As boys are always interested in short cuts in arithmetical processes, it may be well to insert for the benefit of those who are studying multiplication, a method of proving their examples which I learned a short time ago from an old banker of New York. This rule is simply to add the digits of both multiplicand and multiplier, divide both answers by 9, and multiply the remainders; divide this product by 9 and the remainder will be, if the example is correct, the same as that obtained by adding the digits of the product and dividing that answer by 9. For instance, suppose after multiplying 4359 by 2786 we have 12144174 for the answer; now instead of performing this operation over a second time to make sure our answer is correct, we simply add the digits in 4359 and divide the sum 21 by 9, we find we have 3 left. As it is the only remainder we have to deal with, we need not keep the other figures. By adding the digits in the multiplier we obtain 23, which divided by 9 gives 2 and 5 remainder. Now, multiplying the first remainder by the second we have 15: this product divided by 9 gives 1 and 6 remainder. If the product 12144174 is correct, the sum of its digits divided by 9 will leave 6 for a remainder. Performing the operation, we find the sum of its digits is 24, divided by 9 equals 2 and 6 remainder. As both the remainders correspond, the answer was correct. After a little practice you will find you can prove your examples very quickly by this method, and where a number of sums are given without the answers it will be of invaluable assistance, besides saving you a great amount of labor.
The dart, and its larger brother the javelin, were among the earliest weapons used in warfare, and were very skilfully thrown, not only by the Roman soldiers, but by the Goths and other savage tribes who lived in the regions north of them.
These javelins were large affairs, measuring some six or seven feet in length; the handle, a tough piece of wood, was generally four and one-half feet in length, and an inch in diameter, while the rest of the length was taken up by the barbed triangular-shaped head.
Ever since those days children of all nations and climes have made toy implements, resembling those in general appearance, but varying much in size and materials used.
The little dart described below is perhaps the tiniest and least formidable of them all; but even this should not be carelessly tossed about the room in which others are playing; when, however, thrown in the open air, and away from others who might be hurt, there is considerable amusement derived from the airy bit of flying wood, which always comes down with such unerring certainty upon its spear-like head. To make this dart, take half a sheet of note-paper, double it diagonally across, so that its top edge may fall evenly upon that of one side (see Fig. 1), and cut off the surplus piece of paper which remains uncovered at the bottom of the page. Open your square, and fold it again in the other diagonal line c, d (the first is represented on Fig. 2, as a, b). Now, opening again, fold upon the line e, f, then, after opening, upon g, h. Crease all the folds as you make them. Now, having prepared your handle, which consists of a piece of wood about 8 inches long and the size of a lead pencil, cut across one end at right angles, with slits nearly or quite an inch in depth; take your paper and open it flat once more. Fold the diagonals so that the four points, a, b, c, d, shall all meet together above x, and the lines ax, bx, cx, and dx shall meet at the central line of the figure, and the four shorter lines, ex, fx, etc., form the outside edges of the figure. Insert a tiny wedge or knife-blade at the bottom of the slits, and press the paper down in the opening, bringing the folded edges through each of the four slits; remove the wedge, and the paper will be firmly held in its place. Insert a needle or headless pin in the other end of the wood, and the dart is ready for use.
This amusing feat I first saw performed in our little district school-house, many years ago.
One morning, while the teacher was busy with his class at the blackboard, one of the boys drew an old clay pipe-stem from his pocket, and producing a small green gooseberry and a pin from some other part of his clothing, gave us boys to understand that he was about to perform some wonderful trick with them. We were of course all attention, and as the teacher’s back remained turned toward us, he proceeded to astonish us with his remarkable feat. He first stuck the pin through the gooseberry, and then let it fall, point downward, into one end of the pipe-stem; then, placing the other end to his mouth, and holding his head thrown well over backward, he blew into the opening, and the gooseberry and pin arose quite clear of the tube, and began dancing and balancing above it in a very funny way. How long it would have continued its gyrations I cannot tell, probably until his breath gave out, but just then a little boy in the front row made some exclamation, and straightway the teacher’s head came around, the pipe-stem, pin, and gooseberry went on a voyage of discovery out of the school-house window, and the boy got a thrashing for his pains. But the feat was often performed by us all after that, and some years later, when a second generation of boys were having over again the tricks and sports their older brothers had outgrown, I saw the same principle applied under more favorable conditions. Instead of the straight pipe-stem, which necessitated throwing the head over backward, to insure its perpendicular position, a tube bent at a right angle near one end was used, and the balancing of the pin could be much more easily watched by the performer. Instead of the gooseberry, a currant, pea, or any light, round fruit can be substituted, and a small glass tube may take the place of the pipe-stem.
