METHOD OF EREEJJIl.G INSECTS. 89 



hogany or wainscot ; sometimes they are constructed of cedar- 

 wood, but seldom of deal, or any other soft wood. Small cells 

 must be made in the inside of the fronts, for camphor. 



CORKING of DRAWERS. The simplest way to get the cork is 

 to purchase it of a cork-cutter, ready prepared, but it will be 

 much cheaper for the Entomologist to prepare it himself. In 

 this case, it should be cut into stripes, of about three inches 

 wide, with a cork-cutter's knife, to smooth the surface and to 

 divide it. The stripes should be fixed in a vice, and cut to the 

 thickness required with a fine saw; but grease must not be 

 used in the operation, as it will not only prevent the cork from 

 adhering to the bottom of the drawer, but will also grease the 

 paper which should be pasted on its surface. The black surface 

 of the cork should be rasped down to a smooth surface. After 

 having reduced the slips to about three quarters of an inch in 

 thickness, the darkest, or worst, side of each slip should be 

 glued down to a sheet of brown, or cartridge, paper ; this 

 should be laid on a deal board, about three feet in length, and 

 the width required for a drawer or box ; a few fine nails, or 

 brads, must be driven through each piece of cork, to keep it 

 firm and in its place, until the glue be dried : by this means, 

 sheets of cork may be formed the size of the drawer. All 

 the irregularities are filed or rasped down quite to a level 

 surface, and then polished smooth with pumice-stone. The 

 sheet, thus formed and finished, is glued into the drawers. 

 To prevent its warping, some weights must be equally distri- 

 buted over the cork, that it may adhere firmly to the bottom 

 of the drawer. When quite dry, the weights are removed, 

 and the cork covered with fine white paper, but not very thick. 

 The paper is allowed to be quite damp with the paste be- 

 fore it is placed on the cork, and, when dry, it will become 

 perfectly tight, 



Insect cabinets should be kept in a very dry situation, other- 

 wise the antennae, legs, &c., will become quite mouldy. The 

 same evil will ensue if the insect is not perfectly dry, before it 

 is placed in the cabinet. Should an insect be covered with 

 mould, it can be washed off with a camel's hair pencil, dipped 

 in camphorated spirits of wine; in which case, the insect 

 must be dried in a warm or airy situation, before being placed 

 in the cabinet. 



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