Generally this engine had a kind of wooden hood in front to protect those working the machine (Fig. 326). This hood is easily made of stripwood or an old cigar-box. Notice that the stripwood that forms the sides, A B C D, must be longer (extended in diagram to S T), so that strips of wood, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, can be nailed and glued as in diagram.
The Mangonel, Fig. 327 (an instrument for casting great stones to beat down walls and to slay the enemy), makes an interesting toy.
First cut two pieces of wood, 10¼ inches by 1¾ inches (the sides of a wooden chocolate box will do when sawn the right size and filed), and shape them as in Fig. 328. Saw slits in both pieces at G, ¼ inch wide and ½ inch deep. If two saw-cuts are made for each slit the wood between can be cut away with a pen-knife. These slits must be about 2¾ inches from end, b d.
With a round file make semicircles at c and e to hold the rollers on which the engine is moved into position.
With a bradawl and round file make holes, F, in both pieces about 3½ inches from end, A (diameter of hole about 3/8 inch, or larger if a larger windlass is required).
Put these two pieces aside, and next saw a length of stripwood, ½" × ½" × 5"; saw a slit about ¼ inch from one end and hammer it on the metal top of a bottle of Le Page's liquid glue as in Fig. 329. The corner a should be cut or filed off. A small screw-eye is screwed into the wood just below the metal top. Saw a piece of stripwood, ½" × ¼" × 3½", tie this firmly with elastic to the other end of the first piece of stripwood as in Fig. 330. This elastic constitutes the propulsive force. The ancients used catgut, which formed a thick coil, stretched from H to K, the lever passing through the middle of the coil. The pulling down of the lever gave additional twist to the coil, which reacted strongly on release. Now fasten the sides a b c d and A B C D together by nailing and glueing them to two pieces of stripwood, ½" × ½" × 2¼". Then glue H K securely into the slots G so that the beam with the stone-holder M is upright. Push a round stick through the holes F, for a windlass; this can have holes drilled in the portions that project, to hold sticks for turning the rod. A piece of thread is tied to the screw-eye Q, and wound round the windlass F; when this thread is tightened the beam is pulled down, then when let go it flies up, causing anything placed in the tin, M, to be shot some distance. The safest 'stones' to put in this pan are pieces of cork or small pieces of wood. The following additions can be made to the model:
(1) RR are pieces of stripwood, ½" × ¼" × 4", glued to the sides and carrying a strip, T. This strip T in the olden days was covered with leather and was so placed that the beam carrying the stone-holder would abut against it. Notice the struts W for supporting the posts R.
(2) N O is a rod (about ¼ inch in diameter) passing through two small screw-eyes fixed in a piece of stripwood, S, ½" × ¼" × 3¼". A piece of strong wire, P, passes through hole in rod N O; it is bent so that it cannot work out, and the other end is bent to just catch the holder, M, when it is pulled down. A releasing handle is fastened to the rod, N O at O. The beam S is glued into slots in A B C D and a b c d, so that when the beam is pulled down the catch P clutches M.
(3) Small screw-eyes may be screwed in at A, a, B, b, for holding ropes to fasten the machine to pegs in the ground. Rollers may also be made to fit under C and E.
This toy is an attractive one, because it really works successfully. It must be strongly put together, for the beam when pulled down flies up with considerable force.
Stone-throwers like this were used at the siege of Acre. Very often these engines had special names given to them. For example Philip of France had a very good engine of war called 'The Bad Neighbour,' and inside Acre the Turks had one called 'The Bad Kinsman.'
Cannons of the Fourteenth Century. These are very easily made. Figs. 331 and 332 show two that can be copied.
In Fig. 331 a piece of wood is cut to the shape of A B; a groove is then filed in it, into which the cannon C is glued. The cannon may be made of a roll of brown paper (two pieces may be pasted together for greater strength) with four bands of cartridge paper painted yellow and gummed round it, or it may be a piece of wood filed to shape and circled with bands of lead.
The cannon in Fig. 332 consists of two cardboard wheels on an axle of stripwood, ¼ inch by ¼ inch, and the cannon is glued to a groove in the axle. It may be made of wood with a lead rim, or of two rolls of brown paper as in Fig. 333, where the flanges of the smaller roll A are gummed to flanges of B.
