Guide to Taxidermy 



199 



feathers ; even if you do no harm is done but you 

 will have to wash it off before mounting. A skin 

 prepared in this way should have a piece of wet 

 cotton placed inside the night before you wish to 

 mount it. The feet should also be immersed for 

 they will become hard. 



Grasses 



You can get various kinds of dried and colored 

 grasses of your supply dealer. These are used on 

 bases and in making natural surrounding for case 

 work as described in Chapted 12. 



Ictcles 



You can buy these ready made of your supply 

 dealer or you can make them yourself as follows: 



Get several pieces of glass tubing, ranging in 

 diameter from 1-4 to 1-2 in. from your druggist. 

 You will need a Bunsen burner (if you have gas in 

 the house, if not an alcohol lamp will do) and a 

 piece of number 14 wire. The latter should be cut 

 into four-inch pieces. Heat the end of one of the 

 tubes and also the end of one of the wires in the 

 flame at the same time. When both are red hot, 

 you can unite them firmly by twisting the wire in 

 the red hot tube; let this cool a bit, then put the 

 tube in the flame again at a point an inch or more 

 from the wire according to the length that you 

 wish to make the icicle ; as the glass begins to soften 





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CQm\p\e\e^. 



