
90 HOW TO MAKE A BIRDSKIN. 
dry. The toes of waders that do not lie evenly on the surface 
of the stand may be tacked down with small brads. The bill 
may be pinned open or shut, as desired, by the method already 
given. Never paint or varnish a bird’s bill or feet. 
Substitution of an artificial eye for the natural one is essen- 
tial for the good looks of a specimen. Glass eyes, of all sizes 
and colors, may be purchased at a moderate cost. The pupil is 
always black; the iris varies. You will, of course, secure the 
proper color if it is known, but if not, put in a dark brown or 
black eye. It is well understood that this means nothing —it 
is purely conventional. Yellow is probably the next most com- 
mon color; then come red, white, blue and green, perhaps 
approximately in this order of frequency. But do not use these 
striking colors at hap-hazard, sacrificing truth perhaps, to 
looks. Eyes are generally inserted after the specimen is dry. 
Remove a portion of the cotton from the orbit, and moisten 
the lids till they are perfectly pliable; fix the eye in with 
putty or wet plaster of Paris, making sure that the lids are 
naturally adjusted over it. It goes in obliquely, like a button 
through a button-hole. Much art may be displayed in this 
little matter, making a bird look this way or that, to carry out 
the general ‘‘ expression.” 
On finishing a specimen, set it away to dry—the time re- 
quired varies, of course, with the weather, the size of the bird, 
its fatness, etc. The more slowly it dries, the better; there is 
less risk of the skin shrinking irregularly. You will often find 
that a specimen set away with smooth plumage and satisfac- 
tory curves dries more or less out of shape, perhaps with the 
feathers raised in places. I know of no remedy; it may, in a 
measure, be prevented by scrupulous care in making the body 
smooth and firm, and in securing slow, equable drying. When 
perfectly dry remove the wrapping, pull out the superfluous 
pins or wires, nip off the others so short that the ends are con- 
cealed, and insert the eyes. The specimen is then ready to 
be transferred to its permanent stand. 
Fixtures for the display of the object of course vary inter- 
minably. We will take the simplest case, of a large collection 


