<408 A KNOWLEDGE OF CHEMISTRY ESSENTIAL TO THE TAXIDERMIST. 
good drawings and engravings will give us a 
perfect knowledge of the general appearance 
of animals, still they are deficient in many 
particulars ; for by them we cannot be 
made acquainted with the texture of the skin, 
nor the structure of the hair or feathers. 
The naturalist, on all occasions, prefers a 
reference to the stuffed animal to that of a 
pictorial representation, as by this means he 
is enabled to trace, compare, and decide, on 
the creature in its several characters and 
relations. 
In museums and cabinets are brought to- 
gether natural objects of all kinds, from the 
most extreme points of the globe ; and pre- 
sented in a form that enables us, as it w^ere, 
to look upon the mighty field of nature at one 
view ; with the additional advantage of hav- 
ing the various Classes and Genera placed in 
systematic order, to investigate which, in 
their native wilds, would be the business of 
several lifetimes. Besides, wre can here con- 
template, without dread, the most destructive 
and furious quadrupeds, and the most noxi- 
ous reptiles. Here we can muse upon and 
study the animals which have created in us 
the highest of sentiments w^hile reading the 
tale of the traveller, or the singularity of 
organization, pointed out by the naturalist. 
He who has attended to any branch of 
Natural History, will best know how difficult 
it is to collect even the animals, plants, or 
minerals of Britain ; because some of the 
individuals are extremely' local in their 
habitats. 
To instruct in the manner of Collecting, 
Cleaning, Prepar-ing, and Preserving these, 
is the object of the following Treatise. This 
ai't has been practised in a certain degree from 
very early times, but it was not till after the 
middle of the last century, that Taxidermy, 
or the art of preserving objects of Natural 
History, had reached any degree of perfection, 
and it is still susceptible of much improve- 
ment. 
We have seen that attempts at the preser- 
vation of animal substances were practised 
by the Egyptians in the instance of Mummies 
and the Ibis, which they always preserved 
along with their chiefs. But these were pre- 
pared in such a manner as to produce no 
leasurable sensations in examining them; 
eing remarkable only for their great anti- 
quity. 
It is to be lamented, that even to the pre- 
sent day chemists have not discovered means 
of elFectually resisting the universal law of 
decay, which, by certain fixed operations, 
reduces every kind of organised matter to its 
original elements. Methods have been devised 
of arresting for a time the progress of decay, 
but these seem gradually to lose their effect, 
and ultimately become mutilated and decom- 
posed. Animal substances are subject to the 
ravages of thousands of minute animals. This 
is probably brought about by the varied 
changes and penetrating powers of the at- 
mosphere, caused by its gases, heat, and mois- 
ture. We do not mean by this that the 
atmosphere creates minute beings, only its 
influence is favourable and indispensable to 
their reproduction. On uiiorgfuiised sub- 
stances, these are found to be ever acting 
and destructive agents. 
To devise the means of preventing these 
effects is the business of the 'I'axidermist, and 
upon his success the excellence of his art will 
depend. It will, therefore, easily be imagined 
how important and indeed indispensable to 
his art is a thorough knowledge of chemical 
science, for by experimenting on preservatives 
on established chemical principles, he may 
discover the best method of averting the 
progress of Time’s destroying hand. 
Although considerable advances have been 
made of late years in the art of Taxidermy, 
it is still far ft'om pei'fection. This is to be 
attributed, in a great measure, to the edu- 
cation of the persons who practise this art ; 
for among all I have met with employed in 
the presevation of animals, none have had the 
advantage of anatomical study, which is 
quite indispensable to the perfection of stuf- 
fing. One or two individuals, it is true, have 
attended to the structure of the skeleton of 
Man, and a few of the more common ani- 
mals, but this is far from the information 
which they ought to possess ; for nothing 
short of a general and extensive knowledge 
of comparative anatomy can qualify them 
sufficiently for an art which is so comprehen- 
sive and varied in its application. 
These obsei’vations are particularly appli- 
cable to Uuadrupeds and Reptiles ; for what 
are even the best stuffed specimens of the 
first museums in the world compared to the 
living svibject ? Nothing better than deformed 
and glaringly artificial productions, devoid of 
all the grace and beautifully turned points of 
living nature. A knowledge of drawing and 
modelling arealsoindispensable qualifications, 
to enable the stuffer to place his subject in a 
position both natural and stx'iking. It is the 
too frequent practice for the stuft’er to set 
about preserving the animal without having 
determined in what attitude he is to place it, 
so that it will appear to most advantage, and 
be in character with the ordinary habits of 
the creature This he leaves to the last efforts 
of finishing his work, and, consequently, its 
proportions and character are likely to be 
devoid of all appearance of animation. 
The first thing, therefore, to be attended 
to in all great national natural history esta- 
blishments, is to choose young persons 
who are yet in their boyhood, to be instruct- 
ed in this art, most important to science* 
Their studies should be commenced by deep 
attention to drawing, modelling, anatomy, 
and chemistry, while they, at the same time, 
proceed with the practical part of their art. 
Every opportunity of examining the habits 
and actions of the living subject should be em- 
braced, and its attitudes and general aspect 
carefully noted. Without strict attention 
to these points, so manifestly obvious, the art 
of preserving animals never will attain that 
degree of perfection which its importance 
demands. On the other hand, if this art is 
pursued in the manner here recommended, 
artists may be produced who will fulfil the ob- 
