(Second Prize, Five Dollars) AIR WASHER AND COOLER FOR HOME WASHED air, either heated or cooled according to season, is pumped into the room equipped with a little water-motor device which has just been developed. The machine is operated by water under pressure and generates a mild current of washed and cooled or heated air, depending on the temperature of the water from the tap. If the atmospheric temperature is high and the water is at seventy, the air-at a temperature of about 96 degrees Fahrenheit-coming from the little machine will nevertheless be cooled to within a degree of the water temperature. The cylinder can be rotated on its axis so that the output can be sent in any direction, and if a small sprig of pine is placed in the bottom, the air delivered will have the odor of a breeze from the northern woods. (First Prize, Ten Dollars) VULCANIZING WITH THE KEEPS AIR WARM OR A FAUCET As a permanent feature of the kitchen, the humidifier may be attached, for instance, directly to the water supply pipe and can be turned on or off as easily as an electric fan. It will ab sorb the steam and odors of the kitchen, carrying off the gases, and leave freshened air. The consumption of water is comparatively small and the machine is cheap to manufacture, as it is very simple in detail and the material inexpensive. Carl F. Lundeberg. FLATIRON HE inner tube of an auto THE mobile tire or bicycle can be patched by a home-made vulcanizing outfit of which the electric or gas flatiron is the chief part. In addition, a carpenter's hand screw and two pieces of heavy, or triple layers of sheet, asbestos are essential. The inner tube is first cleaned and prepared for vulcanizing in the usual way. Over the puncture place a piece of rubber gum, especially made for inner tubes, and on this lay a piece of paper on top and another beneath the tube. The asbestos is placed next the ordinary paper and the iron clamped on, and the apparatus is ready. The time for completing the job depends. on the iron and the kind of rubber used, but ordinarily ten minutes will suffice. An old tube can be used for a trial to determine the time necessary with the materials at hand. Cuts in casings may be vulcanized in the same manner with a partly deflated tire. ELECTRIC TRON ASBESTOS INNER TUBE FLATIRON VULCANIZER E. C. Thulin, Detroit, Michigan. (Third Prize, Two Dollars) ELECTRIC CHAIR FOR RATS To exter minate the rats in a basement it is only necessary to hitch up a spike and a steel plate to the regular lighting circuit and the rodents will become their own executioners. A piece of cheese, or any delicacy of Inner tubes and even tire shoes may be which rats are particu (Second Prize, Five Dollars) HOLDS SASH WITH OUT WEIGHTS HANGER THE HANGER HOLDING SEVERAL GARMENTS John Countermine, Wichita, Kansas. INCREASING THE usefulness and ca a pacity of the ordinary wire coat hanger may be greatly increased by the addition of spring clothespins strung alternately with common thread spools upon piece of one-eighth-inch wire. The wire is fastened at each end by bending it to grip the shoulder ends of the coathanger. A large number of garments can then be hung from one hanger-a good WINDOWS are held at any height by thing in crowded quarters. the new spring holder which has been designed to do away with the cords and weights of ordinary use. The device consists of an iron strap seven inches long, an inch wide, and threesixteenths of an inch thick. One end of the spring is riveted fast in the slide of the casing. The other is free to move and form the tension on the window. To attach it, simply cut a slot in the sash large enough to allow the spring to come flush with the edge at the end that is fast and J. Hoeck, Alameda, California. TOP VIEW OF WINDOW SPRING DOING AWAY WITH THE WEIGHTS A steel spring will hold the window in any position. (Third Prize, Two Dollars) TUMBLER WHICH KEEPS HOT OR COLD THERE has recently appeared on the market a tumbler which can be used to serve sherbets or other iced foods, and which will keep the food cold much longer than the ordinary dish. This result is accomplished by the peculiar manner in which the tumbler is manufactured. It consists of two parts, a glass cup, and the holder into which the cup fits. The holder is made of metal, either nickel- or silver-plated. The cup has a flat bottom, and when this cup is in the holder there is left a little space, between the bottom of the cup and the holder. If an ice is to be served, crushed ice is put in the empty space. If the tumbler is to be used to serve an entree, or something hot, hot water is put into the space beneath the cup to help hold the temperature. A B lantern for supplying an evening's amusement can be readily constructed from an ordinary pocket flashlight and a large lens with an eight-inch focal length, such as a reading glass. The flashlight used is preferably one of