Cannon of the Fifteenth Century. This may be made of a short mantle-box (with lids on), cardboard wheels and pieces of stripwood, ¼ inch by ¼ inch. Fig. 334 shows the finished cannon. The stripwood cart which the cannon rests on must be made to fit the mantle-box; the shafts a may be straight or curved. Round holes may be cut at b. This same cannon may be fitted with axles, and swing between two posts. The wheels should be painted black, and the mantle-box covered with black paper, with bands of yellow paper at 1, 2 and 3.
Toward the end of the fifteenth century artillery was much improved.
Fig. 335 shows a gun that is interesting to make.
The carriage consists of two pieces of stripwood, ½" × ¼" × 8" (a b and c d in Fig. 335). A cannon, E, is made out of a roll of brown paper, length 3½ inches, diameter about ¾ inch, and glued between a b and c d, or it may simply rest on cross-pieces of wood joining a b and c d. G is a piece of wood, ¼" × ¾" × 3½", turning on a pin or piece of wire, H, which passes through a b and c d. a b and c d are glued to a piece of stripwood F (¼ inch by ¼ inch) which has its projecting ends rounded to receive two cardboard wheels. The great fault of these earlier cannons was that though they were often of immense bore and weight, throwing balls of from one to five hundredweights, they were for the most part without carriages, and therefore very difficult to move about and very slow in their operations.
The Scots were the first to anticipate the modern gun-carriage by what they called 'carts of war,' which carried two guns. Many of the guns of the English required fifty horses to drag them!
'Mons Meg' (a fifteenth-century cannon still to be seen at Edinburgh Castle) is an easy model to make.
Parts A and B (Fig. 336) are drawn on cardboard, cut out and coloured (brown and black). They are joined together by strips of cardboard at a b and c d. To the cardboard at a b the cannon is gummed. The wheels are of cardboard, the axle of stripwood (¼ inch by ¼ inch). Mons Meg fired a granite ball weighing 300 lb.
A Tudor Cannon (Fig. 337). The sides A A may be cut out of cardboard or, better still, of three-ply wood with the fret-saw. The wheels are solid discs and may also be cut out with the fret-saw, holes being drilled in the centre for the axle. The cannon itself can be shaped out of wood with pen-knife and file, or a cardboard roll (such as is used for transmitting music or pictures) can be used, the thicker parts are then made by gumming additional pieces of cardboard round it, or glueing strips of lead.
It is difficult to discover when gunpowder was first used. Probably its use was learnt from the Saracens in the fourteenth century. Roger Bacon (? 1214-1294) suggested that it might be used in warfare.
In a Florentine document of 1326 mention is made of the use of gunpowder in Europe. The first use of the cannon recorded in English history is in 1327, when Edward III was at war with Scotland.
In making the guns described in this chapter it is necessary to distinguish between breech-loading cannons and muzzle-loading.
The breech-loader is loaded from the breech or rear end of the barrel and not at the muzzle. Figs. 334, 335 and 337 are examples of this kind and therefore must have a hole at each end.
Figs. 331 and 332 are examples of muzzle-loading cannons and therefore have holes only at one end.
During the sixteenth century breech-loading was gradually abandoned for muzzle-loading owing to the large escape of gas and air at the breech. It was not until 1860 that it was reverted to with great improvements.
A Ship Cannon. A piece of wood (about ¼ inch thick, the side of a wooden chocolate-box or any other light box will do) is first sawn out 5½ inches by 2 inches (A in Fig. 338). Another piece of wood, B, 4½ inches by 2 inches, is cut and glued on the first piece. Three pieces of stripwood ¼ inch by ½ inch, C, D, E, are cut to lengths 3½ inches, 2¾ inches, 2 inches respectively. These are glued on one side as in the figure, and similar strips are cut and glued to the other side. Two pieces of stripwood, F, ½" × ½" × 1½", have holes drilled half way through them, to receive the pivots of the gun, but must not be glued on to E until the gun is in position.
The cannon is made of a roll of brown paper 6 inches long; one end should be narrower than the other (the widest end say 1 inch in diameter, the narrowest end ½ inch to ¾ inch).
The roll must be securely fastened together by seccotine, two layers of brown paper make a strong cannon; black paper is then pasted over it and bands of brown paper as in Fig. 339. A hole is pierced through the cannon about half-way along it, and a round stick, K M, passed through; this pivot should be just long enough to fit into blocks F when these are fixed and glued in position.