Procure a deep, smooth soap-box, and decide how high you wish the back and front to be; then take a piece of brown paper, the exact size of the sides of the box, and mark on it a curve, which shall unite the high back with the low front. After this has assumed a perfectly satisfactory form, cut it out and tack it on one side of the box. Mark the outline carefully on both side-pieces, and saw the boards as indicated by the line; cut the front straight across, and rasp and sand-paper the edges till they are very smooth and well rounded. Next paint the box inside and out, excepting the bottom, which is to be fastened to the sled, with a thick coat of burnt umber, and give it a good drying. Then with light-blue paint, make a narrow band, one-fourth of an inch wide, entirely around each side, the back, and the front, about half an inch from the edge. Stencil a pretty design on the back, and the name of the little owner on each side; let this thoroughly dry, and finish with two coats of varnish. A little seat can be fitted in the back part if desired, but a pillow answers the purpose much better.
Procure a stick of wood of any length, and an inch and a half square at the ends. Saw it into pieces six inches in length, being careful to cut it evenly, that the blocks may be rectangular in form. Round off the tops slightly at the edges and paint them brown, then give the sides and ends a good coating of yellow.
If you have no oil paints, it would be a good investment to get a few tubes, as they are not expensive, and are of invaluable assistance in adding beauty and naturalness to many things a boy can make. For the cars, a tube of chrome yellow, one of Indian-red, and one of black would be needed, but as those are not over seven or eight cents apiece the whole cost would be small. The windows can perhaps be most conveniently put on by “stencilling.” To do this, cut a piece of stout paper or thin cardboard the exact size of the side of the car, and mark the windows on it in their proper places (see Fig. 2). Then cut out the windows thus drawn with the point of a sharp penknife. Catch the card firmly upon the surface by driving two or three fine pins through it into the wood. Finally, with your brush moderately filled with the black paint, cover all the yellow surface exposed through the openings; then remove the card very carefully and one side of your car will be complete. After painting the whole set, another long time will be needed for drying. During the meantime obtain a few screw-eyes and hooks, and, when perfectly dry, screw a hook into the left and an eye into the right end of each car, join them into a train, and you will find you have a strong set of cars with which your little brother can play to his satisfaction, without a fear of breaking. The locomotive is more difficult to make, but with a little care any boy of ten can be quite certain of success.
The thin ends of a common soap-box afford very good material for the base of this locomotive, while the end of a curtain-roller makes a capital boiler. The cab can be cut from a cigar-box, and a button-mold will do for the boiler-head. First cut from the thicker wood a base in shape like Fig. 1, and seven inches long by one and a half wide; with a jackknife bevel it on either side of the pointed end to correspond to the shape of the pilot, as shown in the cut. Saw the roller even at either end just four inches in length. Next cut from a solid block of wood a smoke-stack three inches high and an inch in diameter across the top. The cab is cut from the cigar-box wood, and consists of a front like a, two side-pieces like b, and a top like that seen in Fig. 1; round off the edges of the top to give it a slightly convex surface like the tops of the cars. Now, with brads, fasten these three parts together. Then with a long, slender brass screw fasten the button-mold and smoke-stack on front of the boiler. The screw should have as large a head as it is possible to find, and should be long enough to extend half an inch or more into the round section of wood or boiler. Cover the whole, excepting the cab, with two thick coats of black paint, being careful that the first is perfectly dry before the second is put on. After the blackened surface is thoroughly dry and hard, put the red stripes on the pilot, as seen in the cut: and for the brass bands around the boiler use chrome yellow. The cab is painted Indian-red, and after this is perfectly dry, the windows are painted on with black, as in the cars.
