Shrosbree—Scientific Development of Taxidermy. 345 
excepting through amateur work to which many of the poorly 
mounted and distorted old specimens which still remain in most 
museums, attest. These are fast disappearing, however, by the 
remounting of those that are fit, converting others into skins,, 
and discarding the worthless. 
The commencement of scientific taxidermy in the United 
States, dates back to the year 1873, when the late Prof. H. A. 
Ward, of Rochester, N. Y., imported several trained men from 
Germany, France, and other parts of Europe, and added the 
Department of Taxidermy to his natural science establishment. 
At that time, it was found impossible to engage in this country 
a single trained taxidermist. It, therefore, become necessary 
to import trained men from Europe, and very keen rivalry ex¬ 
isted between these men, as also between the amateurs and the 
apprentices who were later employd there. Each individual 
taxidermist was consequently surrounded with critics. This 
had the effect of stimulating him to his best efforts, and if a 
taxidermist did perchance make a mistake in the mounting of a 
specimen, those “critics” usually found some very fantastic 
means of directing the unfortunate operators attention to it. 
The Society of American Taxidermists, having its inception 
among the employes of Ward’s Natural Science Establishment, 
was organized early in 1880, and devoted to the development 
and improvement of their art, the first exhibition being held in 
December of that year, at Rochester, N. Y. This friendly riv¬ 
alry developed the best that was in each one, and full fledged 
taxidermists began to receive appointments at the several mus¬ 
eums. The Establishment had developed into a sort of a scien¬ 
tific training school for museum taxidermists. The taxider¬ 
mists at most of the museums in the United States at the pres¬ 
ent time, graduated from that Establishment, or were developed 
by those who had received their training there. 
My time spent as a taxidermist there, extending from 1887 to 
1899, I consider one of the most profitable and most interesting 
experiences of my life. To become a successful taxidermist, a 
person must have an eye for form that he can make good models 
of the objects to be mounted; must be a close observer of all liv- 
