Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 89.djvu/875

 Popular Science Monthly

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��and on, but it meets itself; for it is circular. In the center of the circle a huge mast is pivoted. Six poles reach horizontally out- ward from the top, and at their tips cables are attached, which terminate below in the prows of six small boats. The mast re- voKts, and the boat^ are drawn on a monorail through the circular stream. To all intents and jiurposes this giant to>" is tile old merry-go-'round, well disguised 1)>' mountain scenery, with something of the scenic railway thrown in for good measure.

Toboggantiiiig in Summer Perhaps the hardihood of the people of the ice countries inspired the genius who concei\-ed the idea of the all-year-'round toboggan, which is shown on page 862. The Alpine slope is made of wood or structural steel and in place of a smooth ice surface, coco-matting is substituted. The bottom of the toboggan is polished metal, and it glides freely over the slippery- nap of the coco-matting. Leaping the gap squeezes this thrill to its tenuous limit.

A Philadelphia inventor has found a wa\- to inject a new thrill into the scenic railway- (see lielow). Instead of continuing in a

��direct course up and down and around dizzy curves, the Philadelphian proposes to reverse the direction of the car at certain shocking intervals. One moment you are hurtling through space; the next, you are suddenly spun about and fly on in the same direction, but with \otir Ijack to the scenery.

Onl}- circus performers should be permit- ted to indulge in the neck-breaker shown at the right of the illustration on page 863. The thrill to the amusement seeker is de- rived from watching. Two large concentric rings of metal comprise the vehicle, which, following circus precedent, ought to be christened "The Ring of Death." The smaller ring revolves easily within the larger one because of small oiled wheels between the two. A saddle and handle are bolted to a brace on the inner ring. When the outer ring revolves, the man on the saddle is stationary-. The rider in the hoop of death rolls down a protruding in- cline built from the top of a tower and drops through the air — leaps the gap, that is to say — and if the ring has not toppled in its flight, strikes the incline and coasts to safct\" while the spectators sigh in relief.

���The most popular of all amusement-park devices is the scenic railway. The sp>ecial thrill produced by the one shown above in the center occurs at the switches placed at intervals along the course, to whirl the car around suddenly. The device on the right is a hollow steel ball in which the occupant is hermetically sealed to whirl down an incline and over a spiral track. On the track on the left you may loop-the-loop on roller skates which cannot be pulled out of their grooves

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