MATERIALS FOB PREPARING BIIWSKINS. 25 



from the roots of the rectrices to the end of the longest one. Feel for the pope's nose ; in cither 

 a fresh or dried specimen there is more or less of a palpable himp into which the tail-feathcis 

 stick. Guess as near as yon can to the middle of this lump; place the eiid of the ruler opposite 

 this point, and see where the tip of the longest tail-featlier comes. " Letigth of bill : " Some 

 take the curve of the upper mandible; others the side of tlie upper mandible fi-om the feathers; 

 others the gape, etc. I take the cJiord of the ciibnen. Place one foot of the dividers on the 

 cidmen just where the feathers end ; no matter whether the culnien runs up on the forehead, or 

 the frontal feathers run out on the culmen, and no matter whether the culmen is straight or 

 curved. Then with me the length of the hill is the shortest distance from the point just indi- 

 cated to the tip of the upper mandible ; measure it with the dividers. In a straight bill of 

 course it is the length of the culmen itself; in a curved bill, however, it is quite another thing. 

 " Length of tarsus : " Distance between tlie joint of the tarsus with tlie leg above, and that 

 with the first phalanx of the middle too below. Measure it alwai/s witli dividers, and in front 

 of the leg. •' Length of toes : " Distance in a straight hne along the upper surface of a toe 

 from the point last indicated to the root of the claw on top. Length of toe is to be taken 

 without the claw, unless otherwise specified. ^'Length of the clans : " Distance in a straight line 

 from the point last indicated to the tip of the claw. " Length of head" is often a convenient 

 dimension for comparison with the bill. Set one foot of the dividers over the base of the culmen 

 (determined as above) and allow the other to slip snugly down over tlie arcli of the occiput. 



§ 6. — INSTUUIIENTS, MATERIALS, AND FIXTURES FOR PREPARING BIRDSKINS. 



Instruments. — The only indispensable instrument is a pair of scissors or a knife; 

 although practically you want both of these, a pair of spring forceps, and a knitting-needle, or 

 some similar M'ooden or iv<iry object, yet I have made hundreds of bu'dskins consecutively 

 without touching another tool. " Persicos ofli, paer, ajiparatus .' " I always mistrust tlie 

 emphasis of a collector who makes a tiourish of instruments. You might be surprised to see 

 •^^•llat a meagre, shabby-looking kit our best taxidermists work with. Stick to your scissors, 

 knife, forceps, and needle. But you may as m'cU buy, at the outset, a conimou disscctiug-case, 

 just what medical students begin business with ; it is very cheap, and if there are some unneces- 

 sary things in it, it makes a nice little box in which to keep your tools. The case contains, 

 among otlier things, several scalpels, just tlie knives you want ; a " cartilage-knife," which is 

 nothing but a stout scalpel, suitalih^ for large liirds ; the best kind of scissors for your purpose, 

 with short blades and long handles — if "kneed "at the hinge so much the better; spring 

 forceps, tlie very thing ; a blow-pipe, useful in many ways and answering well for a knitting- 

 needle ; and some little steel-hooks, chained together, which you may want to use. But you 

 will also require, fir large birds, a very heavy pair of scissors, or small shears, short-bladed 

 and long-handled, and a stout pair of bone-nippers. Have some pins and needles ; surgical 

 needles, which cut instead of punching, are the best. Get a hone oi' strop, if you Avish, and a 

 feather duster. Use of scissors requires no comment, and I would urge their habitual employ 

 instead of the knife-blade ; I do nine-tenths of my cutting with scissors, and find it much the 

 easiest. A double-lever is twice as effective as a single one, and besides, yfiu gain in cutting 

 soft, yielding substances by opposing two blades. Moreover, scalpels need constant sharpen- 

 ing ; mine are generally too dull to cut much with, and I suppose I am like other people — 

 while scissors stay sharp enough. The flat, thin ivory or ebony handle of the scalpel is about 

 as useful as the Made. Finger-nails, which were made before scalpels, are a mighty help. 

 Forceps are almost indispensable for seizing and holding parts too small or too remote to bo 

 grasped by the fingers. The knitting-needle is wanted for a specific purpose noted beyond. 

 The shears or nippers are only needed for what the ordinary scissors are Uto weak to do. Our 

 instruments, year see now, are " a short horse soon curried." 



