We are now ready to commence. Hang the stencil over the whistle so that the holes you have made in it pass over the whistle holes, and blow gently as you drag it along. As the holes are cleared one after the other the notes are given forth, and the whistle can be played almost as easily as a barrel-organ—if you can only keep the paper straight and flat on to the tin. But this is not always easy to do, and so we require a further invention, which the accompanying sketches sufficiently describe.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 3.
Fig. 4.
[Fig. 2] is a piece of deal, the shaded part of which shows where it is to be cut away. Two of these blocks, each of them about three inches long and two inches wide, are required. [Fig. 3] shows one of the blocks after it is in shape. The top groove in one must be larger and deeper than that in the other, owing to the tapering form of the whistle—for the whistle must fit firmly. Two rollers, made by sawing pieces off a broomstick, are taken of sufficient width to carry your stencil easily, and these are fixed as shown in [Fig. 4]. One has a handle made of bent wire, with the point that is driven into the roller flattened out and hammered in straight, so as to give a firm hold; the other has two spindles only.
The rollers are fitted with an elastic band, so as to keep them close together and make them act as a miniature mangle. A slip of wood is fastened beneath the blocks to keep them in position. If it is intended to play the air through only once, and to shift for each repetition, a weight is affixed to one end of the paper to keep it flat; if, however, the air is to be repeated without a pause, the ends of the stencil have simply to be pasted together, and a flanged roller hung in the loop, as shown in the cut.
This is all the contrivance consists of. It is effective, and easily made. The only difficulty in playing with it is the need of the stronger blow in the upper octave, a difficulty soon mastered after a little careful practice. The principle of the perforated keyboard is applicable to so many instruments that these rough notes on its construction may prove valuable, even if it be not applied to the humble whistle. The humble whistle! Alas! But let it not be imagined that squeals and screeches are the sounds the poor whistle was made to produce. Any other instrument, if improperly used, will give forth its appalling overtones. Treat it properly, gently, and firmly, and you will find it as sweet-toned as a flageolet.