PREPARING FOE THE COLLECTION. 13 



thinner in the middle at the groove, so that the butterflies' wings will stand, 

 when dried, a little higher at the apices than at the base near the body; in 

 course of time the wings will fall a little anyhow, and it they be set exactly 

 horizontal at first, when they sink they will be below level, which finds no 

 favour in the eyes of any except the English Lepidopterists who always set 

 their examples with the wings deflexed. In the centre of the groove there 

 should be a couple of little gimlet holes, about J inch apart, bored through 

 the block ; behind these holes, on the back of the block, should be glued or 

 tacked a strip of cork, around which (cork) should be tied a piece of coarse, 

 soft thread long enough to wrap eight or ten times around the block from top 

 to bottom ; now, having described the block, I will tell you what to do with 

 it if your own sagacity (for which I would not give much if you were born 

 in Berks County, Penna.) has not already pointed out the method of using it. 

 After seeing that the insect-pin is properly inserted in the middle of the 

 thorax of the butterfly or moth, you then pass the point through the gimlet 

 hole in centre of block into the cork fastened behind it where it will stick, of 

 course ; then take the thread (that is fastened to the cork behind) and draw 

 it close over the top of the block, and close, but not tight, over the wings of 

 your specimen facing your left hand, then pass it behind, across the back of 

 the block, over the top and down the front over the wings facing your right 

 hand, and secure the string in a notch or slit made by a pen-knife on lower 

 edge of bloclc on side facing your right hand ; your butterfly is now secure, 

 but his wings are not spread evenly; one is nearer, probably, the top edge of 

 block than the other, one is nearer the body, perhaps, than the other; to ar- 

 range this take an insect pin and insert it in the forewing right behind the 

 costa, (the great front edge of the wing) one-third the whole length of the 

 wing from the body, and draw the wing to the right position and keep it 

 there by sticking (without withdrawing first) the pin into the block; do the 

 same thing with the opposite forewing, then with one of the hind wings, then 

 with rhe last hind wing, thus you will have the four wings properly placed 

 and secured by the four pins sticking through them into the wood (see fig. E, 

 plate II) ; then unloosen and unwrap the string on the side facing your right 

 hand and wrap it four times, about, around the side of the block, butterflies' 

 wings and all, facing your left hand, then pass it crosswise behind the block 

 to the side facing your right hand, then wrap it four times or so around that 

 side, butterflies' wings and all, and secure the end in the slit or notch in edge 

 of block (see fig. F, plate II); then take out the four pins that have so far 

 secured the wings, as they have done their work and arc now of no further 

 use in that position, then stand yorr block aside in a safe place, not exposed 

 to much sunlight, to dry. If a small or medium sized butterfly it will take 

 a week to completely dry it that the wings will permanently retain their posi- 

 tion, if a large butterfly, moth or Sphinx it will take from two to three weeks 

 to attain that end. 



The above method, with strings, will do admirably for day butterflies and 

 the smaller moths, but for large moths, which have heavy fur on them and 

 thick, downy wings, pieces of card board must be laid across the wings and 

 secured with a pin in the block above the upper wing and below the lower 

 one (see fig. G, plate II); each card board should be large enough to cover 

 the two wings on one side, from where they join the body to their extremities, 

 for if part of the wing only be covered there will be a depressed line cut in 

 the fur across the wings by the edge of the card. 



