SKINNING AND PRESERVING BIRDS. 121 



mars the beautiful symmetry of tlie sea-bird's breast. No 

 perceptible sbriukage can, bowever, occur if tbe body is properly 

 made and packed ; and bere is sbown tbe vast superiority of tbe 

 made body of well- wrapped tow over tbat made of loose cotton 

 inserted in tbe skin, bit by bit. 



Tbe eyes I prefer to insert in tbe larger birds after tbe speci- 

 men is dry, as tben any little fault in tbe sbape of tbe bead is 

 easily rectified through the orbit, the eyelid, of course, being 

 previously relaxed (with cotton wool dipped in warm water) to 

 do this and to receive the artificial eye. 



Waterton's method of setting up birds may be dismissed in a 

 few words ; it is impracticable for anyone but an amateur who 

 has unlimited time at his disposal, and who does not object to 

 spend about a couple of days over one specimen, and who has 

 also ample room for the large collection of different- sized boxes 

 he must accumulate. 



In using the corrosive sublimate the student will do well to 

 carefully read the chapter on Preservatives, and then make up 

 his mind. I may here mention, however, that I should not 

 advise anyone to work on a bird previously saturated with a 

 solution of corrosive sublimate. 



It has been said, De mortuis nil nisi honum ; but, while fully 

 acknowledging the force of the remark, as also the great 

 scientific attainments and love for natural history which dis- 

 tinguished the illustrious traveller, I cannot allow anyone who 

 reads his entertaining works to be misled into wasting time in an 

 unprofitable manner. 



Another way of setting up a bird may be described as follows : 

 Provide yourself with four wires — two of which are for the 

 legs, a long one for the body, and a shorter one for the wings ; 

 let us suppose we have another starling in front of us. For 

 this bird take a suitable piece of wire about three inches long 

 (pointed at both ends), and bend it down at each end for the 

 distance of an inch, which of course leaves one inch in the middle 

 at a right angle to each end; this is called the wing-bearer. 

 Then place a little piece of tow inside the skin to fit along the 

 back, and on to the top of this lay the wing-bearer, pushing tbe 

 pointed ends down and into the hollows of the wing-bones 

 (which must be left nearly their full length to admit of this). 



