852 How to Mount a Bird. 



BIRD, WRAPPED. 



deal of previous good work; if neat and careful, it will greatly 

 enhance it. Place small, square pieces of paper over the wires which 

 fasten the wings, and make ready from six to ten long pins or sharp- 

 ened wires. If pins are used, tie a bit of coarse, waxed thread 

 around them about a quarter of an inch below the heads, and leave 

 the ends sticking out for about the same distance. If wires are used, 

 bend the unsharpened end into a U shape. Place from three to five 

 wires in line along the back and as many more along the breast, and 

 use soft, light thread for winding. Begin by making a few turns 

 quite around the bird in order to secure all feathers, and then pro- 

 ceed systematically, first with one wing then with the other, then 

 with the back and breast. Let the thread lie lightly on such places 

 as are smooth and in place, and gently press down any spots which 

 are too high. Never try to produce a depression by a single turn of 

 the thread, but use several at minute intervals. The use of the bend 

 in the wires and the thread around the pins is this : it keeps the 

 thread from touching the plumage where pressure would be injuri- 

 ous. Thus, by winding around and back from the upper series of 

 wires, you can secure the breast and sides without bearing down any 

 of the feathers on the back, and vice versa. I have dwelt at length 

 on this winding process, because there are but few who seem to 

 realize its importance or go about it in a systematic manner.* 



* It is but just that credit should be given to Mr. F. S. Webster for this method 

 of winding, a still more detailed account of which, written by him, appeared in the 

 Report of the Society of American Taxidermists for 1881-82. 