the cylindrical type about eight inches long. It is held in a clamp of broad brass strips constructed as shown, so that it may be moved back and forth readily, and the distance of the light from the stationary slide varied accordingly. The holder, which contains the plate, is made of wood, and grooved so that the slides may be inserted from the top, as shown. If desired, a double sliding plate holder of the standard stereopticon type may be constructed to facilitate a rapid change of pictures. If the lens obtainable is not already in some sort of metal frame, a grooved brass strip may be clamped around it and the ends inserted in a block, which is made to slide between GLASS HOLDS FOOD TEMPERA TURES A contains the ice or a hot food. two strips on the base. A white wall or piece of cloth serves well as a screen. The distance of the flashlight from the slide is varied to suit the conditions, and the large lens moved slowly back and forth until the picture is LENS THE HOMEMADE STEREOPTICON SLIDE projected on the screen in focus, with a maximum of illumination. The slides to be projected must be positives and may be printed on standard "lantern plates" from the amateur photographer's favorite negatives. They should be of a rather small size. In order to appear right FLASH side up on the screen, the slides must be placed. in the holder upside down and backwards. LIGHT A flashlight and a reading lens will project lantern slides. M. K. Zinn, Indianapolis, Indiana. (Third Prize, Two Dollars) TO HOLD PAINT BRUSH WHEN WHEN a painter is working on a ladder with different colors the disposition of the brush becomes a problem. A neat place is easily provided in a moment with this method. Drill a hole in the handle and drive in a small wire form of a hook. nail. Bend it in the When you wish to lay aside the brush, hang it on the inside of the paint can and it is well taken care of and in reach when again wanted. The hook will not interfere with the work when the brush is being used. John D. Weaver, Goshen, Indiana. HOLDS CONNECTION A magnet in the track connection for a street railway job keeps the joint tight no matter how much the plate is kicked. MAGNET FOR TROLLEY RAIL CONNECTION POWER and light must frequently be obtained from the street railway line. For a hurry-up repair the usual proceeding is to make connection through a steel plate on a rail, by means of a hook over the trolley wire. If workmen are then pounding on a rail, the lights flicker and go out frequently, and often one of the men happens to kick the rail connection apart. This can be easily overcome by the addition of an electromagnet to hold the rail connection together: instead of an ordinary steel plate, the plate needs only to be a solenoid, and it is converted OLD Farmer Weed was the most miserly man in his whole county. One night as the evening meal was about to be served he said to his five small sons, as he held knife and fork over a juicy steak: "How many of you will take five cents apiece and go to bed without supper?" With visions of tops, marbles, candies, and other things dear to the youthful heart they answered in chorus: "I!" In the morning they appeared ravenously hungry. Whereupon Farmer Weed asked: "And now who will give five cents for his breakfast?" -Fun. An Urgent Case A GIRL, reading in a paper that fish was excellent brain-food, wrote to the editor: "Dear Sir-Seeing as you say how fish is good for the brains, what kind of fish shall I eat?" To this the editor replied: "Dear Miss-Judging from the composition of your letter, I should advise you to eat a whale."-Tit-Bits. Question of Money WILLIE "Paw, what is a willowy maiden?" PAW-"A skinny girl who has a wealthy father, my son."-Cincinnati Enquirer. Settled the Matter "WELL, I've settled that there note I've been owin' Jack Gap for so long!" triumphantly stated a prominent citizen of the Arkansas neighborhood of Rumpus Ridge. "That so?" returned another and equally prominent resident of the same locality. "Where'd you git the money?" "Aw, it didn't take no money! I just shot Gap."-Judge. Change BOARDER "Here's a nickel I found in the hash." LANDLADY "Yes, I put it there. You've been complaining, I understand, about lack of change in your meals."-Boston Transcript. Inside Information UNABLE to obtain work, and driven to desperation by hunger, an Irishman decided to turn robber, having pawned all his possessions except an old revolver. His first victim, observing the highwayman's nervousness and shrewdly estimating that he was green at the work, said, "I'll give you all my money, twenty dollars, for the pistol." "Done!" cried the embryo highwayman. The transfer was quickly made. "Now," commanded the pedestrian, pointing the revolver at the other's head, "hand back my money and march along to the police station or I'll blow your brains out." "Blow away," said Pat cheerfully. "It aint loaded." |