorations and that is: Remember
to hang your wreaths and ropes where they will not be exposed to
the flames of gas, candle or lamp, for while they are scarcely more
inflammable than the natural greens, it is not well to take any risks
and neither is it at all necessary. With this in mind your rooms may
be inexpensively, prettily and safely decorated with the tissue paper
Christmas greens.
CHAPTER XXVI
DOLL HOUSE OF PASTEBOARD
COUNTRY houses are very attractive, even the toy ones possess a certain
charm. Here is a great, big, beautiful, country doll house for the doll
people to live in. It has window shutters to open and close, doors that
will open and shut, and the doors have little door knobs like real
ones. Each room has a different, colored frieze around the walls, and
the floor of the living-room is covered with a handsome rug. All the
windows are curtained, and the house is ready to furnish. You can make
any and all kinds of furniture with empty spools of different sizes and
pieces of pasteboard cut in various ways. As a hint, just to show how
easily the furniture is made, glue a round piece of pasteboard on top of
=A Large Spool=
and you will have a pretty little table; paint it a red brown to
resemble mahogany. If you need more suggestions, spool furniture may be
found in “What a Girl Can Make and Do.”
[Illustration: Fig. 423.—First pasteboard box for doll house.]
[Illustration: Fig. 424.—Front and right-hand side cut from box.]
[Illustration: Fig. 425.—Second box with corners left on front.]
To make the doll house. Get three stiff pasteboard boxes about fourteen
inches long, thirteen inches wide and six and one-half inches high
(Fig. 423). Cut the thirteen-inch front and the right-hand side from
the first box (Fig. 424). Take the second box and lay the fourteen-inch
front down flat on top of an old, common wooden table which can be used
without fear of injury, and with the aid of a ruler, draw two straight
lines across the front on the inside of the box; let each line be about
one and one-fourth inch from the side. Keep the box as it is while you
score the lines with a sharp penknife; then cut out the front, leaving
the upright pieces to form the corners at each end (Fig. 425). Cut
the thirteen-inch front and left-hand side from the third box (Fig.
426). Mark two high windows (Fig. 427) on the inside, near the front
of the left side of the first box (Fig. 424). Make each window two and
one-half inches high and two and one-half inches wide, leaving a space
of three-fourths of an inch between them. Lay this left side of the box
flat down on the table and use the sharp penknife to score the dotted
lines and cut the heavy lines. Always cut and score from the inside of
the box, otherwise the shutters will turn inward.
[Illustration: Fig. 426.—Third box with front and left-hand side cut
off.]
When the window is scored and cut, throw
=Open the Shutters=
and look out through the little opening of the doll’s kitchen window
(Fig. 428).
[Illustration: Fig. 427.—Two high windows marked in left wall of first
box.]
[Illustration: Fig. 428.—Look through the open windows.]
In the second box (Fig. 425) cut a door five and one-half inches high
and three inches wide through the left side wall, one and three-fourths
of an inch from the back wall. The two high windows, each two and
one-fourth inches wide and two inches high and the one ordinary large
window, four inches high and two and one-fourth inches wide, must be
marked on the back wall (Fig. 429) and cut (Fig. 430). Cut another door
in the room through the right-hand side wall near the front (Fig. 431)
and bend it wide open (Fig. 432).
=Make Doorknobs=
of large-sized beads, and fasten one on each side of both doors with
a strong, heavy piece of broom-straw run through and glued in a hole
punctured through the door with a coarse darning needle or hat-pin.
Slide a bead on each end of the broom-straw and glue them securely in
place. Strengthen the hinges of each door with a narrow strip of thin
white cotton cloth pasted lengthwise on the open door, half on the door
and half on the wall.
[Illustration: Fig. 429.—Two high and one ordinary window in back wall
of second box.]
[Illustration: Fig. 430.—Windows in second box opened.]
[Illustration: Fig. 431.—Door in right-hand wall of second box.]
In the third box (Fig. 426) cut a large window through the back wall
four and one-half inches high and three and one-fourth inches wide.
Fig. 433 shows this window in detail with one shutter open and one
closed.
[Illustration: Fig. 432.—Door opened.]
Excellent
=Window Glass Can Be Made=
of white tissue paper cut to fit the various windows, allowing
one-fourth of an inch extension on all four sides. Immerse the paper
thoroughly on both sides in oil; with a dry, clean cloth wipe off the
oil; again immerse the papers, let them remain in the oil for some
minutes and a second time wipe the oil from both sides of each paper.
This makes the paper almost transparent.
[Illustration: Fig. 433.—Window in detail with one shutter open and the
other closed.]
The window frame or sash, is made of strips of black or inked paper,
one long, narrow strip pasted down the entire centre length of each
window glass and a wider strip fastened across the first strip at the
centre, from side to side of the glass (Fig. 434). Keep the glass and
the sash divisions perfectly smooth while fastening them together.
When all are ready, close the shutters of each room in turn, and place
first one and then another side flat down on top of the table and brush
a little glue all around the edges of the window opening (Fig. 435);
lay the glass over the opening, making sure that the edges of the glass
extend evenly out on the wall surface from all sides. Do not rub the
glass, press it tightly down with a dry cloth.
[Illustration: Fig. 434.—Window glass.]
[Illustration: Fig. 435.—Opening of window ready for glue.]
After the windows have been glazed cut strips of fresh, smooth,
ordinary wrapping-paper, not less than one-fourth of an inch wide,
and cover the edges of each window glass with the strips, paste them
on straight and even to form woodwork around the window as well as to
cover the edges of the glass (Fig. 436). Fit the second box (Fig. 425)
in the first one (Fig. 424), mark and cut off the portion of the first
box (Fig. 424) extending beyond the front of Fig. 425; do the same with
the third box (Fig. 426), that all three boxes may be of equal depth,
and when fastened together the long front line may be straight and even.
[Illustration: Fig. 436.—Paper woodwork window frame.]
[Illustration: Fig. 437.—Kitchen.]
[Illustration: Fig. 438.—The living-room.]
=If You Want the Doll House to Last for Years,=
reinforce the building with strips of wood (A B C, Fig. 424; D E F,
Fig. 425; G H I, Fig. 426). Where any two strips meet, glue the ends
together and fasten to the pasteboard walls. If you cannot obtain very
thin strips of wood, use strips of pasteboard as stiff as wood.
[Illustration: Fig. 439.—The bedroom.]
Be sure that your flour paste has boiled well and is strong and thick,
for fastening the three rooms together. Give the kitchen (Fig. 437) a
generous layer of paste down the inside edge of the back wall and along
the edge of the floor at the open side; then fit the left-hand edge of
the floor and back wall of the living-room (Fig. 438) over the paste
and press it firmly in place. Fasten the bedroom (Fig. 439) on the
right-hand side of Fig. 438 in the same manner.
Close the little shutters and
=Place the Doll House on the Floor=
of a real room, tight up against the wall; then put weights along on
the inside edges of the floor of the toy living-room and pile books up
close against the back wall; at the same time do not press the side
walls out of plumb; keep them straight.
[Illustration: Fig. 440.—The bottom of the house is like this]
When the house is perfectly dry, tack one thin strip of wood across the
entire length of the top of the back wall of the house from end to end.
You can manage this very readily by turning the house and laying the
back wall flat on the table, the top edge of the wall barely covering
the strip of wood; then you can tack at long intervals from the inside
of the wall and fasten the pasteboard walls to the wood. Be sure to
glue the ends of the side wall strips securely to the back wall strip.
Set the house upright in proper position and tack thin strips of wood
along the under edge of the bottom of the house. Fit one strip under
the house at a time and tack from the inside of the house through the
pasteboard floor into the wood. Make the ends of the upright side wall
strips fast to the underfloor strip. When finished, the bottom of the
house should resemble Fig. 440.
[Illustration: Fig. 441.—Cut the paper like this for the frieze.]
=Make the Frieze=
for every room of three strips of tissue paper cut five-eighths of an
inch wide. Fold each separate strip crosswise through the centre; again
fold through the centre, and fold a third time, making eight layers of
paper. Cut the folded strip like Fig. 441, unfold, and you will have
Fig. 442. Try for a different pattern in each room, and let the colors
vary. A soft yellow for kitchen, sage green for living-room, and a
light, warm yellow pink for bedroom are a pleasing variety.
[Illustration: Fig. 442.—Frieze opened out.]
Brush a thin layer of paste the width of the frieze along the top edge
of the walls of the kitchen (Fig. 424) and fasten on the yellow frieze.
Do the same with the living-room, fastening on the green frieze (Fig.
425), and in the bedroom the pink frieze (Fig. 426).
=Cut a Rug for the Living-Room=
from sage-green tissue paper; make it ten inches long and seven and
one-half inches wide. Fold the paper lengthwise through the centre,
then crosswise through the centre, and a second time crosswise, making
eight layers. Cut according to Fig. 443, unfold once (Fig. 444), and
cut the designs K and N; fold diagonally the loose corners L according
to dotted line and cut design M (Fig. 445). Open out the rug (Fig. 446).
[Illustration: Fig. 443.—Cut through all layers of rug.]
Cover the required space on the living-room floor with a thin layer of
paste, place the rug down over it, using both hands, to avoid wrinkles.
With the same kind of wrapping-paper used for the woodwork you can
make projecting window-sills. Fold and crease the paper into a narrow
box-lid long enough to extend across the window, including the
woodwork; glue one of the lengthwise turned-down edges on the wall
below the window glass.
[Illustration: Fig. 444.—Cut out designs K and N.]
[Illustration: Fig. 445.—Cut out design M.]
Make three
=Shelves for Books,=
with the ends of the shelves turned up to hold the books in place.
Fasten the lengthwise turned-down edge of the first shelf on the wall
three-quarters of an inch below the high window in the living-room, and
paste the other two shelves below at short distances apart.
[Illustration: Fig. 446.—The rug for the living-room.]
You can easily make tiny books of several pieces of folded paper cut
the desired size and sewed together through the centre fold. Hang red
=Tissue Paper Curtains=
in the living-room, white tissue-paper curtains in the bedroom, and
yellow ones in the kitchen, as seen in Fig. 447.
[Illustration: Fig. 447.—House ready for spool furniture.]
Little shelves over the tops of the doors may be made in like manner,
also a cunning little three-cornered bracket to fit the corner of
the room for holding a tiny Japanese vase of satiny yellow ware, the
straight up-and-down kind, made of a three-fourth-inch length section
of common straw pasted on a wee round disk of paper. Fill the vase with
tiny red paper flowers fastened on broom-straws.
CHAPTER XXVII
THE MAKING OF A BAYBERRY CANDLE
GROWING wild all along our eastern coast from Nova Scotia to Florida
is the bayberry-bush, once well known and valued, now overlooked and
almost forgotten, although a wealth of sweet smelling wax is held in
its tiny berries.
A quart of bayberries, a little time, a little trouble, and we have a
beautiful green wax candle, hard, brittle and smooth, that hot weather
will not melt and whose expiring flame yields an incense sweet and
aromatic.
There is a peculiar joy in using the raw material fresh from Mother
Nature’s hands and starting at the beginning of things—a joy unknown to
those who work only with materials that are manufactured—and to get the
most out of the work of making bayberry candles you must begin with the
bayberries. First locate your
=Bayberry-Bushes;=
then, just the time when out-of-door exercise begins to be a delight,
the latter part of September or early in October, gather the berries
and take them home for future use.
The bayberries, which seem to be nothing but tiny stones covered with
a coating of wax, do not decay quickly, but shrivel up into small gray
pellets that will keep, it is said, a year or more.
[Illustration: The Fragrance of the Steaming Bayberry Fills the
House.]
Look for a bush that is stiff and irregular, generally growing low in
closely crowded patches like the blueberry, though at times reaching
the height of eight feet. It appears to thrive best and is most often
seen in sandy soil, but it will grow in almost any kind and flourish
even amid the rocks on a barren hillside.
[Illustration: Fig. 448.—The bayberry leaf looks like this.]
=The Leaves=
are oblong and from two to three and a half inches in length (Fig.
448). They usually have several teeth, or notches, near the tip and
are quite narrow at the base. Sometimes they are scattered and again in
close bunches. The young leaves are a pale green frequently tinged with
red; when matured they are a bright green, glossy, and of a leathery
texture and they are very fragrant when crushed in the hands. The bark
is brownish gray and the young stems light, or golden brown.
=The Berries=
are quite small and grow in thick clusters on short stems. Fig. 449
gives the berries, drawn from nature and of actual size. They are
green at first, but, when ripe, turn a light silvery gray. As it will
take about one quart of berries to make one candle you may adapt your
picking to the number of candles you want.
[Illustration: Fig. 449.—These are the bayberries, actual size.]
Keep the berries in a dry place until
=You are Ready to Make your Candles,=
then into a six-quart preserve-kettle pour three quarts of berries
and fill to the brim with cold water. This allows two quarts of water
to one quart of berries. Put the kettle on the range and let it boil
steadily four hours—actually boil, remember—and whenever the water gets
three inches below the brim fill it up with hot water. The boiling
berries will perfume the house with a spicy balsamic odor that is
delightful. When the four hours are up set the kettle back and let
the berries simmer for an hour or two, then farther back where it will
simply keep hot. At night take them off the range and set away to
cool without removing them from the kettle. The cooling down from the
boiling point to the point where the wax begins to form should be very
gradual to obtain the best results, therefore the simmering and keeping
hot after boiling.
Having put the berries away for the night, try to forget them, and do
not be tempted to disturb the wax as it forms and floats in little
cakes on top of the water, for breaking through the gathering crust
will cause much of the wax to sink and cling to the berries beneath.
When left undisturbed until morning, the wax forms into a large cake,
hard and ready to be lifted out.
=The Bayberry Wax=
is never, at first, free from impurities, such as bits of dried leaves,
stems and occasionally whole berries, and it must be strained. Break
up the wax and put it in a porcelain-lined, shallow saucepan and set
it on the range where it will melt slowly; then strain through a fine
wire strainer into a shallow bowl or soup-plate. Let the wax become
quite cold and hard, melt and strain again, this time through a piece
of cheese-cloth or fine sheer lawn. So much for the bayberry wax. But
there must also be
=Candle-Moulds=
for making bayberry candles, and not many of us possess these
old-fashioned treasures. Even if you happen to be one of the fortunate
few, you will find it takes a great deal of the precious wax to fill
these old moulds, and the candles made in them are really larger than
you need; so the home-made candle-moulds will be best in any case.
[Illustration: Fig. 450.—Cut a strip of paper.]
[Illustration: Fig. 451.—Bring the edge of the paper over the candle.]
From a sheet of legal-cap writing-paper cut a strip eleven and a
half inches long and four inches wide (Fig. 450). Take an ordinary
adamantine half candle, which is neither tallow nor wax, and, placing
the paper on the table, short edge toward you, lay the candle down on
it and bring the edge of the paper over the candle, as in Fig. 451.
Press the paper down firmly and roll the candle away from you, in this
way wrapping the paper closely around it. If the edges are not even,
unwrap and try again. To have a perfect mould you must keep one edge
of the paper exactly on a line with the bottom edge of the candle. When
the paper is wrapped around the candle to within one inch of the end of
the paper, brush glue across the end of the paper as in Fig. 452. Bring
the edge over the roll and press down (Fig. 453).
Take another candle of the same size, stand it on a piece of paper and,
with a lead-pencil, draw around the bottom edge, pressing the pencil
point close to the candle. Cut around the circle you have made, leaving
a border on its edge half an inch wide, as in Fig. 454, and slash the
border up to the inner circle, as in Fig. 455.
[Illustration: Fig. 452.—Pass a brush dipped in strong glue over the
end.]
[Illustration: Fig. 453.—Bring the edge over and press down.]
[Illustration: Fig. 454.—Leave a border on the edge of the circle.]
[Illustration: Fig. 455.—Slash the circle.]
[Illustration: Fig. 456.—Lap them in regular order.]
Draw another circle, this time using the roll with the candle in it to
mark the size, and cut around it, leaving a border three-quarters of
an inch wide, then slash the border as you did the first. Cover the
laps of Fig. 455 with glue, set the roll containing the candle exactly
within the penciled circle, and turn up the laps, one at a time,
lapping them over one another in regular order, as in Fig. 456. Hold
the laps in place until they are firmly glued to the roll, then make a
dot with your pencil on the bottom exactly in the centre of the circle,
and lay the roll aside for the glue to harden while you prepare
=The Candlewicks.=
Candlewick comes in balls. It is composed of cotton strands which must
be braided to make a finished wick. Cut from the wick several pieces
nine inches long, select three strands for each candle, tie them
together in bunches of threes, and braid, as shown in Fig. 457.
