Daniel C. Beard - The American Boys Handy Book. Build a Fort, Sail a Boat, Shoot an Arrow, Throw a Boomerang, Catch Spiders,...

Man Kite, 4; The Woman Kite, 7; A Boy Kite, 8; Frog Kite, 8; The Butterfly Kite, 10; The King Crab Kite, 11; Fish Kite, 12; The Turtle Kite, 13; The Shield Kite, 14; A Star Kite, 15; The Chinese Dragon Kite, 15; The Japanese Square Kite, 16; The Moving Star, 17.

Unarmed War Kite, 19; Armed Kites, 20; Armed Kite Fighting, 20; How to Make the Knives, 21; How to Make Cutters, 21; Kite Clubs, 22.

The Bell Pole, 23; Jugging for Cats, 23; The Dancing Fisherman, 25; Toy Boats for Fishing, 26; The Wooden Otter, 26; Fishing for Fresh-Water Clams, 27.

The Rod, 29; Tin and Spool Reel, 30; The Forked Stick Reel, 31; Home-Made Nets, 32; A Home-Made Minnow Bucket, 34; Inhabitants of the Water, 34.

Stocking, 42; The Frog, 43; Gold-Fish versus Bass, 45; Aquarium Cement, 45.

Water-Lily, 47; Cat-Tails, 47.

Cement for Marine Aquaria, 49.

How To Make a Horse-Hair Watch-Guard, 59; Miscellaneous, 60; Whip-Lashes, 64; Splices, Timber-Hitches, etc., 65.

How to Make a Wooden Water-Telescope, 71; A Tin Water-Telescope, 72.

A New Spor t, 73; The Tangle, 75; The Trawl, 75; How to Make a Bake-Pan Dredge, 76; A Tin-Pail Dredge, 76; How to Make a Broomstick Tangle, 77; The Old Chain Tangle, 77; Hints and Suggestions to Amateurs, 77; The Use of the Tangle, 79.

Birth of the Man-Friday CatamaranThe Crusoe Raft, 80; The Crusoe Raft, 82; The Scow, 84; A Floating Camp, or the Boys Own Flat-Boat, 87; The Yankee Pine, 93.

Simplest Rig Possible, 100; Leg-of-Mutton Rig, 101; The Latteen Rig, 103; The Cat Rig, 103; How to Make a Sail, 104; Hints to Beginners, 105.

Ever y Boy His Own Bubble-Pipe, 107.

Hints to Amateur Campers, 127; Provisions, 128; Shelter, 128; Choosing Companions, 128.

The Block Bird Singer, 130; The Corn-stalk Fiddle, 130; The Pumpkin-vine Fife, 131; A Pumpkin-vine Flute, 131; Cane Fife, 132; The Voice Disguiser, 132; The Locust Singer, 132; The Hummer, 134.

How to Collect and Preserve Eggs, 135; Birds Nests, 137; Preserving Nests, 138.

Robins, Thrushes, Wrens, and other Small Birds, 139; Squabs, 139; The Cow Black-bird, 140; Wrens, Sparrows, and Finches, 141; The Bobolink, 141; The Catbird, 141; Robins, 142; The Brown Thrush, or Thrasher, 142; The Wood Thrush, 142; Bluebirds, 143; The Summer Yellowbird, 143; The Bluejay, 143; Humming-Bird, 144.

The Crow, Hawk, and other Large Birds, 146; The Hawk, 148; The Hawk as a Scare-Crow, 148; The Hawk as a Decoy, 148; Owls, 149; Sea Birds, 149; Strange Domestic Fowls, 151.

Spearing Fish, 152; How to Make a Fish Spear, 152; How to Make the Torches and Jack-Lights, 153; The Boomerang, 154; How to Make a Boomerang, 154; To Throw a Boomerang, 155; The Miniature Boomerang, 156; The Whip-Bow, 156; Throw-Sticks, 157; The Bird Bolas, 158; The Elastic Cross-Bow, 159.

To Make a Blow-Gun, 162; Squirt-Guns, 163; Elder Guns and Pistols, 163; The Spring Shot-Gun, 164.

Rats, 170; The Paper Pitfall, 170; Jug Trap, 171; The Mole and How to Trap Him, 172; The Figure Four, 172; Mole Trap, 173; The Toll-gate Trap, 174; The Partridge Snare, 175; Set-Line Snares, 176; The Spring Snare, 177; Hen-Coop Trap, 178.

