THE MUSKRAT AS A FUR BEARER AND AS FOOD, 



15 



though many trappers pass the knife around the feet, where the 

 long fur ends. Then turn the skin back over the body, leaving the 

 fur side inward. The skin peels off easily to the front feet. Cut 

 closely around nose, ears, and lips, so as not to tear the pelt. If 

 bits of flesh adhere to the skin about the head, they may be scraped 

 off, but this is usually left to the fur dresser. The skin, inside out, 

 is stretched over a thin board or a shingle of the proper shape (fig. 3) , 

 and a tack or two is inserted to keep it in position 

 to dry. Stretchers made of heavy galvanized wire 

 are now extensively used by trappers and have ad- 

 vantages over the wooden kind (fig. 4). Skins 

 should be dried in the open air — not before a fire 

 or in the sun. They should not be exposed to rain. 

 Books on trapping usually give full directions for 

 caring for raw furs. 



HOME DRESSING OF FURS. 



O 



Fig. — Wooden 

 stretcher for 

 muskrat skins. 



Formerly many muskrat skins 

 were home-tanned and made into 

 caps, collars, and other articles. 

 At present the home utilization of 

 skins is much less extensive, but 

 knowledge of a good method of 

 dressing the fur is still desirable. 

 Most of the methods employed by 

 amateurs involve the use of alum 

 to fix the hair; but satisfactory results, so far as 

 pliability of the pelts goes, depend largely upon the 

 labor bestowed on them. 



The directions here given, if followed, will give 

 better results than the use of alum. Prepare a tan- 

 ning liquid composed of a quart of salt and one-half 

 ounce of sulphuric acid to each gallon of water. 

 This mixture should not be kept in a metal con- 

 tainer. Muskrat skins (not cased) are tanned in 

 this mixture in a day, but they may remain in it longer without 

 injury. When removed from the liquor, wash several times in 

 soapy water, wring as dry as possible, and rub the flesh side with 

 a cake of hard soap. Then fold them in the middle, lengthwise, 

 over a line, hair side out, and leave to dry. When both surfaces 

 are barely dry, and the interior is still moist, lay them over a 

 smooth, rounded board and scrape on the flesh side with the edge of 

 a worn flat file or a similar blunt-edged tool. In this way an inner layer 

 is removed and the skins become nearly white in color. They are 



Fig. 4. — W i r e 

 stretcher for 

 muskrat skins. 