[Illustration: Fig. 457.—Braid the wick.]
[Illustration: Fig. 458.—Cut two notches in the top.]
Take the candle from the roll, and in the top edge of the roll cut two
notches directly opposite each other (Fig. 458), then melt the candle
and pour it while hot into the mould, emptying it again directly. This
will give the inside a coating of wax which will keep the paper from
absorbing the bayberry wax.
Puncture a small hole through the dot in the bottom of the mould and,
after waxing the end to stiffen it, thread one of the wicks through the
hole from the outside. Cut off the knot and draw the wick up to within
half an inch of the end, then separate the strands, spread them out
flat and glue them to the bottom (Fig. 459). Glue the last disk you
made, over the wick on the bottom of the mould, arranging the laps in
order as you did those of the first. Be very careful that none of the
slashes run even the shortest distance across the bottom, and do not
use the moulds until the glue is perfectly hard.
[Illustration: Fig. 459.—Glue the wick to the bottom.]
You will need a separate mould for each candle, and when all are ready
=Make a Stand of a Box.=
In the bottom of the box, cut three round holes just large enough to
admit the candle-moulds (Fig. 460). Set the box in a small meat-platter
to catch any spilled wax, and slip three moulds into the holes,
allowing them to stand on the plate. Draw the wick of each up tightly
and run a long hat pin through all three, resting the pin in the
notches at the top and bringing each wick in the middle of its mould
(Fig. 461). If this is done properly the wicks will not sag, but will
be held taut by the pin.
[Illustration: Fig. 460.—Cut three holes in the box.]
Break up and
=Melt the Bayberry Wax=
slowly, never allowing it to get hot enough to smoke, and fill each
mould up to the hat pin. In a short time the wax will settle and leave
a hollow at the top of the candle. Fill up the hollow each time this
occurs until the wax remains even across the top.
[Illustration: Fig. 461.—Run a hat pin through the wick.]
[Illustration: Fig. 462.—Peel off the paper.]
Leave the candles in their moulds until they are hard and almost, but
not quite cold, then draw the hat pin from the wicks and, taking one
mould, begin at the top and peel off the paper, carrying it around and
around spirally, as in Fig. 462. Insert the blade of a penknife between
the bottom of the candle and the bottom of the mould, and cut around
the edge. Remove first one layer of the bottom, then the other layer,
after which you can draw the candle from the remainder of the mould.
[Illustration: Fig. 463.—The bayberry candle is finished.]
Cut the bottom end of the wick close to the candle, and also trim off
the top of the wick, making it about one inch long above the candle
(Fig. 463).
CHAPTER XXVIII
WATER TOYS—LITTLE WAX PEOPLE THAT SWIM AND RIDE ON RAFTS
THESE little wax people are very fond of the water; in fact they are
more at home and far happier in the water than when on land. Some of
the wax girls and boys will be content to sit on the edge of the shore
with their feet in the water; others will cling with both hands to the
life-rope and dance up and down as the little waves dash upon them,
though you will find that the more daring ones are not satisfied with
jumping, but will often turn completely over while still grasping the
rope.
=The Patterns for the Little People=
are given in Figs. 464, 466, 477 and 480. Cut ten girls from ten pieces
of folded white writing-paper after first tracing the lengthwise half
of Fig. 464 on half of the paper (Fig. 465). Cut ten boys (Fig. 466)
from white writing-paper (Fig. 467). Paint each girl’s hair a different
color, varying from light brown to raven black, from golden blond to
dark auburn. Paint their bathing dresses red, blue, pink, orange,
brown, green, yellow, purple, striped red and white, and spotted blue
and white. Paint the boys’ bathing suits in a similar manner; mark the
features of both girls and boys in ink, then color face, hands, arms,
legs and feet pink. Use water-colors, and paint the back as well as
the front of the dolls. When the paint is dry, take two girls and two
boys and bend their arms forward at the shoulders; bend several dolls
in a sitting position; take others and bend one leg forward and one
backward, as if they were walking, and bend the hands together in front
on those you wish to dive into the water from a height.
[Illustration: Fig. 464.—The girl bather.]
[Illustration: Fig. 465.—This is the way to cut out the girl.]
When all are ready,
=Dip Each Doll in Melted Wax.=
One-half a wax-candle will be sufficient for the work. Be sure that
each doll is completely covered on both sides with wax, and instead of
paper dolls you will have twenty funny little wax dolls, the coloring
showing distinctly through the wax. With a coarse needle and thread make
=A Toy Life Rope=
and string on the thread four dolls with arms bent forward—a boy, a
girl, a boy and a girl—by piercing the hands of each with the needle
and drawing the thread through. In this way they are made to hold on to
the thread rope.
[Illustration: Fig. 466.—The boy bather.]
[Illustration: Fig. 467.—The paper is folded for cutting out the boy.]
Choose a clear, shallow pool or the edge of a pond for
=The Bathing Place=
Tie the thread to a stick, the lower end of which must be fastened
securely in the ground under water while its top end stands out above
the water. Hold the loose end of the thread taut in one hand as you
carefully slide the bathers along the life rope until all stand in
shallow water. The life rope reaches from the land out into the water.
Stir the water and cause the waves to rise while you keep the thread
moving up and down to make the dolls jump and frolic like real bathers
(Fig. 468).
[Illustration: Fig. 468.—The bathers are having fun.]
[Illustration: Fig. 469.—This strip is for the lighter.]
[Illustration: Fig. 470.—A lighter for the raft.]
[Illustration: Fig. 471.—Second lighter is in place.]
=For the Raft=
make fifteen paper lighters of strips of writing paper nine inches long
and three-quarters of an inch wide (Fig. 469). Begin at one corner
and roll the paper into a long round stick; fold over the top to keep
the lighter from unrolling (Fig. 470). Dip each lighter in melted wax
until it is completely coated all over; then wax two pieces of common
string, each one a generous half yard in length. Tie or cross the
centre of each string on a waxed lighter one inch from each end. Lay
this lighter on a table in front of and parallel to you; place another
lighter up against the ties, allowing one string from each tie to come
over and one under the second lighter (Fig. 471). Cross the two lengths
of each string over the last lighter, bringing the lower string up and
the upper string down (Fig. 472); then lay another lighter up against
the crossed strings, carrying the strings in turn over this lighter
(Fig. 473). Again bring the lower string up and the upper string down
before placing in another lighter, and always alternate the large and
small ends of the lighters as in Fig. 474 in order to have them equally
balanced and to avoid bringing all the small ends on one side and the
large ends on the other side of the raft. Continue crossing the strings
and adding lighters until fourteen are bound into a float; then tie
the ends of the strings on each line securely together (Fig. 475), and
your work will be ready for the fitting of the little mast, which must
stand erect at one end of the raft.
[Illustration: Fig. 472.—Lower string up and upper string down.]
[Illustration: Fig. 473.—String crossed and carried over third lighter.]
[Illustration: Fig. 474.—Alternate large and small ends of lighters.]
[Illustration: Fig. 475.—Bind the raft together.]
Use the remaining lighter, which is the fifteenth, for the mast;
flatten out the large end and slide it through the central opening or
crack of the raft between the seven lighters on each side; then bend
the flat end of the mast along the under side of the next lighter,
up through the next space, over the next lighter and down through the
forward space. Weaving it over and under the lighters of the raft keeps
the mast firm and steady (Fig. 476).
[Illustration: Fig. 476.—The raft is launched with lumberman on board.]
[Illustration: Fig. 477.—The little lumberman.]
=Make a Little Lumberman=
like Fig. 477. Fold a piece of white writing paper; trace one-half of
the lumberman on it (Fig. 478), and cut out the figure. When he has
been painted and waxed, stand him by the mast with one arm around it.
Weave his feet in the raft as you wove the mast, and he will stand up
as straight as a good soldier (Fig. 476).
=Launch the Raft=
on the water; it will dance merrily over the waves, and you can have
some of the other wax children climb up and sit on the raft as it goes
floating about. Should the children tumble off into the water, let them
swim for a while, for that is what they want to do. Then you can help
them on the raft again or bring them to land.
[Illustration: Fig. 478.—Half of the lumberman.]
When the raft is riding the waves, the four bathers holding on the
life-line and the other wax girls and boys playing in the sand, wading
and diving in the water, let a mermaid come slowly swimming through the
water toward them.
=Make the Mermaid=
of paper and her flowing tresses, also of paper. Mermaids are famous
for their beautiful hair, which they seem to be always combing with a
golden comb. Your mermaid, though, must be content to swim and enjoy
herself without the golden comb.
[Illustration: Fig. 479.—Fold the paper and cut like this.]
[Illustration: Fig. 480.—The mermaid.]
[Illustration: Fig. 481.—The mermaid’s hair in two parts.]
Fold a piece of white writing paper; trace the lengthwise half of the
figure on it (Fig. 479) and cut out the mermaid (Fig. 480); then cut
two pieces of rather long, finely fringed paper (Fig. 481) for the
hair, and paint them golden brown on both sides. Paint the back of the
mermaid’s head and the hair around her face the same color. Mark the
features with ink; when dry, color the face, arms and body pink; paint
the remaining part of the figure gray. After the paint has dried mark
fish scales from the waist down; then glue the straight top fringe of
hair across the centre of the back of the mermaid’s head from side to
side. Glue the other piece at the extreme top of the back of the head.
After the mermaid is thoroughly dry, bend all of the hair out from her
head. Do not allow any of it to lie down flat. Bend the body a little
backward in a curve from the waist-line, the arms forward; then wax the
mermaid, hair and all (Fig. 482). When the mermaid is in the water, the
little wax children will make friends with her, and she will perhaps
tell them fairy stories of the beautiful life under the waves.
[Illustration: Fig. 482.—The mermaid has flowing tresses.]
These water toys will last a long time if well cared for and kept in a
cool place where the wax will not melt.
[Illustration: The Process is Very Simple.]
CHAPTER XXIX
HOW TO WEAVE WITHOUT A LOOM
=Method Invented by the Author=
RUGS, portières, table covers, bedspreads, hammocks, in fact, almost
anything that can be woven of rags, can be woven without a loom. Any
one can do it, for the process is extremely simple and all that is
required is a board, a paper of tacks and some rags cut in strips.
These may be old rags or new, silk, cotton or wool, and the piece may
be woven heavy or light, in a close weave or a loose one, to suit its
intended purpose. Many colors or few can be used, and the patterns
can be as varied as the colors, for any design in straight lines can
be followed in the weaving. A snip of the scissors will cut off one
color, a stitch or two insert another, and so the pattern grows. It
is quick work and you will find it very absorbing as you sit amid
your vari-colored rags and see them grow beneath your fingers into
harmoniously colored hangings or soft, warm rugs.
=A Board=
forty inches long will answer for weaving anything one yard or less in
width and is of a convenient size to handle. The one-yard width is what
an ordinary loom produces, but if you would have your rug or portière
wider there is no reason why the board should not be longer. To prevent
the material from catching, your board must be smooth on both sides and
on the edge and it should be as wide as possible. A good-sized pastry
board is excellent for weaving a piece less than twenty-two inches in
width.
=Rags are Used=
for both warp and woof; if old and soft they should be more tightly
packed than when new and firm. The warp is composed of the strips which
run up and down in the work, the woof of those that are woven in and
out across the warp, and the process is like that of weaving a splint
basket. The following directions are for making
=A Blue and White Cotton Rug=
for bedroom or bathroom. Heavy, new canton flannel is a good material
for the rug and it is better to have new goods where the weave, as in
this case, is to be smooth and flat.
Cut the canton flannel, do not tear it, into strips half an inch
wide, but do not sew the strips together, and make into balls as for
loom weaving; piece them as needed while the work progresses. Draw a
straight line the whole length of the board one inch below the top
edge, then along this line
=Tack the Warp=
As there is to be a blue border four inches wide, entirely around the
rug, the warp at first must be all blue.
Take one strip of the blue and tack it on the line at the upper
left-hand corner of the board about two inches from the side edge.
Leave one end of the warp longer than the other and drive the tack only
part of the way in (Fig. 483). Give the strip two twists toward you,
close to the tack, and fasten it down with another tack on the line
just half an inch from the first tack. See Fig. 484.
[Illustration: Fig. 483.—Tack one strip of blue on the line.]
[Illustration: Fig. 484.—Fasten it down with another tack.]
Fasten your strips on in this way with the tacks half an inch apart
and you will have eight ends or eight strips of warp which will form
the side border. For the top border cut the blue strips into ten-inch
pieces, twist them at the middle so that the ends will be of an even
length, and tack them along the line as far as you wish the centre to
extend; then add the longer strips of warp for the other side border,
as in Fig. 485. To the ends of the short blue warp sew strips of white,
lapping the ends with the blue on top. Sew them securely like Fig. 486
and whip the end edges to make them lie perfectly flat.
This will give a white centre of warp with a blue border at the top and
sides. Draw each strip of warp down until it is smooth and taut and
tack it near the bottom edge of the board. Be very careful to have the
warp of the border and the centre measure the same distance across the
bottom as across the top and keep each strip in a straight line from
the top (Fig. 487). Frequent measurements while weaving will keep your
rug true and prevent narrowing between the two rows of tacks.
[Illustration: Fig. 485.—This will make a border.]
[Illustration: Fig. 486.—Sew the pieces securely.]
When the warp is ready take a strip of blue and begin
=To Weave.=
Tack the end of the strip, which is now the warp, a little to the left
and a trifle below the upper left-hand tack (Fig. 487) and, starting
under the first strip of warp, weave it in and out several times; then
draw the warp out its full length as you do a needle and thread after
taking several stitches. Keep the warp flat and even when it is woven
and push it up close to the tacks. Weave across in this way, always
under one and over the next, and drawing out the end of the woof every
little while. When you have reached the last strip of warp on the
right, turn the woof over it and weave back again in the same manner
(Fig. 487).
The woof for this rug is entirely of blue, and as you weave across the
white warp you will find that it makes a blue and white checker-board
centre.
[Illustration: Fig. 487.—Keep the warp perfectly straight.]
When you have woven as much as you can between the two rows of tacks,
take the tacks out,
=Move the Woven Part Up=
and tack across again along the second or third row of woof from the
bottom, putting a tack through the woof into each strip of warp; then
draw the warp down as at first and tack in place. Fig. 488 shows the
two rows of tacks after the rug has been moved up and also the effect
of the checker-board weaving and blue border. This manner of moving up
the woven part makes it possible to weave any length you may desire.
=Lengthen the Warp=
as you weave by sewing on new pieces, and when the centre is almost as
long as you want it, cut off the white warp evenly and sew on blue,
then weave until the border at the bottom is the width of that at the
top and sides. Cut off the woof that is left after weaving the last
row, and, turning in the end, sew it securely to the last row of warp.
=Cut Off the Warp,=
leaving ends about one and one-half inches long; turn each end of the
warp over the last row of woof and sew it down. One end will turn on
one side of the rug, the next on the other side, as splints turn over
the edge in binding off a splint basket.
[Illustration: Fig. 488.—After the rug has been moved up.]
[Illustration: Fig. 490.—Rug Woven by the Author.]
It is best to cut off one end of the warp and sew it down before
cutting the next, as this will prevent the woof from slipping out of
place during the binding off. Tuck each end of the warp under the row
of woof just above it and sew again. Fig. 489 shows how this is done.
G, H and I are the ends of the warp cut off evenly, F is an end turned
up and sewed to the bottom row of woof. E is an end which is to turn
under and be brought up on the other side of the rug. D has been turned
up, sewed to the last row of woof and is just being slipped under the
third row of woof, J. C is turned under and fastened in place on the
other side of the rug, and B has been turned up, sewed, tucked under
the third row of woof and sewed again. The end is shown above the woof
to make the idea plainer, but in reality it should be hidden under the
woof.
