762 



of Practical 



lution ; and holes should be drilled in the 

 larger bones to admit the water into their 

 interior. 



The curious windpipes of the Mergansers, 

 and certain Ducks, should be steeped in a 

 little salt and water, and then pinned to a 

 board to dry ; and when dry, give a coating 

 of copal varnish. 



Preparations of the gullet, crop, and sto- 

 mach of birds, throw a beautiful light on 

 some of the principles on which the proper 

 classification of these interesting creatures 

 is founded : Having skinned a bird, and 

 removed the breast-bone so as to expose the 

 internal organs, tie up the intestine where it 

 leaves the stomach, cast a running noose 

 over the upper extremity of the gullet, insert 

 a blow-pipe or any other tube, tighten the 

 string, and, when the whole is properly in- 

 flated, slip the noose suddenly over the end 

 of the tube, and secure the passage with a 

 firm knot : hang the preparation up to dry, 

 and finish off with a coating of copal var- 

 nish. 



If the carcass of a small animal is baited 

 with honey, and laid near the nest of ants or 

 wasps, the bones will be beautifully picked. 



CABINET. Let the young collector con- 

 tent himself with such accommodation as 

 an old chest of drawers can afford, or an old 

 trunk, fitted with movable wooden trays of 

 various depths, having a piece of leather or 

 tape nailed at either end instead of handles ; 

 and, when he requires to procure a cabinet, 

 let it be neat, plain, and portable : better 

 have two small movable ones, than one 

 fixture. 



\Ve come now to consider the principles 

 and practice of the art of preserving the ani- 

 mals belonging to the second great division 

 of the animal kingdom, termed Tnvertebrata, 

 by systematists, from the circumstance of its 

 members not being furnished with a back- 

 bone. 



CRUSTACEA. 



In the Lobster, Crab, Shrimp, Sand-hopper, 

 Centipede, and Wood-louse, or Sclater, as it 

 is called in the north, we have familiar ex- 

 amples of this class. 



APPARATUS A water-net, such as has 

 been formerly described. A pair of forceps, 

 4J inches long, such as any tin-smith will 

 cut from the refuse of his bench : a few bags 

 of cotton cloth to secure the more formidable 

 species. A wide-mouthed phial, 2J inches 

 high, and 1J inches in diameter, fitted with 

 a cork stopper, secured with a piece of thin 

 brass wire twisted round the neck ; by this 

 simple contrivance, the cork may be started 

 or adjusted with the thumb of the left hand : 

 it should be filled with some spirituous 

 liquor. 



COLLECTING. Fishermen (especially 

 oyster-dredgers and fish-curers), nay, even 

 cookmaids, must all be employed to cater for 

 the collector, for many a curious crustacean is 

 found in the stomach of fishes. The larger 

 species are best transported in bags, and suf- 

 fered to die slowly in cold fresh water. The 

 smaller species die readily in spirits. 



PRESERVING The bodies of Lobsters | 



should be pulled separate from the hinder 

 parts ; all the internal organs scooped out, 

 then anointed with soap, and joined together 

 with cement : the feet are properly arranged, 

 and the organs of the mouth properly dis- 

 played, and retained in position, by means of 

 pins stuck into the board. With a trian- 

 gular-shaped awl drill holes in the under 

 sides of the claws of crabs, and extract the 

 flesh with hooked wires ; the back shell is 

 pulled separate from the body, the internal 

 organs removed, and soap and corrosive sub- 

 limate liberally applied ; it is then set after 

 the fashion of the Lobster, and dried in a 

 draught apart from the sun's rays. The 

 smaller Crabs,Shrimps,&c.may be laid within 

 card trays, which are made thus : " Parallel 

 to the four sides of the card, a straight line 

 is cut by the point of a penknife, sufficiently 

 deep to admit of one-half of its substance 

 being cut through, and folded back without 

 difficulty ; the space between the edge and 

 the cut line will, of course, constitute the 

 depth of the box, and may be varied accord- 

 ing to the fancy of the collector, or the 

 nature of the specimens it is to hold : when 

 these four sides are cut, the corresponding 

 corners are taken out by the scissors, and 

 the sides bent up and united by pasted slips 

 of paper." * The bottom of the box should 

 be covered with paper of a stone colour. 



The smaller species of Crustacea should be 

 transfixed with a pin, or gummed upon slips 

 of card, as in the case of minute insects. 



INSECTS. 



APPARATUS Authors have given a long ' 

 list of nets and other articles requisite for | 

 the collector ; but, in reality, they are few ; 

 and simple ; and such can be readily pro- I 

 cured or constructed at a small expense even ! 

 in the country. A brass hoop net, already j 

 described, and fitted with three bags, one i 

 made of cotton cloth, 14 inches deep, for 

 sweeping ; another of similar size, of coarse 

 canvas, for water insects ; and the third 

 made of a green gauze veil, having a depth 

 equal to two and a half times the diameter, 

 for collecting all winged insects. A wide- 

 mouthed phial, that can be put into your 

 waistcoat pocket, like the one already de 

 scribed for the Crustacea, and containing 

 spirits. Another pocket phial, having a 

 quill inserted into, and projecting an inch 

 below, the bottom of the cork, to prevent the 

 escape of the small insects, which are gene- 

 rally soon suffocated by the fumes from the 

 bruised laurel leaves and camphor, which 

 should always be placed in it, as well as a 

 few bits of blotting paper to prevent the in- 

 sects being too much shaken. Pill boxes of 

 various sizes, at 2s. Gd. per gross of twelve 

 dozen : number them from No. 1. upwards , 

 on the lid and the bottom of each box to ' 

 prevent confusion. Quills, or the young 

 shoots of the elder tree peeled and dried, 

 fitted with a plug of cork and wax at one 

 end, and with a cork at the other. A pocket 

 collecting box made of tin, on the principle 



* Swainson's Taxidermy, p. 95. 



