PRELIMINARY WORK IX MOFNTIXO MAMMALS. 107 



2. To sew so neatly that the seam will be as nearly invisible 

 as possible. 



For general work one must also have common round needles, 

 and No. 30 thread for very fine sewing 1 , as, for instance, torn ey<>- 

 corners or lips, and holes in the face where the skin is very thin 

 and there is little hair, or none at all : three-cornered glover's 

 needles, Nos. 00, 1, 2, 3 ; and three sizes of strong linen sewing 

 twine. In the beginning of your work acquire the habit of 

 being particular about the size of the needle and thr-.'ad you use 

 upon a skin, and never let them be larger than necessary. When 

 special strength is needed, double the thread and wax it with 

 beeswax to prevent its rotting. Always sew with the ball stitch, 

 <:</., from the inside of the skin to the outside, every stitch. It 

 is often convenient to use a curved needle, and this can be made 

 by heating a glover's needle to a red heat in the flame of a spirit 

 lamp and curving it while hot. 



How TO MAKE LONG NEEDLES. In making manikins, and also 

 for other purposes, it is necessary to have a set of needles vary- 

 ing in length from six to eighteen inches, or even longer. You 

 can buy needles up to ten inches in length from anyone who 

 keeps upholsterers' supplies, but the longer ones you must make 

 for yourself. To do this, take a piece of No. 12 or 13 steel wire 

 and grind one end to a point. For the eye, heat the other en 1 

 red hot, flatten it with the hammer, then heat it again, lay it on 

 a bar of lead, and with a brad-awl and hammer punch an eye in. 

 it while hot. 



NECK IKONS IN MOFNTING MAMMALS. Never allow a neck iron 

 to come through the top of the skull, through the forehead, or 

 through the face anywhere. The neck iron, which must support 

 the entire weight of the head and neck, should pass through the 

 back of the skull and into the nasal cavity. Let the iron extend 

 some inches beyond the end of the nose until the neck is made, 

 and the head placed in position, for not until then can you tell 

 what length the neck iron should be. When the head is well- 

 nigh finished, take a small hack-saw and saw off the neck iron 

 close up to the nasal cavity, so far from the end of the nose that 

 by no possible chance can the animal shrink so much in drying 

 that the end of the iron will protrude through one of the nostrils 

 and into view. 



