As soon as the little animal is firmly fixed on his temporary pedestal, or

his branch, which must be permanent, we are ready to give the final touches

to the body. We will, with thumb and finger, press in the shoulders if they

are too high or wide, flatten the body by pressure if it is too round on

the sides, and emphasize the undulating outline of the sides also by

pressure. If there is a hollow spot where the surface should be smooth,

thrust a sharp awl through the skin, catch some tow on the point of the

awl, and, with a sharp lifting motion, pull the fibre up until it fills out

the hollow. If there is a lump of tow under the skin, making an unsightly

hump, thrust the point of the awl through into it, and spread it out

underneath until the skin lies flat. It is often necessary to work all over

the body of an animal with the awl in this way.

We have now to finish the head. With the cutting pliers, cut off the end of

the body wire close up to the skull, so that the end will be hidden. Adjust

the skin so that it fits naturally and easily on the skull and around the

mouth, and see that the eyes come over the centre of the orbits. If the

clay which was put upon the skull does not fill out the jaws and sides of

the head quite naturally, push in a little chopped tow until the proper

form is obtained.

[Illustration: FIG. 27.--The Finished Specimen.]

Avoid getting one jaw fuller than the other; it is only boys and men who

chew tobacco who have cheeks that are not bilaterally symmetrical. Avoid

getting one eye too far back, forward, up or down, but match the one that

is correctly placed.

Fill in the end of the nose, the lips, and the chin with clay, fold the

lips naturally and press them into place. If the skin around the mouth is

not unnaturally drawn back, the lips will stay in place, and dry there

without any fastening. If the skin is drawn too far back, the lips must be

pinned in place until they dry. The advantage in using clay for filling out

the head is that it enables you to press the skin down upon it and mould

all the parts into their natural shape and size, without giving to the head

that unnatural, puffed out, _stuffed_ appearance, which is almost

unavoidable when tow only is used.

Introduce clay at the eye opening until the addition of the glass eye

inside will make the organ sufficiently prominent. Insert the glass eye

edgewise through the opening, turn it in position and embed it in the clay.

With a large needle, or your awl, adjust the eyelids upon the glass, and if

the eye is not right, work it into its proper position. Adjust both eyes

alike, and, above all, see to it that they both look at the same point, be

that point real or imaginary.

The same amount of iris must show in each eye, and the position of the

pupils must correspond exactly. Do not make them unusually staring, as

though about to burst from their sockets. It is the eye more than any other

one feature that gives any animal, living or stuffed, its expression, and

this is due entirely to the arrangement of the lid and brow. The eyeball

has, in itself, no more power of varied expression than a glass marble;

therefore the facial expression of a mounted animal is wholly under the

control of the taxidermist, provided he takes the trouble to procure good

glass eyes of the right size and quality.

Unless the ears of your specimen are very small and insignificant, it will

be necessary to cut two pieces of thin card-board the shape of each ear,

but larger, and after getting the ear in position, pin it between them, so

that it will be held in a natural position and good shape until it dries.

Do not thrust the pins through the ear, but through the card-board around

the edge. The last thing is to arrange the toes and feet naturally, and pin

each toe in place until it dries. Since our squirrel is to be holding a

nut, we will cut off the foreleg wires, all but half an inch, and bring the

paws close together at the proper elevation. We must now drill two small

holes in opposite sides of a hickory nut, force the wires into them until

the nut rests nicely in the paws, and there let it remain. If necessary, we

will tie the toes in position around the nut until they are dry. It is a

common fault with beginners in taxidermy to slight the toes of their

specimens, both birds and mammals, and, as a result, all such specimens

have a slovenly, tramp-like appearance.

Nature alone can tell you how to pose the tail to represent the state of

the animal's feelings. Try to look at your work with the eye of an artist,

analyze it, and catalogue its faults, so that you will be sure to avoid

them in the next specimen.

If the hair needs no more washing, comb it out carefully at the last

moment, and set your specimen on a shelf to dry, out of the dust if

possible, and out of the sunshine, and watch it while it is drying to see

that the head and feet dry in good shape. At the end of two weeks, or

perhaps three, the little mammal will be dry and hard, and ready for the

last touches. Pull out all the pins which have been holding the toes, ears,

lips, or eye corners in place, and if they leave any holes, fill them up

with putty. I have not told you how to stuff a head with the mouth open,

and model the soft parts in papier-maché and wax, because you will hardly

want to try anything so difficult at present, and it involves processes

which cannot be described within the limits of this chapter.

When your mammal is quite dry, dress the fur with a fine comb and brush,

and beat it with a small piece of whalebone or a little switch, to make it

stand out from the skin, full and fluffy, as in life. This end must be

accomplished, no matter how long it takes.

Procure some tube colors, oil and turpentine, equal parts, and a small

sable brush, with which to tint the eyelids and the end of the nose their

natural color. Put a little varnish and turpentine, equal parts of each, on

the toe-nails, and, in short, do everything you can that will give the

specimen the look of a living animal. If it _looks stuffed_, put it in the

darkest corner of your cabinet, and try another. The glass eyes must be

cleaned with great care, and polished with a soft cotton rag until they

glisten.

At the last moment change the rough board pedestal for a permanent one,

either of black walnut, polished, or ash, planed and sand-papered very

smooth, and covered with two coats of shellac. If you have perched your

squirrel on the top of a small stump, sawed off square at the bottom, or

upon a large branch, with a section of the trunk serving as a base, of

course no artificial base is necessary. Artificial branches for mounted

birds are bad enough, but for mammals they are altogether too bad, and

should never be used.

In conclusion, do not expect that your first mammal is going to be an

overpowering success. Do not take a cat for your first subject, for a cat

is the most difficult of all small quadrupeds to mount successfully. A

tough old squirrel is the best thing for you to wrestle with until you have

learned the method thoroughly.

EXCEPTIONAL CASES.--There are certain classes of small mammals whose skins

should not be put through the salt and alum bath, if possible to avoid it,

for several reasons. These are the young of the smaller mammalia,

especially such as rabbits, squirrels, and other familiar forms. It is by

far the best plan to mount all such skins as soon as they are taken off,

without wetting the hair, and using dry arsenic and alum, equal parts, to

preserve and poison them. The bones of young animals become quite soft in

the bath, and the hair is difficult to dress to look like life. The fur of

a rabbit is the meanest fur in the world to comb out and dress to look

fluffy and immaculate after it has once been wet with salt-and-alum water.