Before this is done, the wheels should be made and fastened on. This is an easy matter. Two lengths of stripwood (¼ inch by ½ inch) are cut 2¼ inches long. The little wheels (¾ inch in diameter) are cut from any round rod available, or if no rod can be obtained they may be cut out of cardboard. Holes are drilled in the wheels and nails with large heads passed through and driven into the stripwood. The axles are either glued or nailed to the bottom of A. Finally the pivot, K M, is fitted into its blocks, and these are glued into position. A wedge can be made to slip in under the cannon to raise and lower it. The wedge should be just wide enough to slip in between the two layers of stripwood.
A Modern Breech-loading Field Gun (Fig. 341). This is a simple toy to make. A piece of stripwood, A, ¼" × ¼" × 2", must first be cut, and the ends, B and C, rounded for about ½ inch (Fig. 340). Next two pieces of stripwood, D and E, ¼" × ¼" × 1¼", are cut. These must have their tops rounded as in Fig. 341, and have holes drilled through them to receive a rounded match, G. F is a piece of wood ½" × ¼" × 5/8". Pieces F, D and E are glued or nailed to A. Before the pivot G is put in position the cannon must be made. This is a roll of black paper, 3¾ inches long, ½ inch in diameter at widest end, and ¼ inch at the narrowest. Holes are made through it to receive the pivot. The ends of the match sticks that project beyond D and E can be cut off. Next the wheels are cut. These may be cardboard discs of diameter 1-3/8 inches.
A piece of wood, H, is next cut, ½" × ½" × 4½", and worked to the shape shown in Fig. 341. The end L must be sawn at an angle, so that when H is glued on, D is perpendicular. The end L is glued to the piece of wood, F. K is a piece of cardboard with a hole through it for pulling the cannon along; it is glued to end M.
The wheels, etc., should be painted black or grey. The cannon itself may be made of white paper and painted grey or yellow, or else made of yellow or light brown paper.
A Cart must next be made to carry ammunition for the cannon. The shells for the cannon described would be about 2¼ inches long, so the cart must be 2½ inches long, and 1¾ inches wide (Fig. 342). It can be made of wood or cardboard. Notice the end to which the lid is attached.
The wheels must be the same size as those used for the cannon and can be made and attached in the same way to an axle, but this axle must project some distance beyond the wheel, as in Fig. 343, and have a groove filed round it, so that short chains may be fastened on each side; ropes are attached to these chains to allow the cart to be pulled along by hand.
Fig. 344 shows the shaft. It is 1½ times the length of the cart. It can be made of strips of cardboard or wood. Matches painted black make good shells.
To make this toy, plenty of used matches are required, and some strips of light wood (that obtained from a soap-box or chocolate-box will do) and liquid glue.
Two lengths of wood, Q R and S T, are cut 12½" × ½" × ¼", and one long edge of each is rounded. These pieces are sand-papered if they are rough or uneven.
Twenty-three pencil dots half an inch apart are marked down the middle of the widest side of one piece. The two pieces are then clamped together (the piece with the 23 marks on top), and holes drilled through them both together with an Archimedean drill.
Next seventeen matches are taken, and cut exactly to the length 1¾ inches; the ends are tapered so that they will fit in the holes drilled. Beginning from one end of one long strip, hammer these matches in the first seventeen holes, place the second long strip of wood on top of these matches, so that the first seventeen holes are exactly over the seventeen matches and hammer it on. (Be careful to hammer in between the holes, a file makes a good hammer.) Hammer first one strip, and then the other until the matches are driven firmly in the holes, as far as they will go; file away all projecting ends of matches. Through the eighteenth hole of Q R and S T, a long piece of wood, A B, must pass to project 1-1/3 inches on each side of the ladder (Fig. 345).
Two pieces of wood, 3½" × ½" × ¼" (C D and E F), are cut, and have six holes drilled in them; these six holes must be marked off from the six remaining holes in the main ladder, so that they will come exactly opposite them; these pieces are secured to the main ladder by matches, and by the cross-piece, A B. The whole ladder is then glued to a strip of wood, G H, ½ inch by ¼ inch of a length equal to the total width of the ladder. This can be put aside for a time.
Next the shaft in Fig. 346 is made. K P is the same length as G H in Fig. 345 and about ¼ inch by ¼ inch; K M, L N, O J, P U are each 4¼ inches long, they are the same distances apart as C G, Q R, S T and E H in Fig. 345. They are held together by strips, V, W, X, Y, Z. These strips may be matches; in this case they must be inserted first, and then the whole of K M P U is glued to K P.
This shaft is fastened to the main ladder in Fig. 345 midway between A B and G H, so that when the shaft is horizontal the main ladder makes an angle of 72° with it.
