MECHANICAL INVENTIONS.
AN improvement has been made on that useful little article "time Ever pointed Pencil," that will recommend it again to many who have disused it owing to the disadvantages remedied by Mr. Rtmnss's patent. It stead of the slide working in a groove, an internal spiral action is substi- tuted, which, by simply turning the upper part of the case, protrudes or withdraws the point : this not only obviates the inconveniences of the projecting slide to the fingers, but, by dispensing with the slit that weakened the tube, strengthens the case, and preserves its external beauty that was injured by. the traversing of the slide, and prevents the accumulation of dirt that Injured the movement. Mr. Rivosn's Spiral Pencil is at once durable and elegant : in short, this handy invention is now perfected. While mentioning this little mechanical improvement, we inay bestow a word upon an ingenious contrivance of humbler and more limited utility—Joems's " Photolyphon, or Self-acting Extinguisher:" which being slid on to a candle at any distance beyond which the candle is required not to burn, snuffs it out so soon as the upper part is consumed. To perfect this invention, candles marked with a graduated scale of hours would seem necessary.
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