EDITORIAL AND GENERAL 



39 



A SERIES OF BIOLOGICAL PREPARATION - 



embryological development and anat- 

 omy of a bird as it is within a hatch- 

 ing egg. These mounts caused so 

 much comment and attention that I 

 decided to place them on the market. 

 Since that time many have been pur- 

 chased and 1 believe that this idea has 

 been of greater value and benefit in 

 starting" an interest in nature than al- 

 most any other work which has taken 

 place within the Museum or Labora- 

 tory. 



The eggs for these preparations are 

 placed in ordinary incubators. On the 

 days that the most important changes 

 take place, the embryos are removed 

 and after being treated by two differ- 

 ent processes which consist of chemi- 

 cal baths, they are mounted in glass 

 jars and preserved in a certain solu- 

 tion which I believe is my own secret. 

 Before the embryos are placed in the 

 jar, a slip of plate-glass is cut to fit the 

 inside diameter and to this the labels 



and embryes are tied with heavy 

 waxed threads. The cover of the jar is 

 then hermetically sealed to the lip, 

 after which the whole cap is brushed 

 over with red wax to give the prepara- 

 tion an attractive finish. 



Ad kinds of specimens may be 

 mounted in this way, but each color 

 requires an entirely different propor- 

 tion of the preserving solution. Nor 

 is it possible to use the same solution 

 for the same color if the specimens be- 

 long to different kingdoms! Thus ic 

 would be useless to try to preserve red 

 animal matter with the same solution 

 which would be used in the case of red 

 plant matter ! 



How typical of nature this is. It is 

 the way she runs everything, and one 

 who would know her ways and learn 

 her creatures must be ever ready to 

 face . the hundreds of problems that 

 seem so indeterminable when she 

 hurls them at vour brain. 