Mount them without wetting when you can, only _poison them well_ against

moths. Alcohol is far preferable to the bath for the skins of such species

as the above, and, as our English cousins would say, is "not half bad."

MOUNTING BATS.--Having tried all known methods of mounting and displaying

these pestiferous little subjects, I finally evolved an arrangement which I

now conceitedly believe is the only satisfactory solution of the

difficulties they present. My plan is to mount the bat without any wires,

save in the legs of the larger species, and when finished lay it on its

back on a smooth board, spread the wings, put pieces of pasteboard over the

membrane until all is covered, and pin them down. Of course the wings must

be in perfect position. When the specimen is dry, apply some royal glue of

the best quality to the back of each wing, and stick his batship

permanently on a strip of thick plate glass, which has been prepared

previously by being cut to the proper size, and ground on the edges.

[Illustration: FIG. 28.--Author's Method of Mounting Bats on Glass.]

The accompanying cut (Fig. 28) was drawn from a specimen as exhibited,

omitting the label. The advantages of this arrangement are as follows: It

shows the specimen perfectly on both sides; the wings do not warp and

shrivel up; it is possible to repair breaks in the wing membrane, and the

most delicate specimen is well protected. The strip of glass stands on edge

in a deep groove which has been cut to fit it tightly in the top of a flat,

narrow pedestal having the usual moulded edge.

FOOTNOTE:

[8] If you can not procure annealed wire, take hard iron wire, heat it to

redness, and as soon as it reaches that state remove it from the fire and

allow it to cool slowly.

CHAPTER XVI.

MOUNTING LARGE MAMMALS.--ORDINARY METHODS.

SECTION 1. LONG-HAIRED MAMMALS OF MEDIUM SIZE.--_Examples:

Wolves, certain dogs, large apes, baboons and monkeys; the

smaller bears, hair seals, all long-haired quadrupeds from the

size of the fox to the Newfoundland dog; also, all old dry

skins of mammals between the two sizes mentioned._

While it will be advised in Section III. of this subject to mount

_short-haired_ skins of the above sizes upon clay-covered manikins, it is

very often an impossibility to pursue this course with a dry skin, no

matter what its pelage may be like. Dry skins more than one year old are

usually so shrunken, hard, and inelastic, that in circumference they are

one or two sizes smaller than life, and it is very often impossible to

stretch them sufficiently to make them fit over a manikin of the right

size. The only way in which enough power can be brought to bear upon them

to force them to stretch to their proper size in neck and body, is to fill

them with straw, and ram it so hard that the skin is forced to stretch.

Even if you fill a shrunken body so full that it will stretch no more, if

you keep it thoroughly moist, or even wet, in wet cloths, and return to the

charge next day with more straw and muscle, you will find that the skin

yields a good deal more, and perhaps reaches the right size without further

protest. Very often this is the only treatment that will save an old, dry

skin from becoming a total loss. In all such cases _fill out the worst

shrunken parts first_, to make sure of conquering them, and leave the less

difficult portions to the last.

The chief differences between the method described in the previous chapter

for mounting small mammals, and that for the subjects included in this

section are simply these: (1.) The larger animals require leg wires or

irons that are too large to be bent at will and twisted together. (2.)

Where rods are used, a thread must be cut on the lower end of each to

receive a nut under the pedestal, because leg rods can not be fastened in

any other way. (3.) A stout wooden bar must be used in the body for the

leg, head, and tail wires, or irons, to run through, and upon which all

these can be stapled down firmly. (4.) For various reasons, it is best that

all these animals should be filled with straw by the old process of

stuffing.

To mount a specimen belonging in this section, proceed precisely as

directed in the previous chapter, with wiring and making each leg, _except_

where the specimen is so large that it requires rods for the legs instead

of wires. It is only the larger and heavier animals of this section, viz.,

the wolves, large dogs, large kangaroos, anthropoid apes, and the like,

that require rods instead of wires. For your foxes, baboons, and small

kangaroos, you can use wires of the large sizes, of about the same

proportionate length as for your squirrel. In getting out the rods for the

legs of your large specimens, use Norway iron, because it is toughest, and

proceed as follows:

Decide upon the attitude of your specimen, then lay the bones of each leg

in its intended position on the table, take a straight wire of large size

(No. 9) and bend it to fit the back of the leg bones, precisely where you

wish your rod to go. Leave an end about two and one-half inches long,

projecting _straight downward_ from the centre of the foot, to go through

the pedestal and receive a nut underneath. Cut a thread on this lower end,

and fit a hexagonal nut. For the hind legs, let the upper end of each rod

project beyond the upper end of the femur for a distance equal to about

two-thirds the length of that bone. The irons to support the head should be

two in number, and should be long enough to reach from the end of the nose

to the centre of the body. The tail iron will be regulated by

circumstances.

THE HAND OF AN ANTHROPOID APE.--It nearly always happens that every skin of

a large gorilla, chimpanzee, or orang utan is totally destitute of bones.

Now the hand of such an animal is a very important feature. Do not attempt

to make it with wires and tow alone, for if you do, the fingers will be

semicircles, resembling the half of an over-brown doughnut. Each joint must

show _an angle_, and each finger be _flat_ on the inside. The accompanying

cut (Fig. 29) shows how to make the hand of an anthropoid ape so that it

shall be as natural as life. The wooden bones give the proper angles at the

joints, and the tow-wrapped wire underneath gives the finger its proper

breadth. When all is ready, cover each finger manikin with clay, _make the

palm hollow and flat_, and let the end of the iron rod come out in the

centre of the palm. This method gives a hand that is beyond criticism. For

hand and foot studies of apes and monkeys, see "The Standard Natural

History," vol. v., page 512.

[Illustration: FIG. 29.--Artificial Skeleton for Hand of an Orang Utan.]

The following animals, when of adult size, require leg supports of the

following sizes: Large foxes, No. 8 wire; olive baboon, No. 5 or 6; small

kangaroo, No. 4 to 6; wolverine, No. 6; coyote, 1/4 inch rod; setter dog,

1/4 inch; peccary, 1/4 inch; great ant-eater, 1/4 inch; gray wolf, 5/16

inch; giant kangaroo, 3/8 inch for hind legs; harp seal, 3/8 inch.

