After the toy animals have been subjected to the vicissitudes of water, horse-drawn, rail, and perhaps motor transportation, their young owner may decide that some of them are entitled to recuperation in a stationary city zoo. The menagerie illustrated in Figure 3.16 has a solid supporting partition in the center with two cages on either side. If desired, these cages can be increased to six, or by lengthening the bench, into eight or ten to house a greater variety of animals. Butt jointed from J-in. stock, the zoo will serve as a sturdy bench for other activities.

An easy method of aligning the dowel bars is to lay the cage or bench bottom on top of the seat (which is not shown in the drawing, its position being indicated by dotted lines), so that it overlaps the latter 3/4 in. at each end. After marking off the spacing between the two 1/2-in. dowel dividers and the equally spaced J-in. dowels between, the holes can be bored completely through the bottom pieces and halfway into the top, or seat. This will prove a simple operation if a bit gauge is improvised by boring through a piece of wood 11/5 in. thick and then slipping it over the bit before boring each hole. The dowels can then be inserted up through the bottom after the bench is assembled, and their ends sanded flush, after the glue has set.

Lumber List

Fig. 3.16. Combination bench and menagerie.

As a further simplification, the young proprietor may be satisfied with square wire netting or screen wire tacked to light frames. In the drawing, pieces of screen wire are shown covering the 3-in. circular windows bored in the sides; pasted cellophane strips will prove equally acceptable but more fragile.

The back-rest is compass sawed into any suitable curve from f-in. material 7 J in. wide, and lapped into the sides as indicated. In the same manner the bottom rail, about 11/2 in. wide, is lapped into place and nailed to the back edge of the bottom board. The use of at least one pair of angle irons, as indicated, will afford additional support for the seat; the center partition is not only nailed from underneath the bottom and on top of the seat, but to the back-rest and bottom rail as well.

The treatment of the back doors is more or less dependent upon the demands of the young "Head Keeper" of the menagerie. In the drawing, the second door from the left is shown hinged at the bottom as a ramp, in the realistic manner employed in other toys, such as the Ark, circus cage, and train. However, since the size of this City Zoo affords less mobility, lowered ramps may sometimes be forgotten and later stepped on with disastrous results. Therefore it will probably prove more satisfactory to hinge them from the top, like the door in the last compartment in the drawing. If the doors are cut from J-in. wood they will be easy to fit and can be secured either with butterfly turnbuttons from the hardware store, or whittled substitutes pivoted on nails or screws. For younger and less exacting children a single solid door at the back may be substituted; or it may consist of a light screen frame covered with screenwire.

The finish should be elastic and durable. Maroon with gold or yellow decorations gives an eye-filling effect.