34 



THE YOUNG NATURALIST. 



the specimen be split longitudinally into two, a double supply of specimens 

 is secured. Fleshy plants, as stonecrop, heaths, pines and bulbs, must be 

 placed in boiling water for a few seconds and then removed, to prevent any- 

 thing more than the actual killing of the specimens. 



When plants are brought home in the tin and placed between the paper 

 for the first time, the paper must be changed after 24 hours, and then placed 

 between a second supply, where they remain as long as convenient. It is 

 always desirable to take the plants out- of the tin as soon as possible, for 

 though they will keep fresh for some days in the tin, the absence of light will 

 affect the colour, and some specimens not unfrequently grow and are thereby 

 really spoiled. Great care should be taken not to have the specimens in the 

 tin in a wet state, or they will soon rot. Water plants, as a rule, dry up very 

 rapidly in the air and it is always advisable to place them at once between 

 paper. 



It is by no means a bad plan to insert in the pile of drying specimens 

 (especially if some are thick and others delicate) u boards" here and there, to 

 separate the thick from the delicate, or those from one locality from others 

 obtained elsewhere (though the label mentioned should always accompany 

 each specimen), as they allow access to air and thereby also aid the drying. 

 These " boards" are made of thin strips of wood, fastened crosswise, forming 

 a frame the size of the papers. 



It may be objected that the above plan involves a large amount of paper, 

 &c, and is costly. This need not be the case. Drying paper practically 

 never wears out, and the stock can always be added to, as funds allow. The 

 folded newspapers are a great addition and are quite sufficient for grasses and 

 sedges, and they can help out the proper drying papers, at all events for the 

 first few years. The stones can be procured at any mason's and are inexpen- 

 sive, one or two can be purchased at a time, or even bricks serve very 

 well till means allow of proper stones being purchased. 



To those whose time is valuable and who have (as I have had) to dry many 

 hundreds of specimens every year, the plan I have pointed out is most con- 

 venient, the whole arrangement of the specimens being left till winter. 



The poisoning of specimens, though partly effectual, is by no means 

 universally so, and I have seen collections, though well poisoned, still liable to 

 the attacks of moths. Besides, the mere damping of the specimen necessary 

 for poisoning is certain to destroy the colour. The best safeguard against 

 moths in my experience is the using of the specimen, taking them out of the 

 cabinet for reference or show, and then disturbing any creatures that may 

 have crept in. A lump of camphor kept in the cabinet will be very useful, 

 provided no insects have previously attacked the specimens. Of course, 



