NATURAL 
Hiaking the velTel from time to time, after which the li¬ 
quor is to be filtered through blotting-paper. The po¬ 
matum is prepared of a pound of white foap, half a pound 
of cauftic potafii, four ounces of powdered alum, two 
pints of water, four ounces of oil of petroleum, and the 
fame of camphor. The foap, cut into fmall pieces, is 
put in an earthen pipkin over a moderate fire ; the water 
is then to be poured over it; and, when the whole is 
formed into a fort of loft pafte, the alum and then the 
oil are added; the whole well lfirred together, removed 
from the fire, and when it is nearly cold the camphor is 
added, being before-hand rubbed down in-a mortar with 
a little fpirit of wine. The pomatum, thus prepared, 
mull be kept in glafs veflels, well Hopped ; and, when 
ufed, is to be lowered with water to the conliltenceof thin 
cream, and laid on the Ikins by means of a pencil-brulh. 
M. Nicolas has given directions for preparing and pre- 
ferving fpecimens of all the various dalles of animals. 
We lhall, as far as our limits permit,-briefly follow him 
through each. 
i. In llcinning quadrupeds, he propoles to make an in- 
ciiion along the middle of the back, from the haunches 
to the (boulders ; except in thofe animals whole (kin is 
very thick and hard, or is fet with fpines, in which the 
opening mull be made at the belly in the ufual manner. 
In detaching the Ikin from the flelh, we mud occafionally 
employ the knife; and, as we proceed, mull infert tow 
between the lkin and flelh, to prevent foiling the fur. 
When the whole body is detached, and the lkin drawn 
down as far as the feet, the nofe, and the tip of the tail, 
the whole body is to be cut away except the head and ex¬ 
tremities, which are left to give a better form and fupport 
to the fpecimen. All the flelliy and fatty parts, the brain, 
and the eyes, however, mull be cut away, and nothing- 
left but the bones, the fpaces between which and the lkin 
mull be Huffed with tow cut fine ; and a little foft clay 
mull be put within the orbits, in order to fix the artifi¬ 
cial eyes. 
The (kin, being thus detached, is now' to be lleeped for 
feveral days, from five to fifteen, according to the fize of 
the animal, in the liquor firfi defcribed ; and, after fleep- 
ing, the infide is to be w’ell anointed with the pomatum. 
When the legs and head are fluffed, the cavity of the lkull 
filled with very dry mofs, and the eyes fixed, w'ires are to 
be paffed through the infide of the body, the extremities, 
and the head and tail, in the following manner. Three 
iron wires of a moderate fize, U'ell annealed, at leafi twice 
as long as the animal, are to be twified together for nearly 
half their length ; and, while one wire is left ftraight, the 
other two are to be bent at each end, fo as to form a crofs. 
When the lkin is turned, ready for Huffing, thefe wires are 
to be placed within it in fuch a manner as that the flraight 
wire (hall pals, through the head and tail, and the croffing 
wires through the extremities, coming out at the ball of 
each foot; and, in this way, after thecavity is filled up with 
tow, and the open part neatly Hitched., the fpecimen may 
be fixed on a board in its natural pofition. Nothing re¬ 
mains now but to impregnate the fur with the bitter li¬ 
quor lall defcribed, which is done by means of a fponge, 
with which the whole outfide is to be well walhed, then 
covered with folds of linen, and dried in the (hade. 
z. The art of preferving birds is perhaps the mofl curi¬ 
ous part of the prefent fubjebl, and is that to which the 
moff attention has been given. M. Nicolas has explained 
at fome length the mode recommended by M. Kuckhan in 
the Journal de Phyfique ; that by Dr. Lettfom, in the 
Naturalifl’s and Traveller’s Companion ; that of Mau- 
duit, inferted in the fifth number of the Encyclopedic 
Metfiodique; and that of Dufrefne, adopted by M. Daudin, 
and inferted in hisTraite d’Ornithologie ; after which he 
details his own. He defcribes three methods of preparing 
birds', according as we can procure freffi-killed fpecimens, 
whole dried Ikins brought from abroad, or detached parts 
of feveral individuals of the fame fpecies. We (hall here 
Vox., XVI. No. 1139. 
