WEEDING. 17 



is usually seen. For instance, summer birds are, of 

 course, surrounded by green and living objects, but 

 autumn or winter visitants by decaying or dead her- 

 bage. It has often been made an experiment to 

 represent snow, but it is difficult to obtain anything 

 white enough, and at the same time of a crystalline 

 character, which, of course, it should be. Potato 

 farina nicely dried, mixed with Epsom salts pounded 

 very fine, does not make a bad substitute; but the real 

 difficulty lies behind, namely, the fixing it, and, more 

 than all, the least damp takes very much from its 

 appearance, if it does not destroy the effect, and hence 

 we must have recourse to mineral aid, and any very 

 white mineral powder mingled with pounded glass is 

 perhaps best. It is unnecessary to say that the herbage 

 upon which it is meant to rest should be touched all 

 over with paste, not glue, and the white mixture shaken 

 over it and left to dry. What will heighten the effect 

 very much, if prettily executed, is a back landscape 

 with a dark leaden sky and nearly black earth mingled 

 with moss. To represent water, a small piece of 

 looking-glass, surrounded with moss, &c., answers very 

 well. The bills and legs of birds should be always 

 varnished, and where the natural colour fades after 

 death it should be restored by a thin coat of oil-colour 

 of the required shade. The bird being fixed and the 

 case garnished, nothing remains but to put in the 

 glass ; this is in three pieces, one for the front and a 

 piece at each end. This can be pasted in with very 

 strong paper round the edge, advancing sufficiently 

 over the glass to hold it. In doing this it is not 

 necessary to be very particular to avoid pasting the 

 glass, as after it is dried it can be wiped clean with a 

 damp cloth. The last operation is a very simple one, 

 and done in a few minutes. You must procure some 

 black spirit-varnish, which you can make yourself by 



