BIRDS' NESTS. 51 



than the large, showed him how to hold the 

 egg between his finger and thumb on a level 

 with his eyes, and then, carefully putting in 

 the straw, to blow gently. The first attempt 

 was unsuccessful, for holding it too tightly, 

 it broke and fell to the ground, but the others 

 were done very well, and taken into the house. 



Eggs are less liable to be broken when 

 blown than when they are not, because, being 

 then empty, they are so light as to bear a 

 short fall ; but still they require great caution 

 in handling ; and as Henry was only allowed 

 to have a museum on condition that everything 

 in it was kept in excellent order, and properly 

 taken care of, he followed a plan in keeping 

 them which his father taught him, and which 

 he found a very good one. It was as follows: 



He divided a sheet of cardboard into pieces 

 of equal size, each measuring about two inches 

 long and an inch and a half wide. A line was 

 then ruled with a lead pencil, about the third 

 of an inch from one of the long sides. Along 



E2 