When the last end of the warp has been secured and the first end of
the woof (Letter A, Fig. 487) has been turned over and sewed to the
warp, your rug is finished and will look like Fig. 490. This rug is
photographed from one made by the writer on a pastry board. Its size
is twenty-two by thirty-four inches. Three-quarters of a yard of white
canton flannel and one yard and a half of blue were used for weaving.
[Illustration: Fig. 489.—Finish off the end of the rug in this way.]
=To Make a Heavier Rug=
with the flat weave, double the warp. That is, lay one piece of warp
directly on top of another, giving two thicknesses to each strip. A
close weave is made by using soft material, tacking the strips close
together for the warp and pushing the woof up tightly, crushing it
together as in loom weaving.
Diamonds, squares and Indian zigzag patterns are easy and you can work
out others quite original with yourself.
CHAPTER XXX
HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN EASTER CARDS AND GIFTS
EVERYTHING awakens with new life and rejoices on Easter; and the
dear old Earth smiles with sympathy and brings her offering of sweet
flowers. It is the day when all people, little and big, young and old,
should be filled with joy, because Easter means the Resurrection.
It means life, light and immortality. It is the blest assurance and
certainty that love and goodness are the realities of life; far more
precious are they than the inanimate material things you can see and
touch. But we can use material things to convey to our friends the
invisible, wonderful good of love, joy, kindness, sympathy, tenderness,
and friendship.
A simple, inexpensive Easter card may carry with it happiness, for “it
is sweet to be remembered,” and you can think of many designs from
which to choose a cheery greeting to send to every one.
=Cards Made to Represent Easter Flowers=
are always welcome. Trace Fig. 491 on heavy paper; paint the flowers
to resemble as nearly as possible the natural blossoms, shading the
lily lightly and coloring the passion flower in natural hues. Paint the
violet a light blue purple and its foliage green. When dry cut out the
design; then bend the card at the dotted lines that each flower may
stand erect, supported by the blank back piece in tent-like fashion.
When bent the card will form three tents in a row, with the smallest in
front, as in Fig. 492.
[Illustration: Fig. 491.—Pattern of standing flower card.]
[Illustration: Fig. 492.—The Easter flower card.]
If you are not able to paint the flowers satisfactorily, use any
colored, printed flowers you happen to have, either the embossed ones
that come for scrap books, or those cut from colored advertisements or
newspapers. Select three different blossoms or groups of flowers and,
taking the largest first, lay it down flat on a strip of stiff paper
with the stems or lower part toward the edge of the paper; then run a
pencil line entirely around the edge of the flower; this will give a
blank enclosed by the outline of the flower. Place the same blossom
on the paper again, being sure to bring the top of the flower to meet
the top of the outline flower, in order that the two parts may fit;
then make a second tracing. Examine the lily in Fig. 491 and you will
understand more clearly. Unless the two flower tops meet, one side of
the flower tent will be upside down.
Place the middle-sized blossom on the paper with the lower part next
to the lower portion of the first and largest flower, in the same way
that the back support of the passion flower meets the lily stems in
Fig. 491. Trace this twice as you did the first design. The last and
smallest flower must be traced in like manner. Notice in Fig. 491 that
the leaves of the violet meet the lower part of the passion flower,
while the blossom of the violet meets the outline of the blossom.
When you comprehend the principle the work will be very easy. Paste
each bright blossom immediately in front of its back support; then cut
out the entire long card and bend it into three tents which will enable
the flowers to stand up and look very attractive. These floral cards
may be folded and brought together in flat layers, to be sent by mail
without danger of injury.
[Illustration: Fig. 493.—One half of the cross.]
[Illustration: Fig. 494.—The other half of the cross.]
=The Cross=
is a most appropriate design for Easter. You can make one of cardboard
which will stand alone. Cut Figs. 493 and 494 from stiff paper, and
make the slit down through the top of one and up through the bottom of
the other; then slide the two crosses together by placing Fig. 493 at
right angles down through the top of Fig. 494, adjust the two pieces
and your cross will resemble Fig. 495. The card may be closed flat by
turning the two crosses until they lie closely against each other. You
can decorate this double cross by painting or pasting flowers on it, or
lettering it with the words, “Easter Greeting.”
[Illustration: Fig. 495.—Put the two halves together in this way.]
[Illustration: Fig. 496.—The tulip bud.]
Another new design is
=The Tulip Bud=
(Fig. 496). This you can open at will and make it blossom. Open it
still further and the petals appear as if ready to fall, as in Fig.
497. Cut Fig. 498 of white paper and paint it to resemble a tulip
petal; make five more petals, then trace Fig. 499 on a piece of
cardboard, fit the six petals together and place them on top of the
tulip stem (Fig. 499). Hold the petals firmly in position while you run
a coarse needle and thread through the petals and cardboard back in
order to fasten the flowers on the stem. Knot the thread on the outside
of the petals and also on the wrong side of the pasteboard card. Fig.
500 shows the knot on the lower portion of the petals. Draw the thread
tight to keep the petals firmly in place. Paint the stem and leaves
green and paste a small round piece of paper over each of the knots
which fasten the flower on its stem as shown in Fig. 501. When the bit
of paper is painted it will never be noticed.
[Illustration: Fig. 497.—The open flower.]
[Illustration: Fig. 498.—The tulip petal.]
[Illustration: Fig. 499.—Tulip stem and leaves.]
[Illustration: Fig. 500.—The knot in the petal.]
[Illustration: Fig. 501.—Paste paper over the knots.]
You can use this idea with another flower if you do not understand
painting in water colors.
=The Dainty Bloodroot=
wildflower blossom is pure white and you can cut the petals of white
paper, and fasten the flowers on gray-green cardboard. Paste the stem
securely down and sew the petals in place in the same manner as those
of the tulip. The bloodroot will look especially pretty when you move
the petals and cause the snowy flowers to open.
[Illustration: Fig. 502.—Half of the egg.]
[Illustration: Fig. 503.—The other half of the egg.]
One of the most beautiful of manufactured Easter eggs was the one
presented to an Infanta of Spain some years ago. The Gospel of Easter
day was inscribed on the inside of the white enamelled shell, and when
a secret spring was touched a little bird would fly out and sing. It
was said to have cost four thousand dollars. We can make an
=Easter Egg Card=
that will give almost, if not quite as much pleasure, for not more than
four cents. This will be of pasteboard and will fold flat like the
cross, but when opened a little chicken will sit up on the inside with
its beak wide open and its wings lifted as if ready to sing its little
chickie song. More than that, our egg will stand firmly on one end as
Christopher Columbus made his famous egg stand.
[Illustration: Fig. 504.—The outline of the chicken.]
[Illustration: Fig. 505.—The little chicken will sit up on the inside.]
Trace Figs. 502, 503 and 504. Slide the first egg (Fig. 502) in at
right angles through the second (Fig. 503); fit the slits into each
other. Paint the chicken (Fig. 504) a soft light yellow, and when dry
make the markings with ink; then slide the slit at the feet of the
chicken diagonally over the lower cross portion of the two eggs and you
will have Fig. 505.
In Jerusalem the
=Easter Bells=
ring out at precisely nine o’clock in the morning, telling the people
that the religious ceremony of the washing of the feet is about to take
place in the large court just outside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
On Easter morning in our own land the church bells ring out joyously;
and the gladdened note seems to be given unconsciously by the bell
ringer, some of his Easter joy having entered into his work.
[Illustration: Fig. 506.—Cut this out of cardboard.]
[Illustration: Fig. 507.—Make three of these bells.]
[Illustration: Fig. 508.—The Easter bell card.]
Our Easter card of bells is fashioned after the old Spanish style of
architecture, in which the church bells are often seen suspended in
open alcoves which are built up flat above the body of the church. Copy
Fig. 506 on cardboard and cut it out. Make three bells like Fig. 507
and fasten one on each of the three round dots on the church belfry
(Fig. 506). Sew the bells in place as you did the tulip petals, but
in this case allow the thread to be a trifle looser that the bells
may sway back and forth, as if ringing, when you move the card. Cut up
the slit through the centre of the stand of the card and crease along
the dotted line, bending half of the stand forward and the other half
backward. This will give a good platform and the card will stand alone
(Fig. 508). Make the belfry (Fig. 506) of a warm gray-colored cardboard
and gild the cross and bells. When dry indicate a slight shading with
pen and ink.
Here are some original Easter toys to be used as small gifts or novel
dinner cards.
=Let the Comical Little Turtle=
be the first you make.
[Illustration: Fig. 509.—The turtle without his shell.]
[Illustration: Fig. 510.—Two tissue paper strips.]
Draw on heavy writing paper Fig. 509. Cut it out, and from white tissue
paper make two strips like Fig. 510. Paint eyes and mouth on the head
and mark the feet; then with strong glue or sealing wax cover the
edges of an egg-shell cut lengthwise and place it on Fig. 509; next
fasten a strip of tissue paper (Fig. 510) along the side of the turtle
between the fore and hind foot, making the strip reach partly on the
egg-shell and partly underneath on the writing paper; this is to make
the egg-shell and the heavy writing-paper adhere more firmly together.
Fasten the remaining strip on the other side of the turtle in the same
way, bend the head up a little and the tail down, also bend all the
feet down and the result will be a queer little Easter turtle able to
stand alone (Fig. 511).
[Illustration: Fig. 511.—Just like a real turtle.]
[Illustration: Fig. 512.—Such a ridiculous little pig.]
[Illustration: Fig. 513.—Piggie’s tail.]
=Now for the Funny Little Pig=
(Fig. 512). Select a good-sized white egg and blow out its contents in
this way: carefully bore a hole at each end of the egg, enlarging them
only sufficiently to enable you to send its contents out of one end by
blowing in the hole at the other end of the egg; this done, cut from
strong, stiff paper or cardboard diagram, Fig. 513, the tail; Fig.
514, the fore leg; Fig. 515, the hind leg; Fig. 516, the ear. Make two
ears, two fore and two hind legs. Mark eyes, nose, and mouth on the
small end of the shell; curl the tail with a penknife or scissors and
glue it on the pig by spreading out the slits and fastening them on
the back of the pig; then in turn glue in place the legs and ears and
behold! the pig (Fig. 512).
[Illustration: Fig. 514.—Piggie’s fore leg.]
[Illustration: Fig. 515.—Piggie’s hind leg.]
[Illustration: Fig. 516.—Piggie’s ear.]
[Illustration: Fig. 517.—An egg-shell spoon.]
=The Spoon=
(Fig. 517) requires a lengthwise half of an egg-shell, a piece of stiff
cardboard and a bit of plain white tissue paper for its manufacture.
Cut the edges of half a shell evenly all around with a pair of sharp
scissors, being careful not to crack the shell during the operation;
then cut the handle from cardboard (Fig. 518). Glue and attach the
handle with sealing wax on the outside of the small end of the shell,
bending the handle down a little where it joins the shell, secure the
handle still more tightly in place by fastening a piece of tissue
paper (Fig. 519) over that portion of the handle which is glued to the
egg-shell, allowing the tissue paper to extend out a little beyond
either side of the handle and fasten the extensions tight down on
the shell. When finished the spoon can be gilded along its edges or
otherwise ornamented (Fig. 517).
[Illustration: Fig. 518.—Cut the handle from cardboard.]
[Illustration: Fig. 519.—The tissue paper fastening.]
[Illustration: Fig. 520.—A little umbrella.]
=An Umbrella=
made of half an egg-shell would protect us from the rain if only
it were large enough, but such an umbrella is a good size for your
purpose, because you desire an odd little toy and here it is (Fig.
520). To make the umbrella, cut from paper (Fig. 521), fold it together
as in Fig. 522, turn down and outward the upper flaps; then glue the
two sides of the folded handle tightly together; next fasten the
spread-out flaps down on the inside centre of half an egg-shell with
sealing wax; be sure to make the handle come in the middle of the
shell, otherwise the umbrella will lop over a little to one side. The
rim and handle may be painted brown or black, and lines to represent
the seams of a real umbrella can be made on the outer surface of the
shell.
[Illustration: Fig. 521.—Cut the umbrella handle like this.]
[Illustration: Fig. 522.—Fold the handle in this way.]
=The Doll’s Chair=
is not difficult to make. Cut Fig. 523 from medium-weight paper, not
too heavy, ornament it as in Fig. 524 or in any other way you may
fancy, then take half an egg-shell and glue the chair seat over the
open end with melted sealing wax, bend the back in an upright position
and allow the slit edges of the seat to be bent down on the egg-shell
and fasten in place. The bottom of the shell must be levelled off a
little and the hole covered with a piece of paper, in order to make the
chair stand up as it should. If tinted paper be used in making this toy
it enhances the appearance, though the colored paper is not necessary,
as white ornamented makes a very pretty little chair.
[Illustration: Fig. 523.—The back and seat of Dolly’s chair.]
[Illustration: Fig. 524.—Dolly’s chair.]
=Strawberry=
The strawberry is in reality a candy box. Take a fine-looking egg and
blow out its contents, then dye or paint it red and with black ink mark
the dots as in Fig. 525. Next fill the egg-shell with small candies and
cover the opening at the top with a piece of green tissue paper cut
like Fig. 526. Fasten the paper on the shell with paste used sparingly
and only where it is necessary. On the top of the strawberry glue a bow
of narrow green ribbon and the candy box will be finished and ready
for a unique Easter gift.
[Illustration: Fig. 525.—The egg-shell strawberry.]
[Illustration: Fig. 526.—Paste this on top of the strawberries.]
[Illustration: Fig. 527.—A little hanging basket.]
=A Little Hanging Basket=
can be fashioned from half an egg-shell with narrow ribbon pasted over
its edge, a bow of the ribbon on the bottom and two more at the sides
covering the ends of a loop of the same narrow ribbon securely glued on
the shell (Fig. 527).
[Illustration: Fig. 528.—Dolly’s cradle.]
=The Doll’s Cradle=
(Fig. 528) is made by breaking the egg in the desired shape, first
drawing a line with pencil, so that it may be correct, then piercing
the pencil line with a fine needle. The wee cradle thus formed is
pasted on rockers made of stiff paper and bent down at each end (Fig.
529).
[Illustration: Fig. 529.—Cut the rockers by this pattern.]
[Illustration: Fig. 530.—An egg-shell bird’s nest.]
=Bird’s Nest=
The bird’s nest is simply half of an egg-shell, the outside covered
first with a thin coat of glue and then with moss. This is to be filled
with candy eggs (Fig. 530).
=Sail Boat=
[Illustration: Fig. 531.—The little sail boat.]
The egg-shell boat will sail very prettily in a basin of water. It is
half of a shell, with a tissue-paper sail (Fig. 531), the mast cut of
stiff paper (Fig. 532), folded at the dotted line. Fig. 533 is the
sail cut from colored or white tissue paper. The straight edge of the
sail is placed in the fold of the mast and the two halves of the mast
pasted together down to the cross line at the bottom. This lower
part is slit up, as in diagram 532, and the flaps bent in opposite
direction. These are used for braces in holding the mast upright and
are glued to the bottom of the boat. The pennant (Fig. 534) is cut of
bright-colored tissue paper, and fastened on the top of the sail (Fig.
531).
[Illustration: Fig. 532.—Make the mast of stiff paper.]
[Illustration: Fig. 533.—A tissue paper sail.]
[Illustration: Fig. 534.—The pennant.]
[Illustration: Fig. 535.—The head of the Mikado.]
Fig. 535 represents the head of
=The Mikado=
fashioned from an egg. The egg must first be pierced at both ends,
and the contents blown out, leaving the hollow shell; then a face, as
nearly as possible resembling the Mikado, painted on the egg. A narrow
strip of black paper (that encasing needles will answer the purpose)
must be pasted on the back of the head, and made to stand erect with
the top end curled forward as in Fig. 535; the egg should then be
painted black, except the face, as seen in the picture. The head must
be made to stand in the same manner that Columbus made his egg stand,
by levelling off a portion of the end.
=To Make the Pin-Cushion=
(Fig. 536), cut two pieces of satin or silk of any desired color by
pattern (Fig. 537); sew the two pieces together, leaving a small
opening; fill the bag with bran, sew up the opening, and tie around the
egg cushion a narrow ribbon matching the color of the cushion, making a
fancy bow at one end, and a bow and loops at the other. Place in pins
to form the word “Easter” (Fig. 536).
[Illustration: Fig. 536.—The Easter egg pin-cushion.]
