Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-12-30

made to trot round in q most lifelike man.
ner, wiggling in every joint. An elephal,
that is run,or walked. rather. by clock work
lthat does not show under his red blankeD
is SO constructed that every joint works
when he moves.
particularly in bank and mechanical hg-
ures. Sometimes they are so conventional
lied as to never tempt q small boy to throw
stones at them The monkeys generally
climb stick or string, even as in the song,
but the arrangements for his climbing
involve quite little ingenious arrange
ment Moving toys are the most delight
ful to inventors, but really they frequently
perform but once, and then die. Yet they
hnd q ready sale. Among the models there
are mothers rocking babies, daughters
churning or Waiting, fathers hunting OF
raising their hats In interminable polite
or course there are ''thaumatropes." One
described In the patent as being very
tunny, has an open-mouthed face on one
sioe OF the card. closed mouth on the
other. The card is twirled round very
rapidly and the eye sees only the face OF a
man who Is opening and shutting his mouth
vigorously. Another, also a thaumatrope
mas a cage printed on one side and a bird
on the other. When 1t is twirled 1t really
seems as though the bird were in the cage
According to the dictionary, a thaumatrope
IS an optical toy, based upon the fact that
the eye retains the impression Of an image
SNNA oitci the OpJcCl mas passed out Oh the
actual range of vision. The two sides ap-
pear SO rapidly, one after another, as to
seem simultaneous.
A Miniature Bottle.
A surprise card" pictures a fort fully
armed with cannon, and about a quarter
OF an inch away. opposing 1t. is another
row Of cannon. One of the fort guns is
fired and then comes a terrific warfare
on the six inches of pasteboard. Another
card. evidently designed by a funny man,
shows three kinds of butter fresh daisy
butter, 'screamery butter and bogus
butter" The parts are taken respectively
by two intelligent goats and a sturdy keg
OF oleomargarine. A string animates the
whole. Those playing the title roles per-
form their parts. The bogus butter, or oieo-
margarine. representing wrong is triumph
ed over by the true buffers, the goats.
Ducks that swim across tiny pools of
water are usually moved by clock work,
but one man thought to make a hit with
his scheme, and has a graceful tin swan
SO arranged that lump of camphor is
placed under the floating bird. AS the
the swan-only 1t doesn't.
The cat OF pasteboard, painted with phos-
phoreScent paint, intended to scare mice
and rats away from their favorite haunts,"
mas been patented In all seriousness. The
patent for cloth cat pattern, to be cut
out. sewed together and stuffed, has been
very successful, and other creatures are
being likewise made
But after all. 1t is the man who invented
the round ball. the one-storied Noah's ark
and the woolly baa-lamb that has given
the most pleasure. There is no whistle
that can equal in volume and variety the
one that boy makes with his own fingers,
no automatic, electric, clock work, pneu-
matte or falling sand dog that Is so jolly
as the forlornest and raggedest street ours
and no stilts with metal stirrups, padded
arm rests or spring supports that are
so much fun as those made out of the
clothes props on wash day, somehow or
other. ELSIE POMEROY McELROY,