CHAPTER XX. 

 FACIAL EXPKESSION AND MOUTH MODELING. 



WE have now reached one of the most interesting- features of 

 all taxiderinic work. There is no royal road to success in this 

 direction, nor aught else that leads thither save hard study, 

 hard work, and an artistic sense of the eternal fitness of things. 



The large Felidfv (tiger, lion, leopard, etc.) are the finest sub- 

 jects for the taxidermist that the whole animal kingdom can 

 produce. They offer the finest opportunities for the develop- 

 ment of muscular anatomy, and the expression of the various 

 higher passions. The best that I can do with the space at my 

 disposal for this subject is to offer the reader a few hints on 

 how to produce certain expressions, illustrated by an accurate 

 drawing from one of my mounted specimens. 



In the first place, strive to catch the spirit of your subject. 



It frequently happens that the attitude desired for a feline or 

 other carnivorous animal is one expressive of anger, rage, or de- 

 fiance. For a single specimen, the most striking attitude pos- 

 sible is that of a beast at bay. Unless a carnivorous animal is 

 to be represented in the act of seizing something, the mouth 

 should not be opened very wide. It is a common fault with 

 taxidermists to open the jaws of such an animal too widely, so 

 that the effect striven for is lost, and the animal seems to be 

 yawning prodigiously, instead of snarling. Open the jaws a 

 moderate distance, indicating a readiness to open wider without 

 an instant's warning. The thick, fleshy part of the upper lip 

 is lifted up to clear the teeth for action, and the mustached 

 portion is bunched up until it shows two or three curving 

 wrinkles, with the middle of the curve upward. This crowds 

 the nostril opening together, and changes its shape very 

 materially. In most carnivora, but most strikingly so in bears, 



