MAKING SKINS. 63 



being too thick, scrape them down with a blunt 

 knife or, better, use our skin-rasp, and thus thin 

 them down until the feathers above are as flexible 

 as in any other portion. If there be grease on the 

 feathers or inside of the skin after scraping, wash 

 with benzine, and dry with preservative as de- 

 scribed. When every portion of the specimen is 

 perfectly pliable, and all superfluous dried flesh 

 has been removed, sew up the rents, and make up 

 as in fresh birds, but such skins generally require 

 more careful binding. It is also often necessary 

 to wire the neck of even small birds, especially in 

 badly shattered and decayed skins. 



