246 The 'Book of the Goat. 



eighteen hours, to get rid of all dirt and blood, frequently 

 working them about, more thoroughly to cleanse and soften 

 them. They should next be scraped with a blunt, thick- 

 bladed knife and thinned on the flesh side in order to 

 remove as much as possible those portions of animal 

 matter which are liable to putrefaction. After this they 

 should be steeped for ten or fifteen days in a fermenting 

 mixture of bran and water, composed of two pounds of 

 bran to a gallon of water. On being taken out, they must 

 again be washed, then folded with the hair sides in 

 contact and immersed for ten minutes in a solution of alum 

 and salt, in the proportion of a pound and a half of alum 

 and a quarter of a pound of salt to a gallon of water. 

 The quantities given are sufficient for eight skins. 



The skins are then laid out and spread on the flesh 

 side with a paste made by adding gradually to the last 

 mixture, while constantly stirring, first a pound and a half 

 of wheat flour, and subsequently the yolks of half a dozen 

 eggs, afterwards incorporating the whole together. This 

 paste has a softening effect upon the skins, making them 

 also white, and counteracting any tendency to brittleness. 

 They must be left in this state for eighteen or twenty 

 hours, when, becoming stiff, they must be again rinsed in 

 clean water, and dried by being stretched upon poles and 

 exposed in a dry loft, where they must be left for a week 

 or more as may be necessary. A good finish may be 

 given by polishing the skins with pumice, rubbed on as 

 hard as possible, and finally ironing over with a smooth 

 flat-iron carefully heated. 



Although this process effectually tans and preserves the 

 skins, they cannot, of course, be expected to have that 

 even, soft, and highly-finished appearance which those 

 possess that are worked by a professional tanner. These 

 effects are produced by a variety of instruments and tools 

 which an amateur does not possess, and which it would 



