832 POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



the man-of-war bird ; and tobacco pouches from that of the peli- 

 can. In heathen China the beautiful little quail is used by noble 

 ladies to warm the hands in winter, and in civilized America live 

 pigeons are used as a target by our so-called sportsmen. Many 

 birds are becoming extinct, due to the demand for them by exact- 

 ing fashion. Every hummingbird, bluebird, heron, or curlew in 

 California and Florida has a price upon its head. 



A value which birds have to man should not be omitted, namely, 

 their work in distributing seeds, thus aiding in rendering islands 

 habitable for mankind. This can be illustrated by the work of 

 pigeons at the Moluccas. The Dutch destroyed all the nutmeg 

 trees except those on the island of Great Banda, but were obliged 

 to send a yearly commission to cut down the trees which grew 

 from seeds transported to the island in the crops of the fruit 

 pigeons. Coffee and other seeds are transported in the same way. 



Among the higher or milk-giving animals there is hardly one 

 that is not of some distinct value to man. The fur-bearers are 

 well known, from the fast-disappearing fur seal to the common 

 cat, over a million skins of which are used every year in the 

 trade and sold as Alaska sable ; six million squirrel skins are used 

 by furriers every year, while thousands of common ratskins are 

 employed in the manufacture of kid-glove thumbs. Muskrats 

 contribute three million skins annually to the trade, and musk as 

 well. The skunk, kangaroo, and other little suspected animals 

 are all important factors in trade. Among the singular leather 

 producers are the raccoon, peccary, cat, dog, for drumheads ; 

 white whale, which is dressed as kid, velvet, or plush ; porpoise, 

 and hippopotamus. 



Every portion of almost every animal is available for the 

 requirements of man: parchment from the viscera of seals and 

 bears, gold-beater's skin from those of the ox, and catgut from 

 those of the sheep. The hair of many animals is used in an infi- 

 nite number of ways, from that of the skunk in fine brushes to 

 that of the badger, dog, camel, hog, and others for coarse kinds. 

 From the hoofs, bones, and horns of animals comes gelatin, used 

 in the manufacture of court-plaster, jelly, and artificial flowers. 



The oils of the milk- givers represent a vast interest. Some of 

 the most singular are porpoise-jaw oil, used in lubricating fine 

 watch machinery; manatee and dugong oil and dog oil in the 

 manufacture of kid gloves. From many of these fine soaps are 

 made. Some of our perfumes are obtained from certain animals 

 as the muskrat, musk ox, civet cat, musk deer, and beaver. 



The artist looks to various animals for fine colorings. Ivory 

 black, used in the manufacture of bank-note ink and in fine paint- 

 ings, comes from bones ; while Prussian blue is made from hoofs 

 and refuse hair. The gall produces a dye, and from blood comes 