[Illustration: Fig. 537.—Cut the pin-cushion by this pattern.]
Fig. 538 shows the head of
=Napoleon,=
and that you may not be behind the times in your hero worship, I am
going to tell how you may make a little Napoleon for yourself. At
least you may make a Napoleon head, and Napoleon’s head was really the
greatest part of him; his heart, I fear, was not so great, and his
body, we know, was insignificant.
Use a goose egg for the head; the dimensions given for the hat are
intended for a large egg. Blow the egg from the shell in the manner
described. Make the largest hole in the small end of the shell and
enlarge this hole to the size of a silver dime.
[Illustration: Fig. 538.—Napoleon.]
Now, Napoleon had what is called a well-balanced head. That was one
cause of his greatness; it could not be upset by anything that went on
around him. So, to make a head that will bear the stamp of Napoleon’s
character, we must contrive to have it keep its position, or balance;
to stand erect, unaided and alone, and it can be done in this way:
When the egg has been blown from the shell place the shell in a
perfectly upright position, large end down, in an egg-cup, or anything
that will hold it steady. Into the large hole pour a little melted
sealing wax, and on top of that pour a little melted lead, or some
pieces of shot, taking care to have the weight fall directly in the
centre to make a perfect balance.
[Illustration: Fig. 539.—Napoleon’s face.]
Fig. 539 is Napoleon’s face, which you must draw on one side of the
egg with black ink. Ink the hair black. Blacken the shell on the other
side, too, for the hair on the back of the head. In drawing the face on
the shell remember that the largest end of the shell is the chin, the
smallest end the top of the head. To be sure, the real Napoleon never
had a hole in the top of his head that we ever heard of, but the hole
in the top of our Napoleon’s head will not show when his hat is on, and
as the hat is to be glued in place no one will ever be any the wiser.
[Illustration: Fig. 540.]
To make the hat, or
“=Chapeau Bras,=”
as Napoleon would have called it, and which means a military cocked
hat, you must have some black paper. For the brim a piece five inches
square will be needed, as it measures just that many inches from front
to back and from side to side. Cut out the brim from pattern (Fig.
540). Cut the hole near the centre and cut the slits around it as shown
by the heavy lines. Bend up the little strips or laps, as denoted by
the dotted line around the hole. The other dotted lines show where the
brim is to be turned up front and back, but the crown must be glued on
first.
[Illustration: Fig. 541.—Crown of Napoleon’s Chapeau bras]
Fig. 541 is the pattern of the crown. From front to back it measures
three inches; from side to side, at its widest part, three and a
quarter inches; at the narrowest part the measure is two inches. The
heavy line shows where it is to be cut, the dotted line where it is
to be folded. Turn in the laps at the sides, bring them together and
paste neatly. Fit the crown on the brim, over the laps of the brim,
and paste the laps of the brim to the inside of the crown. Turn up the
brim according to the dotted lines on Fig. 540. At the points shown by
the crosses on the front of the brim put a drop of paste and bring them
up to meet the crosses on the crown of the chapeau. Place Napoleon’s
chapeau on Napoleon’s head as in Fig. 538, and glue it to the shell.
Now set the little hero before you on the table, touch him with your
finger, and, if the weight has been well placed, he will nod and bow,
but his head will always regain its level position.
Hero though he is, Napoleon is the better for a companion, and we will
give him his first wife, Josephine, whom he crowned Empress of France
on December 2, 1805, the day of his own coronation.
To express in a measure the regal dignity of
=Josephine=
on that occasion, her head must also be held erect; prepare the
shell, therefore, as you did the one for Napoleon’s head, with this
difference—place the weight in the small end of the egg-shell, instead
of the large end.
[Illustration: Fig. 542.—Josephine’s face.]
[Illustration: Fig. 543.—Josephine’s Tiara]
[Illustration: Fig. 544.—Crown of Empress Josephine]
Draw Josephine’s queenly countenance (Fig. 542) on the egg-shell,
placing her chin at the small end. Make her tiara of gold paper, which
you can spangle, if you like, to represent the diamonds of which it
was composed. Fig. 543 shows how to cut it. Fig. 544 is the pattern
for her crown and should also be made of gold paper. Paste the two
ends of the band of the crown together to form a circle, then draw the
ends of the arches together to meet in the middle, over the top. Fasten
these together with needle and thread on which a small glass bead has
been strung. The bead will hide the stitches and also take the place of
the small cross which occupies that position on the crown of the real
Empress. With your finger curve the arches out as shown in the sketch
of the finished head (Fig. 545).
[Illustration: Fig. 545.—The Empress Josephine.]
[Illustration: Fig. 546.—Josephine’s Ruff]
The crown and tiara are not fastened together, but are placed on
separately, for Josephine wore the diamond tiara when she was crowned.
Glue the tiara to the head first, bringing the ends around to meet
rather low down at the back; then set the crown back of the tiara and
glue in place.
From a piece of white tissue paper cut a ruff, after pattern (Fig.
546); crimp the ruff with the blade of a knife or scissors and glue to
the back and sides of Josephine’s head.
These little heads will be very amusing if you place them opposite
each other and set them nodding and bowing, Josephine to Napoleon and
Napoleon to Josephine.
The materials used for the
=Good-morning Chick=
are simply an egg-shell, a piece of wire, some light-yellow worsted,
two black beads and a small piece of writing paper.
[Illustration: Fig. 547.—Cut off the small end.]
[Illustration: Fig. 548.—The chicken’s head.]
[Illustration: Fig. 549.—Wrap the rings with worsted.]
Select a nice large egg, and with a sharp knife cut off the small end,
as evenly as possible, Fig. 547. After emptying the shell rinse it
carefully, and while it is drying make the chicken’s head (Fig. 548);
cut from a light quality of cardboard two rings like Fig. 549, place
them together, and with the worsted wrap the rings over and over,
as shown in Fig. 549, until the hole in the centre is nearly filled
up; then, holding it firmly between the forefinger and thumb, insert
the point of a pair of sharp scissors in the outer edge, slipping it
between the two rings; cut the worsted all the way around, and, still
holding it firmly, slide a piece of strong thread between the rings,
and, drawing it around once, tie tightly. Take the rings from the ball
thus made, and clip and trim it perfectly round. Sew the two round
black beads on the head for eyes; make the beak of writing paper after
Figs. 550 and 551. Fig. 550 is the upper, Fig. 551 the lower part of
beak. Pinch into shape as shown by dotted lines; and with a little
mucilage stick the upper end of Fig. 551 to the underside of Fig. 550,
as in Fig. 552. Paint the beak a light yellow, and gum to the head.
Fig. 548 shows the head complete.
[Illustration: Fig. 550.—The upper part of the beak.]
[Illustration: Fig. 551.—The lower part of the beak.]
[Illustration: Fig. 552.—The beak.]
[Illustration: Fig. 553.—Use hat-wire for the legs.]
[Illustration: Fig. 554.—The foot.]
[Illustration: Fig. 555.—Good-morning.]
Holes must now be made in the shell for the legs to come through, as
shown in Fig. 547. This is done by boring carefully with a large,
sharp-pointed needle (being cautious not to crack the shell in the
process), until the holes are large enough to admit the wire. Use a
piece of ordinary black hat-wire, four inches long, for the legs, bend
in the shape of Fig. 553 and slip through the holes in the shell. Cut a
piece of wire two inches long, and another one inch in length, for the
foot; bend in the shape of Fig. 554 and fasten to the leg by wrapping
tightly with black linen thread.
[Illustration: Fig. 556.—Run a line of perforations around the shell.]
[Illustration: Fig. 557.—Fasten the shells together.]
Fit the head in the hole left in the small end of the shell, and if
the work has been well done the chicken will look very natural indeed.
The small piece of shell taken from the end will give it a still more
cunning appearance if fastened on the chicken’s head (Fig. 555). This
little trifle makes a very pretty _bonbonnière_, as the shell is quite
strong enough to hold candy, and the head may be removed to allow of
its being filled or emptied.
To make the
=Good-night Chick=
first blow the egg, then, boring with a needle in the manner previously
described, run a line of perforations lengthwise around the shell, as
seen in Fig. 556. This will allow of the shells being opened quite
evenly. Cover the edges neatly with lutestring ribbon pasted down on
both sides like a binding. Paste a piece of the same ribbon, twelve
inches long, across the two halves of the shell, to connect them, as in
Fig. 557. Make the little chicken, which should nestle coseyly within
the shell, of two worsted balls, using rings two inches in diameter for
the body. Trim the body into a slightly oval shape. The chicken’s head
is made in the same way as described for “Good Morning.” Glue it to the
body. In the illustration (Fig. 558) the egg is shown both closed and
open, which will give some idea of what a pretty little gift it really
makes. The entire chicken must be glued in the shell as it is not
intended to come out.
[Illustration: Fig. 558.—Nestle the chicken coseyly in the shell.]
CHAPTER XXXI
HOME-MADE CANDLESTICKS
IF you are working in clay try making a few candlesticks. If you
haven’t the clay, why not get some at once and begin this most
fascinating work?
Candlesticks are always decorative; even the old tin candlestick with
its half burnt tallow candle has a certain picturesqueness that the
artist recognizes when he chooses that as an accessory to his picture
instead of the prosaic oil lamp. Then again, candlesticks give a wide
scope to individuality in design, and that it gives expression to one’s
originality is one of the greatest charms of pottery making.
A potter’s wheel is not at all necessary. The primitive method of
coiling the clay and gradually, without hurry, building it up into the
form desired is far the better way for home workers.
=Get Your Clay=
at the nearest pottery where anything finer than flower pots is made,
and if it is a place where they turn out only earthenware ask for their
finest clay. Very frequently they make a quantity of extra pieces for
holiday trade and for these prepare a finer clay than they ordinarily
use. Fifty pounds of clay will keep you busy a long while and
twenty-five pounds will be sufficient for a number of small pieces. It
sells at about one and a half cents per pound at most of the potteries.
Break your dry clay into small pieces with a hammer and then pound to a
powder. Put it into an earthen crock that has a cover of its own, and
mix with water until it is of the consistency of dough. If you are not
to use it immediately, and it is rather stiff, make several holes in
the clay with your finger, fill each hole with water, cover the crock
closely with its lid and set away until wanted.
[Illustration: This Pottery was Made by the Author.]
[Illustration: Fig. 559.—Cut the clay in two with a knife.]
[Illustration: Fig. 560.—Put the outside edges together.]
[Illustration: Fig. 561.—Useful in cutting the clay.]
When you are
=Ready for Work=
take out a good sized lump of clay, put it on a pastry board and knead
it like bread. This is to work out all the air and make the grain close
and fine. If the clay seems too stiff spread it out in a flat cake,
pour a little water in the middle, bring the edges together and knead
again until the whole piece is softened. When the clay is too soft
spread it out and put it in the air where it will soon stiffen. If it
is freezing out of doors do not expose the clay but let it dry off in
the house. From time to time, while you are working the clay, cut the
lump in two with a palette knife or ordinary table knife (A, B, Fig.
559). Put the outside edges together (C, D, Fig. 560) and continue
kneading. The professional potter has a wire strung above his table and
on it cuts his clay quickly and neatly in half, but a knife will answer
very well. You may have a number of
=Modelling Tools=
or a few, and you can do very well with two or three contrived by
yourself. A wire tool like Fig. 561 is useful in cutting away the clay
when the walls of a piece are too thick, but a wire hairpin answers the
purpose almost as well. A wooden skewer, used by butchers for pinning
meat, is also good for some purposes. In my own work one summer, when
far out of reach of modelling tools, I found use for a palette knife,
the handle of an old spoon, a hairpin and a steel ink eraser with a
curved blade. But best of all and most to be depended upon are the
fingers, for these sensitive, flexible, natural tools can perform most
of the work alone. Fig. 562 is a small jar made entirely with the
hands, no tool of any kind, save the fingers, having been used in the
modelling. You should have a good
=Strong Table,=
one you have no fear of harming, and that stands firmly and evenly on
the floor; a piece of smooth, rather thick board about ten inches
square upon which to build your pottery and a small pastry board. Place
the table near a window where there is plenty of light and under it lay
a piece of oilcloth to protect the floor; thus prepared you may plunge
into your work and accomplish wonders without disturbing the general
order of the room. At a convenient place on the table set a small bowl
of water and a cup of slip. The slip is simply clay softened in water
until it is about as thick as cream. A large piece of old muslin, that
you can tear in pieces as needed, should always be at hand, and a wet
sponge on which to wipe your fingers.
Place your pastry board on the table and when the clay is kneaded lay
it to one side and scrape the board, clearing off all dried particles.
Unless this precaution is taken crumbs of dry clay are apt to mix with
the moist clay and make it rough and gritty.
Figs. 563, 564 and 565 are three original designs in candlesticks. We
will take one of these for a model. Fig. 563 is the simplest and most
easily made, so we will begin with that.
Have ready a rather deep
=China Saucer,=
tear off a square of muslin large enough to cover the inside of the
saucer and to extend over its edge. Dip the muslin in the bowl of water
and lay it flat in the saucer, pressing it down as evenly as possible
and smoothing out the air bubbles.
Now take
=A Large Handful of Clay,=
roll it between your palms, lay it on the pastry board in front of you
and with an even pressure of your hands roll it back and forth until it
lengthens out and forms a snake-like piece a little more than half
an inch in diameter (Fig. 566). Do not let the roll flatten, keep it
as round as possible and of an equal size from end to end, then press
it with your fingers and flatten the top just enough to take off its
roundness. When this is done place one end of the roll narrow side up
exactly in the centre of the saucer and make
=A Close Coil=
like Fig. 567, bringing the edges of the coils together with your thumb
nail. When you have coiled one roll make another roll and, cutting the
end of each, like Fig. 568, fit them together and make a smooth and
even joint.
[Illustration: Fig. 576
Design Painted on the Unbaked Clay.]
[Illustration: Fig. 565
A Leaf Design.]
[Illustration: Fig. 575
The Little Pitcher.]
[Illustration: Fig. 563
Yellow Candlestick.]
[Illustration: Fig. 562
Made Without Tools.]
[Illustration: Fig. 564
Hooded Cobra Design.]
[Illustration: Fig. 566.—Roll the clay back and forth.]
[Illustration: Fig. 567.—Make a close coil.]
Continue to coil the clay until the saucer is filled to the edge, then
build it up one coil higher on the edge and cut the last end of the
roll as you did the first. Press this end down to join the roll beneath
it, making the joint invisible. Now
=Dip Your Fingers in Water=
and rub them gently over the coiled clay in the saucer to smooth it,
but be careful not to get it too wet and not to lower the coil on the
edge in the process. If depressions occur fill them with fresh clay
joining the edges of the new clay to the coiled clay, making it one
piece with no cracks or seams. In adding clay at any time the new piece
must always become one with the old, else it will crack when dry or in
the firing, and it is best to brush the place to be filled with slip
before adding the clay. Set your saucer away at this stage of the work
until the clay stiffens a little and the piece becomes what is called
“set.” It is just here that you must use patience, for to continue to
work while the clay is too soft will frequently spoil the whole thing
and the only remedy is to bunch the clay and begin over again. To be
successful in the making of pottery one’s enthusiasm must be of the
kind that will not cool during the necessary waiting periods.
[Illustration: Fig. 568.—Cut the ends like this.]
When the clay in your saucer has become firm but is still quite
pliable, dip another square of muslin in water, spread it inside the
clay saucer and
=Fit in Another Saucer=
of china a trifle smaller than the first. This will give you a pile of
three saucers one within the other, first china, then clay, then china.
Now cover your small board with wet muslin and turn your stack of
saucers upside down on the board. Lift off the top saucer and you have
your clay saucer inverted on top of the smaller china saucer. You will
find all the seams of the coil showing on this underside and must join
them and make the clay one piece as you did on the inside. With your
wire tool (Fig. 561) or a hairpin, carefully
=Cut Down the Parts=
that seem too thick, but at the same time beware of making them so thin
as to weaken the walls of the saucer. It is better to fill out and make
a piece rather heavy than to try at first to obtain the delicacy one
naturally desires, for thin walls often collapse in unaccustomed hands.
As you work, turn the board around and around to be sure the contour is
symmetrical. It is often a good thing to raise the work to the level of
the eye in order the better to detect inaccuracies of outline.
