The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1884-06-13
AN AMATEUR CARPENTER.
by Bill Nye.
Denrer Opinion.

.n De't~ OptHtOH.
In my opinion every professional ma
should keep chest of carpenters tools i
bis barn or shop and busy himself at cd
hours with them in constructing the vare
articles that are always needed about Lh
house. There is great deal of pleasure il
feeling your own independence of othe
trades, and most especially of the carpenter
Every now and then your wife will want
bracket to put up in some corner or other
and with your new, bright saw and glitterin:
hammer you can put up one upon which sh,
can hang a cast-iron horse blanket lambre
quiD, with ihiexible water lilies sewed into
| IL.
A man will, If he tries, readily learn to dc
great many such little things and mis- wife
will brag Oh him to other ladies, and they
will make inyidious comparisons between
their husbands, who can't do anything ofthat
kind whatever, and you are $50 handy"
Firstly, you buy set of amateur carpen-
| ter tools. You do not need to say that you
are ali amaeur. The dealer will find out
when you ask him for an easy running broad
axe or green gage plumb line. He will
sell you set Of amateurs tools that will be
made of OLD sbeet,iron with Eastwood han
dies, aud thes will double up like piece
ofstove pipe
After you rave nailed board on the fence
successfully, you will very naturally desire
to do something better, more difficult. You
will probably try to erect parlor table or
rustic settee.
made very handsome bracket last week
and was naturally proud of it. In fasten-
ing 1t together If l hadn't inadvertently
nailed it TO the barn floor, guess l could
have used it very well, but in tearing 1t loose
from the barn, sc that the two could be used
separately, l ruined a bracket that was in
tended to serve a, the base, as 1t were, of a
lambrequin which cost 50, aside from the
time expended it.
During the month of March | built an Ice
chest for this sumner. It was not hand
some, but it was roomy, aud would be very
nice for the season Of 1884, thought II
worked pretty well through March and April,
but as the weather begins to warm up that
ice chest Is about the warmest place around
the house. There is actually glow of heat
around that ice-cheIt that l cont notice
elsewhere. I've shown it 20 several personal
friends. They seem TO think it is not built
tightly enough for an zee chest. My brother
at nrA at L.. 1t
Of an ice-chest was that 1t ought to be tight
enough at least to hold the larger chunks of
ice so they would not escape through the
pores of the ice-box. He said he never built
one, but that it stood to reason that refrig-
eIa.or like that ought to be constructed so
tbs. IL would keep the cows out. You don't
want refrigerator That the cattre CHI guv-
through the cracks of and eat up your straw
berries on ice, he says.
A neighbor of mine who once built hen
resort Of laths, and now wears thick thumb
nail that looks like Brazil nut as me.
mento Of that pullet corral, says my ice chest
is all right enough, only that 1t is not suited
TO this climate. Ue thinks that along Beh-
ring otTail, uuFlng tue Mondays, my Ice
chest would work like Q charm. And even
here, he thought, If I could keep the fever
out Of my chest, there would be less pain.
| have several other little articles of yertu
this spring, to the construction of which 1
have contributed good deal oftime and two
finger nails. have also sawed into my leg
several times. The leg, Of course, will get
well, but the pantaloons will not. Parties
wishing TO meet me in my studio during the
morning hours will turn into the alley be.
tween Eighth and Ninth streets, enter the
third stable door on the left, pass around my
Gothic horse and give the countersign and
three kicks on the door in an ordinary tone
of voice.