Plate III
Appearing Ladders
Flat in the pocket, four feet in the hand. Hinged in brass so it never binds halfway up.
The mechanism
Every rung is
Every rung is
a hinge that lies.
A folding ladder is a lazy-tong: the rungs are not fixed to the rails, they pivot on them. Collapsed, the whole assembly lies flatter than the packet a cane folds into. Extended, the same pivots lock against each other and the thing carries its own weight.
Ours pivot in brass rather than steel pins, because steel pins gall after a season and a ladder that sticks at three feet is a ladder that has told the audience everything.
Fig. 3No. 087 extended, with the folded packet at rest beside it.
In stock now
Three you can have this week
No. 087
Pocket Ladder, Four Foot
Brass hinged so it never binds. Lives in a breast pocket until it does not.
$46Some practice
No. 088
Pocket Ladder, Six Foot
The same trick, two feet more of it. Needs a taller room than you think.
$62Some practice
No. 091
Ladder & Silk Set
The ladder arrives out of the silk that was covering the empty hand.
$78Long practice
Pocket Ladder, Four Foot
Brass hinged so it never binds. Lives in a breast pocket until it does not.
$46Some practice
No. 088
Pocket Ladder, Six Foot
The same trick, two feet more of it. Needs a taller room than you think.
$62Some practice
No. 091
Ladder & Silk Set
The ladder arrives out of the silk that was covering the empty hand.
$78Long practice
Built for a stage,
not a table.
Ladders want distance and a bit of height. If you work close, start with a cane or a casket instead and come back to these later.