34 PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. [aNNO 1770. 



found on that coast, and justly laments the indolence of the Italians in not re- 

 garding them. Mathioli, Mercati, Ferrante Imperato, and the other early 

 writers in natural history, made few, if any, new observations of this kind. They 

 did little more than copy the ancients, or one another; and thought it sufficient 

 to ascertain the identity of the species described by Aristotle, Dioscorides, and 

 Pliny, and to illustrate them by figures, which were wanted in the works of these 

 old masters. Thus for instance, Matthioli and Ferrante Imperato describe only 

 the Alcyonia of Dioscorides. The more modern Italian naturalists have made as 

 little progress in this subject, from the influence of the opinion established 

 among them by Micheli and Marsigli ; for if we except Donali, scarcely any of 

 the rest have embraced the present received system about the origin of zoo- 

 phytes, though the discoveries of the French academists, added to those of Ellis, 

 Pallas, and other ingenious writers, seem to have put this matter beyond a doubt. 



XVI. On a Method of Preparing Birds for Preservation. By Capt. Thomas 



Davies.* p. 184. 

 Let a bird, beast, or any such like production of nature, be procured, that 

 has been well preserved in its death, either naturally or by shot, as those that 

 intend making any tolerable collection must do. He would not recommend 

 shooting them (birds in particular) with shot smaller than common partridge 

 shot, or N" 5, and that at a considerable distance, to prevent their being torn 

 with too great a number. Having procured a bird as aforesaid, let it be opened 

 from the upper part of the breast, to the vent, with a sharp knife or pair of 

 scissars, the feathers of the breast and belly being first carefully laid aside by the 

 fingers, so as not to hinder the skin being easily come at. The skin must then 

 be carefully loosened from all the fleshy parts of the breast, body, thighs, and 

 wings; then cut off^ all the flesh from those parts, and take out also the en- 

 trails and all the inside: then, having got a composition of burnt alum, cam- 

 phor, and cinnamon, of each an equal quantity, well powdered and mixed to- 

 gether, strew some of this powder lightly over the whole carcase; but salt is by 

 no means to be used with this composition, as it always will drop and nasty the 

 plumage in moist weather ; pour also into the body a small quantity of camphor 

 dissolved in rectified spirits of wine; after that, fill up the cavity with fine cotton, 

 or any soft woolly substance, pouring some of the aforesaid spirits into the 

 cotton, or stuffing. Open next the mouth, and with a pair of scissars take away 

 the tongue, the roof of the mouth, eyes, brains, and inside of the head; fill 

 that also with the same composition ; and having procured eyes as near the na- 



• The present Genera] Davies of the Royal Artillery, f. r. 9., whose museum contains a large 

 collection of the most curious specimens of Natural History. 



