THE SCOPE ANT) HEEDS OF TAXIDERMY. 
53 
many of them when their mounted forms preserved in our muse- 
ums will be all to show that they once existed. I do not forget, 
as some one might suggest, that we have drawings and paintings 
to refer to ; but, passing by the objections that these are largely 
inaccurate in form and faulty in color, the fact remains that 
none but the very best of paintings produce anything like the 
impression aroused by the animals themselves. W^e may admire 
a painted Tiger, but we feel no dread of him, and while we may 
realize from the figure of an Elephant that he is large, we still 
fail to fully appreciate his true size. Where is the picture that 
conveys an adequate idea of the repulsive appearance and quiver- 
ing bulk of the Ehinoceros, or one even that depicts a Buffalo as 
he actually exists ? The Buffalo, as usually portrayed, is a sort 
of hump-backed Lion, with a pair of horns added, and hoofs in- 
stead of claws — a very caricature of nature. Do not mistake me 
as implying that the taxidermist invariably does his subject jus- 
tice, but I wish to show what he can and ought to do. Here, 
then, is the great field for the taxidermist to place before the 
public animals from all climes and all countries as they appear 
in their native haunts. The field is a wide one, and if it has 
been but little cultivated it is in a great measure because our 
museums are not what they should be in the character of their 
specimens. But already there is a faint rustle among the dry 
bones and lifeless skins, and I think the day is coming when we 
will witness a revolution in the style of our museums. Two 
points there are which our museum authorities are beginning to 
recognize ; first, that they are largely dependent on taxidermists 
for tlieir most attractive and instructive features ; and, second, 
that there is a difference in the quality of workmanship. Hith- 
erto almost anything has been accepted, provided it was cheap ; 
but that day is passing, and specimens are beginning to be viewed 
with a more critical eye, for the fact is being realized that low- 
priced work is not always the cheapest in the end. In the great 
mnseum of this city the past year has seen a vast weeding out of 
poor specimens and their replacement by better ones. The Cam- 
bridge Museum calls not for the cheapest work, but for the best, 
• and the National Museum has begun the laudable task of sub- 
stituting the best of work for its many stuffed monstrosities. 
