HOW TO CLEAN SOILED BIRD SKINS. 
77 
introduced, the legs fastened to it, and plaster poured around it 
to form a tirm attachment. First, however, place fibers of tow 
or pieces of twine over the wood and poke them down into the 
space between it and the sides of the body. Of course in a lob- 
ster thus mounted the tail-wire would need to be of some con- 
siderable size, and it is well in such a case to use a tow wire for 
additional security. When the specimen is quite dry glue on the 
carapace and’ fill the holes between the joints of the legs with 
finely-cut cotton and thin glue. First, put a little cotton into 
the hole, smear it over with glue, and apply cut cotton and glue 
until the gap is completely filled. Le Page’s fish-glue, used thin, 
or his mucilage, is excellent for this work. In painting crus- 
taceans, first give them a thin coat of sugar of lead, which fills 
the pores and prevents the color from striking in and thus look- 
ing dead in spots. When dry, paint with turpentine color, the 
main point being to stipple over with a soft brush. This should 
be done very carefully, as otherwise it is almost impossible to 
avoid giving a streaked appearance to the animal. Crustaceans 
may be mounted either on plain pedestals or on artificial rock- 
work, according to the purpose they are to serve, and in any case 
they should be kept out of the dust so far as possible, since, ow- 
ing to their fragile nature, they are very difficult to clean. 
HOW TO CLEAN SOILED BIRD SKINS. 
BY FEEDEEIC S. WEBSTEE. 
It is only until recently that the cleaning of birds’ feathers 
has become a general practice. 
I can recall the time when not even an attempt was made to 
remove stains caused by fatty matter and dust accumulations. 
In fact, if a specimen was slightly soiled, it was allowed to 
pass unnoticed ; and if badly discolored, the specimen was con- 
sidered more or less worthless, according to its variety. 
The greater part of the valuable collections of our museums, 
prepared in earlier times, are now most unsightly olqects on this 
