Untitled record

Application filed January 29,1891. Serial No. 379,527. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Anthony Iske, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lancaster, in the county of Lancaster and State of 5 Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Egg-Holders; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art io to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The object of this invention is to provide a convenient egg-holder and potato-holder adjustable in size to suit such articles of food of 15 varying diameters and adapted to stand upright on a table or to be taken apart and used as a pair of tongs at will.

To this end my invention consists in the combination of a base provided with pairs of 2o grooves varying in depth with a spring-fork or spring-tongs adapted to expand into any pair of said grooves, but detachable at will from said base, and having spoon-shaped jaws for holding eggs or other articles.

It also consists in the combination of such a base having a central recess in the upper face of its bottom plate and the said grooves in the inner face of the upper end of a tubular extension raised on said bottom plate and surrounding said recess with a spring-fork or pair of spring-tongs adapted to expand into said grooves and having at its bottom a stud fitting into said recess to brace the said springfork against lateral movement or sagging.

The said invention also consists in further peculiarities of construction and combination, hereinafter particularly set forth and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a perspective view of the complete 40 device embodying my invention. Fig. 2 represents a central vertical section of the same. Fig. 3 represents a plan view of the pedestal. Fig. 4 represents a detail view of the springfork or spring-tongs.

A designates the base, which is provided with a rigid central tubular upward extension A', a recess a being formed in the upper face of the bottom plate of said base at the central point of the bottom of this tubu50 lar extension. The top of this latter part is constructed with an annular inwardly-ex tending flange provided with several pairs of notches or recesses a' a² a³, the members of each pair being diametrically opposite and the several pairs being of varying depths. 55

B designates a pair of spring-tongs, or a “ spring-fork,” as it may be called, having approximately the shape of a narrow letter U, provided at its upper ends with spoon-shaped jaws B', for holding eggs or other articles. 60 The lower end δ of this part B is enlarged and ' rounded, so as to fill or nearly fill the interior of the tubiilar extension A' from side to side. At the bottom this enlarged end δ is provided with a downwardly-extending stud b', which 65 fits into said recess a and braces the springfork against lateral strain or sagging. From this enlarged end δ the stems of the spoonshaped jaws B' extend upward with slight outward inclination, which becomes greater 70 when the parts AB are separated, as in Figs. 3 and 4. The resiliency of said stems and of the enlargement δ tends to force the said stems and jaws apart. The cylindrical extension A' of the base A keeps them in posi- 75 tion to hold an egg or other article. The varying depth of the pairs of notches or recesses a' a² a³ allows the adjustment of the holder to articles of varying sizes, it being necessary only to shift the spring fork or tongs from 80 one pair of notches to another, which is easily done by first compressing and then turning them. These holders are very light and. cheap, being made, preferably, of sheet metal and wire. They will stand securely on a table, 85 although at will the part B may be withdrawn, the enlargement δ passing through the deepest pair of notches, and the said part may then be used after the manner of sugar-tongs. When the parts A B are together, the latter 90 is securely held against side motion by the combined resistance of the notched or recessed flange at the top .of extension A', receiving the stems of jaws B' and the bottom plate recessed at a, receiving the stud b. 95

I am aware that it is old to construct eggholders of spring - tongs fitting into a base and held therein by means of a wedge-shaped plug, (see patent to Porter, No. 159,213, January 26,1875,) and I therefore do not claim the 100 same.