Having made the legs complete, lay the skin upon its back, with the legs

spread out, make the irons or wires cross each other as shown in the

accompanying figure (Plate VI.), and then hew out a piece of tough wood of

the general shape and proportion as that shown in the cut. Let this be as

small as practicable to avoid splitting when the irons are stapled down

upon it. Round off the corners and the ends, so that you can easily work

all around this wooden backbone, when filling the animal. Now lay this

piece of wood in the skin, upon the crossed leg irons, mark the points at

which the irons need to pass through it, and bore holes accordingly,

_slanting_ each hole through the stick, for good reasons. The next step is

to pass the irons through these holes (by bending them a little, and

straightening them afterward) and when all are through, adjust the legs so

that there is plenty of loose skin in the body, both in length and breadth.

Remember that the stick is to be in the centre of the body, not the top.

When the adjustment is complete, bend the end of each iron sharply down

upon the stick, and staple it down with the utmost firmness.

Next pass one of your neck irons through the skull from back to front,

boring a hole at the back for the purpose, so as to make the end of the

iron pass out at the nasal cavity. Replace the missing flesh of the skull

with tow or excelsior, bound down with thread, cover all with clay, poison

the inside of the head and neck skin with arsenical soap, insert the skull

in the head, and fasten the lower end of each neck iron firmly upon the

centre stick.

The tail must now be made, but it is wise to fasten the tail iron so that

it can be made to slip out or in, until it is known precisely how long it

shall be, and then the end may be fastened securely with staples. Now bend

up the legs into position, and give the animal its attitude. Procure your

pedestal, or limb of a tree, and place the animal in attitude upon it; mark

where the iron supports are to pass through, bore the necessary holes, and

see if the animal will stand just as you wish it to. If not, work at its

legs, and bore new holes until it does; then take it off, poison the inside

of the skin liberally with strong arsenical soap, and proceed to stuff it

with straw, or chopped tow, or excelsior if you prefer that, but I never

do. For my own use I prefer soft straw, chopped fine.

Fill the neck first, using your wooden filler, then the body. If the body

threatens to be too small, fill that first. Before going far, fill out the

hind-quarters properly. Work on the body _all over at the same time_, and

do not finish one-half of the animal before you have touched the other

half, for this course would get you into endless trouble.

[Illustration: PLATE VI. INTERIOR MECHANISM OF A HALF-MOUNTED WOLF.]

Having filled the body full, and shaped it the best you can, and sewn it up

at all points save two,--a hole between the forelegs and one under the

tail,--now put it in final position on its pedestal, and fasten it there.

Having done this and surveyed the scene, you will observe that the form of

the animal is very faulty, and the skin not nearly full enough. Something

more must be done.

Unless the specimen is a seal, or something else with short, close hair,

part the hair carefully and make a long, perpendicular slit in the skin

behind each foreleg and in each flank, as shown in Plate III., I-I, and

K-K. Through these openings you can introduce your metal filling tools, and

also filling materials _ad libitum_, and give the interior a complete

overhauling. You can easily push your iron filler through the straw, and

raise the line of the back, shoulders, or hind-quarters, and lower the line

of the breast and abdomen until both are right. Then, fill with more

straw, or tow, if you like now. Through these holes you command the entire

body of the animal at every point, and now you must work out your own

salvation. When all is finished and the body is quite full and solid, sew

up the openings carefully, and unite the hair over them so that they will

be hidden. If you are careless in filling, and pull out a lot of hair

around each of the openings, so much the worse for you.

For full instructions in regard to work on heads, see a special chapter.

[Illustration]

[Illustration: FIG. 30.--Fillers of Various Kinds, One-sixth Actual Size.

_a_, Filler of hard wood, 3 ft. long (another should be 2 ft. long); _b_,

filler of steel, 5/16 inch x 3 ft. for long reaches in large mammals; _c_,

filler of iron, 3/8 inch x 2-1/2 ft., for heavy work (another should be 18

in. long); _d_, filler of brass, or galvanized iron wire, No. 5, for light

work (another should be still smaller, for very fine work).]

_Cutting out Pieces of Skin._--It not infrequently happens that in mounting

an old skin it will be found to have been unduly stretched in drying, and

in spite of one's best efforts there will be too much skin in a flank, or

behind a shoulder, or that the body itself will be entirely too large. In

such cases, when the animal is clothed with hair which can be made to hide

the seams, it is necessary and permissible to cut a long slit in the skin

where the looseness occurs, and cut out a strip so that when the edges are

brought together the wrinkle no longer exists. Usually such cuts are made

in the shape of a triangle running out to a very fine point, so that when

the incision is sewn up the entire adjacent surface will be quite smooth.

When a taxidermist has a fresh skin, or one which has been but recently

prepared dry, it is very seldom that any skin-cutting is necessary. With a

good elastic skin there are ways of working away from any part a

superabundance of skin, or forcing the skin on parts adjacent to the

wrinkles to contract sufficiently to cause their disappearance.

On close-haired animals, wrinkles must be worked away, which can in a

majority of cases be accomplished by hard, persevering work with the

filler. With long-haired animals which have no stripes or spots, and on

which the hair can be made to hide all seams, it is best to cut out

triangular strips of skin. In the latter case it saves much time and hard

labor. It certainly gives a better specimen, and if such tricks leave no

visible trace upon the animal, where is the harm? I care not if a skin be

slit in twenty places so long as the cuts are tightly sewn up, _and are

invisible to the eye of the observer_.

Bird skins must never be cut in this way, for to the ornithologist who

diligently studies every specimen, the presence of every feather and every

bare spot naturally belonging to the bird is of importance. Do not forget

this caution, unless you wish to call down upon your head the just wrath of

the ornithologist. Neither is it possible to do any skin-cutting upon

reptiles, for there is no natural covering to hide seams, and to cut out

any scales is to mutilate a specimen.

SECTION II. MOUNTING LONG-HAIRED MAMMALS OF LARGE SIZE,

FOR WHICH THE MANIKIN IS UNNECESSARY.--_Examples: Musk

ox, bears (except large polars and grizzlies), yak, Bactrian camel in

winter coat, llamas and their allies; also old, dry shins generally,

which require forcible stretching._

While the manikin process is the one _par excellence_ for the great

majority of large quadrupeds, it is also, until you get perfectly familiar

with it, the longest. There are various large animals whose long, thick,

and matted hair so completely hides the surface of the wearer that a

shorter method of mounting can be followed with very satisfactory results.

