Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 90.djvu/22

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Bottle Tricks—Old and New

The uninitiated might sit a long time examining the bottle in the picture above to find a false bottom through which the crosses were inserted. The secret lies in the fact that the arms of the cross are adjusted after insertion

If you let an uncooked egg stand in vinegar for about twenty minutes, you can elongate it enough to get it into a small-necked bottle. Pour in cold water and the egg will return to its original shape

At left below is shown the manner of straightening out the crosses until they are as easily inserted as an ordinary stick would be. A pull on an attached string will restore them to the proper shape after they are inside

The ship in the bottle below is inserted in the same way. Hold the string in the hand and the weight of the ship will cause the adjustment