The cases should be stood on end on some flat surface while being glued together.  A box or drawer with truly square corners is useful for assembling them in; if they are packed into one corner they cannot slew about.  Press the boxes together while the glue is setting.

Now glue the back ends of the cases (from which the trays should have been removed), and press them against a piece of thin card.  When the glue is dry, apply some more with a small brush to the back angles inside the covers, to ensure a good hold on the backing.  Trim off the card to the outline of the pile.

[Illustration:  Fig. 27.—­Match-box cabinet.]

Select for the front end of the drawer that for which the wood is doubled over.  Paste outside the end a piece of white paper, whereon words and numbers will be more plainly visible.  The life of the trays will be increased if the insides are neatly lined with thin paper.

For “handles” use boot buttons, or loops of thin brass wire, or brass paper clips.  To give the cabinet a neat appearance you should cover it outside with paper of some neutral tint; and if you wish it to be stable and not upset when a rather sticky drawer is pulled out, glue it down to a solid wooden base of the proper size.

A Cardboard Cabinet.

We now proceed to a more ambitious undertaking—­the manufacture of a cabinet for the storage of note-paper, envelopes, labels, etc.  The only materials needed are some cardboard and glue; the tools, a ruler and a very sharp knife.  For the marking out a drawing board and T-square are invaluable.  The cardboard should be fairly stout, not less than 1/16 inch thick.

Begin with the drawers; it is easier to make the case fit the drawers than vice versa.

Mark out the drawers as shown in Fig. 28.  The areas aa are the front and back; bb the sides.  The dotted lines indicate the lines along which the cardboard is bent up.  The sides are of exactly the same length as the bottom, but the front and back are longer than the bottom by twice the thickness of the cardboard, so as to overlap the sides. (The extra length is indicated by the heavy black lines.)

[Illustration:  Fig. 28.—­Drawer of cardboard cabinet marked ready for cutting.]

Measure and cut out very carefully to ensure all the drawers being of the same size.  Lay a piece of card under the thing cut to avoid blunting the knife or damaging the table.  When the blanks are ready, cut them almost through along the dotted lines.  Use several strokes, and after each stroke test the stubbornness of the bend.  When the card is almost severed it will bend up quite easily.  Note.—­Bend as shown in the inset C; not the other way, or you will snap the card.  If you should be so unlucky as to cut the card through in places, paste a strip of thin paper along the line before turning up.

The four flaps are now bent up, glued together, and covered outside with paper.  This part of the business is easy enough if a small square-cornered wooden box be used as a support inside at each angle in turn.  It is advisable to glue strips along all the bends both inside and outside.  The external strips should be flattened down well, so as to offer no loose edges.