A Fixed Angle

Night has settled over the attic study, drowning the blueprint in deep shadow. Leaving the cedar chest, I traversed the dark floorboards toward an adjoining drafting table. Resting in an open mahogany case lay a heavy brass proportional divider, its tapered legs loosened at the central joint. Planting my boots against the wood, I gripped the knurled thumbscrew with both hands and applied deliberate pressure until the mechanism locked rigid into a fixed chevron. Held upright toward the cracked blinds, the caliper points frame the silhouette of the chimney outside with exact geometry. The instrument holds.