Practical 



761 



standard is then taken between the finger | body in a contrary direction; and thus the 

 and thumb of the left hand, and pledgets of [ whole carcass is drawn out at the mouth, 

 tow are worked in with a piece of pointed Restore the legs to their natural position ; 

 wood; the more prominent parts are reduced fill the skin with dry sand ; stop the mouth 

 by pressure, and the hollow parts are pushed 

 outwards with the stick. By and by, the 

 bird is laid on its back on the table, and 

 sometimes held by the feet till it has been 

 filled to its natural size ; it is then sewed up 

 and stuck on its perch ; the legs and neck 

 are bent into their proper position, all de- 

 ficiencies in the stuffing of the head and 

 upper part of the neck are supplied through 

 the channel of the mouth or eyes ; the wings 

 adjusted and kept in their place by a pointed 

 wire on each side run into the standard, thtir 



tips confined by a bandage, the tail supported 

 on a piece of wire bent in a serpentine form, 

 and the whole plumage neatly dressed. Such 

 is a very concise outline of one method of 

 mounting birds, which in the hands of a 

 skilful workman never fails to produce the 

 happiest results. Other methods are detailed 

 by Captain Brown. The tyro's greatest error 

 consists in over-distending his specimens, 

 and in keeping their legs too upright ; but a 

 careful study of the living models, and a 

 little practice, will enable him to make satis- 

 factory progress. However beautiful the art 

 may be, it is to the true naturalist scarcely 

 worth the expenditure of the time requisite 

 for its acquirement and subsequent practice. 



NESTS AND EGGS. 



All that is requisite in forming a collection 

 of birds' nests is to dry them properly, and 

 to secure those of loose texture by a few 

 stitches with a needle. To preserve eggs for 

 the cabinet, make a hole at the sharp end 

 of the egg, and a smaller one at the larger 

 end ; blow the contents through the larger 

 hole : dip a camel's hair brush into a solution 

 of corrosive sublimate, and press it against 

 the smaller end of the egg, so that some of 

 the liquor may reach its interior, then shake 

 the egg, and allow it to drip. Eggs are best 

 kept in open card boxes amongst chipped 

 moss or on cotton. 



PRESERVING REPTILES. 



Snakes and Lizards may be divided longi- 

 tudinally, and their skin glued to a piece of 

 pasteboard and then varnished ; but they are 

 best preserved in wide-mouthed bottles 

 amongst spirits. If large, an incision ought to 

 be made in the abdomen to allow the spirit to 

 penetrate readily into the intestines, amongst 

 which putrefaction would otherwise take 

 place ; and this is also the sure result if the 

 specimen is allowed to come in contact with 

 the sides of the vessel ; hence the propriety 

 of suspending it by a thread from the cork, 

 which must be covered with several layers 

 of bladder and one of tinfoil, and either 

 painted or varnished. But amongst water 

 reptiles, the skins of the Frog and Toad may 

 be preserved thus : Cut out the whole inside 

 of the mouth with a pair of scissors, separate 

 the first vertebra of the neck from the skull, 

 raise up the jaws, and push back the skin 

 with one hand, whilst the other pulls th 



th dry sai 



with cotton ; when dry, give a coat of copal 

 varnish, and dry in a draught of air ; and 

 by making a small incision in the lower 

 part of tne body, the sand will readily escape. 



SKINNING AND PRESERVING 

 FISHES. 



To preserve the delicate scales and evanes- 

 cent colours of many species, wrap every spe- 

 cimen in tissue paper as soon as it comes to 

 hand. Specimens for examination are best 



preserved in spirits, with a label of block tin or 

 lead, having a number cut or engraved on it, 

 and referring to your note-book, attached to 

 each specimen. But a very neat collection of 

 our fishes may be formed on the following 

 plan, which was invented by Dr. Parnell of 

 Edinburgh. The fish is divided longitudi- 

 nally, so as to preserve on one side the skin 

 and fins in an entire state, also the dorsal and 

 caudal fins : begin at the head, and work 

 downwards to the tail, removing the ekin 

 carefully ; the coating of tissue paper will 

 greatly assist the operator ; and when the 

 skinning has been effected the paper can be 

 removed, after being damped with a wet 

 sponge : reduce the bones of the head, thin 

 down the base of the fins, and anoint the 

 whole with arsenical soap. Take a sheet of 

 pasteboard larger than the fish itself, and 

 covered on one side with stone-coloured 

 paper : sew the skin by its lower edge to the 

 pasteboard, using a fine pointed saddler's 

 awl as a piercer ; then stuff in chopped tow 

 till the skin is filled to its natural size, sew- 

 ing the upper margin to the paper as the 

 work proceeds, from the tail to the shoulder, 

 and glue the head to the pasteboard- The 

 fins may be supported in their natural posi- 

 tion by means of slips of paper gummed to 

 them, and these may be removed after the 

 skin is dry, by wiping them with a damp 

 sponge ; then two or three coatings of 

 copal varnish are given to the skin ; and this 

 finishes the operation. The scientific name 

 should be printed or written in the left hand 

 corner of the card below : the skin may be 

 simply glued to the pasteboard, and then 

 varnished. 



SKULLS AND STERNA. 

 To prepare skulls and sterna of birds, 

 which are very interesting objects for the 

 cabinet. Remove all the flesh from the bones 

 neatly and carefully, so as not to injure 

 their natural character by scraping or cutting 

 their surfaces with the knife ; then put the 

 skeleton into clean water, in which a little 

 salt has been dissolved, till such time as the 

 blood has been extracted from the bones ; 

 and, in order to whiten the preparation, it 

 may be next put into a very weak solution 

 of chloride of lime and water for twelve 

 hours, and then again into cold water ; after 

 which it should be dried in a draught. As the 

 bones of most sea-birds are very oily, their 

 first bath should contain a little soda in so- 



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