When you have finished the underside and the clay seems firm enough to
stand without support, turn it right side up on the board, always with
the wet muslin between to keep it from sticking. Lift out the small
saucer which is still in the clay saucer and proceed to remove all
traces of the line in the clay made by the ridge on the bottom of the
china saucer. This can be done by smoothing down and adding more clay
to make a curve instead of an angle.
With the wooden skewer make a dot in the centre of the clay saucer,
measuring the distance to be sure it is exact, then take
=A Half Candle,=
wrap it spirally and closely with a narrow strip of wet muslin (Fig.
569) and stand it directly over the mark (Fig. 570). Make little
crossed lines with a sharp tool, or hat pin, around the candle like
Fig. 571; then roll some clay for coiling the candle holder, flattening
the roll as you did for the saucer.
[Illustration: Fig. 569.—Wrap the candle with a strip of wet muslin.]
[Illustration: Fig. 570.—Stand the candle in the centre of the saucer.]
[Illustration: Fig. 571.—Make little crossed lines around the candle.]
[Illustration: Fig. 572.—Press the sharpened end of the roll close to
the candle.]
Before beginning to coil cover the roughened surface around the candle
with slip, then press one sharpened end of the clay roll onto the
saucer close to the candle (Fig. 572) and bring the roll once around
the candle. Make crossed lines on top of the coil, brush with slip and
coil again. Continue roughening the top of the coil and covering with
slip until you have built the holder up a little over two inches from
the saucer, then sharpen the end of your roll and join it to the top
(E, Fig. 573). With a brush dipped in slip, fill up, to some extent the
creases between the coils and make the coil even and round where it may
have been pressed out of shape, for in this part we allow the coil to
show.
[Illustration: Fig. 573.—Sharpen the end of the roll and join it to the
top.]
When the walls of the holder are firm enough gently remove the candle
and
=Smooth the Inside of the Holder=
with a finger wet with slip. If this does not fill up the cracks use a
rounded tool, but be very careful not to press the holder out of shape
or enlarge the opening.
[Illustration: Fig. 574.—Make the handle of a coil of clay.]
=Make the Handle=
of a coil of clay as shown in Fig. 574. First the small coil, joining
the base of the holder to the saucer, then the larger coil which
connects the small coil, and the inside and the outside of the saucer.
Use your first finger for keeping the hole in the centre of the large
coil the proper size. Build up the edge of the saucer slantingly to
join the inner coil of the handle (F, Fig. 574) and allow a ridge to
extend from the outer coil a short distance along the outside of the
saucer (G, Fig. 574).
=This Blending of Decoration with the Article=
itself, making it appear a natural outgrowth from it, is a law of
beauty in modeled decoration, which should always be kept in mind. No
part of a piece of pottery should look as if it were simply stuck on
and might drop off again, but rather as though it were a necessary part
of the whole.
When your candlestick is in good shape and still moist, go over it
with a camel’s-hair brush dipped in water, smoothing down any little
unevenness in this way. Sometimes a coating of slip, well worked in
with the brush will give a good surface. Set the piece away after
this and let it stand undisturbed for several days, or until the clay
has become quite dry and has turned almost white, then if it is still
imperfect in shape
=Scrape it Down=
with a steel tool or pocket knife. The clay is so easily shaved off at
this stage the danger lies in making too deep a cut and the work should
be done gradually and patiently. For the final rubbing use a piece of
fine emery paper. Even this must be carefully handled, for if pressed
heavily on the clay it, also, will cut too deeply.
Do not put your work away to dry in the sun or near a fire. If dried
too rapidly the clay will crack. Sometimes it will crack when it dries,
never so gradually; it may be from shrinkage or because the clay has
not been sufficiently kneaded.
=If Cracks Occur=
while the clay is still moist fill in with new clay and slip. If the
piece is perfectly dry mix some finely powdered baked clay with water,
making a thick paste, and fill the opening. You may be able to get the
unglazed baked clay at the pottery, but if not put a thin cake of clay
in any kind of a very hot oven and allow it to bake several hours, then
grind to a fine powder. Keep this powder in a labelled box that it may
always be at hand when needed.
It is generally supposed that when a piece of pottery cracks in the
firing there is no remedy. This is very likely true with pieces that
have been glazed, but with unglazed ware my own experience has proved
that it can be mended. When an unglazed piece comes from the firing
showing cracks, large or small, mix a thin slip of clay with a little
finely powdered flint and run into the cracks until they are more than
filled, then rub or scrape off the surplus. This formula was given me
by a prominent art potter who also furnished the mixture.
In putting away
=Unfinished Work,=
cover with a damp cloth and keep the cloth damp until you are ready to
go on with your modeling. Once hard the clay can no longer be worked,
and unfinished pottery must always be kept moist. In the case of a
piece having handles, spouts and like projections, place something
under the cloth to hold it away from these parts and prevent its
pushing them out of shape.
=You May Glaze Your Candlestick=
with colored glaze before it is fired or you may have it fired and
returned to you in “the bisque,” when it can be glazed and sent to be
fired the second time. One firing really seems all that is necessary
for small pieces, however. Fig. 563 was fired but once, the glaze
having been applied to the unbaked clay and it came from the pottery
in a perfectly satisfactory condition, without crack or blemish.
The glaze used for all the pottery in the little group in our full-page
illustration, is Marshing’s soft Limoges glaze which may be obtained
where mineral colors for pottery and china painting are sold. The glaze
is transparent when fired and is to be mixed with color unless the
piece has underglaze decoration or the clay is colored. The proportion
is one part dry color to nine parts dry glaze. Both come in powders and
must be thoroughly mixed, then dissolved in a solution of gum arabic.
Eight and one-half teaspoonfuls of glaze to one-half teaspoonful of
underglaze color is sufficient for two candlesticks. Apply this with a
No. 8 camel’s-hair brush and give the piece three coats, waiting each
time for one coat to become thoroughly dry before putting on the next.
Lay the color on evenly and do not allow little streams of glaze to run
over the edges.
There are various
=Other Methods of Coloring Pottery.=
One is to work the dry color into the moist clay by kneading. For
the little pitcher (Fig. 575) one tablespoonful of raw sienna was
thoroughly worked into a lump of clay the size of a large apple and the
pitcher then modelled from the colored clay. Prepared mineral color was
not used, but dry “raw or green” color purchased at an ordinary paint
shop. When quite dry the pitcher turned a beautiful ivory yellow, but
became almost terra cotta when fired. The uncolored glaze was dissolved
in gum arabic and applied after the first firing, and the pitcher was
fired a second time.
Another way to color your pottery is to mix the raw color with slip the
consistency of cream and with it paint a design on the unbaked clay.
A little gum arabic added to the slip will make it adhere more closely
and prevent its rubbing off. This must be fired before the uncolored
glaze is applied. The little bowl (Fig. 576) was decorated in this way
and the colors used were raw sienna and burnt sienna. But one coat of
glaze was given the bowl which makes it look more like old Indian ware
than if it had the very glossy surface.
Colored pottery
=“In the Bisque”=
or unglazed state is often very beautiful and if designed to hold water
or liquid of any kind the inside alone may be glazed, leaving the
outside in its natural dull and porous condition.
Of the various designs shown here the saucers were used only for Fig.
563, and the sooner you are able to discard all such aids and depend
upon your eye alone to guide your hands the more you will enjoy your
work.
Probably you can have your candlesticks fired at the pottery where you
get your clay, but if you wish to carry on the work and experiment for
yourself secure a kiln of your own by all means.
[Illustration: The Light of the Fairy Lamp.]
CHAPTER XXXII
WHAT TO MAKE OF BANANAS, ORANGES, AND APPLES
WHILE icy blasts are still sweeping through the cities of the North,
while the snow lies deep on the ground, and the children, bundled
up until little except their pink noses is visible, are coasting,
sleighing, and snowballing, in the South soft breezes are sifting
through the green leaves of the trees and gently stirring the beautiful
flowers blossoming in the warm sunshine.
In the orange groves the great golden balls are ripening, and on the
long-leaved banana trees hang the queer bunches of bananas, growing
in their funny upside-down fashion. Pineapples, lemons and many other
fruits are there, all growing and ripening that the children of the
North may have them when their own delicious strawberries, peaches and
plums have gone.
We are very glad of these Southern fruits, even the skins seem too good
to throw away. And so they are.
=Save Your Orange, and Banana, and Apple Skins,=
too, and see what delightful things you can make of them.
Long, long ago, before there were any steamboats, sailboats or even
rowboats in the British Isles, when men’s clothes were merely the
skins of wild beasts tied on with leather thongs, the people went on
the water in little circular boats called coracles. These boats were
wickerwork baskets covered with the hides of animals and resembled
bowls in shape. They were sent skimming over the water very rapidly by
means of a paddle which was dipped in first on one side of the boat
then on the other. The coracles were so small a man easily carried his
boat on his back to transport it over dry land, looking, one would
think, very much like a huge turtle walking on its hind legs.
It is a boat like this most primitive one that you can make of
=Half of an Orange Skin=
It will float, too, and ride safely the roughest waves of the bathtub
sea. As it is perfectly water-tight, Miss Dolly need have no fear of
wetting her dainty skirts as she sits in the bottom of the boat.
[Illustration: Fig. 577.—Cut an orange exactly in half.]
[Illustration: Fig. 578.—Carefully remove the pulp.]
Cut an orange exactly in halves like Fig. 577. Slide the blade of a
penknife around the edge, loosening the pulp from the skin, then cut
the pulp in quarters and remove it piece by piece as in Fig. 578. When
all is taken out you have your little boat (Fig. 579) and your orange
besides.
[Illustration: Fig. 579.—The coracle.]
Place the coracle in a basinful of water, put a small doll in it, stir
the water round and round with a stick, and watch the boat glide along
as swiftly as if its little occupant were paddling with all her might.
From the skin of the banana an almost
=Perfect Canoe=
can be made, which will look very much like those used by the Indians
at the time when Columbus discovered America. You know, of course, that
a banana has several ridges on its surface with wide, smooth spaces
between and that the stem end curves up more decidedly than the other.
Along the middle of the smooth space which takes the upward curve of
the stem you must make a slit with the sharp point of your knife,
as shown by the black line on the banana in Fig. 580. Open the slit
carefully, cut the banana in small pieces and take out one piece at a
time (Fig. 581).
[Illustration: Fig. 580.—Make a slit with the point of your knife.]
[Illustration: Fig. 581.—Take out one piece at a time.]
[Illustration: Fig. 582.—Cut the sulphur ends off two matches.]
Cut the sulphur ends off two matches (Fig. 582) and place the little
sticks crosswise in the banana skin, one near each end, to act as
braces in holding the sides apart (Fig. 583) and as a seat for the
doll-man (Fig. 584). Fig. 584 shows both the canoe and the coracle in
the water.
[Illustration: Fig. 583.—The little canoe.]
[Illustration: Fig. 584.—Banana canoe and orange-skin coracle.]
In selecting a banana for the canoe choose a symmetrical or even-sided
one, that it may not tip but sit squarely on the water. In case the
banana is not perfect and the canoe does tip to one side, place in it a
small weight and the balance will be regulated.
The apple lantern, or
=Fairy Lamp=
(Fig. 585) requires a little more time and patience in its preparation
than the boats, but it is not difficult to make. Find a rather small,
perfectly round, red apple without bruise or blemish. Hold it in both
hands and gently press it with your two thumbs, beginning close to the
stem and gradually working down to the blossom end. Be careful not to
break the skin, but press and press until every part is loosened and
the apple feels pulpy like a grape—every part except the blossom; that
holds fast because it is attached to the core. When no hard spots can
be found cut a circle around the stem as shown in Fig. 586, and little
by little dig out the apple until nothing but the skin remains (Fig.
587); then you will find a small lump at the bottom which must be left,
since cutting it out would result in a hole in the skin. With a pair of
sharp scissors trim away all unevenness or raggedness that may be found
on the edge. This will make the opening a trifle larger.
[Illustration: Fig. 585.—The fairy lamp.]
[Illustration: Fig. 586.—Cut a circle around the stem.]
[Illustration: Fig. 587.—The empty skin.]
=Cut a Slice from an Ordinary Candle=
about half an inch thick (A, Fig. 588) and hollow out the under side
enough to allow the candle to fit over the lump in the bottom of the
apple skin (B, Fig. 588). Fit the candle in place, and when it is lit
you will have the prettiest, daintiest little fairy lamp imaginable.
The light shining through the rosy, semi-transparent apple skin gives
the effect of Bohemian glass and casts a red glow all around it.
[Illustration: Fig. 588.—Cut the candle like these.]
The fairy lamp looks very pretty floating in water in a glass bowl,
and a number of lamps around your birthday cake will be a new way of
telling how old you are.
CHAPTER XXXIII
LITTLE PAPER COLUMBUS AND HIS PAPER SHIP
PLACE a chair against one end of the bath tub, for Spain, and another
chair at the other end of the tub for America. If the chair seat is
lower than the rim of the tub, build up with books until the top book
is as high as the tub; then fill the bathtub more than half full of
water and pretend it is the Atlantic ocean. Cut out two paper dolls,
one for King Ferdinand, the other for Queen Isabella. Remember which
chair is Spain, and seat the royal couple in Spain, on a throne, made
of a bent piece of cardboard. Bring Columbus before the monarchs and
let them bid him Godspeed; then put Columbus in his ship, the _Santa
Maria_, with a number of sailors, and send the vessel sailing off on
her voyage of discovery. Gently push the boat forward by the projecting
spar at the stern, and the little craft will sail along like a real
ship on a real ocean; but you must be careful not to push too hard and
capsize the vessel. When the boat reaches America, have ready on the
chair at that end of the bathtub, some wild Indians with their wigwams,
and let Columbus and his men land, while the Indians stand gazing at
them in astonishment.
[Illustration: Fig. 589.—The hull of the _Santa Maria_.]
Before we make the little paper people, let us build
=Columbus’ Ship.=
This ship is to be as nearly like the _Santa Maria_, the real ship in
which Columbus sailed, as is possible to make of paper. Cut a piece
of light-weight cardboard fifteen and three-fourths inches long and
seven and one-half inches wide; on this draw the diagram of the boat
(Fig. 589), making the greatest lengths of the diagram exactly as long
and the greatest widths as wide as the cardboard. Find the lengthwise
centre of the cardboard, which will be three and three-fourths inches
from each long side line, as the cardboard is seven and one-half
inches wide. Draw a line along the centre from end to end, to guide you
in making the diagram of the boat; this central line will also be the
centre of your ship. Commence drawing the bottom A—A (Fig. 589) at a
distance of two and one-fourth inches from the end of the cardboard;
the bottom must measure seven inches from its extreme front point A to
the back line A, and two and three-eighths inches at its widest point
from B to B. The point A of the bottom must come on the long central
line, and the straight back line of the bottom A must be one and
three-fourths inches across.
[Illustration: Columbus’ Ship Made of Paper.]
The length of the extension at the back of the boat from C to D is
three and one-half inches; the deck from D to E, three inches. The
greatest width of the deck, E, not including the two flaps, is two and
three-fourth inches, and the narrowest part at the line D one inch. The
sides of the boat are slashed and the last slash or side piece, F, at
its greatest height touches the edge of the cardboard, while the side
pieces G and G, are the lowest, and so are the longest distance from
the cardboard edge. When you have drawn the diagram cut out the little
craft.
Cut along all the heavy lines. Bend the four dotted lines of the prow
ledge (H, I and H, I) backward. All other dotted lines must be bent
forward, and care taken to keep the bends exactly on the dotted lines.
Do not bend the laps enclosed by the tiny circles along the sides J,
J, J, J, J, J. These circles merely show how far the slashed sides lap
over each other to form the correct shape of the _Santa Maria_, for
you must know that Columbus’ vessel was very different in build and
appearance from any ships we find at the present time. The prow and
stern were much higher than the middle of the boat and at the top the
stern was quite narrow while at the bottom it was wide, making the
rear of the ship big at the bottom and small at the top.
[Illustration: Fig. 590.—This is the mizzenmast.]
Now put the little craft together. Bend the sides up and fasten each
lap on the edge of the next side piece with glue or strong, thick
paste. Bend up the back and paste the three laps of each edge over onto
the sides, fitting the short laps on the section K over the projections
L and L of the sides.
