The American Boy's Handy Book

Copyright by
CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS
1882
CONTENTS.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
iii | |
SPRING. | ||
| CHAPTER I. | ||
Kite Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
3 | |
Man Kite, 5; The Woman Kite, 9; A Boy Kite, 11; Frog Kite, 11; The Butterfly Kite, 13; The King Crab Kite, 14; Fish Kite, 15; The Turtle Kite, 16; The Shield Kite, 18; A Star Kite, 19; The Chinese Dragon Kite, 19; The Japanese Square Kite, 21; The Moving Star, 21. |
||
| CHAPTER II. | ||
War Kites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
23 | |
Unarmed War Kite, 23; Armed Kites, 24; Armed Kite Fighting, 25; How to Make the Knives, 25; How to Make Cutters, 26; Kite Clubs, 27. |
||
| CHAPTER III. | ||
Novel Modes of Fishing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
28 | |
The Bell Pole, 28; Jugging for Cats, 29; The Dancing Fisherman, 31; Toy Boats for Fishing, 32; The Wooden Otter, 33; Fishing for Fresh-Water Clams, 33. |
||
| CHAPTER IV. | ||
Home-Made Fishing Tackle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
36 | |
The Rod, 36; Tin and Spool Reel, 37; The Forked Stick Reel, 38; Home-Made Nets, 39; A Home-Made Minnow Bucket, 42; Inhabitants of the Water, 43. |
| |
| CHAPTER V. | ||
How to Stock, Make, and Keep a Fresh-Water Aquarium . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
44 | |
Stocking, 53; The Frog, 54; Gold-Fish versus Bass, 56; Aquarium Cement, 57. |
||
| CHAPTER VI. | ||
How to Keep Aquatic Plants in the House or Flower-Garden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
58 | |
Water-Lily, 58; Cat-Tails, 60. |
||
| CHAPTER VII. | ||
How to Stock and Keep a Marine Aquarium . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
61 | |
Cement for Marine Aquaria, 62. |
||
| CHAPTER VIII. | ||
How to Collect for Marine Aquarium . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
66 | |
SUMMER. | ||
| CHAPTER IX. | ||
Knots, Bends, and Hitches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
71 | |
How to Make a Horse-Hair Watch-Guard, 74; Miscellaneous, 75; Whip-Lashes, 78; Splices, Timber-Hitches, etc., 78. |
||
| CHAPTER X. | ||
The Water-Telescope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
83 | |
How to Make a Wooden Water-Telescope, 83; A Tin Water-Telescope, 84. |
||
| CHAPTER XI. | ||
Dredge, Tangle, and Trawl Fishing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
86 | |
A New Sport, 86; The Tangle, 88; The Trawl, 88; How to Make a Bake-Pan Dredge, 89; A Tin-Pail Dredge, 90; How to Make a Broomstick Tangle, 91; The Old Chain Tangle, 91; Hints and Suggestions to Amateurs, 91; The Use of the Tangle, 93. |
| |
| CHAPTER XII. | ||
Home-Made Boats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
95 | |
Birth of the "Man-Friday" Catamaran; The Crusoe Raft, 95; The Crusoe Raft, 97; The Scow, 101; A Floating Camp, or the Boy's Own Flat-Boat, 105; The Yankee Pine, 113. |
||
| CHAPTER XIII. | ||
How to Rig and Sail Small Boats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
118 | |
Simplest Rig Possible, 122; Leg-of-Mutton Rig, 124; The Latteen Rig, 126; The Cat Rig, 127; How to Make a Sail, 128; Hints to Beginners, 128. |
||
| CHAPTER XIV. | ||
Novelties in Soap-Bubbles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
132 | |
Every Boy his own Bubble-Pipe, 132. |
||
| CHAPTER XV. | ||
Fourth of July Balloons, with New and Novel Attachments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
136 | |
| CHAPTER XVI. | ||
How to Camp Out without a Tent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
