THE EISE AND PEOGEESS OF TAXIDERMY. 13 



the only reliable text book known at that period, and witli the 

 exception of certain modern improvements in modelling and 

 mounting, contains a mass of — for tbat day — valuable elementary 

 information. In fact, tbe Frencli and German taxidermists were 

 tlien far in advance of us, a stigma wbich. we did not succeed in 

 wiping off until after tbe Great Exhibition of 1851. 



Altbougb, as I bave just said, tbe Frencb and Germans 

 excelled us in tbe setting up of specimens, yet tbeir collections 

 did not, in all cases, exceed ours in point of interest or magni- 

 tude, for tbe old taxidermists bad been at work prior to 1725, at 

 wbicb date it is recorded tbat tbe museum of Sir Hans Sloane 

 (tbe nucleus of our Britisb Museum collection) contained tbe 

 following number of specimens : Mammals, 1194 ; birds, 753 ; 

 reptiles, 345; fisbes, 1007. A gradual increase appeared by 

 1753, wben tbe figures stood: Mammals, 1886; birds, 1172; 

 reptiles, 521; fisbes, 1555. A great proportion of tbese were, 

 bowever, not stuffed specimens, but simply bones and prepara- 

 tions of flesby parts in spirits. [N'otbing sbows tbe gradual 

 rise and progress of taxidermy better tban tbe bistory of tbe 

 Britisb Museum, wbicb, under tbe tben name of Montagu House, 

 was opened to tbe public by special ticket on Jan. 15, 1759. 

 Soon after its opening tbe natural bistory collections appear to- 

 bave claimed more interest from tbe public, for in 1765 we bad a. 

 very good collection of butterflies, and in 1769 tbe trustees 

 acquired, hj purcbase, a considerable collection of stuffed birds 

 from Holland. Tbe restrictions on visitors were, bowever, 

 vexatious, people of all classes being burried tbrougb tbe rooms 

 at a tremendous speed — vide Hutton, tbe Birmingbam bis- 

 torian, wbo visited it in 1784, and relates bow be would fain 

 bave spent bours looking at tbings for wbicb only minutes were 

 allowed. From tbis period up to 1816 (at wbicb date tbe 

 valuable ornitbological collection of Col. Montagu was pur- 

 chased for tbe nation at a cost of £11,000) tbe additions to tbe 

 natural bistory galleries were not many, probably owing to tbe 

 troublous times; bowever, wben we bad succeeded in breaking 

 tbe power of IlTapoleon and restored peace to Europe, naturalists 

 and taxidermists found tbat tbe public bad tben time and 

 inclination to devote tbemselves to tbeir collections or works. 

 Accordingly, during tbe next twenty years many works (in- 