=Make the Mizzenmast=
of a paper lighter, ten inches high after the end has been bent (Fig.
590). Slide the small end of the mast, from beneath, up through the
hole K in the after deck (Fig. 589). The hole should be a tight fit.
Paste the bent end of the mast flat and tight to the bottom of the
boat; bring the flaps of the deck down over the top of the sides and
paste them securely in place.
Next bend up the prow, lapping the flap O (Fig. 589) over the side edge
of the prow, O, and the flap P over the prow, P.
[Illustration: Fig. 591.—Cut the bowsprit like this.]
=Cut the Bowsprit=
(Fig. 591) of cardboard six and one-half inches long, split the wide
end up lengthwise through the centre two and one-fourth inches, then
fold the remainder lengthwise through the centre according to the
dotted lines Fig. 592. Open the split end and place one-half on the
inside of one side of the prow, and the second half opposite on the
inside of the other side of the prow. Leave these ends loose, resting
the bowsprit in the short opening at the centre top of the point of the
prow, where the two short ledges, H and I (Fig. 589), meet.
[Illustration: Fig. 592.—The bowsprit is folded through the centre.]
[Illustration: Fig. 593—The forward deck.]
[Illustration: Fig. 594.—Slash the strip for the forward deck.]
=Make the forward Deck=
of cardboard (Fig. 593) two and one-fourth inches long and at its
widest part a generous one and one-eighth inch. Cut the hole N,
five-eighths of an inch from the wide, straight edge; then cut a strip
five and five-eighths inches in length and three-fourths of an inch in
width, slash as in diagram and bend at dotted line (Fig. 594). Cut the
slit M, and fasten the strip on the deck by pasting the flaps over the
top of the curved edge of the deck (Fig. 595). Slide the flat point of
the projecting bowsprit through the slit M (Fig. 594), and run a paper
lighter foremast, nine and one-half inches long, not including the
bent end, through the hole N (Fig. 593). Bring the deck down over the
prow, adjust the bowsprit to the inclined height of the bowsprit in the
illustration and paste the two split halves of the end of the bowsprit
on each side of the inside of the prow. Fasten the foremast tight on
the bottom of the boat and paste the deck on the ledges, H, I, H, I
(Fig. 589). Make a
=Deck-Fence=
for the stern of a piece of paper seven and one-half inches long and
one inch wide. Cut it in a fringe with every other short strip of the
fringe cut out like Fig. 596. Paste the loose fringe ends along the
three outside top edges of the after deck, allowing the solid border of
the fringe to form the fence rail. See illustration. Cover the lower
ends of the fence when they are pasted to the deck with a band of paper
seven and one-half inches long and three-eighths of an inch wide (Fig.
597).
[Illustration: Fig. 595.—Forward deck.]
[Illustration: Fig. 596.—The deck fence.]
[Illustration: Fig. 597.—Strip for bottom of fence.]
=Make a Spar=
for the stern of the boat as you made the bowsprit Fig. 592, only the
spar should be shorter, extending beyond the stern of the boat about
two inches. Slide the large end of the spar through the opening in the
deck at E (Fig. 589) and rest the split ends on each side of the mast.
=For the Mainmast=
at the centre of the boat make another paper lighter eleven inches
high. Do not bend the end, but paste the bottom lapped edges together
and run the mast through a common wooden spool (Fig. 598). Glue the
spool tight on the bottom of the boat, a trifle forward of the centre,
and your ship is ready for the sails, as you can see from the picture.
[Illustration: Fig. 598.—Support the mainmast with a spool.]
The illustration shows little paper Columbus in his red cloak and cap,
standing on the stern of his vessel, one of the sailors in the centre,
and a wild Indian peeping over the side of the boat. We must make our
=Santa Maria Watertight=
before the sails are set. Melt half of a wax candle in a tin piepan
and set the ship down into the melted hot wax to cover the bottom
thoroughly. Use a teaspoon for pouring the liquid wax over all sides,
about one inch up from the bottom of the boat. This bath of wax should
render your ship perfectly water-tight, but test the little craft on
water to make sure that it does not leak.
=Cut the Sails=
of very light-weight writing-paper, the top edge straight, side edges
slanting, and bottom edge curved inward. Make the greatest height of
the foresail for the bow four inches, the width three and one-half
inches. With the scissors point, punch two small holes in this
foresail, one in the middle at the top and one in the middle at the
bottom. Enlarge the holes slightly by inserting the point of a lead
pencil and twisting the pencil gently around (Fig. 599). Remember that
all holes for the masts to run through must be made rather small, to
prevent the sails from sliding too far down the masts. Bend the top and
bottom of the sails together to curve the paper, that the sails may
appear to be in a good stiff breeze when fastened on the masts. Slide
the foresail you have just made on the foremast; it will stay in place
without glue. Make
=A Paper Flag=
like Fig. 600, for the mainmast, one and three-fourths inches long and
one and one-half inches wide. Cut two holes at one side as shown in the
diagram, divide the remaining space into four squares and paint the two
diagonal squares, Q and Q, red.
[Illustration: Fig. 599.—The foresail.]
[Illustration: Fig. 600.—The flag.]
[Illustration: Fig. 601.—The main-topsail.]
=Make the Main-Topsail=
three and one-fourth inches long and three and three-fourths inches
wide (Fig. 601). For the
=Crow’s-Nest=
saw or cut off the top of an ordinary wooden spool and paint red
downward points around the top edge, a pointed band around the centre,
and two straight, narrow bands at the lower edge (Fig. 602).
[Illustration: Fig. 602.—The crow’s-nest.]
[Illustration: Fig. 603.—The mainsail.]
=The Mainsail=
(Fig. 603) must be four and one-half inches long and five inches wide.
Paint a red cross on it as shown in the diagram. Slide the mainsail
well down on the mainmast; over it place the spool top “crow’s-nest”;
next run on the main-topsail and slip the flag on the tip-top.
[Illustration: Fig. 604.—The jigger sail is shaped like this.]
=The Jigger Sail=
for the mizzenmast at the stern of the boat must be five inches high
and five inches wide (Fig. 604). Paint the paper pennant (Fig. 605)
blue, and bend it into several waves. Slide the jigger sail in place on
the mizzenmast and top it with the blue pennant. Your finished vessel
should resemble closely the illustration. If you want to
=Paint the Santa Maria=
do so before giving it the wax bath. Color the hull a reddish brown,
the masts brown, and the sails a light orange; this will give a very
pretty effect.
[Illustration: Fig. 605.—A bright colored pennant.]
[Illustration: Fig. 606.—Cut Columbus out by this pattern.]
Now for the characters of our little drama. Make
=Columbus=
of heavy stiff writing-paper or very light-weight cardboard, like the
pattern (Fig. 606), which measures from the top of the head to the
lowest edge of the stand, four and three-fourths inches. Without the
stand the figure measures four inches. Carefully cut out Columbus,
mark his features, hair, and clothing in black ink. Cut his cloak (Fig.
607) of red tissue paper, bend at dotted lines across the shoulders,
and fold back the open front as in Fig. 608. Make the red tissue paper
cap (Fig. 609), and fold lengthwise across centre (Fig. 610); then put
both cloak and hat on Columbus, that he may be ready to start on his
journey (Fig. 611). Cut out a number of sailors (Fig. 612) to go on
the boat with Columbus, and a lot of Indians (Fig. 613) for Columbus to
find when he lands on the shores of America, at the other end of the
bathtub.
[Illustration: Fig. 607.—Make a cloak for Columbus in this way.]
[Illustration: Fig. 608.—Turn back the front edges.]
[Illustration: Fig. 609.—Cut the hat like this.]
[Illustration: Fig. 610.—The hat is folded.]
[Illustration: Fig. 611.—Columbus in his red cloak.]
[Illustration: Fig. 612.—One of the sailors.]
[Illustration: Fig. 613.—The Indian.]
[Illustration: Fig. 614.—Make several paper wigwams.]
[Illustration: Fig. 615.—King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella.]
=Make Wigwams=
for the Indians of paper cut in half circles. Bend back narrow,
pie-shaped pieces along the two straight edges of each half circle,
make the pie-shaped pieces reach midway up toward the centre; then bend
the half circles into tent-like forms, pin the two top edges of each
one together, and you will have wigwams, with the doorway flaps bent
back. Cut off the top peak of each, wigwam and stand some heavy long
broom straws in the opening to represent poles used in real wigwams
(Fig. 614).
Fig. 615 shows
=King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella=
of Spain, seated on their pasteboard throne, ready to receive Columbus.
Queen Isabella gave three ships to Columbus, but the _Santa Maria_ was
the largest vessel, and the one which carried Columbus. The two smaller
boats were named the _Pinta_ and the _Nina_. You can make these smaller
ships or use any little boats you happen to have; they are not very
important.
CHAPTER XXXIV
HOW TO MAKE FRIENDS WITH THE STARS
WHEN you used to recite about the cow jumping over the moon, you did
not know that there were all sorts of animals and people up among
the stars near the moon, and, while they may never have followed the
example of the cow in the nursery rhyme, probably they often feel as
though they would enjoy doing so. But these starry people and their
pets are very well behaved, and so far they have been perfectly content
to remain exactly where they were placed hundreds of years ago.
There is one animal in particular with which you must make friends—a
bear, an immense creature called
=Ursa Major.=
Never could an earthly bear have such a tail as you see in Fig. 616.
However, the Great Bear is very different from the ordinary bear, and
needs the big, bushy tail for three bright stars. Four more equally
bright stars are on the creature’s side. Trace the big bear on
cardboard, and be sure to get the stars in the right places. Cut out
the pasteboard bear, and with a large, coarse pin or needle pierce a
hole in the centre of each star; then hold the bear up to the light, as
the little girl holds the lion in Fig. 617. Look through the bear and
you will see seven tiny, twinkling stars forming a dipper. Pretend you
have stretched a string from star to star, and what you will see will
resemble Fig. 618. Look again and if the dipper is not distinct, make
the holes in the centres of the stars larger.
[Illustration: Fig. 616.—Ursa Major, the Great Bear.]
[Illustration: Fig. 617.—Making friends with the stars.]
After you have learned precisely how Ursa Major looks with its starry
dipper, and can see it even with your eyes closed, peep out into the
night and try to find your friend up in the real sky. The bear is
there, but you must recognize it by the dipper, for of course you
cannot really see the animal itself. When you find the dipper you will
know that the Great Bear is in the sky looking down upon you. You can
see the big bear during the early evening hours of March, April, May,
June and July.
[Illustration: Fig. 620.—Ursa Minor, Little Bear.]
[Illustration: Fig. 618.—Ursa Major, Great Bear.]
Fig. 619 gives another bear, a little one, whose name is
=Ursa Minor;=
he also has a long tail spangled with stars and four more stars on the
side of his body which form a little dipper; the three stars on the
tail make the handle. Though the bear is small, he is very important
because of the large star on the end of his tail, which you must call
the Pole star. This star shines out to show which direction is north
when one gets lost or confused about his way. The Pole star may always
be depended upon as a guide, and sailors look for it to help them find
their course through the waters.
[Illustration: Fig. 619.—Ursa Minor, Little Bear.]
Ursa Minor is turned in an opposite direction and position from the
Great Bear, and the pose makes it easy for us to find the Pole star,
because when we once trace out the stars of the Great Bear in the real
sky we will see that the two outermost stars of the four which form its
bowl, point to the Pole star. We can pretend that we have tied a string
on the star in the outside top end of the Big Dipper (Figs. 616 and 618
A), and that we are stretching that string out from the Dipper star
in a direct line; then we can tie the string on the Pole star in the
end of the Little Bear’s tail, as shown in Figs. 618 and 620, where the
dotted line represents a string.
Trace on cardboard and cut out Ursa Minor, punch holes through the
stars and hold the little fellow up to the light, head down. The Little
Bear, too, is visible shining not far from the Big Bear during the same
months.
There is
=A Fairy Tale=
about the starry bears. The story tells us that a long time ago these
animals were not bears and did not live among the stars. The Great Bear
was a gentle lady, and the Little Bear her son. The poor mother and son
were turned into bears by the goddess Juno, and their friend Jupiter
had not enough power to disenchant them and restore to them their human
forms. So he did what he thought was next best; he placed the two
bears, mother and son, up in the sky among the stars, where they remain
to this day.
[Illustration: Fig. 621.—Cassiopeia.]
Fig. 621 is
=Cassiopeia=
In the sky all of her stars are brilliant, except the one marked K.
This is a shy little twinkler and appears rather faint at times; but in
the Autumn when you hunt for Cassiopeia, you will be able to see the
star K, if your eyes are bright. This lady with uplifted arms is the
wife of a king. Trace her and cut her out, punch holes through the
centres of the seven stars, then catch hold of the sweeping train of
the queen’s dress and hold her up to the light, when the pinholes will
look like Fig. 622, reminding one of a chair turned upside down, with
its feet toward the queen’s head and its back down toward her feet. You
will be delighted with this constellation, for it is very beautiful,
and you may find Cassiopeia any night of August, September, October,
November, December, January and February, as she is always then visible
after dark.
[Illustration: Fig. 622.—Cassiopeia.]
[Illustration: Fig. 623.—Leo, the Lion.]
[Illustration: Fig. 624.—Leo, the Lion.]
Now we will make the king of beasts,
=Leo, the Lion,=
for he is very fine-looking with his starry mane and a star almost
in his mouth (Fig. 623). Trace the lion carefully, name him Leo, and
cut him out; pierce holes through the stars and hold the figure up to
the light. The little girl in Fig. 617 is enjoying her Leo very much.
Notice how earnestly she peers through the holes, for she is determined
to know the constellation. When you look through the pinholes of Leo,
you will find that the constellation resembles a sickle, as in Fig.
624. The lion is in plain sight during February, March, April, May and
June, so you have a long time to make friends with him.
During the Spring you can see all the constellations we have made, and
also the beautiful starry
=Northern Crown=
(Fig. 625), shining in a brilliant half circle as shown in Fig. 626.
The gems of stars in the crown sparkle and shine for us during April,
May, June, July, August, September and October.
[Illustration: Fig. 625.—The Northern Crown.]
[Illustration: Fig. 626.—The Northern Crown.]
[Illustration: Fig. 627.—Gemini, the Twins.]
The little twin brothers,
=Castor and Pollux,=
sons of Jupiter; always sit together up among the stars. The
constellation is called Gemini (Fig. 627). When stars are clustered
together, we say the group is a constellation. All of the starry people
and animals are only different constellations. In this group each boy
has a star on his head, a star on one knee and a star on one foot,
which makes six stars. Trace the twins on cardboard, cut them out
together in one piece and punch a hole through the centre of each star.
Hold the constellation up to the light, and the group of wee, sparkling
stars seen through the pinholes will resemble Fig. 628. Look for the
twins during the months of December, January, February, March, April
and May, and remember you must find the group of stars like Fig. 628.
[Illustration: Fig. 628.—Gemini, the Twins.]
[Illustration: Fig. 629.—Orion, the Giant.]
[Illustration: Fig. 630.—Orion, the Giant.]
Winter will bring
=Orion=
(Fig. 629). He appears in November and remains where we can see him
through December, January, February and March. Orion is one of the most
brilliant of constellations. The strenuous hunter has but one visible
foot, the other being hidden by his pet hare seated in front of it; so
we are obliged to make the star, man with one foot. The fairy tale says
that he was a giant and the mightiest hunter ever known. There is a
star on each of his shoulders and one on his cheek, forming a triangle;
then there is another star down on his left foot and one on his right
knee. Trace the mighty hunter and cut him out as you did the other
constellations. Draw a line from star to star and, after adding the
three stars which form Orion’s belt, pierce holes in all, look through
them (Fig. 630) and make friends with the harmless, starry giant. Fig.
631 is
=Taurus,=
a very lively-looking bull for one so aged; possibly the stars, being
bright and cheery, keep the milk-white creature from growing old. Only
a portion of the bull can be seen; other stars hide the remainder.
Taurus must be greatly dazzled by the stars, for there is actually one
in each of his eyes, the two forming the ends of the V-shaped group of
stars across his face. The tip of each horn is decked with a glorious
star, while on the Bull’s neck is a cluster of stars called the
Pleiades. These stars were in all seven beautiful sisters, daughters
of the giant Atlas; but one star daughter married a mortal and lost
her brightness for doing so; consequently you can now see but six star
sisters.
