TAXIDERMY. 501 



which ought to be pushed out, and then reduce with the end of 

 his finger any part that may be too prominent ; having al- 

 ready made divers small holes in the skin with his penknife, 

 in order to afford entrance to the working iron. Thus, a small 

 hole on the top of the head will enable him to reach the nose, 

 upper lip, and cheeks ; another behind the root of each ear ; 

 another under the jaws ; others, again, on the back, that he 

 may reach the legs, and the remaining parts of the body. 

 Under each foot there will also be a hole, to give him the op- 

 portunity of getting at the toes. The lips are by far the most 

 difficult part to manage. The operator must have a working 

 iron in both hands. One of these will do the work within the 

 head, and the other that without, for the iips require to be 

 reformed with a beautiful rotundity, and this can only be 

 effected by means of the inner and the outer irons working in 

 opposite directions. During the actual operation, the animal 

 need not be kept in its original position. A smaller animal 

 may be placed on the operator's lap, the larger may be thrown 

 on the ground, or on the table. Every day the nose, and lips, 

 and orbits, ought to be touched with the oil and turpentine, in 

 order to keep them moist. At first, after you have used the 

 working iron in every quarter where it is required, there wil? 

 be no appearance of a re-formation of the features. Never- 

 theless, in the due course of time, as the skin stiffens, the 

 artist will see the features gradually appear ; and every day he 

 will be more and more content with his work. At last, the 

 skin will retain the slightest impression communicated to 

 it by the touch of the working iron. Then the artist will 

 have it fully in his power to reproduce wrinkles, or warts, or 

 hollows, or a smooth surface, just as occasion may require. 



"The fur will be equally under his command. He will 

 raise it, or depress it, according to circumstances, and it will 

 retain the position ever after. Thus a stuffed cat in anger 

 will exhibit a tail of the same extraordinary bulk which it 

 does when a dog threatens its existence. 



"As there are parts of a quadruped's skin which are bound 