148 | |
Hints to Amateur Campers, 159; Provisions, 159; Shelter, 159; Choosing Companions, 160. |
||
| CHAPTER XVII. | ||
Bird Singers, Etc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
161 | |
The Block Bird Singer, 161; The Corn-stalk Fiddle, 162; The Pumpkin-vine Fife, 163; A Pumpkin-vine Flute, 163; Cane Fife, 163; The Voice Disguiser, 164; The Locust Singer, 164; The Hummer, 166. |
||
| CHAPTER XVIII. | ||
Bird Nesting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
167 | |
How to Collect and Preserve Eggs, 167; Birds' Nests, 169; Preserving Nests, 170. |
| |
| CHAPTER XIX. | ||
How to Rear Wild Birds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
171 | |
Robins, Thrushes, Wrens, and other Small Birds, 171; Squabs, 172; The Cow Blackbird, 172; Wrens, Sparrows, and Finches, 173; The Bobolink, 173; The Catbird, 174; Robins, 174; The Brown Thrush, or Thrasher, 175; The Wood Thrush, 175; Bluebirds, 176; The Summer Yellowbird, 176; The Bluejay, 177; Humming-Bird, 177. |
||
| CHAPTER XX. | ||
How to Rear Wild Birds—Continued . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
180 | |
The Crow, Hawk, and other Large Birds, 180; The Hawk, 182; The Hawk as a "Scare-Crow," 183; The Hawk as a Decoy, 183; Owls, 184; Sea Birds, 184; Strange Domestic Fowls, 186. |
||
| CHAPTER XXI. | ||
Home-Made Hunting Apparatus, Etc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
188 | |
Spearing Fish, 188; How to Make a Fish Spear, 188; How to Make the Torches and Jack-Lights, 190; How to Make the Boomerang, 190; To Throw a Boomerang, 192; The Miniature Boomerang, 193; The Whip-Bow, 194; Throw-Sticks, 195; The Bird Bolas, 196; The Elastic Cross-Bow, 197. |
||
| CHAPTER XXII. | ||
How to Make Blow-Guns, Elder Guns, Etc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
200 | |
To Make a Blow-Gun, 201; Squirt-Guns, 202; Elder Guns and Pistols, 203; The Spring Shot-Gun, 205. |
||
AUTUMN. | ||
| CHAPTER XXIII. | ||
Traps and Trappings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
209 | |
Rats, 210; The Paper Pitfall, 211; Jug Trap, 212; The Mole and How to Trap Him, 213; The Figure Four, 214; Mole Trap, 214; The Toll-gate Trap, 215; The Partridge Snare, 217; Set-Line Snares, 218; The Spring Snare, 219; Hen-Coop Trap, 221. |
| |
| CHAPTER XXIV. | ||
Dogs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
223 | |
How to Choose a Dog, 224; How to Train Dogs, 226; To Teach a Dog to Retrieve, 227; Pointers and Setters, 228; Pet Dogs, 229. |
||
| CHAPTER XXV. | ||
Practical Taxidermy for Boys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
232 | |
Skinning, 233; Stuffing, 236; A New Manner of Preserving Fish, 239; Design for Sketching Aquarium, 241; Preserving Insects, 242; Morse Insect Box, 243; The Lawrence Breeding Box, 244; Spiders, 245; How to Make Beautiful or Comical Groups and Designs of Insects, 245; Marine Animals, 246. |
||
| CHAPTER XXVI. | ||
Every Boy a Decorative Artist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
248 | |
Shadow Pictures-Photographic Paper-How to Enlarge or Reduce a Picture, etc., 248; How to Enlarge or Reduce by Squares, 250; How to Make a Camera for Drawing, 252. |
||
WINTER. | ||
| CHAPTER XXVII. | ||
Snowball Warfare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
257 | |
How to Build Snow Forts-How to Make Shields and Ammunition Sleds, 257; How to Build the Fort, 258; How to Make an Ammunition Sled, 260; How to Make the Shield, 261; Rules of the Game, 262; A Snow Battle, 264; How to Bind a Prisoner without a Cord, 267; Company Rest, 267. |
