Any small cabinet can be used for medicines by simply arranging the shelves in any convenient manner. A simple way is to have a series of horizontal grooves on the inside of each side, into which the shelves can be slipped at any desired distance apart. A design for an easily constructed medicine-cabinet for the wall is shown in Figs. 296 and 297.

Before beginning work read carefully Marking, Rule, Square, Saw, Plane, in Part V., and look up any-other references.

A good size for a small cabinet is to have the main box-part, the cabinet proper, about 15" wide, 20" high, and 7" deep. It can be made of 1/2" stock. The construction is like that of the other cases already shown. The joints should properly be grooved (see Grooving and Gluing), but the whole case can be nailed together, although the result will be inferior (see Nailing and Nail-set). The back should be set in a rabbet as in the cases already shown. The arrangement of the hinges J3 shown in the illustration (see Hinges).

The partitions can be of thin stock (1/4" or 5/16"). The doors can have thick cleats, shaped as shown in Fig. 297 (enlarged in Fig. 297a), with holes bored down from the top for homoeopathic phials. Care must be taken not to bore the holes through (see Boring). Stop boring before the spur comes through and clean out the bottoms of the holes with a gouge.

A small drawer can be fitted to one of the small compartments, as in Fig. 297 (see Drawers). If the edges of the doors are made to lap slightly where they come together, rabbets being cut on opposite sides of the edges (Fig. 298), the joint will be tighter, but a little space must be allowed or the doors may bind. The rest of the details are like those of the cases already described.

Fig. 296.

Fig. 297.

See end of introduction to this chapter for directions about smoothing, putting together, and finishing. See also Scraper, Sandpaper, and Finishing, in Part. V.

Fig. 297a.

Fig. 298.