Sunlight Cast into Dark Rooms by Automatic Reflector

Several hours of sunlight can be cast into dark rooms of city apartments and hotels by means of an automatic reflector. The device follows the sun whenever it is visible, sets its mirrors to catch its rays and. then reflects them by a complicated series of prisms and mirrors to any 1,300-foot square area desired. The machine may be set up on the roof of an adjoining building to reflect the sunlight into rooms located on inside courts or perhaps on air shafts of large buildings.

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R.F.D.

THE GRANDPAPPY of all government services to become known by initials is R. F. D. which, everybody knows, stand for Rural Free Delivery. It began in West Virginia in 1896 as an experiment by the Postmaster General, and in one year expanded to 29 states. Today there are over 32,500 routes which serve 8,192,545 families.

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Hillside House Hangs in Space

BY RUNNING a big arch right through the house, two young designer-contractors were able to build a home on a clifflike lot offering a magnificent view from the Hollywood hills, and yet avoid expensive foundation work. Inside, the arch forms the railing for a dining balcony that projects into the two-story living room.

The arch, made of laminated Douglas fir that was electronically glued, is the type Widely used to support the roofs of airplane hangars and warehouses. Only the living-room wing hangs on the arch. The rest of the house, designed by L. C. Guthrie, Jr. and R. O. Spencer, sits on a foundation.

Air Raid Shelter In Garden
THE beauties of a rock garden hide a reminder of war’s grimness. During the Sudeten scare of September, 1938, an English dentist constructed this concealed shelter from enemy bombers. It is ten feet long, three feet eight inches wide, and the walls are of solid concrete one foot six inches thick.

Automat Now Eliminates Bartender
BAR tenders are eliminated by a new automat bar recently introduced in London. By means of a slot and dial, the customer is enabled to procure himself any drink on the list. Dialing the drink number delivers a “shot” from a spigot. At left are soft drinks, while on right are wines.

Mobile Home Expands to Form Three Rooms

Light and compact enough to be drawn behind a motor car like a trailer, a movable type of house can be expanded to form three rooms at its destination. On the road it is supported on two wheels with drop axle and is sixteen feet long and six and one-half feet wide.

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New Household Devices

Appliances, Machines, and Utensils Invented to Save Labor and Add to the Comfort of the Home

Sweeping the kitchen is simplified by a sanitary dust chute of steel built into the baseboard. A swinging door opens at the touch of a foot lever, and sweepings go down the chute to the basement.

The curtain “hold-back” at the right consists of a curved metal arm pivoted on a support fastened to the window frame. It draws back the curtain to admit more light.

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Handle on Doughnut Is Boon to Dunkers
Major hazards involved in the popular indoor sport of dunking doughnuts in hot coffee are said to be greatly reduced by the invention of a new type of “sinker” with a baked-in handle that should prove a boon to all dunking enthusiasts. Triangular in shape, the improved doughnut is fried around a wooden handle, making it far easier to maneuver in and out of a steaming draught of Java.

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Home on a Train

SOME hobbyists let their hobby occupy them night and day. Well, the reverse is true of Dr. John Payne Roberts. He occupies his hobby!

For Dr. Roberts and his wife make their home in an old railroad car which is a prize exhibit of the Museum of Transport, located in Kirkwood, on the western outskirts of St. Louis. The Museum contains a remarkable collection of old railroad equipment.

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Making HOME TASKS a PLEASURE

Hassock with Rounded Pillow Which Serves as an Arm, or Back Rest, and Book Holder Consisting of Chromium-Plated Scroll Spring; When Book Is Removed, Spring Comes Forward to Hold Remaining Volumes.

Left, Venetian Blind Brush with Adjustable Wool Fingers Which Fit between Slats; It Can Be Washed; Right, Thermometer Which Tells When Roast Is Rare, Medium or Well Done; It Is “Cooked” with the Meat”.

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Automatic Food Cooker Runs by Exhaust Heat of Car

MEALS can literally be cooked on the run through the use of the automatic cooker shown in the photo above. The cooker is mounted on the rear bumper of the motor tourist’s car and an extension from the exhaust pipe connected up with it, as shown in the insert. The cooker contains a steam pressure kettle which is heated by the hot exhaust gases. An hour’s drive is quite sufficient to thoroughly cook meats and vegetables. Total weight of the unit is so slight that running qualities of the car remain quite unaffected. Motor tours are much more pleasant when one is assured of a well-prepared meal at the end of the trip.

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Hurricane House Turns with Wind

WEATHER-VANE DWELLING DESIGNED FOR BOTH SAFETY AND COMFORT

By CARL WARDEN

WHEN raging storms whip across the land, accompanied by violent gales that uproot trees, tear the roofs from houses, and turn a trim countryside into a scene of desolation, there could probably be no safer refuge than the interior of a novel hurricane house designed by Edwin A. Koch, New York City architect. Streamline in the form of a mammoth teardrop, this amazing dwelling would revolve automatically to face into the oncoming storm, meeting it like the wing of an airplane and passing it smoothly around its curving sides toward its pointed tip.

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