Harper's indoor book for boys

by Joseph H. Adams

A Step-bench

A step-bench will be found useful for various purposes. It does not take up so much room as a step-ladder and affords a more solid footing. The bench shown in Fig. 23 is thirty inches high, fifteen inches wide, and eighteen inches deep. The uprights that support the sides are five inches wide; the treads of the first and second steps are six inches wide, and that of the top step eight inches wide. The wood is seven-eighths of an inch thick, planed on both sides, and all the unions are made with screws. The cross-brace at the back and near the bottom is set into laps cut in the edges of the upright supports, and to prevent the support and side-pieces from spreading, stanchion-bars may be screwed fast to the sides, under the first tread, and to the foot of the uprights.

Two or three coats of paint will finish these benches and make them fit for use about the house.

A Shoe-box

A shoe-box and seat (Fig. 24) is a useful piece of furniture in any bedroom. Two boxes, purchased at a grocery store, may be made to serve the purpose, but for a really neat and workmanlike job the frame should be constructed of boards three-quarters or seven-eighths of an inch in thickness. A good size for the shoe receptacle is twenty-four inches high, fifteen inches deep, and sixteen inches wide. The seat-box should be thirty inches long, and fifteen inches high and deep.

Fig. 24. Fig. 24 A.

These boxes are to be attached to each other with stout screws, and a back the length of the two boxes, and having a rounded corner is to be securely fastened to the rear of each box, as shown in Fig. 24 A. In the shoe-box two shelves are screwed fast, and to the lower box a corner should be arranged on hinges so that it may be raised from the front. The back and seat and also the top of the shoe-box should be covered with denim, under which a padding of hair or cotton may be placed. The denim should be caught down with carriage-buttons and string, the latter being passed through holes made in the wood and tied at the underside. Around the front and sides a flounce of cretonne or denim may be gathered, and hung from the top edge of the box and seat. If finished with gimp and brass-headed tacks it will present a good appearance. Where the drop-curtain at the edge of the shoe-box meets the seat the fabric is to be divided, in order that it may be drawn to one side when taking out or replacing shoes.

Fig. 25. Fig. 26. Fig. 27.