Popular Science Monthly 



883 



.■....:: r;v: Lourd blossom has faded 

 the bottle should be pushed gently 

 over the young fruit and left there 



The Gourd in the Bottle. How 

 Did It Get There? 



MOST people would be sorely puz- 

 zled if they -were asked to explain 

 how the gourd comes to be in the bottle 

 shown in the photograph. It is far too 

 large to pass upwards through the neck, 

 and, obviously, it cannot have been pushed 

 downwards. The explanation of the mys- 

 tery is simple enough. The gourd is 

 grown in the bottle. The trick is 

 easy if directions are followed. 



In the first place, the gourd must 

 be properly set before the bottle is 

 placed over it. As soon as the 

 flower is faded the operation may 

 be started. Take the bottle and 

 push it gently over the fruit, 

 taking care not to damage it in 

 anyway. Even though the gourd 

 is enclosed in the bottle the 

 growth is not affected in the 

 least. Indeed in a ver\' few 

 days the fruit has developed so 

 much that it cannot be re- 

 moved from the bottle unless 

 the jar is broken. 



When the gourd has grown 

 to a sufficiently large size 

 it may be cut from the 

 stem, and it is then ready 

 for exhibition. After a 

 while the fruit dries, in 

 which state it will keep for 

 an indefinite time. The 

 same principle can be ap- 

 plied to cucumbers, melons, 

 pumpkins and squashes. 



The only precaution neces- 



ry is to prevent the fruit 

 Irom becoming "pot-bound." 



The stem 

 should be cut as soon as the glass is well filled. 



The rays of the sun through the glass 

 hasten the development. The central 

 picture shows the full-grown gourd 



Catching Minnows for Bait in a 

 Basket-Net 



PERHAPS the greatest difficult}' that 

 the amateur fisherman encounters on 

 his expeditions is the securing of live bait. 

 But if he has included in his equipment 

 a basket-net like the one in the accompany- 

 ing illustration he can catch minnows and 

 small fish in any stream. 



The frame of the net is made from six 

 tempered spring steel rods. To this 

 the netting is attached with rust- 

 proof ring- clips. In the center of the 

 netting is the bait pocket, in which 

 bread, meat or other bait is placed 

 to attract the minnows. When 

 the net is lifted, the weight of the 

 contents causes it to "bag," so 

 that the minnows will not escape 

 over the sides. 



When the net snags or when, 

 for some other reason, it is sub- 

 jected to extraordinary strain, the 

 six tempered steel rods bend in- 

 ward and downward until all 

 but one of the rings by which 

 the net is attached to the 

 frame slip out of the hooks. 

 This collapsing of 

 the frame frees the 

 net from the snag 

 and releases the 

 strain. The in- 

 ventor claims, however, 

 that the net will not 

 collapse except under 

 extraordinary' strain, 

 which if resisted would 

 damage the net. It folds 

 up into a compact little 

 bundle which is scarcely noticeable among 

 the fisherman's "traps." 



The net will resist strong pulls 

 but will collapse and release the 

 strain under damaging snags 



