THE HOME OF A NATURALIST. 309 



results the skin being arranged while moist upon an 

 inner basis of yielding substance, such as tow, moss, 

 hay, &c., and suffered to dry almost at random, all 

 manipulation being confined to the exterior. Now it 

 is the property of moist skin to contract during the 

 process of desiccation, and should its thickness be in 

 the least unequal the contraction is unequal too, and 

 so drags itself out of shape, and the hair and feathers 

 out of their just 'set.' The only method by which an 

 artist can ensure a successful result is to keep the skin 

 under his control during the whole period occupied in 

 drying, and to be able to reduce a wrinkle or produce a 

 protuberance at will. He can thus restore the precise 

 aspect of the being under his hands ; he can give the 

 external indications of swelling muscle or hidden joint, 

 and impart to a mere hollow shell of skin the energy 

 of a breathing creature. Such examples of true taxi- 

 dermy are now to be found in Mr. Waterton's museum, 

 and, unfortunately, in no other place. 



There stands Chanticleer, proud and defiant, his 

 crested head flung aside as if listening to a rival's 

 challenge, his hackles bristling round his outstretched 

 neck, and his armed legs firmly planted, as if awaiting 

 the onset of his foe. There sits the pheasant, glorious 

 in the full richness of nuptial plumage, its soft sleek 

 outlines and undulating curves contrasting beautifully 

 with the fiery action displayed by the champion of the 

 poultry-yard. Here is a barn owl, fast asleep, not 

 sitting on a branch, as is the custom of most sleeping 



