The Capture, Preparation, and Preservation of Specimens 
eighth of an inch thick, glued together in such a way that the 
grain of the two pieces crosses at right angles, and all crack¬ 
ing and warping are thus prevented. The lids are secured to 
the bottoms by brass hooks fitting into eyelets. Such boxes 
provided with cork do not cost more than fifty-five cents apiece 
when bought in quantities. Boxes may be made of stout paste¬ 
board about one eighth or three sixteenths of an inch thick, with 
a rabbet-tongue on the inside. Such boxes are much used in 
France and England, and when well and substantially made are 
most excellent. They may be obtained for about thirty-five cents 
apiece lined with compressed cork. 
Cabinets and Drawers. —Large collections which are intended 
to be frequently consulted are best preserved in cabinets fitted 
with glass-covered drawers. A great deal of variety exists in the 
plans which are adopted for the display of specimens in cabinets. 
Much depends upon the taste and the financial ability of the col¬ 
lector. Large sums of money may be expended upon cabinets, 
but the main thing is to secure the specimens from dust, mould, 
and insect pests. The point to be observed most carefully is so 
to arrange the drawers that they are, like the boxes, practically 
air-tight. The writer employs as the standard size for the draw¬ 
ers in his own collection and in the Carnegie Museum a drawer 
which is twenty-two inches long, sixteen inches wide, and two 
inches deep (inside measurement). The outside dimensions are: 
length, twenty-three inches exclusive of face; breadth, seventeen 
inches; height, two and three eighths inches. The covers are glazed 
with double-strength glass. They are held upon the bottoms by a 
rabbet placed inside of the bottom and nearly reaching the lower 
surface of the glass on the cover when closed. The drawers are 
lined upon the bottom with cork five sixteenths of an inch thick, 
and are papered on the bottom and sides with good linen paper, 
which does not easily become discolored. Each drawer is faced 
with cherry and has a knob. These drawers are arranged in 
cabinets built in sections for convenience in handling. The two 
lower sections each contain thirty drawers, the upper section nine. 
The drawers are arranged in three perpendicular series and are 
made interchangeable, so that any drawer will fit into any place in 
any one of the cabinets. This is very necessary, as it admits of 
the easy rearrangement of collections. On the sides of each drawer 
a pocket is cut on the inner surface, which communicates through 
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