The little ornamental lines on the cab are made with the yellow paint. A large round-headed brass screw driven through a low flat spool (such as is used for button-hole twist), into the top of the boiler in front of the cab, makes a good steam-chest and whistle, and adds the finishing touch to this indestructible little toy. If you anticipate making this train of cars for a Christmas present, begin it in time, as paint dries much more slowly in winter than in summer, and it is absolutely necessary that each coat be perfectly dry before the next is applied. Varnishing greatly improves the durability and appearance of the painted surface. Shellac dissolved in alcohol makes the best varnish for this kind of work. It should be made moderately thick, and if intended for light-colored work, white shellac should be used, as the dark leaves a slight stain upon the surface. I forgot to add in its proper place that a brass button, caught in on top by a stiff wire, is made to represent a bell. The wire should be first bent into the shape seen in the illustration; the button then hung in position, and the wire finally driven into the holes made to receive it.
The tender consists of a piece of wood the same width but only half the length of one of the cars, and one inch high. This is painted black with a narrow band of yellow running around the sides near the top, and is fastened to the locomotive and car by means of the screw-eye and hook.
The locomotive for this train can be made like the one already described, and the cars are cut from a rectangular stick, in the same manner as the passenger cars. These should receive a thick coat of Indian-red paint, and if this does not cover well, that is, if any of the wood shows through, another coat should be given. After the paint is perfectly dry, put on one edge of the side, near the top, a number in white, and two or three letters in the same color, to represent the sides of the freight cars on different lines. If desired, the cars can be painted different colors, and the side decorations copied from the car you mean to represent. Give the whole a good varnishing with the shellac dissolved in alcohol, and allow plenty of time to elapse before the toy is used, for it to become perfectly dry and hard.
Take a thin stick of wood a foot and a half or two feet long, and nail to it four cross-pieces, graduated in length and six or seven inches apart. The shorter, at the top, should measure about six inches. Cut out of stiff, colored paper (the greater the variety the prettier the effect) fifteen pieces, each three inches square, and slit each piece as indicated by the diagonal lines in the figure. Out of pretty tissue-paper cut three round pieces for each mill, about the size of a silver dollar, and with a dull knife scrape their edges, that they may slightly curl like the petals of a rose; crinkle them at the center if intended for a rose, or from the edge toward the center if for asters or marigolds, and thrust a large, strong pin through the middle of each disk, drawing the flower well down over the head; then, bending the opposite corners of each square of paper so that they shall all rest over the central dot marked on each (Fig. 1), force the pin with the flower on its head, down through the five thicknesses of paper, driving it well into the wood of the frame. In doing this care should be taken to avoid creasing the curved edges of the windmills. They are placed upon the frame-work as indicated in the cut.
Very pretty windmills are often made of only two shades, common note-paper being used for the wheels, and a bright, rosy pink tissue-paper for the flowers. Indeed, those made of common brown wrapping-paper without any flowers at all give more satisfaction in a light wind than the more elaborate ones described above.
Most boys love flowers; and many families, especially in the country, would keep more through the winter than they do, if they had the space and time to devote to them, necessary for their preservation. A number of pots, sufficiently large to hold good-sized plants, take up considerable room; and no little time is required each day, to keep the pots clean and the plants well watered. Now, boys, I have a suggestion to make, which I intend for your ears alone. Why can’t you make a winter garden, and, if necessary, take care of it through the season? It will amply repay you for your labor, and do much toward brightening the home life through the long dreary months, when everything without is covered with ice and snow.
First procure a soap-box, the best and tightest you can find: if any cracks are too wide to be easily closed with putty, nail laths over them on the inside, line their edges, and, in fact, stop every seam and crevice with good thick layers of putty. Next paint over the entire inside with any colored pigment you may have, as it does not show when the box is filled with earth, but simply aids in making it water-tight.
Now take four strong pieces of wood, about two and a half feet long; smooth them well and sand-paper; be sure both ends are cut off evenly, and that each leg is the same length as the other three, and, finally, nail them firmly to the four corners of the box, letting the tops come in line with its upper edge, and give the whole thing two good coats of Indian-red. A very pretty stand is made by substituting the straight trunks of young forest trees with their bark left on in place of the smooth, painted legs; bore holes in the bottom of the legs and insert casters, and finish by giving the entire outer surface a thick coating of varnish. Then get a good wheelbarrow-load of fine leaf-mold, about half that quantity of sand, and some common garden soil. Stir these well together, and fill the box half full with the mixture, first covering the bottom with pebbles, to secure drainage. Before this, however, bore a hole with a good-sized gimlet in the bottom of the box, and fit a soft pine peg to close it from the under side. When the plants are watered this peg can be removed, and a dish placed beneath the opening to catch the surplus water.