This is simply stuffing with straw in the same manner as described in

detail in the previous section, with but one exception--the manner of

attaching the leg irons to the central beam of the body.

The leg irons are cut and fitted to the leg bones precisely as shown in

Plate VII. But the legs are made with the skin attached at the foot, the

skin is drawn over, fitted and sewn up, and each leg is completely finished

while the skin lies in a heap upon the table. For a large animal this takes

some time, and as fast as the legs are finished each must be carefully

wrapped up in ice blankets that have been wet in salt-and-alum water, and

kept soft until all are done. Oil the threads on the rods, to keep them

from rusting.

The next step is to procure the centre board, which should be about

one-third as wide, from top to bottom as the depth of the animal's body. In

the illustration showing the manikin of a tiger (Plate VII.) the body board

is wider than is desirable for the same animal were the body to be filled

with straw. If the board is too wide, it is impossible to get around it

with the fillers, and work through the specimen from one side to the other.

To put the members of the body together, lay the skin upon the floor on its

back, in the same general shape as shown in Plate VI. Put the body board in

place and mark the points where the ends of the leg irons strike it. Now

for the iron squares.

The old and antiquated way to fasten leg irons to a centre board consisted

in leaving a long end projecting, bending it like the letter U, and

stapling it to the board. That was always a poor way, and in the light of a

perfect arrangement it now seems poorer than ever.

When Mr. John Martens came over from Hamburg to work as a mammal

taxidermist in Professor H.A. Ward's great Natural Science Establishment,

at Rochester, N.Y., the most valuable luggage he brought with him was the

idea of the iron square for attaching leg irons to a centre board. For that

particular purpose it would be hard to devise a more perfect arrangement,

and I shall be at some pains to describe it.

It requires four irons to fasten the legs to the centre board, one for each

leg, and to make a set for an animal the size of a large mountain sheep

ram, proceed as follows:

Procure four pieces of flat bar iron, 1/4 of an inch thick, 1-1/4 or 1-1/2

inch wide, and 9 inches long. At a point 3-1/2 inches from one end, bend

each iron at a perfect right angle, which, of course, can only be done by

heating it. Now heat the short arm red hot, clamp the end of it in a vise,

and make a twist of exactly a quarter of a turn in the short arm, as close

up to the angle as you can. This will make the end of the short arm stand

out in a horizontal plane against the side of the body board.

At the end of the short arm, with its centre exactly 3 inches from the

inner face of the long arm, drill or punch a hole of the right size to

receive the threaded end of the leg iron, but no larger. (For our _Ovis

montana_ ram it should be half an inch in diameter.) File off the sharp

corners of this end.

[Illustration: FIG. 31.--An Iron Square.]

At a point about 1-1/4 inch from the inner angle of the square, and in the

long arm, drill a hole about 7/16 or 1/2 an inch in diameter, for a stout

bolt to pass through. Between that and the end of the long arm, drill (or

punch) two screw-holes, and countersink them. That is all there is to the

making of the square, and the accompanying cut (Fig. 31) accurately

represents it. Each pair of squares is put on with a single square-headed

bolt, the length of which varies according to the thickness of the body

board. For our mountain ram, the bolts should be 3/8 of an inch in

diameter, and about 2-1/2 inches long.

It is useless and unnecessary for me to attempt to describe the different

sizes of squares necessary for animals of various sizes, for circumstances

must be the instructor in that. I will remark, however, that for a large

bison or moose, where the finished specimen will weigh perhaps 600 or 700

pounds, and the strain on the irons is very considerable, I have found it

necessary to make squares of flat iron 3/8 or 7/16 of an inch thick by

1-3/4 inch wide.

_Caution.--Do not make, the short, or outer arm, too long._ If too long,

and the hole once drilled, you will hardly be able to make it shorter; but

if too short, it can easily be made longer by putting a piece of board

between the long arm of the square and the body board. The length of the

outer arm of the squares for the hind legs is gauged by the width of the

pelvis. The measurement to be taken is the distance between the centres of

the two femora when both are in their natural positions in the skeleton,

and with this distance once ascertained it is easy to deduct the thickness

of the centre board, and calculate how long each outer arm shall be. The

distance between the heads of the two humeri is practically the same as the

distance between the femora.

In making the hind leg, the iron should be no longer at the upper end than

the end of the femur, and once this is determined the upper end of the

femur must be cut off with a saw, to give room for the squares and two

nuts. The end of the iron for the front leg may project three inches or so

above the head of the humerus, and be bent slightly backward; to point

upward in the same direction as the scapula.

Remember that at first the squares of the two pairs are set on exactly

opposite each other, by means of the single bolt for each pair. Insert the

upper end of each leg iron, screw the upper nut down firmly, then lift the

half-made animal and stand it on its legs. Being free to move, the legs are

very shaky, and you proceed at once to put them in position. You now adjust

the legs according to your original design, bore holes in the rough

pedestal for the lower ends of the rods to pass through, and shift and

change the different members, now here, now there, until you are satisfied

that the leg's are in precisely the right attitudes. If the leg that is

stepping out in front is too short, run up the two nuts at the square, and

thus make the leg an inch or two longer. Those that are too long are easily

shortened by shifting their nuts lower down. You have such absolute control

over the legs that you can shift and change them just as much as you

please, and that very easily. If the whole animal is coupled too short or

too long, it is but five minutes' work to take out a bolt, bore another

hole, and shift the forelegs farther forward or back. When everything is

perfectly to your liking, tighten up every nut to its very tightest, and

insert screws through the screw-holes that have been provided in the long

arm of each square. Each leg is now a fixture.

The great beauty of this method, which appears to its greatest perfection

in the construction of a manikin, lies in the fact that you have, from

first to last, the most perfect control over the different parts of the

entire animal. When you discover as you proceed that something is wrong, it

is an easy matter to change it, provided the skin has not been put on the

manikin.

In putting together an animal with the legs in the skin, you are

necessarily troubled somewhat by the skin of the body, which hinders the

turning of your wrench, etc.; but all such difficulties exist only to be

overcome.

