This bird house was designed and built to make a home for the American martin. The house will accommodate 20 families. All the holes are arranged so they will not be open to the cold winds from the north which often kill the birds which come in the early spring. Around each opening is an extra ring of wood to make a longer passage which assists the martin inside in fighting off the English sparrow who tries to drive him out. The holes are made oval to allow all the little ones to get their heads out for fresh air. The long overhanging eaves protect the little birds from the hot summer sun.
The rooms are made up with partitions on the inside so each opening will have a room. The inside of the rooms should be stained black.
Boomerangs and How to Make Them
Details of Three Boomerangs
A boomerang is a weapon invented and used by the native Australians, who seemed to have the least intelligence of any race of mankind. The boomerang is a curved stick of hardwood, Fig. 1, about 5/16 in. thick, 2-1/2 in. wide and 2 ft. long, flat on one side, with the ends and the other side rounding. One end of the stick is grasped in one hand with the convex edge forward and the flat side up and thrown upward. After going some distance and ascending slowly to a great height in the air with a quick rotary motion, it suddenly returns in an elliptical orbit to a spot near the starting point. If thrown down on the ground the boomerang rebounds in a straight line, pursuing a ricochet motion until the object is struck at which it was thrown.
Two other types of boomerangs are illustrated herewith and they can be made as described. The materials necessary for the T-shaped boomerang are: One piece of hard maple 5/16 in. thick, 2-1/2 in. wide, and 3 ft. long; five 1/2-in. flat-headed screws. Cut the piece of hard maple into two pieces, one 11-1/2 in. and the other 18 in. long. The corners are cut from these pieces as shown in Fig. 2, taking care to cut exactly the same amount from each corner. Bevel both sides of the pieces, making the edges very thin so they will cut the air better. Find the exact center of the long piece and make a line 1-1/4 in. on each side of the center and fasten the short length between the lines with the screws as shown in Fig. 3. The short piece should be fastened perfectly square and at right angles to the long one.