BEDS. 



49 



BEDS. 



extreme point of the legs of the compasses, i right angles to each other. The points in 



because any and all the sides of a hexagon 

 are exactly equal to the radius of the 

 circle on which it is inscribed. Thus, if 



FIG. I. EQUILATERAL TRIANGLE. 



the radius of the circle be 3 feet, each side 

 of the hexagon inscribed in it will be 3 

 feet, and so on. The equilateral triangle 

 in Fig. i is equally easy to describe, when 

 it is said that the circumference of the 

 circle may be divided into six equal parts 

 as for a hexagon, and the triangle com- 



FIG. 2. SQUARE. 



pleted by drawing straight lines between 

 the intermediate points. The four points 

 of a square, as in Fig. 2, may be easily 

 determined by drawing or marking out on 

 the ground two straight lines of sufficient 

 length, and from the point of their inter- 

 section as a centre describing a circle 

 cutting the straight lines already drawn at 

 5 



which the circumference of the circle cuts 

 the straight lines at right angles to each 

 other are those which must be joine-1 by 



FIG. 3. PENTAGON. 



drawing straight lines between each pair 

 of adjacent points in ordtr to form the 

 square. The pentagon and heptagon, as 

 in Figs. 3 and 5, can be readily determined 

 by geometrical process, but as they are 

 too long to enter on here, the points of 

 division in the circumference of the circle 

 must be determined by trial. The octagon., 



FIG. 4. HEXAGON. 



as in Fig. 6, can be easily made by de- 

 scribing a square within a circle first of all, 

 and then dividing into two equal parts eacb 

 portion or arc of the circumference sub- 

 tended by a side of the square. When 

 straight lines are drawn from point to 

 point in succession of the eight points 

 thus found, the octagon will be formed. 



