Patented by one John Hall of Cumberland, England in 1902, this is a device intended to scare birds out of a field at regular intervals. It has twelve chambers for 12-gauge pinfire shotgun shells, which are fired by falling steel weights. Those weights are held up by thin cotton strings which are connected to the face of a clock dial inside the box. The hour hand on the clock has a small razor edge on it, which will cut the strings when the hand reaches them. Once the string is cut, the weight falls and fires a shell. The clock face has slots at 15-minute intervals, so one can select exactly when one wants each shell fired, up to the maximum capacity of 12 shells and the maximum time period of 12 hours. Neat!