400 Popular Science Monthly
Rock-a-Bye Baby — In Your Self- Even the Animals in the Zoo Feel
Operated Cradle the Effects of the War
��SHELDON D. Vane
���iderburgh, of Hastings-on- Hudson, New York, has a baby. The baby wouldn't go to sleep, and it was a thirty-eight- pound baby, too. The mother and father tried both crib and go-cart, but the baby wouldn't stay in them. It was im- possible for the mother to rock it to sleep. She was too busy. What was to be done? Invent a new cradle, of course.
Mr. Vanderburgh decided upon a cra- dle hammock. He fastened the netting to end pieces to keep the cradle in shape and then suspended it from a shaft by means of two side arms. With the shaft journal ed to
vertical standards he had a safe and sane cradle which could be opened, basket- fashion, to receive bedding and baby and then closed down securely. At first he was satisfied with rocking the cradle back and forth. Then the idea struck him that a clock-spring motor could do the same thing.
Accordingly, he mounted a motor on a standard. It operates a rod which in turn rotates a crank arm attached to the shaft. This imparts a steady but very gentle rocking motion to the cradle. The ticking of the clock also helps in lullin the child to sleep. When wound up the mech- anism will rock for two hours without further attention; at the end of which time the nap will probably be over and
both baby and moth- This rotat i n g buffing wheel will press back
er in good humor. the cuticle and polish your nails for you
��T
��HE war has laid
��The automatic cradle, made of hammock net, is rocked by the aid of a clock-spring motor which imparts to it a gentle, steady swing
��upon the animals in the London Zoo. The places of those that have died have not been filled and many not - so - rare specimens have been killed off to save the cost of feeding and caring for them.
Beef, fresh eggs, bananas, potatoes and wheat have been eliminated from the food list and the ani- mals have to sub- sist on substitutes. Chinese pickled eggs are used instead of fresh eggs, and bread for the monkeys is made from flour re- jected by the Board of Trade. Occasion- ally fish is doled out, but it is only such as has been pro- nounced unfit for hu- man consumption.
���And Now It's the Electric Manicurist to Keep Your Nails in Order
JOHN W. RUGGABER, of Racine, Wis- consin, thinks the electrical manicuring machine he has just invented will soon be taking its place in every home.
It is a small buffing wheel rotated by motor power. After softening up the cuticle in warm water, you simply push it back by pressing it against the edge of the rotating cushion. Then, after a judi- cious use of nail paste (please don't use too much, we don't like nails too highly pol- ished), the center of the buffing wheel will shine up your nails as well as any mani- curist could do it, and doubtless in much less time and at much less cost.
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