You are now ready for the plants. I find almost any garden plants thrive well in this box, so any favorites you may have will soon make themselves at home in these new quarters. It is well to put vines around the edge, as they fall over, and their glossy green leaves and stems form an agreeable contrast to the dark-red background of the box itself. In my present winter garden I have German and Cenilworth ivy, partridge-berry, and the common inch-plant for vines. In the center is a large salvia, taken up so carefully that the great ball of dirt was not shaken from its roots. On one side is a calla lily, and on the other a feverfew of the large double variety. At the ends are fuchsias and heliotrope, and scattered over the other available spots are verbenas and petunias, sweet peas and lobelia; one or two fish-geraniums of bright colors also found a place, and a little wood-violet nestled in one corner has bloomed since early spring. A beautiful large purple pansy, too, has been blooming all winter in another corner of the box.
Over this garden are two hanging-pots, one filled with pink oxalis, and the other with a Chinese pink; both have contributed their full share of blossoms during the entire season, and neither seems to tire of well-doing. I must now tell you how to care for these beautiful pets, for they must receive some attention, which, however, is very small when compared with that required by their sisters in pots. First, always water them with warm water (almost as hot as you can bear your hand in), pour this around the roots in sufficient quantities to thoroughly moisten the soil. A good rule to be observed in watering your plants is to pour on the water until it begins to run out of the hole in the bottom of the box. With such thorough wetting down they will not need water oftener than twice a week, except when the sun is very hot, and the moisture evaporates quickly. A little carbonate of ammonia added to the water greatly improves their growth, and half-a-dozen grains of permanganate of potash added once a fortnight to the warm bath turns their foliage a rich dark green. With a whisk broom, sprinkle them once or twice a week with water which is also warm, but not as hot as that used on their roots; this operation takes but little time, scarcely five minutes, and as the stand is on casters it can be easily moved to the middle of the room, and each side can then receive its full share of the washing. It is safe to predict that if any boy would make the stand, and supply it with rich soil, his mother or some one of his sisters would only be too happy to plant and care for the flowers it might hold.
First take a piece of paper, double it, and cut from it a pair of boots, the fold in the paper coming at the top of the boots, and consequently joining them together. Then take another piece, fold it and cut it in the form of Fig. 2, a being the folded end. Fold still another piece and cut it like Fig. 3, b representing the folding side. Now open the smaller piece, as in Fig. 4, and push the point a through the opening in its center (Fig. 5). Then put one boot through the loop of the long arm, c, between a and the smaller piece, which has been pushed forward as far as it will go (Fig. 6). Now pull the smaller piece down over a, and open the largest piece, and the boots are fastened on to the larger paper in such a way that it is rather hard for the uninitiated to extricate them.
After they are fastened in place, with your finger-nail smooth out the creases made at a, Fig. 5, as their appearance might furnish a clue toward solving the mystery. It is best when cutting Fig. 2 to avoid the creasing if possible.
When you pass them to your friends to take off, explain that they are not to bend the boots. It is an excellent plan to make the last-named articles of cardboard, while the other parts are simply of note-paper.
The person whose portrait is to be taken must sit so that his shadow is thrown upon a sheet of cardboard or thick white paper placed against the wall. To obtain a sharp outline there should be a fixed distance between the lamp, wall, and sitter, which can easily be found by experiment. The sitter must keep perfectly still while the outline of the shadow is quickly traced upon the paper. A tumbler or roll of paper may be placed between the head of the sitter and the wall, to aid in holding the head quiet. The tracing is then cut out with a pair of scissors or a sharp penknife, and placed upon a dark cloth or paper. This is a very pleasing amusement for a cold winter’s evening, and the results are often profile likenesses not only very striking but often wonderfully accurate.
No boy feels himself perfectly at home if he has not one pocket at least full of strings, and a good sharp jackknife at his command. Although the jackknife often gets lost, the string is usually at hand, and most boys will probably be glad to learn how a good strong cord can be broken without injury to the hands. Take the cord and pass it around the left hand, as shown in Fig. A, so as to form a cross or double loop over the palm. One end is then wound round the fingers, and the other seized in the right hand. Then, by closing both hands, and giving a very sharp, quick pull, the string will be broken at the cross in the left hand.
