referring to fig1 and 2 , a conventional ladder 10 is illustrated as of the folding type and includes a pair of rails or frame members 12 having a series of steps 14 therebetween . a leg assembly 16 is pivoted to a top step 18 by a connection 20 . a paint bucket shelf 22 is pivotally connected to the leg assembly 16 and the rails 12 by a pair of connections 24 , 26 . those skilled in the art will recognize the ladder 10 , as heretofore described , as being typical of modern folding ladders . improved lateral stability for the ladder 10 is provided by a pair of auxiliary supports or legs 28 . as shown best in fig2 and 3 , the legs 28 are pivotally mounted on the rails 12 by a bracket assembly 30 shown best in fig3 . the bracket assembly 30 includes a support plate 32 abutting the ladder rail 12 , a spring 34 and a generally u - shaped member 36 connected to the rail 12 by a bolt 38 , washer 40 , lock washer 42 and nut 44 . the bolt 38 includes a threaded . shank 46 and an enlarged smooth section 48 . the spring 34 and the bracket 36 are received on the smooth section 48 and are thus pivotally mounted for limited arcuate movement about an axis 50 as shown by the arrow 52 while the threaded shank 46 and the washer 40 rigidly captivate the support 32 to the ladder rail 12 . the u - shaped member 36 provides a pair of side walls 54 having aligned openings therethrough . a fastener assembly 56 includes a second bolt having a ferrule head and a threaded shank , a washer and a nut for pivotally attaching the upper end 58 of the leg 28 to the u - shaped member 36 for arcuate movement about the bolt axis 60 . the spring 34 is of the leaf variety having an upper end 62 captivated between the u - shaped member 36 and the support plate 32 . the spring 34 is bent and bowed to provide the desired flexibility and includes a forked lower end 64 receiving and straddling the leg 28 near the upper end thereof . it will accordingly be seen that the leg 28 is spring biased for arcuate movement away from a stowed position adjacent the rail 12 to a supporting position shown in fig1 . an important feature of the connection shown in fig3 is it limits the outward pivotal movement of the leg 28 to a predetermined acute angle shown in fig1 . when the leg 28 is released from the ladder rail 12 as more fully explained hereinafter , the spring 34 biases the leg 28 until a shoulder 66 on the leg 28 abuts the outer edge 68 of the underside of the walls 54 . when this occurs , further outward pivotal movement of the leg 28 is prevented . to retain the rail 12 in the stowed position , a fixture 70 is provided as shown in fig1 and 5 . the fixture 70 comprises a threaded shank 72 which may be connected to the rail 12 by a suitable nut 74 and lock washer 76 . a generally u - shaped receiver 78 provides a pair of spring metal arms having an opening there - through slightly less than the o . d . of the leg 28 . as shown in fig3 the legs 28 each comprise an upper or outer tubular member 80 telescopingly receiving a lower or inner tubular member 82 . an important feature of the ladder 10 and the leg 28 is that it automatically seeks a position of maximum stability . when the leg 28 is released from its fixture 70 , the spring 34 biases the leg 28 outwardly as far as is allowed by the shoulder 66 and wall 54 . when released for extending movement , the inner tubular member 82 automatically extends toward the underlying ground surface to find a position of maximum stability . if the ladder 10 later shifts or tilts , the inner member 82 that moves away from the ground automatically extends to a position where it contacts the underlying ground surface and provides stability . to these ends , the tubular members 80 , 82 allow unimpeded sliding movement toward an extended supporting position , provide means for biasing the inner member 82 outwardly toward the extended supporting position , provide means for locking the inner member 82 against retracting movement so it can support a load at the extended position and provide means for manually unlocking the inner member 82 so it can be retracted and moved to its retracted or stowed position . it will be seen that the inner tubular member 82 slides outwardly relative to the outer member 80 in an unimpeded manner throughout a range allowed by an elongate slot 84 which may be of any desired length but is usually between six inches and one foot long . a handle or pin 86 connects to the inner tubular member 82 , extends through the longitudinal slot 84 and controls the maximum amount of movement of the inner member 82 relative to the outer member 80 . one or more short j - slots 88 intersect the long slot 84 for purposes more fully explained hereinafter . a spring 90 biases the inner member 82 in an extending direction as allowed by the slot 84 