200 THE NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [ 2 :6-sevt., 1906 



easily seen from any desired point of view. Lettuce leaves may be 

 placed near the mouth and the process of feeding observed through 

 the glass; and in the same way the remarkable muscular movements 

 of the foot may be seen. If the snails are sluggish when wanted for 

 class study, stimulate them by quickly dipping into lukewarm water, 

 but take care to hold them with breathing aperture (see description 

 in later paragraph) down so that the water may be drained from the 

 '• lungs." The land-snails have become adapted to breathing air and 

 may be drowned like any other animal with lungs. 



These snails are best killed for anatomical study in colleges and 

 for museum preparations by drowning. Boil water to expel the air and 

 keep tightly covered until cooled. Then fill a jar completely with 

 water, put in the snails, cover tightly, and after about thirty hours 

 they will be found more or less stupefied in an expanded condition.- 

 Select those which are quite stupefied and place them one by one in 

 water heated as hot as your hand will bear, quickly smooth out wrin- 

 kles in the foot, press upon the bases of tentacles to extend them, 

 and having arranged the parts as natural as possible, drop the animal 

 into formaline five parts in 100 parts water. With a little practice 80 

 per cent, of the snails can be killed and hardened in a very life-like 

 condition of expansion. After hardening for a few days in the for- 

 maline, the visceral mass of some individuals may be easily twisted 

 out of the shell, but usually the columellar muscle clings so firmly that 

 it is necessary to chip the shell into pieces with forceps in order to 

 remove it. The specimens may be preserved indefinitely in the for- 

 maline solution. Specimens with the shell about half chipped away 

 are valuable for showing where the body of the animal is located. 



How to Obtain the Edible Snails 



In order to have many trials of this interesting snail and to get 

 reports from teachers, The Nature-Study Review has arranged to 

 supply limited numbers of dormant specimens to subscribers at actual 

 cost of snails, packing and shipping four cents each (send 1 and 2 

 cent stamps). If you want one hundred or more, they may be pur- 

 chased at Si. 25 to Si. 50 per 100, expressage collect, from C. 

 Perceval, dealer in table delicacies, 100 Sixth Avenue, New York. 

 Probably the Shawmut Market Co. State and Lake Streets, Chicago, 

 can supply them by the hundred in season, but the price will neces- 

 sarily be higher in western cities. 