Fig. 347 shows the shaft M K, P U, attached to the main ladder; it is supported in its place by four struts, two on each side (a and b in Fig. 347). Care must be taken to saw off the ends M, N, J, U (Fig. 346) so that they rest exactly against C D, R Q, S T, E F (Fig. 345), at about an angle of 72°. The ends of the struts must also be carefully bevelled to fit; the main ladder can then be glued to the shaft and the struts to the main ladder and shaft.
Small wheels of cardboard or wood are nailed (as for ship's cannon) at each end of G H.
An axle for the larger wheels must be made to be glued on K P (Fig. 347). Care must be taken in deciding on the size of the large wheels, the diameter must be such a length that the shaft, K M P U, is parallel to the ground.
Next the back portion shown on the plate is made similarly to the shaft shown in Fig. 346. It is glued to G H so as to be at right angles to the main ladder. Pieces of wire bent and pushed into holes in C D and E F form railings. Pieces of stout thread are attached to strengthen the whole, as shown in the plate. An extra ladder (necessarily narrower) can be made to rest on the bar, X, and lean inside a piece of bent wire as shown. The wheels can be made of cardboard or sawn from any of the materials suggested in Part I, Chapter XIII.
Note.—In making the fire-escape it will be a help to cut out two cardboard angles of 72°, these help to keep the shaft K M P U in the right position while the glue is drying.
A Castle (Plate XV). Fig. 348 is an example of a mediæval castle and is somewhat similar to the Castle of Chaluz, which was besieged by Richard I. It is made of cardboard of medium thickness. First make the four towers, A, B, C, D Fig. 349. Cut a piece of cardboard 10 inches by 8¼ inches.
Divide this as in Fig. 350, and make half cuts along the dotted lines. Cut out the windows. Fold and gum together. Make the other towers in the same way.
To make overhanging battlements, cut pieces of stripwood ½ inch by ¼ inch the correct length, and glue them round the tops of the towers (Fig. 351). Then cut out pieces of cardboard as in Fig. 352, and gum these to the wood. It is best to cut a strip of cardboard long enough for two sides only, and to make a half cut at the bend; then to cut another strip for the other two sides. Small pieces can be cut off a length of stripwood, ¼ inch by ¼ inch, and glued underneath, as a, b, c, in Fig. 351.
Next make the sides, M, N, O, P; these are about 3 inches in width, but a ½ inch must be allowed on each side for flanges for fastening them to the towers; in height they just reach the battlements of the towers. Make battlements as described, cut out the windows and fasten these sides to the four towers. Colour this part suitably. To make a flat roof for Q (Fig. 349), cut eight lengths of stripwood ¼ inch by ¼ inch just long enough to come about ½ inch below the battlements of the sides, M, N, O, P, and glue these into the eight corners of Q. Cut a piece of cardboard to fit over Q, cut doors in this for access to the roof, and glue it to the tops of the pieces of stripwood.
To make towers E and F. Cut a piece of cardboard, 7 inches by 10 inches. Mark it out as in Fig. 353, and make half cuts along the dotted lines; the narrow strips at each end are flanges for fastening the tower E, to A and C. Make battlements round the top, colour, mark the windows and door, and gum to A and C; make F in the same way. G and H are similar towers 2½ inches square and 7 inches high. The four towers, E, F, G, H, can be covered with roofs in the way already described. G and H are fastened to E and F respectively, by pieces of cardboard 5 inches long and about 4½ inches high. G is fastened to H by L, which is about 7½ inches long and 4½ inches high. A door can be made in L, leading into the courtyard, Q.
Cut a piece of cardboard, R in Fig. 348, about 2-1/3 inches high, and gum it to the side of E to form a wall; between the latter and tower a fit a flight of steps. These are marked out as in Fig. 354.
Make half cuts along the lines marked——; turn the cardboard over and make half cuts on the other side along the dotted lines; bend in alternate directions. Flanges may be added to each step.
A Tournament (Plate XV). Fig. 355 shows a royal tent at a tournament. The platform inside may be made of 12 match-boxes (A, B, C, D, E, F show the six foremost ones) or of any suitable cardboard box. Pieces of cardboard, G H K L and M N O P, are gummed on each side. a b c d is a piece of cardboard gummed to a match-box and placed in front of the opening between H L and M O. Paper steps may be made to lead from the ground to the top of the match-box, and thence to the top of the platform.
The roof, S, is a piece of paper, bent along T V, to fit the triangular tops of the cardboard sides, Q and R, to which it is fastened by paper hinges. A piece of cardboard is gummed at the back. Flags, etc., may be added.