How to Choose a Dog, 180; How to Train Dogs, 182; To Teach a Dog to Retrieve, 183; Pointers and Setters, 184; Pet Dogs, 184.

Skinning, 188; Stuffing, 190; A New Manner of Preserving Fish, 192; Design for Sketching Aquarium, 194; Preserving Insects, 194; Morse Insect Box, 195; The Lawrence Breeding Box, 196; Spiders, 196; How to Make Beautiful or Comical Groups and Designs of Insects, 197; Marine Animals, 198.

Shadow PicturesPhotographic PaperHow to Enlarge or Reduce a Picture, etc., 199; How to Enlarge or Reduce by Squares, 201; How to Make a Camera for Drawing, 202.

How to Build Snow FortsHow to Make Shields and Ammunition Sleds, 207; How to Build the For t, 208; How to Make an Ammunition Sled, 209; How to Make the Shield, 210; Rules of the Game, 211; A Snow Battle, 212; How to Bind a Prisoner without a Cord, 214; Company Rest, 215.

Snow Statuary, 218.

A Chair-Sleigh, 220; Folding Chair-Sleigh, 221; The Toboggan, 222; Snow-Shoes or Skates, 223.

Bat Wings, 228; The Norton Rig, 229; The Norwegian Rig, 230; The Danish Rig, 231; The English Rig, 232; The Cape Vincent Rig, 232; A Country Rig, 233.

Smelt Fishing and the Smelt Fishers House, 235; The Spearsmans Shanty, 237; Snaring Fish, 238; Spearing Fish, 238; How to Build a Fishing House, 239.

Bric--Brac, or the Tourists Curiosities, 241; Mind-Reading, 244; A Literary Sketch Club, 245.

How to Make the Stage, 254; The Scener y, 255; The Old Mill, 256; Puss, 257; Corsando and the Donkey, 257; The Royal Coach, 258; Carabas, 259; How to Work the Puppets, 259; Stage Effects, 260; How to Make a Magical Dance, 261; How to Make a Sea Scene, 261.

Act I., Scene I., Landscape, with Tree, Bridge, and Mill at one side, 263; Scene II., Woods, 265; Act II., Scene I., Kings Palace, 265; Scene II, High-road, 266; Act III., Scene I, Interior of Ogres Castle, 268.

A Home-Made Kaleidoscope, 273; The For tune-Tellers Box, 274; The Magic Cask, 276; How the Barrel is Made, 277.

How to Make a Handkerchief Doll, 279; The Bather, 280; The Orator, 281.

Potato Mill, 283; A Saw-Mill, 284; The Rainbow Whirligig, 284; A Paradoxical Whirligig, 286; The Phantasmoscope, or Magic Wheel, 286.

To Light the Gas with your Finger, 292.

The White Man of the Desert, 293; The Fourteenth Century Young Man, 294; The Medival Hat, 294; The Wig, 295; Eyebrows, Moustache, and Beard, 295; The Doublet, 295; Trunks, 296; Tights, 296; To Dress, 296; The Baby, 297; How to Make a Handkerchief Hood, 297.

The American Boys Handy Book.

IT IS a pleasant sensation to sit in the first spring sunshine and feel the steady pull of a good kite upon the string, and watch its graceful movements as it sways from side to side, ever mounting higher and higher, as if impatient to free itself and soar away amid the clouds. The pleasure is, however, greatly enhanced by the knowledge that the object skimming so bird-like and beautifully through the air is a kite of your own manufacture.

I remember, when quite a small boy, building an immense man kite, seven feet high. It was a gorgeous affair, with its brilliant red nose and cheeks, blue coat, and striped trousers.

As you may imagine, I was nervous with anxiety and excitement to see it fly. After several experimental trials to get the tail rightly balanced, and the breast-band properly adjusted, and having procured the strongest hempen twine with which to fly it, I went to the river-bank for the grand event.

My man flew splendidly; he required no running, no hoisting, no jerking of the string to assist him. I had only to stand on the high bank and let out the string, and so fast did the twine pass through my hands that my fingers were almost blistered. People began to stop and gaze at the queer sight, as my man rose higher and higher, when, suddenly, my intense pride and enjoyment was changed into something very like fright.