[Illustration: Fig. 631.—Taurus, the Bull.]
[Illustration: Fig. 632.—Taurus, the Bull.]
In Fig. 632 you will find the constellation of Taurus as it looks when
seen through the pinholes in the stars of the Bull, and also as the
constellation appears in the sky on a clear night during November,
December, January, February and March.
CHAPTER XXXV
STENCIL PAINTING AND HOW TO MAKE THE STENCILS
YOU need not be an artist to do the painting or to make the stencils.
It is all easy enough and, because of the real beauty of the work and
the number of purposes to which it may be applied, stencilling is
growing more and more popular.
With the stencil you can decorate a window curtain, portière, table
cover, bedspread, bureau scarf, screen or the walls of your room. You
may even paint the trimmings for a dress if you like; it has been done.
[Illustration: This Portière is Made of Unbleached Sheeting Stencilled
in Persian Design.]
[Illustration: A Stencilled Cheese-cloth Curtain.]
Stencilling is effective on almost any material: silk, cotton, linen
and wool. Swiss and cheese-cloth sash curtains are particularly
attractive decorated in this way, and swiss bureau and pin-cushion
covers are very dainty. The drawing on page 427 is of a white
cheese-cloth short sash curtain stencilled in pink and light
apple-green. Both dye and oil paints may be used, but for anything
washable
=Dyes=
are the best, inasmuch as they are supposed to be fast colors. There
is an inexpensive dye now on the market that comes in tubes like oil
paint and does not require boiling. This is convenient to handle, as it
is merely necessary to dissolve it in water. Tapestry dyes may also
be used but are much more expensive. Heavy, non-washable material may
be stencilled with oil colors. The color is not used as a paint but as
a stain and must be entirely dissolved in turpentine to make it flow
easily. Our first drawing shows
=A Portière=
made of heavy unbleached sheeting stencilled in a Persian pattern with
dull-red, moss-green, yellow and black. Curtains may also be made of
denim, crash, burlap and a number of other materials. The simplest way
to
=Make Your Stencil=
if you have no especial ideas of your own to carry out, will be to
select a graceful embroidery pattern or one intended for decorative
painting and adapt it to your use. With a little practice this becomes
quite easy. The principal things to remember are that a good stencil
design should be simple, bold and conventional; the unbroken lines must
not be too long nor the spaces to be cut out too narrow, between the
cut-out parts there must be space wide enough to hold firmly. It is
also necessary to break the lines once in a while with little bridges.
[Illustration: Fig. 633.—Design for outline embroidery.]
Suppose we take the pattern (Fig. 633). To make it into
=A Design for Stencilling=
we must cut off connections and separate it into many parts, at the
same time keeping the effect of the long curves. Beginning with the
flower we will separate the petals and calyx (A, Fig. 633, and A,
Fig. 634), and widen the stem (B, Fig. 633, and B, Fig. 634). Instead
of continuing the curve we will break it at C and D, with two little
bridges. This divides the stem into three parts, and, to give variety
and interest to an otherwise monotonous line, we will widen the first
and second parts of the stem at the lower ends, curving the wide end
inward and rounding the end of the next section to give the idea of
its fitting the joint. The suggestion of the various parts fitting
together in stencil designing is the means of carrying the eye over
necessary bridges or intervening spaces and conveying the impression of
continuous lines. The third section of the stem, where it disappears
under the flower in Fig. 633, we will bring to a point in Fig. 634 to
indicate its vanishing behind the flower. The buds which fill in the
curve of this stem in Fig. 633 we will leave out altogether, for they
would crowd the design. We will conventionalize the leaves, dispense
with the small stems, broaden the main leaf stem, separate it from the
flower stem and curve each end, one to fit the base of the end leaf,
the other to follow the curve of the flower stem.
[Illustration: Fig. 634.—This is adapted from an outline embroidery
design.]
This furnishes one section of the pattern; the rest is but a repetition
of the same, which is reversed as the curves alternate.
Now for the making of the stencil.
Fig. 635 is a section of the design, actual size, which you can use
immediately, without waiting to develop a design for yourself.
Take a piece of smooth white tissue paper, lay it over the pattern
(Fig. 635) and, with a very soft lead pencil, trace the pattern
carefully. Fig. 635 is reversed, especially for tracing. Have ready
a perfectly smooth piece of heavy Manila wrapping paper seventeen
inches long and seven inches wide. With the aid of a ruler draw two
straight lines lengthwise across the paper, the first line two and a
half inches from the top edge of the paper (E, Fig. 636), the next one
and three-eighths inches below the first line (F). One-half of an inch
above the first line E draw another line (G), and one-half of an inch
below the line F draw another line (H).
[Illustration: Fig. 635.—Trace this.]
[Illustration: Fig. 636.—Rule the paper in this way.]
[Illustration: Fig. 637.—Place sections of the design between the lines
in this way.]
Lay the tracing, pencilled side down, on the wrapping paper, with the
upper and lower curves of the flower stem just fitting between the
lines G and F (Fig. 637). Transfer the tracing to the wrapping paper by
going over the lines of the design with your soft pencil; then turn the
tracing over and bottom edge up to reverse it and lay it again on the
paper, this time with the curves of the flower stem between the lines E
and H, and go over the lines of the design again with your soft pencil.
Once more reverse the design and bring the curves of the flower stem
between the lines G and F. This last section will finish the pattern.
In reversing the tracing always allow one-quarter of an inch space
between the tips of the two flower petals I and J (Fig. 637), and the
leaf K (Fig. 637).
[Illustration: Fig. 638.—Cut the stencil out like this.]
With a pair of sharp scissors
=Cut Out Your Design=
taking great care to keep within the outlines, for a snip beyond will
let in color in the wrong place and spoil your stencil. Remember you
are not to cut the paper _away_ from the design but cut _the design
out_ leaving the surrounding paper intact. This makes the stencil
(Fig. 638). When all of the design is cut out place your stencil flat
on a board and give it a coat of white shellac, then lift it and move
to another place on the board to prevent its sticking. When quite dry
turn the stencil over and shellac the other side. Be sure the edges of
the cut-out parts are covered with shellac as well as the rest of the
paper. The shellac makes the paper waterproof and durable. Do not use
the stencil until it is absolutely dry.
Trace Fig. 639 which is the conventionalized flower, and transfer it
to the centre of a four-inch square of the wrapping paper, or make the
flower smaller if you prefer to have it the size of the one in the
border. Cut out the design and shellac the little stencil as you did
the larger one (Fig. 640).
[Illustration: Fig. 639.—Trace this flower.]
The closer the weave of the cloth the easier is the work of
stencilling, but the dye penetrates entirely through thin material, and
the effect is so attractive I will describe the
=Cheese-cloth Curtains=
and the process given for stencilling these will answer for any other
material.
[Illustration: Fig. 640.—The small stencil.]
One width of cheese-cloth for each half of the short Dutch curtains is
sufficient for quite a wide window. If the curtain is too full much of
the effect of the decoration is lost.
Select the finest quality of cheese-cloth and cut it the required
length. Hem the bottom edge and lay the curtain, right side up,
smoothly on a lap-board with the hem at the top. Place your stencil
on the curtain so that the design will be about one inch and a half
from the hem. Slide a new piece of blotter paper under the curtain to
absorb the extra moisture, then tack the stencil down with rather small
pins. Drive a pin in the centre of each flower, at the point of each
petal and at the point of each leaf, between the petals and between the
leaves, also in every bridge and along the edges of the design wherever
the paper is inclined to lift (Fig. 641). In short, your endeavor must
be to keep the stencil perfectly flat on the cloth so that the dye will
not penetrate beyond the openings and blur the outlines.
[Illustration: Fig. 641.—Tack the stencil down with pins.]
Before tacking the stencil in place
=Make Your Dye Ready=
Buy a tube of olive green dye, one of yellow and one of cardinal
red. Squeeze about a teaspoonful of dye into a teacup, add two
tablespoonfuls of boiling water, stir until dissolved, then add enough
boiling water to give the desired shade. You can test the depth of
color by dipping bits of white cloth in the dye. Each dye must be in a
separate cup and a little yellow should be added to the green after it
is dissolved, but before it is diluted with the extra water. Have ready
=Two Stiff Bristle Brushes,=
such as are used for oil painting, and a piece of old white muslin.
With your stencil in place, take the board on your lap, set the dye on
a stand at your side and lay the old muslin folded on the board above
your curtain. Dip a brush in the dye and rub it on the muslin to remove
some of the moisture, for a brush too wet will cause the dye to spread
and spoil the outline of the design.
Beginning at the left hand of your stencil, scrub the cheese-cloth in
the openings of the design until it becomes the right shade and the
dye sinks entirely through the cloth. The flowers must be pink and the
leaves green, but you can make the flowers darker at the centre if you
wish by applying more color. Use separate brushes for the green and red
dye. Hold the brush firmly and in an upright position.
[Illustration: Fig. 642.—Crease the cloth through the centre.]
[Illustration: Fig. 643.—Leave several inches of thread at the ends.]
[Illustration: Fig. 644.—Tie securely.]
[Illustration: Fig. 645.—Make a loop of the floss.]
When you have stencilled the entire design
=Pull Out the Pins,=
move the stencil farther along on the curtain, tack it down and
continue stencilling until the border is finished; then take the small
stencil of the single flower (Fig. 640) and stencil the flower at
irregular intervals over the curtain. For
=The Tassels=
which finish the curtains use cheese-cloth colored with the green dye.
Cut a strip of cheese-cloth two and a half inches wide, spread it
flat on the board and paint it with the dye, using your bristle paint
brush for the purpose. When the cloth is dry cut it into pieces four
inches long. Dye a number of strands of white linen floss, or use green
linen or silk floss for tying the tassels.
[Illustration: Fig. 646.—Run another gathering thread across each half
of the tassel.]
[Illustration: Fig. 647.—Wrap the thread around to form the neck.]
[Illustration: Fig. 648.—Trim off the bottom.]
Fold one piece of the dyed cheese-cloth crosswise through the centre
and crease it (Fig. 642). Thread a coarse needle with a strand of the
floss and run it through the crease, leaving several inches of the
floss at each end (Fig. 643). Draw the material into gathers and tie
securely (Fig. 644). Then bring the two ends together. Make a loop of
the floss about one inch long (Fig. 645), and fasten by taking one or
two stitches in the gathers. Open the fold, bring the ends of the floss
on the underside of the tassel, tie close to the gathers and cut off
the ends. Run another gathering thread across each half of the tassel,
half an inch below the gathers at the top (Fig. 646). Draw the thread
tight, wrap it around several times to form the neck (Fig. 647), and
fasten with several stitches. Cut the floss close to the wrapping
and with the scissors trim off the bottom of the tassel until it is
perfectly even (Fig. 648). Sew the tassels several inches apart on
the bottom edge of the curtains, as shown in illustration. When the
curtains are
=To be Laundered=
soak them for an hour or more in a strong solution of salt and water,
then wash carefully in the suds of a pure white soap and rinse
thoroughly. Do not rub the soap on the material, and before putting the
curtain in water shake and brush out all loose dust. Dry in the shade.
INDEX
A
Airships, fairy, 70
Alexandria, Pharos of, 245
Amytis, 279
Animal circus, 15
Apollo, Statue of, 233
Apple, Hallowe’en, 60
Apple games, 85
Ascension, balloon, 11
B
Baby, Punch and Judy, 52
Baby porcupine, 68
Babylon, hanging gardens of, 279
Babylonians, 283
Backyard camp, 194
Ball, tether, 207
Balloon ascension, 11
Banana canoe, 401
Basket, hanging, 372
Bathing place, 341
Bayberry candle, 326
Bead door knobs, 317
Bean bag test, 66
Bells, Easter, 364
Berries, holly, 307
Blackbirds, girls’ fair, 181
Blarney stone game, 71
Blind mice, three, 144
Bloodroot, 363
Board, weaving, 349
Boat, backyard camp, 202
Boot, Santa Claus, 169
Bouquet, 147
Bowls and cups, 59
Bowsprit, 408
Box, Pandora, 12
Bricks, Babylonian, 286
Broad-fronted bulls, 293
Brook, crossing the, 133
Bud, tulip, 361
Bulls, Babylonian, 293
Bushes, bayberry, 326
Butterfly game, 42
C
Camels, Egyptian, 228
Camp, backyard, 194
Camp-fire, backyard, 201
Camping outfit, 194
Candle, bayberry, 326
Candle-moulds, 331
Candlesticks, home-made, 385
Candlewicks, 334
Canoe, banana, 401
Card, Easter egg, 363
Card, tally, 159
Cardboard Pharos, 244
Cards, Easter, 358
Caria, 257
Cassiopeia, 421
Castor, 423
Cats, black, 56
Cella, 271
Chair, doll’s, 370
“Chapeau Bras,” 377
Charades, Pantomime, 6
Chares, 233
Charm, lava, 67
Cheops, 219
Chephren, King, 224
Chick, good-morning, 381
Chicks, Easter, 143
Christmas, decorations, 303
Christmas tree, living, 173
Circus, home, 15
Claus, jolly little Santa, 163
Clay candlesticks, 386
Cnidus, Sostratus, 253
Coat, Santa Claus’, 169
Coloring pottery, 396
Colossus of Rhodes, 233
Columbus, paper, 405
Columbus, to make, 414
Columns, temple, 269
Coracle, orange skin, 400
Costume, Puritan man’s, 98
Costume, Titania’s, 82
Costumes, Charades, 7
Cotton, stuffing, 237
Country picnic, 132
Court, pumpkin game, 90
Court, tether-ball, 211
Cow jumped over the moon, to make, 139
Cradle, doll’s, 372
Cross, to make, 360
Crossing the brook, 133
Crow’s-nest, 412
Crystal, Japanese, 68
Cupid’s door, 108
Cups and bowls, 59
Cups, Santa Claus’, 170
Curtains, tissue paper, 324
D
Dainty bloodroot, 363
Dais, upper, 264
Daisy Valentine, 110
Dance of the dolls, 145
Dance, of Titania, 75
Date palm, 227
Daylight fireworks, 11
Deck, forward, 409
Deck-fence, 410
Decorations, living Christmas tree, 177
Diana, temple of, 269
Disks, gilt paper, 36
Doll house, 315
Doll’s chair, 370
Dolls, dance of the, 145
Door, Cupid’s, 108
Doorknobs, bead, 317
Drama, Punch and Judy, 53
Dress, Punch’s, 50
Dress, Puritan woman’s, 98
Dye kettle, magic, 43
E
Easter bells, 364
Easter cards, 358
Easter chicks, 143
Easter egg cards, 363
Easter party, 33
Egg card, 363
Egg tennis, 33
Eggs, to prepare for tennis, 34
Egypt, pyramids of, 219
Elephant, 20
Empress Josephine, 379
Entertainment, Valentine, 103
Ephesus, temple of Diana at, 269
