102 AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 
with the top of the mold and allow the mold to stand for 
at least twelve hours. It should then be thoroughly soaked 
with water and allowed to remain in the mold for twelve 
hours more before it is removed. 
In putting the molds together use as few nails as possible 
and do not drive them home too far. ‘This precaution 
should be taken so that one will not have to handle the 
molds too roughly when taking them apart. If one is 
not careful in removing the molds the edges of the concrete 
casts may be injured or chipped off. After the concrete 
cast has been removed from the mold it should be hardened 
or cured. This is done by wetting it down two or three times 
a day for at least two or three days, the longer the better. 
For the oftener it is wet down and allowed to dry out again 
the harder it will be. Before pouring the concrete in the 
base mold the tapered piece in its center should be well cov- 
ered with vaseline. ‘Then after the cast has been cured this 
centerpiece can be readily driven out by striking it a sharp 
blow on its smaller end. 
After the base is cast the base mold should again be as- 
Fig. 6—The base mold 
sembled and a duplicate cast made from it, inasmuch as two 
pieces are required, one for the base of the pedestal and 
one for the base of the lantern proper. 
The pedestal shaft should now be cast. Set the mold for 
this up on two 5-inch blocks, as shown in Fig. 6 at ‘‘A.” 
Fill it flush with the top and jar the mold as before. Then 
fasten on the top with a couple of wire nails. This will 
hold the rod firmly in place and will assure its central loca- 
tion in the shaft. Cure this cast as explained above. 
Next cast the lantern proper. Having placed the rein- 
forcing in it as previously described, place the mold in the 
position as shown at “D.”’ The mixture for casting this 
‘ should be of the same proportion as used for casting the 
base and pedestal. It would be well, however, to sift the 
stone so that the largest particles should not exceed %-inch 
in size—by doing this one will be assured of the concrete 
finding its way around all of the reinforcing. Make the 
mixture very thin and pour in a steady stream between the 
core and the outer portion of the mold. Fill the mold to 
the top, and then jar it down. Fill it again and repeat the 
operation until the mixture remains flush with the top, 
after which it should not be disturbed for at least twenty- 
four hours. If the concrete appears hard enough in that 
time the inner mold should be carefully cut away. Then 
the outer mold can be removed and the cast should be wet 
Fig. 7—Mold for the pedestal shaft 
March, 1911 
down and cured for from three to four days. After it is 
thoroughly cured and hard the clay pieces can be cut out 
and the surplus clay washed off. 
The next piece to cast is the lantern top or cap. The 
mold for this is shown in Fig. 8. The last piece to make 
is the little round flat top. This can be cast in a round 
box made of wood or cardboard. It should be 2 inches 
high by 8 inches in diameter. Fill this mold with a mixture 
of one part cement and three parts of sand, allow it to 
set for at least twelve hours, and then remove it from the 
mold and round its edges off by wetting them down well 
with water and rubbing them into shape with a wood or 
stone block. If by any chance the casts should be injured 
or chipped in removing them from the molds, the damaged 
parts can readily be replaced or filled in by applying and 
forming into shape cement mortar made of one part Port- 
land cement and one part of the same sand as was used in 
the regular mixture. To these two ingredients should be 
added enough water to produce a fairly thick paste. Be- 
fore: applying this mortar to the injured portions of the 
Fig. 8—The cap mold 
piece be sure to wet down the surface of the cast thoroughly, 
so as to secure a permanent bond. 
After pointing up the various parts of the lantern they 
should be allowed to stand for a short time, and then all of 
the pieces should be well soaked with water so as to harden 
them. After the pieces have all become thoroughly hard- 
ened or cured they can be assembled or set up in position as 
shown in Fig. 2. 
The surfaces of the parts which are to be joined together 
should be sprinkled with water, and covered with a thin 
layer of cement mortar—the same mixture as used for point- 
ing up will do. The holes in the base of the pedestal and 
base of the lantern should be filled with soft mortar. The 
iron rod, projecting from each end of the pedestal should 
then be solidly cemented in place by passing them through 
these holes. A thin layer of mortar should then be spread 
on the bottom of the lantern proper, and it should be cen- 
tered on its base. When this has set up or hardened, an- 
other thin layer of mortar should be placed on the top edge 
of the lantern and the top or cap made fast. The round 
flat top piece can then be cemented in place. 
A good smooth finish can be given to the entire piece by 
wetting it down thoroughly and then sprinkling it with a 
little dry cement and rubbing it down with a fairly fine grade 
of carborundum brick. 