X and Z show stands at the back for the more ordinary spectators. They are simply strips of cardboard, suitably painted and gummed for support to match-boxes or strips of wood.
The railings shown in the plate are made of cardboard or stripwood, and placed in suitable positions to represent the lists. If the railings are made of cardboard they should be fitted into a groove in a piece of wood to enable them to stand.
Across the enclosed space, and parallel to the royal tent, a partition is placed to separate the combatant knights. It may be made of cardboard or wood (see Fig. 356).
Two circular tents made of cardboard and paper stand at each side; in these the knights put on their armour.
In Fig. 357 A is a cardboard disc to which the paper covering C is gummed by a flange; B is a post which is glued into a hole in the middle of the cardboard disc and rests on the ground inside the tent.
The horses are made of corks and matches as described in previous chapters. A piece of coloured paper (A in Fig. 358) is gummed over the horse's back. The saddle, B, is a piece of coloured paper, gummed to A. The bridle is cut out of paper.
Knights may be cut out of paper as in Fig. 359. Two pieces of paper should be cut out, of the same shape except that one arm bears a lance, the other a shield; gum the head and upper part of the body together; the knight can be fastened to the horse by gumming his legs to the trappings, A.
Heralds, a king and queen to sit in the royal box (for which a bench must be made), spectators, etc., may be drawn and cut out, or suitable figures can sometimes be cut from old history books or advertisements. The background may consist of trees or of a castle. In a similar way, with cork horses, etc., a procession of the Canterbury pilgrims can be made.
A Fair in the Days of Henry VIII (Plate XV). The plate shows the background of the fair. It is a piece of cardboard, with houses drawn upon it and coloured; behind it are fastened two cardboard supports which enable it to stand upright. This piece of cardboard should be as long as possible, to give plenty of room for many booths to be placed in front of it. Fig. 360 shows a booth at which cloth and woollen materials are sold.
The covering of the booth is made of paper. The tables may be of different shapes in different stalls. In the cloth merchant's stall, rolls of coloured paper are piled up to represent bales of cloth. To the pole is tied a sheep cut out of cardboard. An apothecary's booth with its red and white pole can be made. Shelves of cardboard, supported on little pieces of wood glued to the posts of the tent, may be fastened round three sides of the booth; cardboard bottles are cut out, painted and fastened to the shelves by paper hinges, or bottles can be made of plasticine.
Other booths may be added, one for 'ribbons of all the colours of the rainbow,' others for books, leather, ironmongery, pewter and silver articles for the table, etc.
Fig. 361 shows a quaint swinging chariot of the eleventh century; it can be made of stout cartridge paper, cardboard and stripwood (¼ inch by ¼ inch).
First draw on cartridge paper two arcs of a circle (about 3-inch radius), a b c and d e f in Fig. 362; join them by straight lines a d and c f. This is for the floor of the chariot.
To make the sides, draw arc G H K (Fig. 363) with same radius, but portions G L and M K project about 1 inch beyond the arc a b c in Fig. 362. Join G and K by the curved line, G N K. Draw the flange O P. Colour the side yellow and brown, cut out. Bend the flange O L M P and gum it to a b c in Fig. 362. Draw and cut out the other side in a similar manner and gum it on; the chariot will then appear as in Fig. 361. Two seats of paper can be gummed inside.
Two pieces of stripwood (¼ inch by ¼ inch), A and B in Fig. 361, are then cut; their height must be determined by the size of the car. Two small screw-eyes are screwed in at C and D (Fig. 361), from which the car is slung by pieces of thread or wire. The posts, A and B, are glued and nailed to the middle of the axles, which must be flat, the ends only being rounded for the wheels. Pieces of stripwood (¼ inch by ¼ inch) or strips of cardboard, C, connect the axles on each side.
The wheels are cardboard discs, with a pattern drawn on them as in the figure, and painted yellow and brown.
Fig. 364 shows a pretty chair for a doll's house. It is a copy of a carved oak chair of the fourteenth century. It is made of wood or cardboard. If made of cardboard, a small square box may be used for the seat, A, to which the sides and back are gummed. The sides and back should be cut in one, with half-cuts down A B and C D, where the cardboard is bent and gummed to the box. The chair should be painted a very light brown with dark brown markings. It looks well if made out of the wood of a cigar-box.
Fig. 365 gives a pattern of a fourteenth-century bed that goes with the chair, A can be an oblong box, covered with paper suitably coloured (light brown with panels of dark brown). B and C are pieces of cardboard (painted as indicated) gummed to each end of the box; four pieces of stripwood, D (¼ inch by ¼ inch), are glued on to the cardboard.