HISTORY. GOT 
confine ourfelves to the firfi or thefe, as being befl adapted 
to the generality of our readers. 
When a freffi-killed bird is procured, it is to be placed 
upon a table, upon its back, with the tail turned towards 
the operator, who, after having feparated with his fingers 
the feathers which cover the belly towards the right and 
left, is to make, with a fcalpel, a longitudinal incifion 
through the lkin, from the point of the bread-bone to 
about the middle of the belly. The edges of the lkin 
are now to be railed with a pair of flat pincers, on each 
fide, carefully feparating the fielhas occafion may require 
w'ith a knife, and inferring a little cotton from time to 
time, to prevent foiling the feathers. In this way the 
lkin is to be detached from the Ihouldfirs and neck, and 
as much as polfible of the body laid bare ; after which a 
pretty llrong thread is to be paffed through the noffrils, 
and tied under the lower mandible, leaving the ends of 
the thread, when tied together, at lead twice as long as 
the neck. Now, holding the bird by the thread, with 
the back turned towards him, the operator is to hold to¬ 
gether the feathers on the two edges of the incifion as 
well as thofe which cover the bread, and, pufhing the 
head of the bird inwards with his thumb, fo as to form 
the neck into an arch, is to cut this off near the body, 
detach from it the gullet and wind-pipe, and all the flelliy 
'parts, both of the neck and head, by drawing the lkin as 
far back as polfible towards the beak, and cutting off the 
neck-bones dole to the head; he is to empty the lkull 
with a little iron inflrumen.t in the form of an ear-picker, 
and clean.it properly with cotton. He is now to wrap 
cotton or tow about the head and neck, and to feparate 
the red of the lkin, leaving the pinions and bones of the 
wings and legs, and the tail, as diredled for quadrupeds. 
After this has been done, the lkin is to be turned out like 
a glove, W'ith all the feathers inwards ; all the natural 
openings of the bird, as well as any ffiot-holes, &c. are 
to be Hitched up with a needle and fine thread ; then the 
whole lkin, as well as the bones, are to be waflied with a 
flrong infufion of tan, with a little alum, by means of a 
pencil-brulh, and the lkin inclofed in a covered veffel that 
it may not dry too haflily. 
In ten or twelve hours time we may waffi the lkin and 
bones again with the aflringent liquor. Twice walking 
in this manner will be fuv.i.vient for very fmall birds ; but 
thofe of a middling fize will require maceration in the 
fil'd liquor employed for quadrupeds during two days, 
and four or five days for thofe of larger fize. The Ikins, 
being well impregnated with the aflringent liquor, are to 
be fmeared with the foapy pomatum, have artificial eyes 
fixed in the orbits by means of wax, and Huffed and 
mounted much in the fame manner as quadrupeds; except 
that the wires employed for this purpofe are differently 
bent. 
Great nicety is required in fixing the different parts of 
a bird in its natural pofition, and in arranging the fea¬ 
thers fmoothly.and evenly. M. Nicolas direbls thin plates 
of lead to be placed fo as to fecure the wings in the pro¬ 
per pofition till the whole is completely arranged. To 
prelerve the feet and legs, he anoints them with linfeed-oil 
mixed with camphor, and applied a little warm. 
The lad operation conlills in enveloping the bird with 
bandages of muflin or fine linen, pinned round the neck, 
bread, body, and rump, as well to fecure the feathers in 
their places during drying, as to allow of their being 
drenched with the bitter liquor to preferve them from the 
attacks of infects. 
3. In preparing fpecimens of reptiles, after what has 
been faid above, little direfition will be required. The 
(kin is to be dript backwards as far as the head, which is 
to be cut off and cleaned as in other fpecimens; after 
which the (kin is to be macerated, anointed within with 
pomatum, dufl’ed and varniffied as before. 
4. In the preparation of fillies, M. Nicolas prefers the 
method of Mauduit to that given by Dr. Lettlom in the 
7 O Naturalift’s 