Euphrates, 279
Evergreen ropes, 312
Express office, girls’ fair, 186
F
Fair, girls’, 179
Fairy airships, 70
Fairy lamp, 403
Fairy waters, life in, 141
Fence, picnic, 132
Fire, backyard, 201
Firecracker invitations, 4
Fireworks, daylight, 11
Flag, 412
Flags, flower beds, 157
Footstool, Zeus, 265
Forfeits, 95
Fortune jingle, 71
Fortune telling, novel, 55
Fourth of July lawn frolic, 3
Frieze, doll house, 322
Frolic, Fourth of July, 3
G
Game, Blarney Stone, 71
Game, butterfly, 42
Game of egg tennis, 39
Games, new Easter, 33
Garden, plant your, 151
Garden planting game, 159
Gardens, hanging, 279
Giant firecracker invitation, 4
Gilt paper disks, 36
Girl, sun-bonnet, 149
Girls’ fair, 179
Glazing candlesticks, 395
Goddess Diana, 272
Good-night chick, 384
Grass, invitation rings of, 55
H
Half candle, 391
Halicarnassus, Mausoleum of, 245
Hallowe’en apple, 60
Hallowe’en merrymaking, 55
Handle, candle, 393
Hanging basket, 372
Hanging gardens, 279
Harmless serpent, 69
Hat, peaked, 174
Head, Judy’s, 51
Heart, Valentine, 109
Heavier rug, 357
Holly, 304
Holly berries, 307
Hollyhocks, paper, 129
Home circus, 15
Home-made candlesticks, 385
Horse, Rosebud’s, 18
House, doll, 315
Hurling the lance, 10
I
Impromptu moving pictures, 97
Inlaying Zeus’ throne, 267
Invitation, giant firecrackers, 4
J
Japanese crystal, 68
Japanese tag, 134
Jigger sail, 413
Jingle, fortune, 71
Jolly little Santa Claus, 163
Josephine, 379
Judy’s head, 51
K
Kettle, magic dye, 43
L
Lamp, fairy, 403
Lance, hurling the, 10
Lantern, pumpkin, 93
Lava charm, 67
Lawn frolic, Fourth of July, 3
Leaves, bayberry, 326
Leo, 422
Life rope, toy, 340
Lighthouse, first, 245
Living Christmas tree, 173
Loom, to weave without, 349
Love’s palette, 111
Lumberman, 344
M
Mademoiselle Rosebud, 16
Magic dye kettle, 43
Magic peep show, 137
Mainmast, 411
Mainsail, 413
Main topsail, 412
Man, Puritan, 98
Marble steps, 252
Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, 245
Media, 279
Mermaid, 142
Mermaid, 345
Merrymaking Hallowe’en, 55
Mice, three blind, 144
Mikado, 374
Mistletoe, 310
Mizzenmast, 408
Modelling tools, 387
Moon, cow that jumped over, 141
Moulds, candle, 331
Moving animal circus, 15
Moving pictures, impromptu, 97
Myth, 12
N
Napoleon, 375
Nebuchadnezzar, 279
Nest, bird’s, 373
Northern crown, 423
Novel Easter party, 33
Novel fortune telling, 55
O
Office, express, girls’ fair, 186
Olympia, statue of Zeus at, 259
Orange games, 85
Orange-skin coracle, 400
Order of entertainment, 6
Original Valentine, 103
Orion, 424
Outdoor fun, 207
Outfit, camping, 194
Oyster, sea treasure, 69
P
Palette, love’s, 111
Palm, date, 227
Pandora box, 12
Pantomime, 102
Pantomime, charades, 6
Paper Columbus, 405
Paper disks, 36
Paper shower, 36
Party, novel Easter, 33
Party, Thanksgiving, 85
Pasteboard doll house, 315
Peaked hat, 174
Peep show, magic, 137
Performers, wild west show, 120
Pharos of Alexandria, 244
Phidias, 259
Picnic, roof, 127
Pig, to make, 367
Pin cushion, 375
Pitch-wood fire, 252
Plant your garden, 151
Plants, Babylonian, 299
Platforms, hanging gardens’, 284
Pole, tether-ball, 207
Pollux, 423
Porcupine, 68
Post-office, 104
Postmaster, girls’ fair, 192
Pottery, coloring, 396
Properties, Thanksgiving stage, 101
Pumpkin games, 85
Punch and Judy show, 45
Punch’s head, 46
Puritan woman, 98
Pyramids, 219
Q
Queen Titania, 75
R
Race, shuffle, 10
Race, wedding, 61
Rackets, egg tennis, 38
Rackets, palm-leaf fan, 158
Rackets, tether-ball, 214
Raft, toy, 341
Rapid-transit story, 92
Reindeer, Santa Claus, 165
Rhodes, Colossus of, 233
Rings of grass, invitation, 55
Rite, vesper, 65
Roof picnic, 127
Ropes, evergreen, 312
Rosebud, mademoiselle, 16
Roses, paper, 130
Rug, doll house, 323
Rules of egg tennis, 41
S
Saddle, camel, 230
Safe, backyard, 199
Sail boat, 373
Sails, Columbus’ ship, 411
Sandpaper for pyramids, 221
Santa Claus, 163
Santa Maria, 411
Saucers, Santa Claus, 171
Screen, witch, 66
Sea treasure, 69
Secret of magic kettle, 43
Serpent, 69
Shelves, 324
Ship, Columbus’, 405
Show, magic peep, 137
Show, Punch and Judy, 45
Show, wild west, 113
Shower of paper, 36
Shrubbery, Babylonian, 297
Shuffle race, 10
Side steps, Diana’s temple, 276
Sides, choice of, 160
Sleigh, Santa Claus, 164
Slides, peep show, 138
Slippers, old, 58
Sostratus, 253
Sphinx, 225
Spool table, 315
Spoon, 368
Spring, tin-pail, 200
Stage, Punch and Judy, 45
Stage, Titania’s, 75
Stamps, Valentine, 107
Statue of Zeus, 259
Statues, Babylonian, 294
Stems, 311
Stencil painting, 426
Stencils, to make, 426
Steps, Diana’s temple, 274
Steps, marble, 252
Story, rapid transit, 92
Strawberry, 371
Sun-bonnet, charade, 7
Sun-bonnet girl, 149
Sunflowers, paper, 127
T
Table, backyard camp, 198
Table, spool, 315
Table, wild west show, 113
Tag, Japanese, 134
Tally card, 159
Taurus, 425
Temple of Diana, 269
Tennis, egg, 33
Tent, backyard, 197
Tent, to make, 123
Test, bean bag, 66
Tether-ball, 207
Thanksgiving party, 85
Three blind mice, 144
Throne of Zeus, 263
Tissue paper glass, 318
Titania’s dance, 75
Tools, clay modelling, 387
Toys, water, 338
Tree, living Christmas, 173
Trousers, Santa Claus, 169
Tulip bed, 361
Turtle, 366
U
Umbrella, 369
Upper dais, 264
Ursa major, 418
Ursa minor, 420
V
Valentine entertainment, 103
Vesper rite, 65
Victory, winged, 268
W
Warp, 350
Water life, 141
Water toys, 338
Wax, bayberry, 331
Weaving, 349
Wedding race, 61
Wicks, candle, 334
Wig, Santa Claus, 169
Wigwams, 416
Wild west show, 113
Window glass, 318
Winged victory, 268
Wings, Titania’s, 83
Witch screen, 66
World, valentine, 109
Wreaths, 310
Y
Yard, camping in back, 194
Z
Zeus, statue of, 259
_THE BEARD BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE_
Recreations for Girls
By LINA and ADELIA B. BEARD
Profusely illustrated by the authors. 8vo, $2.00
————
This new book for girls, by Lina and Adelia Beard, whose previous books
on girls’ sports have become classic, combines a mass of practical
instruction on handicrafts and recreations. No more charming book for
girls could be desired.
“It teaches how to make serviceable and useful things of
all kinds out of every kind of material. It also tells
how to play and how to make things to play with. The
girl who gets this book will not lack for occupation and
pleasure.”—_Chicago Evening Post._
SOME OF THE CHAPTERS
A Home-made Loom
How to Spin Flax
Pottery Without a Wheel
Hallowe’en Revels
The Magic Cloth
A New Race of Dolls
Modeling in Tissue Paper
Open Air Play Houses
May Day Amusements
An Indian Encampment
A Toy Colonial Kitchen
Things Worth Doing
AND HOW TO DO THEM
By LINA and ADELIA B. BEARD
Profusely illustrated by the authors. 8vo, $2.00
————
An infinite variety of things worth doing is comprised in the latest
Beard book for girls, which is in every way equal to its widely popular
predecessors, and contains a wealth of absolutely new material. How to
do the various things worth doing is set forth with that simplicity of
direction which has been one of the chief factors in the success of
these authors. The text is supplemented by some six hundred drawings.
The book tells of such things as these: A Wonderful Circus at Home, A
Valentine Entertainment, A Novel Easter Party, Hallowe’en Merrymaking,
How to Get Up a Girls’ Fair.
THE AMERICAN GIRL’S HANDY BOOK
HOW TO AMUSE YOURSELF AND OTHERS
By LINA and ADELIA B. BEARD
With nearly 500 Illustrations by the Authors
One volume, square 8vo, $2.00
————
Eight new chapters have been added to the forty-two which have carried
this famous book to the hearts of all the young people since its first
appearance, and everything that the girls of to-day want to know about
their sports, games, and winter afternoon and evening work, is told
clearly and simply in this helpful and entertaining volume. The volume
is fully and handsomely illustrated from drawings by the authors, whose
designs are in the best sense illustrative of the text.
[Illustration]
=SUMMARY OF CONTENTS=
First of April—Wild Flowers and Their Preservation—The Walking
Club—Easter-Egg Games—How to Make a Lawn Tennis Net—May-Day
Sports—Midsummer-Eve Games and Sports—Sea-side Cottage Decoration—A
Girl’s Fourth of July—An Impression Album—Picnics, Burgoos,
and Corn-Roasts—Botany as Applied to Art—Quiet Games for Hot
Weather—How to Make a Hammock—Corn-Husk and Flower Dolls—How
to Make Fans—All Hallow Eve—Nature’s Fall Decorations and How
to Use Them—Nutting Parties—How to Draw, Paint in Oil-colors,
and Model in Clay and Wax—China Painting—Christmas Festivities,
and Home-made Christmas Gifts—Amusements and Games for the
Holidays—Golf—Bicycling—Swimming—Physical Culture—Girls’ Clubs—A New
Seashore Game—Apple Target Shooting—Water Fairies.
LOUISA M. ALCOTT wrote: “I have put it in my list of good
and useful books for young people, as I have many requests
for advice from my little friends and their anxious
mothers. I am most happy to commend your very ingenious and
entertaining book.”
GRACE GREENWOOD wrote: “It is a treasure which, once
possessed, no practical girl would willingly part with.
It is an invaluable aid in making a home attractive,
comfortable, artistic, and refined. The book preaches the
gospel of cheerfulness, industry, economy, and comfort.”
THE AMERICAN BOY’S HANDY BOOK
Or, What To Do and How To Do It
By DANIEL C. BEARD
One volume, 8vo, fully Illustrated by the Author, $2.00
————
Mr. Beard’s book tells the active, inventive, and practical American
boy the things he really wants to know; the thousand things he wants to
do, and the ten thousand ways in which he can do them, with the helps
and ingenious contrivances which every boy can either procure or make.
The author divides the book among the sports of the four seasons; and
he has made an almost exhaustive collection of the cleverest modern
devices, besides himself inventing an immense number of capital and
practical ideas.
[Illustration]
=SUMMARY OF CONTENTS=
Kite Time—War Kites—Novel Modes of Fishing—Home-made Fishing Tackle—How
to Stock, Make, and Keep a Fresh-water Aquarium—How to Stock and Keep
a Marine Aquarium—Knots, Bends, and Hitches—Dredge, Tangle, and Trawl
Fishing—Home-made Boats—How to Rig and Sail Small Boats—How to Camp Out
Without a Tent—How to Rear Wild Birds—Home-made Hunting Apparatus—Traps
and Trapping—Dogs—Practical Taxidermy for Boys—Snow Houses and
Statuary—Winged Skaters—Winter Fishing—Indoor Amusements—How to Make
a Magic Lantern—Puppet Shows—Home-made Masquerade and Theatrical
Costumes—With many other subjects of a kindred nature.
“It is an excellent publication, and is heartily recommended
to parents.”—_The Brooklyn Eagle._
“The book has this great advantage over its predecessors,
that most of the games, tricks, and other amusements
described in it are new. It treats of sports adapted to
all seasons of the year; it is practical, and it is well
illustrated.”—_The New York Tribune._
“It tells boys how to make all kinds of things—boats,
traps, toys, puzzles, aquariums, fishing tackle; how to tie
knots, splice ropes, to make bird calls, sleds, blow guns,
balloons; how to rear wild birds, to train dogs, and do
the thousand and one things that boys take delight in. The
book is illustrated in such a way that no mistake can be
made; and the boy who gets a copy of this book will consider
himself set up in business.”—_The Indianapolis Journal._
The Outdoor Handy Book
FOR PLAYGROUND, FIELD AND FOREST
By DANIEL C. BEARD
With more than 300 Illustrations by the Author. Square 8vo, $2.00
————
“It tells how to play all sorts of games with marbles, how
to make and spin more kinds of tops than most boys ever
heard of, how to make the latest things in plain and fancy
kites, where to dig bait and how to fish, all about boats
and sailing, and a host of other things which can be done
outdoors. The volume is profusely illustrated and will be an
unmixed delight to any boy.”—New York _Tribune_.
[Illustration]
=SUMMARY OF CONTENTS=
Marbles—Tops—Latest Things in Kites—Aerial Fish and Dragons—Hoops
and Wheels—How to Make the Sucker—Up in the Air on Stilts—Bait,
Live and Dead—Fishing—Aquatic Sports—Rigs of All Kinds for Small
Boats—Shells and Canoes—Hints for Collectors—Honey-Bee Messengers—A
“Zoo”—Choosing Up and “It”—Counting Out Rhymes—Swimming—Games of Tag—I
Spy—Leap Frog—Various Sports for Hot Days—Tip Cat—Games of Ball—Mumbly
Peg, Hop-Scotch, and Jack Stones—Hints for Bicyclists—Camping
Out—Boy’s Ballista—“Tally-ho!” and Other Cries—Indian Games for
Boys—Football—Golf, Hockey, and Shinny—Turtle Hunting—Skating—Stunning
Muskrats and Fish—Snowball Battle and Snow Tag—Sleds.
From CHARLES DANA GIBSON: “It makes a man of a boy and a boy
of a man.”
“This book is praiseworthy from end to end, and will find
favor even with those who have long since passed to man’s
estate.”—_The Nation._
“It is one of the completest things of the kind ever
written, and with it one can hardly conceive how a boy could
be without pleasant and profitable amusement at any time.
It treats of directions for every season of the year, in
and out of doors, and on land and water. One of the best
things about it is that it furnishes employment for a boy’s
ingenuity and mechanical skill. It seems as if this book
must be destined to an immense popularity.”—_The Advance._
The Jack of All Trades
OR, NEW IDEAS FOR AMERICAN BOYS
By DANIEL C. BEARD
Profusely Illustrated. Square 8vo, $2.00
————
[Illustration]
“Every boy who is handy with tools of any sort will enjoy this
book.”—_Youth’s Companion._
“This book is a capital one to give any boy for a present at Christmas,
on a birthday, or indeed at any time.”—_The Outlook._
“Full of new ideas for active boys who like to use tools and see
interesting things growing under their hands.”—_N. Y. Tribune._
“A perfect treasure-house of things that delight the soul of a boy and
keep him happy and busy.”—_The Interior._
CONTENTS
Part I. Fair Weather Ideas
Tree-Top Club-Houses—How to Capture and Trap Small Live
Animals—The Back-Yard Zoo—A Back-Yard Fish-Pond—Pigeon
and Bantam Coops—How to Make a Back-Yard Aviary—A
Boy’s Back-Yard Workshop—How to Build an Underground
Club-House—A Boys’ Club-House on the Water—How to Have
Fun on a Picnic—How to Build and How to Furnish a Daniel
Boone Cabin—Flat Boatman’s House—The American Boy’s House
Boat—Back-Yard Switchback—How to Build a Toboggan Slide in
the Back-Yard.
Part II. Rainy Weather Ideas
A Home-Made Circus—Good Games with Toothpicks and
Matches—Fun with Scissors and Pasteboard and Paper—How to
Prepare and Give a Boys’ Chalk Talk—A Christmas Novelty for
Boys—How to Make Two Boys into One Santa Claus—A Circus
in the Attic—A Boys’ Stag Party—A Wild West Show in the
House—How to Have a Panorama Show.
CHARLES SCRIBNER’S SONS, Publishers
153-157 Fifth Avenue, New York
* * * * *
Transcriber’s Notes:
Obvious punctuation errors repaired.
Page 129, Fig. 138, “holyhock” changed to “hollyhock” (Paper hollyhock
tied)
Page 165, “pastboard” change to “pasteboard” (stiff pastboard like)
Page 168, text obscurred, word “of” presumed and added (of black muslin)
Page 171, Fig. 220, “sleighs” changed to “sleigh” (ready for the sleigh)
Page 192, “at” changed to “as” (attractive as these)
Page 222, the text references Fig. 295, but the text omits a figure
with that name.
Page 236, “edtire” changed to “entire” (and the entire length)
Page 315, “sitff” changed to “stiff” (three stiff pasteboard)
Page 320, “thes ame” changed to “the same” (do the same with)
Page 435, word “a” added to text (two and a half)
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