Put the neck irons through the skull, and fasten the inner end of each to

the body board, as shown in the tiger manikin, or in any other solid way

you prefer. As to the tail, ditto, and when the attitude is perfect, and

all parts fastened together, then, and not until then, anoint the inside of

the skin with arsenical soap, all that it will hold, and give it time to be

absorbed. Put the head in position by bending the neck irons, place the

feet in position, and tighten the nuts under the pedestal. Now turn the

animal upside down, put a rope under each end of the pedestal, and hang the

whole affair up to the ceiling, or to a beam, by means of the ropes, so

that it will swing clear of the floor.

Next sew up the skin of the abdomen and breast, and proceed to fill the

neck, shoulders, and hind-quarters with soft straw. Oat straw is the best,

if you can get it. If you can procure no soft straw, then have a boy take

your wheat straw, bunch by bunch, and with a mallet pound it upon a block

to crush it and make it soft. In filling the animal, the first thing to do

is to fill it out at all points, loosely at first, to get the general

proportions. The skin should not touch your iron squares or the body board

at any point, for if it does, something is wrong. At first you will work

with your large wooden fillers, but as the straw gets packed, and the

wooden tool will not go through it, take your iron fillers. No matter how

hard straw may be packed, with a burrowing, twisting motion you can force

that wedge-pointed instrument through the straw so as to reach any point

that needs more filling out.

Be careful about the line of the back, and keep it exactly in place, along

the centre of the body, and always at the highest point. Do not let the

back line of a feline animal, especially a tiger or a leopard, get down

upon one side, as will be sure to happen if you are not watchful. When the

outline of the back is fixed, then fill out the breast and abdomen, and get

the lower line of the body just as it should be. As you proceed with all

this, keep sewing up the skin from time to time until only two holes

remain, one at the breast and one between the hind legs well back. Now take

the animal down, stand it upon the floor, cut slits in the sides, as

directed in the previous section, and through them finish the filling and

shaping of the body.

All this takes work, hard work, intelligent work, and a great deal of it.

Make the body hard and firm, and as smooth on the outside as Nature does.

To secure smoothness, and to lower the unnatural knobs that are sure to

appear, beat the animal from time to time with a flat club. When all is

done, fill in the last bit of straw at the various holes, sew them up

strongly but neatly with stout linen twine, or "gilling thread," well

waxed, and dress the fur. This will be treated elsewhere in a separate

section, as also will the treatment of the head.

CHAPTER XVII.

MOUNTING LARGE MAMMALS: THE CONSTRUCTION OF MANIKINS.

SECTION III. SHORT-HAIRED OR HAIRLESS MAMMALS, AND OTHERS OF

GREAT SIZE.--_Examples: Lion, tiger, zebra, horse, giraffe,

bison and buffalo, camel, all deer and antelopes; elephant,

rhinoceros, hippopotamus, tapir, etc._

Of the numerous processes described in this work there are two which I must

mention as being distinctively and particularly my own. One is the general

use of clay as a filling material, and the other is the evolution and

development of the clay-covered manikin, on the principles now to be

described and illustrated. Already this method of mounting quadrupeds has

been quite generally adopted by the new school of American taxidermists,

and I think it is destined to fill our museums with more perfect mounted

mammals than the rest of the world can show. I have always willingly taught

the advantages of the clay-covered manikin, and the various processes

involved in its construction, to every enterprising taxidermist who desired

to learn it, and it was my intention to have published a full description

of it years ago. Now it comes as a sort of "farewell performance," and

"positively the last appearance."

Among taxidermists, the term _manikin_ is applied to the made up figure of

an animal over which a skin is to be adjusted, and made to counterfeit the

actual form and size of a living animal. While it is well adapted to the

successful treatment of mammals, reptiles, and fishes in general, it is

impossible to employ it in mounting bird skins unless they are very badly

torn, and require to be put together a piece at a time, or else are of the

very largest size. The worst torn and mutilated bird skin can be put

together on a manikin with perfect success, provided the skin is all

present.

Speaking from my own experience, I must say that my clay-covered manikin

process seems to possess important and undisputed advantages over all other

methods I have ever seen employed or described for the mounting of not only

the most difficult mammalian subjects, but also reptiles of many kinds, and

fishes. By it the most perfect results attainable by the taxidermic art are

not only possible, but may be achieved without even a risk of failure save

through lack of anatomical knowledge. Nearly all the mechanical

difficulties which beset the other methods are eliminated, and the result

becomes chiefly a question of knowledge and artistic sense. By this method,

I have successfully mounted such mammals as the following: Elephant,[9]

American bison, polar bear, zebra, tiger, puma, elephant seal, hairless

Mexican dog, etc. The last-named specimen was in competition against the

elephant in a competitive exhibition, and I learned afterward from the

judges that it came near wresting the grand prize from its lordly

competitor. This fact is mentioned to show that the process was equally

successful in the treatment of a thick-hided elephant and a small dog with

a skin as thin as writing-paper, and utterly destitute of hair. A plaster

cast of the unskinned body of the dog was exhibited with the mounted

specimen, to enable the observer to judge of the success of the process.

The unchallenged superiority of the clay-covered manikin process is due to

the following reasons:

1. The absolute control the operator is able to exercise over the form of

his subject from first to last, without prejudice to the safety of the skin

to be mounted.

2. The possibility of working out anatomical details which it is useless to

attempt by other methods.

3. The absolute permanency of the form produced.

4. The ability of the operator to place his subjects in attitudes so

difficult that by ordinary methods they would be unattainable.

5. The most perfect preservation of the skin and its covering from damage

by excessive handling, beating, and wetting.

6. The absolute perfection of form and attitude which is attainable by this

method only.

Until you have fully learned the principles of manikin-making, do not

attempt to mount by this process a skin that has come to you with no

measurements nor leg bones. Choose for your first attempt a good-sized dog

or sheep, or some quadruped of similar size which you have _in the flesh_,

and from which you can take a full series of outlines, measurements, casts,

etc. I can probably teach you as well as any living man how to proceed when

you have no measurements whatever, and will give you a few hints presently;

but now I say, you _must_ have your first subject in the flesh. It is then

within your power to secure to yourself all possible advantages in what you

are about to do.

