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how to skin the birds and to prepare them ; not 

 for bird-preservers, but for ladies' muffs, and for 

 feather capes tippets, as they were called at that 

 time. 



I have seen very fine feather capes made from 

 bird-skins brought home by them, and also some 

 feather-work of a very novel character. The local 

 artist would be coaxed by one or two clever ladies, 

 always single ones, to draw the figure of some 

 bird or birds on a sheet of the finest paper they 

 could lay their hands on, after it had been pro- 

 perly stretched on a board. Often they could 

 not decide how the bird should be drawn : a week 

 or fortnight would pass over; then as a rule they 

 would pick out the first sketch that had been shown 

 them. As these preliminary studies afforded some 

 very pleasing afternoons and evenings, time was 

 not considered. The drawing having been made, 

 the bill and feet were painted, as well as a back- 

 ground. Then with strong gum they fixed the 

 feathers from the skins a kind of feather - tiling 

 it was, beginning naturally at the tail and finish- 

 ing at the bill of the bird. I have seen very 

 beautiful examples of this kind. The East India 



