Unless the animal is of large size, the tongue may be left to dry 
up, and the tongue-hones already alluded to will thus be retained 
in place. 
If time permits, and there is an abundance of water at hand, 
it is well to remove the blood from the roughly cleaned skeleton 
by soaking it for a day or two in water, preferably running water. 
For safety’s sake the carcass should be placed in a basket, or tied 
up in a sack. Special precautions may be required in places 
where there are predaceous. animals such as Crocodiles or other 
aquatic carnivorous forms. But where the climate is unfavourable, 
or water scarce, this soaking may be dispensed with. 
The further treatment of the skeleton must depend a good 
deal on the size of the animal. If it is small, there will he no 
great difficulty in getting it properly dried, and it can then be 
packed in one piece, taking the precaution of turning the end of 
the tail in so as to be protected by the backbone and ribs: If it is 
large, the limbs may be detached separately; removing the 
Phoulder: blade, which carries the rest of the fore limb, from the 
ribs, and dividing each hind hmb from the pelvis or hip at the 
articulation of the thigh-bone with that part. 
It may further be necessary to cut the backbone into sections 
of convenient size for packing. This division can be effected at 
any point, provided it is made in such a way as to avoid injuring 
the vertebrae or constituent bones of the backbone. It will be 
found quite easy to separate two vertebrae from one another if the 
knife is inserted first on the lower side (that which comes nearest 
the cavity of the thorax or abdomen). ‘The two parts of the 
backbone on either side of the cut are then bent upwards, away 
from the cut. The following may be indicated as convenient 
points for dividing the backbone :—junction of neck and thorax ; 
junction of thorax and abdomen. If the cuts are made as above, 
the thorax, consisting of vertebral column, ribs and breast-bone. 
may be packed so as to contain the skull and some of the other 
parts of the skeleton. 
The rough skeleton, or the parts into which it has been 
divided, should next be hung up in a dry place, where there is a 
free current of air, and protected, if necessary, from attack by 
predaceous animals. Before the parts become quite dry it will be 
advisable to fold them in a position convenient for packing. 
When thoroughly dry, the skeletons may be packed in boxes. 
Sawdust, especially pine sawdust, may conveniently be used, as it 
absorbs moisture and prevents any unpleasant smell. Hach 
skeleton should be wrapped separately in paper or canvas, to 
avoid the danger of getting its parts mixed with those of other 
specimens, which might happen, for instance, in a skeleton attacked 
by beetles on the way home. This precaution is specially im- 
portant for skeletons of small size ; but in every case the greatest 
care should be taken to label and pack the parts in such a way 
that no admixture of this kind is possible. The value of a 