For those boys living in the country who have a musical turn, but have never seen this little instrument, I write the following description of
Find a good straight corn-stalk, and with your jackknife cut four slits from joint to joint, as seen in the upper figure. Then from a bit of wood cut a bridge, as shown just below. With the point of the knife lift the three strings and insert the bridge. Then carefully raise the bridge to its upright position, spread the strings until they rest in the grooves cut in the bridge for that purpose, and put a similar bridge at the other end. Make the bow in the same manner, of a smaller section of a stalk, and the instrument is complete. I have never heard a very decided tune played on this fiddle, but perhaps some of my readers may be able to get music from this simple little instrument.
The xylophone is an instrument of great antiquity, having been used in a slightly different form by both Greeks and Hebrews. It is now sometimes used in connection with other instruments in our larger orchestras, in which case, however, the bars are usually made of metal. Its construction is very simple, and any boy having a good ear for music can readily make one.
The instrument is composed of strips of wood of various sizes, and thick enough to allow the passage of a stout piece of twine or fish-line, as seen in the illustration. The largest strips give the lowest notes. The first note of the scale may be a strip of any convenient size, and the succeeding strips are tuned by carefully cutting away from the under side until the desired tone is produced. They are strung upon cords, in the manner shown in Fig. 2, a knot being made on each side to keep the strip in place; and finally, across the upper part of a box, in order to give sufficient resonance of sound. In putting these strips together, it is necessary to have the holes through which they are strung at a slight angle, or in the direction of the slant which the strings take when fastened to the frame.
The arrangement seen in Fig. 3 is perhaps best adapted to the usual form of a box, and affords a greater range of notes. It would be well to letter the upper part of the bars with the name of the note they are intended to produce, and the wood should be thoroughly seasoned from which these bars are made.
It is well to have the lowest note not the first of the scale but a fifth below, and the highest three or four notes above the octave. This will give sufficient compass for any air you may care to play.
A good ear for music is of the greatest importance to insure success in constructing an instrument of this description, and it would simply be a waste of time and patience for any boy not so blessed, to venture upon the undertaking.
Little wooden mallets are sometimes used to play upon this xylophone, but the little drumsticks belonging to the common toy drum are better for the purpose.
Among the tribes of southern Africa an instrument of this class holds the chief place in their festivals, and is played upon with considerable skill by many of their native musicians. This piano, called by them “marimba,” consists of two bars of wood placed side by side; in the most southern portions quite straight, but farther north, bent round so as to resemble half the tire of a carriage-wheel; across these are placed about fifteen wooden keys, each of which is two or three inches broad, and fifteen or eighteen inches long, and their thickness, as in the case of the xylophone, is regulated according to the deepness of the note required. Each of the keys has a calabash beneath it; from the upper part of each a portion is cut off to enable them to embrace the bars, and form hollow sounding-boards to the keys, which also are of different sizes, according to the note required; and little drumsticks, like those spoken of above, elicit the music. Rapidity of execution seems much admired among them, and the music is pleasant to the ear.
In Angola, the Portuguese use the marimba in their dances.
This simple little musical instrument derives its name from Æolus, god of the winds, who is said to have lived at Stromboli, then called Strongyle, while he reigned over the Æolian islands, just north of Sicily. His island was entirely surrounded by a wall of brass, and by perfectly smooth precipitous rocks. Here he dwelt in continual joy and festivity with his wife and children; the latter, six sons and as many daughters, are said to be a poetic type of the twelve months of the year. And here he kept the winds, tied up in bags, in perfect subjection, only letting them out when called upon to do so by Neptune, god of the sea. As the winds served Æolus on his little isle, so we force them to serve us in our far-away western homes, by operating upon our instrument and making music to soothe and calm us when we are too tired or indolent to make it for ourselves. The simplest form this instrument can have is a single string of strong waxed silk, stretched between two bits of wood, inserted under the lower window-sash, sufficient space being allowed between the window-sill and the sash for the vibration of the string.