and handle 86 . the members 80 , 82 provide a ratchet or lug mechanism 92 preventing retracting movement of the inner tubular member 82 so the leg 28 can support a load . to this end , the inner tubular member 82 provides a series of spaced teeth or notches 94 and the outer tubular member 80 provides a moveable lug 96 for engaging the teeth 94 and supporting the load . the lug 96 provides a wedge shaped end so the teeth 94 , in the direction of extending telescoping movement of the members 80 , 82 , act to cam the lug 96 radially outward against a spring 98 which normally biases the lug 96 into engagement with the teeth 94 . the lug 96 thus provides a projection 100 extending through an elongate slot 102 having a short perpendicular slot 104 communicating therewith . the slots 102 , 104 accordingly provide a j - slot arrangement . the lug 96 includes a handle or eye 106 for retracting the lug 96 and rotating it about an axis 108 for positioning the projection 100 in the offset slot 104 and thereby positioning the wedge shaped end of the lug 96 out of engagement with the teeth 94 . this allows the inner member 82 to retract relative to the outer member 80 so the leg 28 can be stowed . the bottom of the inner member 82 provides a pivoted foot 110 comprising a u - shaped member 112 and a threaded fastener 114 allowing relative pivotal movement about an axis 116 . it is much preferred to retract the inner member 82 relative to the outer member 80 when stowing the leg 28 in the fixture 70 . to this end , the handle 86 is advanced toward the short or j - slot 88 thereby compressing the spring 90 . the handle 86 is rotated into the j - slot 88 thereby locking the inner member 82 in a retracted position relative to the outer member 80 . it will accordingly be seen that the members 80 , 82 are mounted for unimpeded sliding movement from an axially retracted position to an axially extended position as allowed by the length of the elongate slot 84 . the spring 90 pushes the inner member 82 toward the extended position so any time the foot 110 tends to come out of engagement with the underlying ground surface , the spring 90 advances the inner member 82 toward the underlying surface . this moves one of the teeth 94 past the lug 96 . when load is again applied to the foot 110 , the lug 96 engages one of the teeth 94 and supports the load applied to the leg 28 . it will also be seen that the handle 106 and j - slot 102 , 104 comprises means manually operable by a user for disabling the lug mechanism 92 by moving the wedge shaped end of the lug 96 out of engagement with the teeth 94 . this allows the inner member 82 to move toward its retracted position . the ladder 10 is normally stowed with the inner member 82 retracted with the handle 86 being in the short slot 88 and the inner member 82 received in the fixture 70 . to use the leg 28 , the handle 106 is turned so the lug 96 is capable of engaging the teeth 94 in load supporting relation and the handle 86 is turned into alignment with the slot 84 . the leg 28 is pushed out of the fixture 70 by the user and the spring 34 swings the leg 28 away from the ladder 10 toward an angled supporting position shown in fig1 . the spring 34 biases the leg 28 about the axis 60 . if the bracket 36 were rigid with the ladder rail 12 , the only movement allowed would be in a plane perpendicular to the ladder rail 12 . instead , the bracket 36 is free to move about the axis 50 as suggested by the arrow 52 so the leg 28 can move rearwardly of the ladder rail 12 as shown in fig2 . because the spring 90 pushes against the inner member 82 , the foot 110 automatically comes into , and stays in , engagement with the ground surface . because the lug 96 is biased toward load supporting engagement with the teeth 94 , the leg 28 is always capable of supporting a lateral load when the ladder 10 tilts . in the event the ground is soft or uneven , the foot 110 remains in load supporting engagement with the ground because the spring 90 and lug mechanism 92 operate at all times when they are in their operating positions . when it is desired to stow the ladder 10 , the handle 106 is turned to disengage the lug 96 and the inner member 82 is retracted into the outer member 80 , as by applying weight to the leg 28 . when the handle 86 reaches the j - slot 88 , the handle 86 is turned to lock the members 80 , 82 together . the leg 28 is then pivoted about the axis 60 into the fixture 70 . although this invention has been disclosed and described in its preferred forms with a certain degree of particularity , it is understood that the present disclosure of the preferred forms is only by way of example and that numerous changes in the details of construction and operation and in the combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed .