Popular Science Monthly 



535 



Walking Backwards Across the 

 Country 



A WALK across the continent back- 

 wards is the task set himself by 

 Patrick Harmon of San Francisco, who 

 expects to reach New York in July. Mr. 

 Harmon is fifty years old, and is making 

 a schedule of fifteen miles a day. He 

 walks the whole distance to the East 

 with his face to the setting sun, and the 

 traditional wager of some $20,000 is to 

 be won on arrival in New' York within 

 two hundred and sixty days set for the 

 trip. 



The whole route of his walk, 3,900 

 miles, is to be made with his face to San 

 Francisco and his feet moving toward 

 New York. Mr. Harmon uses a mirror, 

 hung on a special frame, to guide him 

 on his way, and is accompanied most of 

 the time by walking companions. 



A Convenient Flashlight for the 

 Automobilist 



A STURDY electric lamp which ob- 

 viates the difficulty of searching for 

 special shapes of batteries to fit it, has 

 recently been placed on the market. An 

 ordinary dr}' battery furnishes the cur- 

 rent. 



Two handles are affixed to the battery 

 box, one of which is similar to the handle 

 found on the old-style oil lantern. 

 The other handle is close to the side of 

 the lantern, and enables the user to 

 manipulate the light in limited spaces. 

 As shown in the illustration, this handle 

 makes the lantern very serviceable as a 

 motorists' "trouble light." In the side 

 of the handle is cut a slot, by 

 means of which the lantern mav 



This man needs the mirror to see where he 



is going, for he is walking backwards from 



San Francisco to New York 



be readily hung on a nail or hook. 



This light will be found serviceable 

 especially for watchmen, farmers and 

 others who formerly employed a smok- 

 ing, flickering kerosene lantern, which is 

 liable to go out when most needed, and 

 which always carries with it a certain 

 amount of danger. 



The new electric lantern is more dep>end- 

 able than the small flashlight 