||
| CHAPTER XXVIII. | ||
Snow-Houses and Statuary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
269 | |
Snow Statuary, 272. |
||
| CHAPTER XXIX. | ||
Sleds, Chair-Sleighs, and Snow-Shoes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
275 | |
A Chair-Sleigh, 275; Folding Chair-Sleigh, 276; The Toboggan, 278; Snow-Shoes or Skates, 279. |
| |
| CHAPTER XXX. | ||
How to Make the Tom Thumb Ice-Boat and Larger Craft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
281 | |
| CHAPTER XXXI. | ||
The Winged Skaters, and How to Make the Wings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
286 | |
Bat Wings, 288; The Norton Rig, 288; The Norwegian Rig, 290; The Danish Rig, 291; The English Rig, 292; The Cape Vincent Rig, 293; A Country Rig, 294. |
||
| CHAPTER XXXII. | ||
Winter Fishing—Spearing and Snaring—Fisherman's Movable Shanties, Etc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
296 | |
Smelt Fishing and the Smelt Fisher's House, 297; The Spearsman's Shanty, 300; Snaring Fish, 301; Spearing Fish, 302; How to Build a Fishing House, 303. |
||
| CHAPTER XXXIII. | ||
In-Door Amusements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
305 | |
Bric-à-Brac, or the Tourist's Curiosities, 305; Mind-Reading, 309; A Literary Sketch Club, 310. |
||
| CHAPTER XXXIV. | ||
The Boy's Own Phunnygraph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
314 | |
| CHAPTER XXXV. | ||
How to Make Puppets and a Puppet-Show . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
322 | |
How to Make the Stage, 323; The Scenery, 323; The Old Mill, 325; Puss, 325; Corsando and the Donkey, 327; The Royal Coach, 328; Carabas, 330; How to Work the Puppets, 330; Stage Effects, 331; How to Make a Magical Dance, 332; How to Make a Sea Scene, 332. |
||
| CHAPTER XXXVI. | ||
Puss-in-Boots. Dramatized and Adapted for a Puppet-Show . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
334 | |
Act I., Scene I., Landscape, with Tree, Bridge, and Mill at one side, 334; Scene II., Woods, 336; Act II., Scene I., King's Palace, 337; Scene II., High-road, 238; Act III., Scene I., Interior of Ogre's Castle, 341. |
| |
| CHAPTER XXXVII. | ||
How to Make a Magic Lantern—A Kaleidoscope—A Fortune-Teller's Box, Etc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
345 | |
A Home-Made Kaleidoscope, 347; The Fortune-Teller's Box, 348; The Magic Cask, 351; How the Barrel is Made, 352. |
||
| CHAPTER XXXVIII. | ||
How to Make the Dancing Fairies, the Bather, and the Orator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
354 | |
How to Make a Handkerchief Doll, 354; The Bather, 356; The Orator, 357. |
||
| CHAPTER XXXIX. | ||
How to Make Various and Divers Whirligigs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
359 | |
Potato Mill, 359; A Saw-Mill, 360; The Rainbow Whirligig, 361; A Paradoxical Whirligig, 363; The Phantasmoscope, or Magic Wheel, 364. |
||
| CHAPTER XL. | ||
The Universe in a Card-box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
368 | |
| CHAPTER XLI. | ||
Life Instilled Into Paper Puppets, and Matches Made of Human Fingers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
371 | |
To Light the Gas with your Finger, 373. |
||
| CHAPTER XLII. | ||
Home-Made Masquerade and Theatrical Costumes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
374 | |
The White Man of the Desert, 374; "The Fourteenth Century Young Man," 375; The Medieval Hat, 376; The Wig, 377; Eyebrows, Moustache, and Beard, 377; The Doublet, 377; Trunks, 378; Tights, 379; To Dress, 379; The Baby, 379; How to Make a Handkerchief Hood, 380. |
||