80 THE FUR TRADE OF AMERICA 



when taking off the flesh, scrape the flesh, but don't abrade the 

 skin. The fur side should not be exposed to the sun, and the drying 

 should be done in a cool place away from artificial heat, which 

 cracks soft skin just as it ruins shoe leather. Beaver and musk- 

 rat should be stretched on a hoop. Coon should be nailed on a 

 wall to dry. Mink and marten should be stretched very gently 

 lengthwise. 



The plucking of the coarse over hairs should be left to the final 

 trade dresser. When Alaska seal has been plucked, it is drab. 

 Up to the time of the War, the dyeing of seals excelled in London, 

 of Persian lamb in Germany, and of "topping" over hairs in 

 France. 



No general rule can be given for dyeing except that the closest 

 to the natural color is always best and that rule has its great ex- 

 ception in muskrat dyed as a perfect imitation of Alaska seal. 



The pace of improvement in the fur trade is moving so fast 

 to-day, that any methods described as perfect this year may be 

 discarded as obsolete next year. The Canadian Conservation 

 Report quotes the old method of dressing furs : 



"The older method of dressing furs, used universally until the 

 introduction of machinery is to place the skins in a lye of alkali ; 

 when the pelt has become soft, the skins are tubbed, and then shaved 

 by passing them over a large knife and placed in an upright po- 

 sition ; they are next buttered, and put in a large tub of sawdust 

 by men half naked, who tread on them for some time, the heat of 

 their bodies rendering the leather soft and supple ; they are then 

 beaten out and finished." 



But modern methods have introduced machinery for almost 

 every process except the brushing in of the final lustre, and the 

 feathering of sable stripes, and the cleaning by sawdust tramping, 

 which must still be done with naked feet to soften the pelt with 

 animal warmth. 



To give you the faintest idea of what dressing means — to quote 

 the Canadian Fur Report again — the pelts must be "beamed,, 