It is desirable to take the usual measurements before the skin is removed,

but by all means make another series of the skinned body and limbs. In

skinning, disjoint the leg bones at the carpal joint,[10] which leaves only

the bones of the foot attached to the skin. When the skin is put on for the

last time, this joint must be re-articulated with two wires. When the skin

is out of the way, you can take the length of the body from the back

part of the thigh to the point of the shoulder; the distance between elbow

and knee, from the elbow to the top of the shoulder; the circumference and

diameter of the body, neck, and limbs, at various points; the depth of the

body, etc. You can also measure from the highest point of the head of the

femur to a similar point on the humerus, and when the hind legs have been

cut off, you can easily determine the proper length for your iron squares

by measuring between the two hip sockets (_os inominata_). Observe, now, if

you never did before, that the front edges of the tibia and the ulna have

no flesh whatever upon them, nor has the angle of the elbow, the knee-cap,

nor the front of the metacarpal bones.

Save the bones of each leg complete, and without any farther disjointing;

but, of course, the flesh must be carefully trimmed and scraped away. Save

the skull, of course, and it will be a great help if you will hastily

"rough out" the bones of the entire body and save them for reference until

the manikin is complete. The pelvis and the thorax will help you greatly by

and by. We will now assume that we are ready to proceed with the manikin,

which we will follow out by successive steps.

[Illustration: PLATE VII. MANIKIN FOR TIGER.--FIRST STAGE.]

1. The first thing to do is to cut a deep groove in the bones of the heel,

close alongside the base of the calcaneum, also in the bones of the foot at

the joints, and in the head of the humerus from the back, so that the iron

can fit in snugly, and not create a great, awkward, rounded hump at each of

those joints. In a hoofed animal, the centre of the hoof must be cut out so

that the iron can pass through it quite out of sight where it enters the

pedestal. The lower joints of the foreleg must be channelled out in the

same way. Study the shape of each joint and you will then see precisely

what is needed. In cutting out these grooves, I use a saw for certain

bones, and gouges and stone-mason's chisels for others, according to

circumstances. Remember that between the tendon of Achilles and the lower

end of the tibia there is always a deep _hollow_, where the skin of the two

sides actually comes together. Keep your leg iron out of that hollow at all

hazards,--and this can be done only by sinking the iron into the tibia.

2. If you have an outline of the animal's body, lay it upon the floor, and

draw a straight line to represent the top of your pedestal. If you have no

sketches, then you must draw an outline in chalk upon the floor, choosing a

certain crack as the line of the pedestal. Now lay down the skeleton of

each leg in its own place, in the position the leg is to have in the

finished animal. Measure the height of the missing bones of the foot, and

leave a space accordingly above the top of your assumed pedestal. It is

highly important these leg bones should each have the right attitude.

3. Take four straight No. 6 wires, and with the first leg laid out

carefully in position, bend the wire to fit the back of the leg bones very

exactly, cut it off the right length, and so make an exact pattern for the

leg rod. Remember to allow for its going through a good thick pedestal, and

having about two inches to spare underneath for a nut and washer. The rod

for the foreleg may project above the upper end of the humerus one-third to

one-half the length of that bone, but the rod for the hind leg must not be

the least bit longer than the upper end of the femur. Remember also to bury

the iron well in the centre of the lowest joint of the leg and the foot, so

that it will not be seen when the animal is finished. In order to show the

bends that are necessary in the leg irons of a ruminant, I have taken the

trouble to photograph and reproduce herewith (Fig. 32) the identical leg

irons which now support the huge bull buffalo in the National Museum group,

the manikin of which is also shown in this chapter. Before bending, the

irons for the forelegs were each 4 feet 1/2 inch in length, and those for

the hind legs were 4 feet 6-1/2 inches; diameter, 5/8 inch.

[Illustration: FIG. 32.--Leg Irons of an American Bison.]

4. Having made your four patterns exact in length and bend, cut four leg

irons to match, from round rods of Norway iron, or best American, if Norway

cannot be procured. I can give you no fixed rule by which to determine the

size that leg irons should be, but I can at least mention the sizes I use

in certain animals:

Adult moose, male or female, and giraffe, 3/4 inch.

Bull bison, cow bison, horse, 5/8 inch.

Male caribou, black-tail deer, and large mountain sheep, 1/2 inch.

Male Virginia deer, antelope, tiger, 7/16 inch.

All these sizes, except the two largest, can be bent cold in a strong vise.

5. Having bent the irons to match the patterns, and to fit the bones also,

cut a long thread on each end of each rod, and fit two large hexagonal nuts

on each end so that they turn readily, but not loosely.

6. With soft but strong twine, or annealed wire, bind each leg iron firmly

to the leg bones from top to bottom. You may now take a saw and cut off the

upper third of the femur.

7. During the course of the foregoing work, you have had a blacksmith at

work making your four iron squares (see previous chapter) according to a

hoop-iron pattern furnished by you, and now they are ready to use in

attaching the leg irons.

8. Now comes the question of a centre board for the body. If the animal is

a dog, a small deer or antelope, a tiger, or _anything so small that you

can reach around its body with your arms_, make the body board as narrow as

you please, or as wide as the entire depth of the animal's body, if you

choose. I think it better to make it similar in proportions to that shown

in the accompanying illustration (Plate VII.) of the first stage of a

tiger manikin, in order that with a long needle one can sew through the

body from side to side. It is well, for the same reason, to cut a hole in

the board, as shown, at a point opposite the iliac region. I mounted this

tiger with a decided curve in the middle of his body, which obliged me to

cut the centre board in two, and unite the two parts again at an angle by

means of two bent pieces of iron screwed on either side. In most animals,

however, this is unnecessary. The centre board need not be over 7/8 of an

inch in thickness in any save very large animals, when it is best to have

it 1-1/2 inch, or nearly that. It is best to use dry white pine, because it

is light and works easily.

9. Lay the body board on your chalk outline, lay the iron legs in position,

put the squares down and mark the place where the bolt for each pair should

pass through. Bore the holes, bolt on the squares quite firmly (but leave

the screws out as yet), then insert the leg rods, and tighten the nuts. Set

the legs on as nearly right as possible while the skeleton form lies on the

floor, then stand it up, put it on a rough pedestal, and see how it looks.

Now comes the crucial test of your knowledge and artistic sense. A number

of things are wrong, and the shaky skeleton of the manikin "don't look

right."

What is the matter? Is one of the front legs bent forward at the carpal

joint? Then straighten it. Is the animal coupled too short? Then move one

pair of legs a trifle on the centre board, to increase the length of the

body. Do not the legs walk naturally? Then make them. Are the forelegs, and

hind legs also, too close together? Then your squares are too short, and

they must be lengthened by placing a bit of board under each one, as seen

under the hind-leg square of the tiger manikin.

