J. Franklyn This Gutter Life 234: Diddler machines were [...] innocuous enough to look at, just big, shining metal boxes with a lever at the side and a little square window in front. Lulu dropped a penny in the slot, pulled the lever – then click! the machine was in motion – [...] the three wheels came to rest, each showing the picture of a piece of fruit.at diddler (machine) (n.) under diddler, n.2