This bed is easily made of wood. A may be a cigar-box, or the bed can be made of separate pieces of wood carefully glued and nailed together.
A Fire-place (Fig. 366). This toy is made of wood and cardboard. Its size will depend upon the doll's house for which it is made. The mantelpiece, D, is a piece of wood glued and nailed to two wooden supports, E and F. To the back of these a piece of cardboard, A, is glued. This is coloured to look like tiles, and space C is painted black. The grate is made of cardboard (Fig. 367). The shaded portions are cut out and half cuts are made along the dotted lines. It is coloured black, bent as in Fig. 366 and gummed to the cardboard back. The fender is of wood, and is glued to E and F and to a cardboard bottom, B, which is coloured to represent tiles.
The grate may also be made of pieces of wire bent to shape and passed through holes in two pieces of wood (Fig. 368), which are then gummed to A.
Fire-dogs can be made from matches glued together as in Fig. 369. A poker and shovel can be cut from cardboard. The most convenient sizes of stripwood from which to make this toy are lengths of ½ inch by ¼ inch for supports E and F, lengths of ¼ inch by ¼ inch for the fender, and 1 inch by ¼ inch for the mantelpiece.
A Railway Signal. Fig. 370 shows a simple method of making this toy. A is a piece of stripwood about 11" × ½" × ¼", fastened to a wooden stand. Holes are bored in A at F about ½ inch from the top and at G about 2½ inches from the ground. The arm, C, is a piece of cardboard 3 inches by ½ inch with a red band painted across it. The lever, D, is a smaller piece of cardboard. C and D are fastened to A by pieces of wire or by rivets so that they move freely up and down. B is a narrow strip of stiff cardboard fastened by small paper-clips to C and D. When the lever, D, is pulled down, the arm, C, is pushed up. A small nail is put in at E to keep the arm from rising too high.
Fig. 371 shows a railway signal which can be worked by a lever placed at any distance away.
In this model the arm, F, is a piece of wood about 4" × ½" × ¼". Into one end is fixed a screw-eye, A. About ½ inch from this end bore a hole. Nail the arm through this hole to the post about ¾ inches from the top, so that it moves freely on the nail. B is a piece of wood, 2" × ½" × ¼". Make three holes in it. Nail it through the middle hole to the post, 3 inches from the ground, so that it turns freely on the nail. Take a piece of fairly strong wire, fasten one end to A and the other to B. A weight (a lead button) is needed to keep the arm of the signal up. Attach this weight, C, by a piece of thread to B, as in the figure. Tie a piece of thread to D, pass it through a small screw-eye, E, fixed on the stand. When this string is pulled the arm is lowered.
This toy may be worked entirely with thread. Tie a piece of thread from A to C, taking care to keep the lever B in the position shown in the figure; then tie another piece from a small nail at F to D. A small nail should be put in at G to prevent the arm from rising too high.
The stand and the shaded part of the signal post should be painted black, the rest of the post is white, the arm is white with a red band.
A Signal-box (Plate VIII). For the foundation of the signal-box, take a piece of wood 9 inches by 4 inches, A B C D (Fig. 372). Cut two pieces of wood, 4½ inches by 4 inches. Glue and nail these to A B C D (E and F in Fig. 372). Next cut four pieces of wood, G H J K, ¼" × ¼" × 6½". Glue these to E and F. Measure and cut two pieces of wood, M and L, to fit in between K and J, and G and H. Glue these in position. Next measure and cut out a piece of cardboard, N (Fig. 374), that will fit in between the posts, G H J K, and rest on the sides, E and F, and the ends, L and M. This forms the floor of the signal-box.
Measure and cut two pieces of cardboard that will fit across the space between the posts G and K. Mark and cut out windows in these as shown in the plate, and glue them on each side to the posts. Next cut out two pieces of cardboard, 9 inches by 4 inches (Fig. 375). Measure along the sides the distances C J and K B; find the middle, O, of top, join O K and O J, and cut off the shaded portions. Make half cuts along the dotted lines and bend back the flanges to which the roof is fastened. In one piece make a door, the bottom of which must be on a level with the floor. A window may be cut out in the door, or simply drawn in with pencil and painted; on the other side, mark and cut out a window similar to the window in the sides. Glue these pieces in position. Make the roof of cardboard as described in the case of the Noah's Ark, and glue it to the flanges.