The other and more satisfactory harp is made like that in the engraving, and is not so difficult an undertaking, that any boy who can handle carpenter’s tools need fear to try it. Take two long strips of thin, soft pine wood, four and five inches wide respectively, and a little shorter than the sash is wide, to allow for the length of the pegs at one end; then from common seven-eighths of an inch board make two other pieces in shape like b, six inches wide, six high, on the narrower, and seven on the back or longer side. With a small gimlet make in both ends a row of eight or nine holes, at equal distances from each other, and half an inch from the edge of the slanting top, for the strings to pass through; then with a larger gimlet bore in one end only, the second row of holes, h i, to hold the pegs upon which the ends of the strings are to be wound. Nail the parts together as in the cut, making the lower edges of the pieces meet at the bottom; then from the outside of d e draw through as many pieces of violin string (the smallest or E string) as you have holes in your wood. Hold these by knots on the outside, and having brought them across the box pass them through the corresponding holes in the other end, and twist them around the pegs below, in the same manner that the strings are fastened in the violin itself. Unlike the violin, however, these should not be drawn too tight, simply stretched evenly across, and must all be tuned in unison. That is, having drawn one as tight as you think best, draw the others, one at a time, till they give forth the same musical note when snapped with the finger. Now put another thin piece of board across the top which shall just cover it like the lid of a desk. This was purposely left out in the illustration, that the arrangement of the strings might be more fully seen, but is necessary in the complete instrument. If catgut cannot be readily obtained, strong pieces of sadlers’ silk, well waxed, may be used in its place, although the tones resulting are not as musical, or the strains as soft and lulling in character, as those produced by the former.
After the instrument is properly tuned, place it upon the ledge of an open window, and let the sash down upon it, when, if there is any breeze stirring, it will pour forth strains of sweet, drowsy music, beautifully described by the poet Thomson, as supplying the most suitable harmonies for the Castle of Indolence.
Take a piece of soft wood, five or six inches long, and whittle out of one end a hollow box, open at the top and outer end, like that represented in the illustration. Cut a groove around the inside, near the top, for the cover to slide in. Make this cover of a very thin piece of tough wood, and one-third as long as the opening, pushing it, when completed, well up against the inner end of the box; see b, in the figure, for size and position of cover.
The handle, f, is simply for convenience in holding the instrument. Pass a piece of strong string or fish-line twice around the box at the point d, and after drawing it as tightly as possible, tie it firmly on the under side.
Out of hard, tough wood make a thin, slender tongue, c, and place this between the two strings at e. Now twist this tongue over and over, each time drawing out the longer end, to allow of the other sliding by the edge of the cover. At each revolution of c the string is twisted tighter around the box, and if the end of c is touched, the other end strikes with more force upon the cover b.
When sufficiently tight, grasp the handle with your left hand, and having the point well over the cover, commence with the third finger of your right hand and strike down on the end c with the fingers in their order, giving quick and repeated blows, like the successive taps of a drum. The music produced, if not strictly melodious, is quite enchanting to the average American school-boy.
I have now come to one of the most fascinating and at the same time useful employments a boy can have; one which not only affords amusement for the time being, but, if properly executed, furnishes home with much which is useful or ornamental, at scarcely any expense beyond the mere time and labor consumed in the work.
How many of my readers know how to make things of papier-maché? None who are old enough to read these directions are too young to make really useful objects or pretty playthings of this inexpensive medium; indeed, many of the children of India, Persia, and many other Asiatic countries support themselves, and in some instances whole families, by making ornaments of papier-maché.
In Germany this art is carried to a great extent, and a large proportion of the German toys so common in our stores, as well as the jointed bodies of the expensive French and German dolls, are made of this material.
Papier-maché means “softened paper,” and is simply any old soft paper converted into pulp by water; the poorer the paper the better. Cheap newspapers, such as tear with a mere touch, thin handbills and posters, are all particularly suited for this purpose.
For a first trial it would be well to take some simple object, and a cup would perhaps make as good a beginning as any. First have some good flour-paste made, by pouring into boiling water enough flour, which has previously been moistened with cold water, to make a substance rather thicker than boiled starch; this should be stirred only enough to unite the flour with the water, and to prevent burning. Add to this one or two old newspapers and a dish of water, a broad brush for the paste, and any prettily shaped tea-cup conveniently at hand, and you have all the materials required. A bag filled with sand or stuffed hard with cotton is a great help in molding, although not indispensable to the operation. Take the cup, which should be well smeared over with sweet-oil or lard, and cutting out a piece of paper sufficiently large, wet it, and press it down on the cup, using the fingers, or the sand bag, if you have it, for the purpose; then with the brush spread the paste over the paper, and lay on this another piece; press this down as before and continue the process until twenty or thirty paper coverings have been used. After the first two or three layers, it is not necessary to use pieces which entirely cover the surface; any sized scraps will do if they are so placed that the same thickness is preserved throughout. The outer surface should be as smooth and even as possible. When this is completed, let it dry for a day or two in any moderately warm place, as it is not well to dry it too quickly. When it seems sufficiently hard, remove the mold, and you will have a pasteboard cup with an uneven edge which must be trimmed with a sharp knife and smoothed with sand-paper.