You will probably need to shift the feet on the pedestal also, by boring

new holes. You can make any leg longer or shorter, make the stride shorter

or longer, and, in fact, make any change that your eye, or your picture or

cast tells you is necessary. The vital necessity is that your eye must be

so trained and educated that it detects a fault instantly, no matter how

slight, and sees what is required to remedy it. The eye of a successful

taxidermist must be educated just as thoroughly as the hand of a pianist.

For a large animal, it is, for me, several hours' work to attach the legs

to the body board, and make the changes necessary to bring everything into

perfect position. The last thing is to take the cleaned skin out of the

bath, throw it over the skeleton manikin, and see how it fits. If, when it

is adjusted, the feet do not touch the pedestal, you know that the manikin

is too high, and you must either cut down the top of the centre board with

a draw-shave, or else lower it by attaching the squares nearer the top. In

this trial the feet should stand loosely upon the floor.

Having got everything finally adjusted, put the screws in the squares,

tighten up all nuts, and put a washer under each nut that strikes the

pedestal, both above and below, and make all secure. There must be no

looseness, or the manikin will lean over immediately. The centre board

should stand exactly perpendicular. Test it with a plumb-line, and see if

it does so. Is the manikin now so secure that you can sit upon it without

racking it? If not, it should be. To test the manikin for my big buffalo,

shown in this chapter, I climbed upon it, and stood with my full weight,

first on the outer end of one iron square, then on another, and to test the

strength of the neck irons I put a large anvil on the top of the skull

without making the slightest permanent impression on the irons.

10. It is unnecessary to speak further of the irons for the head and tail,

and their attachment. See figures.

11. Next comes the making of the legs. The lower joints, where there is

scarcely any flesh, had best be made of clean, long-fibre tow. Where the

thick muscles lie, bunch up some tow, put it where the muscle was, and bind

on with thread or twine. Continue this process until this muscle has been

built up to its proper size, and wrapped at all points until it is smooth,

firm, and properly shaped. Higher up, where the muscles are thicker and lie

in larger masses, use excelsior in precisely the same way. Little by

little, but with much excelsior and twine, the muscles are gradually built

up. Leave the bones bare at the points where nature does. The hind leg must

have its tendon of Achilles before it can be finished. To make this, drill

a hole through the end of the calcaneum, or heel bone; pass a long wire

through for half its length, twist the two halves tightly together until

they will reach half-way up the thigh, then wrap tow around the twisted

wire from the heel bone up, making the tendon larger as you proceed.

Presently you are ready to merge it into the flesh of the leg so that its

upper end disappears.

To give form to a leg, and bring out the prominent muscles, take a very

long needle and a very long piece of twine, and sew through and through the

leg on certain lines, putting on pressure to produce certain depressions

that exist between the larger muscles. To give detailed directions on this

point would oblige me to go into the subject of musculation at great and

tiresome length, and since this is not a work on anatomy, I will not

attempt a dissertation on the form of each genera of the mammalia. The

illustrations of the tiger and bison manikins show the form of the external

muscles of _Felis tigris_ and _Bison americanus_, and what is possible in a

manikin.

MAKING THE BODY OF A MANIKIN.--The centre board of a large mammal, like the

bison, moose, and all such animals, should accurately represent a section

through the centre of the body from top to bottom. In the absence of

measurements and living models, the closest approximation to the desired

form is obtained by laying the skin upon the floor, hair inside, and

folding it loosely upon itself so as to get what looks like the general

shape of the animal, and then taking the outline thus obtained.

A very large manikin may be made hollow in the manner represented in the

accompanying plate (Plate IX.), which is self-explanatory. This is often

desirable to avoid making the figure too heavy, as would be the case were

the entire bulk to be made a solid mass of excelsior. For the smaller

buffaloes, I made the bodies of excelsior alone. Each side was built up

separately by driving a row of nails along the top of the centre board, and

another along the bottom to carry the twine over in binding on the layers

of excelsior. At the last, these nails were driven home.

During all this process the skin has been tried on the manikin from time to

time, to make sure that the structure is of the right size in every

respect. Beginners nearly always make a manikin too large, especially in

circumference.

It is the commonest trick in the world for legs and necks to be made so

large they have to be reduced. If a skin does not fit when it is tried on,

the manikin is generally to blame, though sometimes the skin is badly

shrunken, and requires to be further thinned down to make it more elastic.

It is easy enough to make a manikin larger or higher, especially on the

hind quarters, even while the skin is being put on for the last time; but

woe to him whose manikin is _too large_ at the last moment. That means

serious delay.

When the manikin is finished at every point, shear it all over with a large

pair of shears to clip off the ends of the wisps of excelsior, and then

poison the skin thoroughly on the inside with arsenical soap, and on the

outside with arsenic water, if the hair be long. While the poison is being

absorbed, mix up enough clay to cover the entire animal with a coat an

eighth or a quarter of an inch thick, and smear it on with the hand. Have

it soft and pasty, so that it will rub into the excelsior, and catch hold

of it. If the clay is too stiff, it will neither spread nor stick.

[Illustration: PLATE VIII. MANIKIN FOR TIGER.--COMPLETED.]

When the manikin has been fully covered with clay from end of nose to tip

of tail, not a single inch of surface having been missed, you then have a

complete clay statue of the animal, except the feet. Now put the skin over

and adjust it carefully. Leave no air-bubbles under it. Catch it together

between the fore legs, hind legs, under the belly, the throat and neck, and

around the legs, and make it fit everywhere. Then begin at the feet and sew

it up with short, strong stitches in the manner already described, shaping

and filling out wherever necessary, as you go. On a large mammal it is very

desirable for two persons to work at the same time, to keep the skin from

drying up prematurely. Of course, the skin must be kept wrapped up in wet

cloths until finished. Finish all the legs first, and then the body. You

can actually model the skin down upon the body, and it will not only take

the exact form of the manikin--every depression and every elevation--but it

will also _keep_ it. If there is too much skin on one side of the animal,

work it together with your hand, and coax it to shrink until the

superfluous skin is distributed over the animal, and finally disappears.

Once, when mounting the skin of a Burchell's zebra in a peculiar attitude

(at bay), I found that, owing to its elasticity, there was a superabundance

of about ten inches of skin in front of the left hind leg, which was placed

very far forward, under the body. But for the saving grace of a

clay-covered manikin I should have been in a fix. As it was, I started in

half-way up the neck, to work together and stow away the surplus skin from

that point backward, and by the time I reached the seat of the difficulty

(at the flank) the surplus skin was all taken up, and the side of the

animal was as smooth and immaculate as if nothing had happened.

