TdOLS USED IN TAXIDERMY AND MODELLING 23 



very useful for drilling the finer bones of animals, especially 

 those of fishes. 



Nos. 26 and 27 are crooked awls, fine and stout. The 

 fine one is used for arranging the feathers of birds, and the eye- 

 lids of all animals over the artificial eyes, and so on. The 

 larger one is used for the same purposes with larger animals, 

 and also makes a very efficient undercutting tool for fine 

 channelling in plaster work. 



No. 28 is an ordinary three-cornered file introduced here 

 merely to show that, if the learner commences with one file 

 only, this is the best shape and size to get until he can procure 

 others. 



Nos. 29 to 36 are plasterers' modelling-tools. They are 

 usually made double-ended, and of the length of blade shown in 

 No. 33. When like this, however, they are for "sleeking," 

 and using upon clay and with plaster in modelling, being set at 

 all angles for this purpose ; but required, as they often are, for 

 cutting and carving dry plaster, or plaster just set, and for many 

 other purposes, they will be found of the greatest service if 

 ground down to where the steel is stiff and thicker, and sharpened 

 to the same angles as those to which they were originally set, 

 as shown by all those figured except No. 33. 



Nos. 36 to 39 are ordinary wood-carving tools, but, being 

 stout, gouge-like, and cranked at various angles as well as V- 

 shaped, they serve most admirably for cutting out and relieving 

 orbits, nostrils, lips, and other parts in dry plaster models. 



There are, of course, many other tools briefly hinted at, and 

 other shapes of many of those figured, which the advanced 

 modeller will acquire as he progresses, but the beginner may 

 limit himself to a very few, and these may be particularised as 

 the saw, hammer, chisel, brad-awl, gimlet, rule, and screwdriver, 

 amongst ordinary tools, and, of those figured, Nos. i, 4, 7, 9, 

 10, 16 or 17, 19, 26, and 28. With these he will manage 



