An Emergency Alcohol Stove

If a person starts on a picnic with a ketchup bottle full of wood alcohol placed in the lunch basket and suddenly discovers that the alcohol stove was left at home, it is not necessary to walk back to get it; just unscrew the cover of the ketchup bottle and bunch a piece of cloth large enough to fill the top, soak it thoroughly in the alcohol and light it. The metal top is just the right size to make a hot flame.

A box 8¹⁄₄ in. square and 4 in. deep will hold one gallon.

Fireside Dissolving Views
By SUSAN E. W. JOCELYN

To those interested in amateur theatricals the following method of showing dissolving views in the fire-light of pipe dreams and mind pictures will be appreciated.

A frame made of light material, A, [Fig. 1], covered with red cloth and chalked to represent brick, is placed in the center of the stage. The central opening, representing the fireplace, must be rather large, about 12 ft. wide and 7 ft. high, because it is at the back of this opening that the pictures are produced. From the chimney back, 2¹⁄₂ ft. behind this opening, the sides, B, of the fireplace slope outward to the imitation brickwork. The walls of the fireplace are covered with sheet asbestos, for safety, and painted black; then ashes are rubbed on the chimney back and scattered over the hearthstone, to make the appearance more realistic.

The chimney back is removable, in fact it is one of a series of a half dozen screens, the others being behind it, the proper manipulation of which, together with changing lights, gives to the audience the effect of dissolving views of the dreams that are being acted out directly behind the screens.

The Tableau is Played Out behind the Screens and is Dimly Seen through the Fireplace Opening When the Lights are Properly Controlled and the Screens Drawn Slowly

The screens are carried in a light frame, the top of which is shown in [Fig. 2], with position of runs. The runs are made of narrow strips of wood, fastened to the under side of two end pieces, for the screen frames to slide in. Corresponding strips are placed in a suitable position on the floor, to keep the screens steady in sliding. The frames holding the run pieces are longer than the chimney back is wide, and the upper one is placed as high as the brickwork, the shelf, or mantel, over the fireplace being an extension of the upper part, or frame. The screens are in pairs, as shown in [Fig. 3], each one extending to the center of the fireplace. They consist of light frames covered with black mosquito netting. The upper and lower sides of the frames are sandpapered smooth so that they will move easily in the runs. The vertical sides of a pair of screen frames that meet in the center of the fireplace are made of one strand of wire, instead of wood, so that their motion will not be noticeable. To complete the apparatus, andirons and a gas log are needed in the fireplace, and whatever arrangements are necessary for the action of the views to be shown behind the screens.

If gas is available, an asbestos log is used in the fireplace, and it has a connecting pipe to the footlights, where four or five jets are located on the floor just back of the screens. A narrow board, painted black, is placed in front of the lights, which should be wide enough to conceal the lights from the spectators and reflect the light on the tableau. If the light is thrown above the imitation brickwork, then it should be made higher.

In most halls, and some houses, electric lights are used instead of gas, and in this case ordinary logs are piled in the fireplace on the andirons, and one or more red globes are introduced to produce the effect of glowing embers. The gas is more effective, however, because it is not easy to get a gradual rise and fall in the glow of electric lights. Four or five footlights are sufficient.

Fig. 2

Fig. 1

Fig. 3

Frames Made of Light Material and Covered with Black Mosquito Netting Serve as Screens Which are Operated in Runs Located behind the Fireplace That is Made Up in a Like Manner and Penciled to Represent Brick

The working of the dissolving views can be best explained by an illustration from “Reveries of a Bachelor.” The gas log is turned low to make the stage dimly lighted, and the tableau to be shown is all arranged behind the chimney back and the screens. There should be barely sufficient light to reveal the bachelor on the hearthstone smoking in the gloaming. Then the chimney back almost imperceptibly parts, that is, the screens of the first pair are gradually pulled apart, the footlights and gas log are gradually turned on, and the tableau behind the fireplace, being more brightly illuminated, is dimly seen through the series of screens. Slowly the successive pairs of screens are drawn aside, and the tableau becomes quite distinct. Then the process is reversed, the screens are gradually replaced, the lights are lowered and the dream fades away; brightens and fades again; brightens and fades, till gone entirely. The screens are always slowly moving while the tableau is exposed, and this makes the illusory effect. It is evident that the success of this plan depends principally on the coördination with which the screens are operated. “Cinderella,” and many other tales based on the vagaries of the mind and having their source in glowing embers, can thus be presented.