14 Handbook of Ta<xidermy. 



mon knitting-needle ; a rabbit's foot, which should 

 be cut off at the knee, the nails cut out, and 

 thoroughly cleansed and dried, — used for smooth- 

 ing and dusting the feathers of birds after mount- 

 ing; a fishing-hook, with stout cord attached, 

 for suspending the bodies of birds that would 

 otherwise be too large to handle conveniently. 



On the whole, I would advise you to get at the 

 start a common dissecting-case, which will con- 

 tain all of the above, and besides being convenient, 

 may save you much delay and vexation. 



You will need a pair of stout wire cutters ; a 

 flat file ; a pair of wire twisters or forceps ; plenty 

 of pins ; thread and needles, — surgical or sad- 

 dlers' needles, as they are called, are the best, 

 as they cut instead of punching the skin ; a brain 

 scoop, made by twisting a bit of wire into a loop ; 

 and a bobbin of thread, which you can procure 

 at any cotton factory. You should also have on 

 hand an assortment of annealed wire ; glass eyes 

 of various sizes and colors ; tack nails ; brads ; a 

 piece of putty; sealing and bees-wax; paints; 

 glue ; artificial leaves ; mosses ; everlasting flow- 

 ers, etc., for ornamenting perches. 



