174 TAXIDERMY AND MODELLING 



the wing on the "best" side, the leg on the same side, and the 

 tail. Again gripping the body with the left hand and Iceeping 

 the feathers from touching the flesh, with the right forefinger 

 and thumb release the skin a little more on the back and over 

 the shoulder of the uncut wing. Release it also upon the breast 

 on that side by working gently with the fingers, aided now and 

 then by the knife when any little sticking occurs. Ease it on 

 the body with the fingers, working towards the tail, and skin 

 away a little more on the back with the knife, being careful to 

 note that on the back the skin is extremely thin, and must 

 therefore be laboriously scraped, as it will not bear the slightest 

 pull with the fingers. If this be properly accomplished, the 

 skin may be so loosened on the body as to come away from 

 under the wing, giving an opportunity for the knife to be slipped 

 in as before, and the upward cut made, to entirely detach the 

 wing at its broken portion. Great care is as usual required at 

 this point, as the skin comes well underneath the bone, and will 

 be cut right through if not carefully watched. Still skinning 

 by scraping upon the flesh, the other thigh (femur) is exposed, 

 and should be pushed up from the outside as before, and cut 

 through in the same place with the shears, taking care not to 

 include any skin, trimming away with the knife any small 

 pieces which prevent it clearing. Having done this, the pro- 

 gress toward the tail is necessarily slow, the skin becoming 

 thinner and thinner over the back until it has to be positively 

 scraped from the bone, to which it clings with tenacity. The 

 skin must also be released from the abdomen, to which it also 

 clings, and the cutting here must be hardly appreciable ; other- 

 wise, the membrane which covers the bowels will be cut into, 

 to the great damage of the feathers of the specimen. With 

 such a bird as a pigeon, all this scraping and gentle cutting- 

 away of the skin may take a quarter of an hour or more, until, 

 the bird being still kept in the left hand, neck pointing upward. 



