they are by their solid;envelopes, need no special care. 
Sf 
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# DR 
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/strength of that of .88 specifie gravity* for most fishes; for suckers and brook-trouts, however, ıt ought to be 
/ stronger, their flesh being either soft or very fat, and more readily deecomposed. In summer or in warm climates it is ad- 
visable to use always strong aleohol to obviate the effects of evaporation. Suppose it is intended to make a completecol- 
leetion of one ofthe larger tributaries of some of our great rivers. All that is wanted will be a few jars, such as are used 
to keep preserves, a barrel of about filteen or twenty gallons, and a supply of whiskey and alcohol. These may be kept in 
a cool place, a cellar, or a sheltered recess, ready to receive the fishes. "The smallest fishes are best kept by:themselves ın 
the jars, andıthe larger. ones in\the barrel. The barrel ought to be put,upon one, head, the, other being removed and used as 
a cover. Itwill be well to see that the fishes are placed in it in as natural, a position as possible, that is to say, stretched out 
with the fins elosed against the body, or at least not unnaturally bent. It isequally desirable to exclude specimens the fins 
of which are hruised, and the seales rubbed off, unless they be rare species. When the fishes are too Ion to’be stretehed 
across the barrel, they may be 'gently bent upon their flatter' side, and! if)t00 stiff t6allow'this, put in, head foremoöst, ın 
an uprieht or slanting position, and'then slightly bent 'against'the'sides of the; barrel. » It is useless at. first 'to’pour more 
alcohol over-the fishes than! is'necessary to.cover them... .Of.the smaller kinds of -fishes_at least a dozen ef each would be 
required for a full,and satisfactory examination. _ Where they may,easily be caught, more would be very acceptable. Of 
those of medium size, about half that number ; and of the larger ones, as may be most convenient, one, two, Or three. It 
will secure a better state of preservation, and afförd fuller means of study, if a eut is made’ into the belly of the larger fishes 
{6 allow'the aleohol to penetrate theintestines. ' Atallevents, these ought'nerer to be’removed. The knowledge of’the 
local names is’ very desirable. x! Torreetify'thelerrotsof-nomenclature now spread over the-whole country;ithe simplest,way 
of recording'the’name ofa fish is to write it with a black hard peneil upon a piece of stiff paper, and to place it under the 
sillicover'of the‘speeimen to which it helongs. Specimens too small to receive such a label may be rolled up with it in a 
piece of cotton cloth, or any rag. Delieate fishes, with very deciduous scales, would keep better if they were all wrapped 
up singly in this way incloth. Any other notice respecting the habits, uses, &c. of such specimens may be preserved in 
the same manner, or referred to a No. attached to the:label of the fish... Should any colleetor be sufficiently famıliar with 
painting to draw, colored figures of_any of.these fishes, or so situated,as to have some of them drawn by an artist, it would 
be.an invaluable contribution to Natural History. | | 
When collections have,to travel.over great distances, or to be for many months-on a journey, ıt 1s desirable that every 
speeimen should. be wrapped up. singly in a piece of.cloth,; but this is not necessary, generally speaking, for collections 
which are.likely to be taken. care of after a short journey. | | | 
Those unaccustomed to making eolleetions may occasionally suppose from their smell that they are 'spoiling, the mix- 
ture ofaleohol with dead animal matter being rather disagreeable, but unless there is actual putrefaction, no apprehension need 
hehad respecting the safety of,a collection, and the removal of decayed specimens is all that is required for the preservation 
of the.remainder, „provided the alcohol has the necessary ‚strength of at least twenty-eight degrees of Beaume, or .88 
specific „grayity. „,lo,ayoid Josses, it is prudent, never to use kegs of more than twenty to twenty-five gallons, save in 
exceptional cases, . where very largerand highly valuable specimens are to be preserved. ‚Asa general rule, a twenty-five- 
gallon keg, willcontain,any desirable specimen colleeted even, in our largest rivers, there being alwäys an opportunity now 
and then to obtain a moderately large specimen of our largest fishes, which ‚when full grown are at any rate 100 bulky to 
be:preserved in. alcohol, „Upon small watercourses, or small ponds, an ordinary jar may be suflicient to contain complete 
separate colleetions of all their natural productions, | 128 
This method. of eollecting may apply to almost all animals, it, being now very desirable to obtain specimens of quad- 
rupeds and birds in. alcohol, for, the sake of. making anatomical preparations. Such specimens require, however, t0 be 
injeeted, with aleohol through.the mouth and anus, and also into the abdominal cavity. _Reptiles may be treated like fishes» 
as also most ofthe lower animals. I may say here, that erawfishes and insects, and all brittle objects of Natural History, 
especially when small, must be treated like the smallest, delicate fishes, in separate jars; whilst'shell-fishes, protected as 
As soon as.a.colleetion is supposed. to be complete, it. is-best to send it off at once, that it may be taken care of prop- 
erly, and examined whilst the speeimens are in the best state of. preservation. Not to. multiply the packages, it is .desir-. 
.ableto put,every thing in one, barrel ; but to secure their perfect .preservation, under such ceircumstances, a few precau- 
tions are required. In the first/place, assort somewhat the speeimens, in tubs, before, packing them, so that the larger ones 
may.be.placed side by side and not crush the more delicate ones, After selecting an appropriate keg, plaeing it upon one, 
* Common whiskey of .99 to .92 specific gravity may be used by adding strong alcohol, in the proportion of one zallon of aleohol to one gallon of whis- 
key. Highly rectified whiskey, as.it is prepared in some parts‘of the)coupäry, may occasionally do by itself, especially if it has nearly the specific gravity of 
‚83. „It is;.however, always safer 10 err by using 100,strong than t00 weak;spirits. Specimens may be contracied by"töo strong alcohol, and lose 10 some 
extent their form ; ihey will certainly spoil entirely in 100 weak a mixture. 
O 1 2 3.4 5 6 7 8 9 40 :-wMissours 
j BOTANICAL 
cm | copyright reserved GARDEN 
