A brake is to be made fast at one side of the car as shown in Fig. 10. Have a blacksmith turn a piece of one-inch thin tire-iron for you as shown at Fig. 11 B, and bore two holes at the short end and two larger ones farther up as indicated in the drawing. With screws attach a brake-block to the short end, and with a square-headed lag-screw make this brake-bar fast to a block fastened at the under side of the long board so that the lever and brake-block will act on the tire of the wheel. The hand-bar is of iron twenty-four inches long and provided with a hole at the lower end and another one six inches above it. The upper end of the bar is drawn out on the anvil so that a wooden handle can be slipped on it, then it is bolted to a block attached to the lower front side of the seat as shown in the illustration. A stout wire connects the lower end of the hand-bar with the top of the brake-bar, so that when the handle is pulled back the wire and top end of the brake-bar is drawn forward and the block pressed against the wheel.
Several coats of paint will give this pushmobile a good appearance and it will then be ready for use.
One boy on the seat steers the machine, while another grasps the overhanging edges of the long board and pushes as he runs behind. On level sidewalks or streets a good run and push will send the car along at a good speed and the pusher can then jump on behind. When going downhill both boys can ride, and if the driver has his hands full with the wheel and shaft the boy behind can reach forward and operate the brake.
If coasting is done on very steep hills or roads it would be well to have a brake to operate on both rear wheels, for the momentum of a rapidly moving car will often drag a “dead” wheel if the other three are running easily; whereas if both back wheels are “dead” the car can be brought to a quick stop.
Every boy is interested in fire-engines and fires, and in the absence of the real thing there is a great deal of fun to be had in playing fire. The regular steam apparatus is rather beyond a boy’s constructive ability, but the engine shown in the illustration (Fig. 1) can easily be made from an oil or pork barrel, a keg, a pump, and a set of old wagon wheels. A box may be used for the seat and a small force-pump may be had at a hardware store for a nominal sum. The pump should be fitted with a hose-coupling at both inlet and outlet, so that a piece of garden hose can be used for the suction and force.