Fruit-Picker.—Fruit-picking is such an easy matter for boys that I think it is the girls who will chiefly appreciate this contrivance. It too often happens that there will be a very tall tree with fruit well out of reach, and a girl at the foot of it who is not an expert climber. Her mouth need no longer water in vain. This fruit-picker is very ingenious. It consists of scoop-shaped jaws worked by cords and springs, and mounted on a pole of suitable length. Attached to the jaws is a long, funnel-shaped bag, which receives the fruit and allows it to drop without injury right into the fruit-picker's hands.
Safety-brake For Children's Carriages.—So many accidents occur with baby-carriages that this ought to be a great comfort to mothers, and a great help to the "little mothers" who mind the babies. Children's carriages are made so light that their weight is very slight, and a puff of wind is often enough to set them in motion; and if they chance to be on an uneven sidewalk they are likely to roll into the road among the vehicles. This simple brake, which keeps the wheels from moving when the handle is released, will render this impossible, and make it safe to leave the carriage, baby and all, without the fear of harm coming to it.
It seems as if the danger to the children attracted the attention of more than one person at the same time, for other brakes also have been brought to our notice, the same in intention, but differing in design.
Garment Hanger and Stretcher.—This is a very simple and ingenious arrangement to combine a garment hanger and stretcher. The two are made in one, and consist of a single piece of wire bent backward on itself. The ends are secured to a support which can be attached to the wall, and at the other end of the double wire it is bent upward and downward, so as to form a strong spring holding the two parallel parts closely together.
Combination Eraser.—The combination eraser is a handy little tool, and seems calculated to find its way to every writing-table. As its name implies, we find combined in the one tool an eraser, a blade, and a smoothing-tip fitted in the stem of the blade. Besides this, a brush can be at will secured to an extension of the tip, thus bringing together all the implements necessary for erasing.