It might be well to trim off the top before removing the mold, as you would be more certain of getting it even by so doing. After this the cup can be painted in any manner desired.
A plaque can readily be molded upon the inside of a plate or saucer, and a pretty work-basket can be made upon a shallow bowl. Toy boats are made in the same manner as the cup, upon wooden molds cut out for the purpose.
Card Receivers.—These are generally flat dishes or shallow cups, made to hold visiting-cards, or the varied collections from Christmas, Easter, and New-year’s. They may be molded on plates, saucers, or small bowls, or receiving their concave shape from a plaque or saucer, they can be cut into any fantastic form your fancy may dictate. A large, well-shaped grape-leaf, or the catalpa, would furnish pretty designs to those who have no confidence in their own skill in that direction.
Umbrella Holders.—Take any cylinder with a smooth surface, about two feet in length, and six to ten inches in diameter, for the mold; make upon it a coating of papier-maché about half an inch in thickness. It is made much stronger by rolling it during the pasting. The bottom may be of the same material, or a wooden disk made to perfectly fit into the cylinder. The whole surface should be thoroughly sand-papered and given two or three good coats of paint. A simple band of gold paint around top and bottom forms a pretty finish, but a large bunch of peonies or poppies, freely painted upon one side, greatly improves its appearance.
By reducing a quantity of paper and paste into a pulp, and allowing that to become a little dried—still moist, but not liquid—a number of objects can be molded, such as animals, boats, marbles, etc., by simply forming them with the hands and allowing them to dry.
Paper pulp is sometimes mixed with common blue clay and glue, instead of flour-paste, used as a binding material.
A beautiful vase can easily be made of papier-maché by forming a frame-work of pasteboard, and joining it together with a few stitches or with narrow strips of strong paper pasted across the edges. Make this frame-work as near the form and size of your vase as it is possible for you to get; then with your thin paper line it inside and out, until it seems as thick as you desire. Trim and sand-paper off the upper edge, and cover with one or two extra layers to insure a rounded edge common in earthenware vases. Stand it on a smooth, even table or board to make it flat on the bottom, and let it have plenty of time to dry. Next make from the paper pulp and fine clay preparation spoken of above a rose, poppy, or other flower, with its leaves and buds, resembling as nearly as possible those on the bisque vases so fashionable just now. This may seem at first a very difficult undertaking, but by molding one petal at a time, and placing each in position with glue as it is finished, the work is comparatively simple. Do not undertake a difficult flower at first. If in summer, you may take any from the garden, and after enlarging every part in the same proportions, make it your model. When the flowers, stems, and leaves are all in place, let them become thoroughly dry, then after painting the body of your vase with shades of blue, red, or olive, so applied that they give a clouded effect to the whole, color your flowers as nearly as you can like the natural ones of the same species, and the stems and leaves the proper shades of brown or green. Let this paint thoroughly dry, and then varnish with the white shellac dissolved in alcohol spoken of elsewhere in this book, if a very light surface is to be covered, or with the dark shellac or common varnish if the surface is intended to be dark. The floral decorations are not absolutely necessary, and a very pretty vase is made by simply painting the smooth surface with any graceful or pretty design, and varnishing it subsequently to give it the desired polish.
In the skillful management of paper, the Japanese are acknowledged to take the lead, as their balloons and kites, lanterns and fire-screens, now so commonly seen in this country, will testify.
Many of the grotesque and hideous monsters, which nevertheless are artistic in form and decorative in effect, are made of paper pulp, with the necessary materials added to give it the proper degree of hardness; and in articles made of folded or crinkled paper they have no equals, while in some instances they apparently infuse life itself into their airy creations. By simply folding a square piece of paper in the manner here described, they produce a bird-like figure, which will move its wings in quite a natural and amusing manner.