FIG. 2.—INTERNAL MECHANISM OF THE AUTOMATON.
THE TOY ARTIST.
THE TOY ARTIST.
The mechanical toy shown in the accompanying [illustration] is one of the most original and ingenious things of its kind that have recently appeared. Within the base upon which the “artist” and his easel are placed, and immediately below the figure, is a small pinion which is operated by a worm at the end of the crankshaft which is seen projecting through the side of the base. The pinion, which rotates in a horizontal plane, is provided with a couple of pins upon which is placed one of the sets of removable cams which accompany the toy. The cams are double, being provided with two separate peripheral edges, and each edge is engaged by the short arm of a pair of levers, as shown in the engraving. The upper lever attaches at the end of its long arm to a vertical shaft which passes up through the body of the figure, and is pivotally attached to its right arm at the shoulder. By this means the rotation of the cam causes a vertical up and down movement of the arm and the drawing pencil which it carries. The lower cam operates a system of levers by which the arm is given a series of right and left movements. It is evident that by giving the proper relative contours to the two edges of the cam, the arm, with the pencil which it carries, may be made to trace any desired line upon the paper, either vertical or horizontal, by the action of the first or second cam; or diagonal or curved, by the joint operation of the two. Each of the double cams which are provided with the toy is cut so that its operation will cause the figure to draw some well-known object. The levers are kept in snug contact with the cams by a pair of spiral springs.
The easel is hinged to the base and is pressed against the pencil by means of a coil spring. It is provided with four projecting pins upon which the sheet of paper is held while the sketch artist is at work. The model from which our [engraving] was made produced an easily recognized likeness of the Emperor William of Germany (the device is “made in Germany”), and a drawing which bore a strong resemblance to the familiar barnyard fowl.