THE OPOSSUM. 45 



tliey are stretched of course the thinner they are. In 

 cutting them out for a rug, try and get them as much of 

 a size as possible ; mark out the square, and cut the shin 

 with a sharp knife inside, not laid on a board, or you 

 will cut the hair. "When sewing them, use the carpet- 

 stitch, i. e. turn down the edges of the skins and sew 

 through them double. The blacks score the inside of 

 their skins with a kind of hieroglyphic, and I have seen 

 one marked representing a chart or map. This much 

 softens the skins. The proper way to prepare any skins, 

 such as opossum, native cat, flying squirrels, &c., for the 

 furrier, is to adopt the plan that we used in Sweden with 

 the foxes' skins. When skinning the animal, don't open 

 it down the belly, but make an incision across the vent 

 up each hind leg as far as the second joint ; cut through 

 the legs and root of tlie tail, and draw the body out of 

 the skin, like skinning an eel ; skin the head out right 

 down to the nose ; slit down the feet to the toes, taking 

 out the leg-bones, and draw out the tail-bone. The skin 

 is now turned inside out. Cut a flat piece of wood as 

 broad as the body, but longer; point the nose end a 

 little, and thrust it into the skin down to the nose, draw- 

 ing the skin smoothly and tightly over it. Nail the ends 

 of the skin at the tail to the board, put two cross-sticks 

 into the legs to stretch them, and hang it up to dry. As 

 soon as it is partially dry, draw out the board, turn the 

 skin the hair side out, and put the board in again ; don't 

 let the skin get too dry before you turn it, or you will 

 have a difficulty in doing so. The reason you should 