There is supreme pleasure in crowning a well-made manikin with a handsome

skin, and seeing a specimen take on perfect form and permanent beauty as if

by magic. It is then that you begin to be proud of your work; and finally

you revel in it. You say to yourself, "_This_ is art!"--and so it is,--but

let your work speak for itself.

The head is the last thing to be finished, and this feature of the work

will be treated in detail in another chapter.

FOOTNOTES:

[9] This specimen received the silver specialty medal awarded "for the best

piece in entire Exhibition," at the New York Exhibition of the Society of

American Taxidermists, in 1883.

[10] At the _hoof_ in the case of all hoofed animals.

CHAPTER XVIII.

FINISHING MOUNTED MAMMALS.

DRYING AND SHRINKING.--After the actual mounting of a mammal is finished,

the specimen should be put aside in a separate room, away from the dust,

and allowed to stand for from three or four weeks to three or four months,

according to its size. It must have time to dry thoroughly, and shrink as

much as it will. Every specimen is bound to shrink in drying, and it is

better for this to occur before it leaves the workroom, and before the

finishing touches are put on, rather than after it goes on exhibition, and

is practically beyond your reach.

In shrinking, all the seams open, more or less; the eyelids draw away a

trifle from the glass eye; usually the lips open somewhat; and in ruminants

the inner skin of the ear often draws straight across the inside.

CLEANING UP A SPECIMEN.--In finishing a specimen, the first thing is to dig

the clay and tow out of all open seams, cracks, and small holes,

preparatory to filling them with papier-maché. With the sharp point of a

pointed bone-scraper, dig out the clay, or whatever filling material is in

sight, very thoroughly, so as to give the papier-maché a chance to enter

deeply and catch firmly underneath the edges of the skin. With a stiff

brush, brush out the seams and openings, so that no clay-dust remains, for

there is nothing so good as clay-dust to prevent papier-maché from sticking

to a skin. It is often well to use a bellows in getting dirt out of holes

and seams.

Beat the dust out of the hair, or blow it out with the hand bellows, or

brush it out, or wash it out if necessary, any way to get it out. If the

hair has been poisoned with arsenic water, do as little to it as possible

in getting out the accumulated dust, for too vigorous treatment will bring

out the arsenic with the dust, and send it into your lungs.

If, however, the hair has not yet been poisoned, as soon as the cleaning is

finished lay the animal upon its back, or on its side, and pour into the

hair, so that it will run immediately down to the roots, a solution of

alcohol, water, and corrosive sublimate made as follows: If you wish to

make four gallons of the solution, take two gallons of ninety-five per cent

alcohol, dissolve in it all the corrosive sublimate it will take up, making

what chemists call a "saturated solution." In this there will always be a

little of the sublimate left on the bottom of the jar. This is, of course,

too strong to use thus, under any circumstances. Carefully pour off the

clear liquid so as to leave the sediment remaining in the jar, and then

dilute the former with an equal quantity of water, which thus yields the

desired four gallons. It is most effectually applied by pouring it from a

small watering-pot, with the sprinkler off the spout, into the hair, so

that it will fill it and cover the skin without being wasted. The corrosive

sublimate is deposited at the roots of the hair, and also on the hair, in

quantity sufficient to prevent the ravages of insects, but not to be

injurious to the health of the taxidermist. Strong arsenic water may be

used for this purpose, instead of the other solution, if

preferred. In case the solution used should leave a gray deposit on the

hair, it should be sponged off with a little warm water.

PAPIER-MACHÉ.--_How to Make and Use It._--Every taxidermist must know how

to make good papier-maché before his education can be considered complete.

This material is absolutely indispensable in taxidermic work, and its

composition should be thoroughly understood. It is used in filling up

holes, seams, and cracks, in modeling the mouth parts of specimens that

have been mounted with the mouth open, in restoring missing parts of

various specimens, in modeling bones to go in "restored" skeletons, etc. It

is also of great value in modeling groundwork to be made in imitation of

rock or wood. There is really no good substitute for this material. When

properly made it sticks tightly to its place, is easily modeled, can be

crowded into the smallest crack, dries quickly when exposed to the air, is

hard and smooth when dry, takes paint readily, and yet when kept wrapped in

a wet cloth under an inverted bowl can be kept soft for several days.

There are several ways of making papier-maché, according to the use to

which it is to be put. I have taken pains to prepare an exact formula for

making the finest and best quality, and from that the worker will

undoubtedly be able to work out variations in quality, according to his

needs.

The most important ingredient is the paper pulp. The finest pulp for

papier-maché is that made by the ton in the Bureau of Engraving and

Printing in Washington, from mutilated paper currency, but not from tobacco

stamps, which is coarse and not fit for fine work. A hundred pounds of this

pulp would cost, in Washington, about $1.50, and could be made into sheets

of small bulk, and dried for use as needed. It is a great advantage to have

it in this form. When needed for use, take a dry sheet or ball of the right

size, dissolve and beat it up into a thin mush in a bowl of water, until

the particles are all well separated, then pour it on a sieve to run the

water out without losing the pulp. The water is then squeezed out of it by

gentle pressure with the hand, but it should not, by any means, be squeezed

as dry as possible, for the water is an important factor. Pulp prepared

thus can be stirred up with glue into a perfectly homogeneous paste, free

from all lumps, and so fine it can be pressed into the smallest crack.

If you have no manufactured pulp, then you must make it yourself. Procure a

lot of old newspapers, of as soft paper as possible, tear them to bits, put

the pieces in a kettle of boiling water and beat the mass in any way you

please, boiling it meanwhile, until it becomes paper pulp. It should be

free from lumps and small pieces of paper, or it will not work well.

The following are the ingredients necessary to make a lump of papier-maché

a little larger than an ordinary base-ball, and weighing 17 ounces.

FINE PAPIER-MACHÉ.

{ dry paper, 1 ounce }

Wet paper pulp, { } 4 ounces (avoirdupois).

{ water, 3 ounces }

Dry plaster Paris, 8 ounces "

Hot glue, 1/2 gill, or 4-1/2 tablespoonfuls.

[Illustration: PLATE IX. MANIKIN FOR MALE AMERICAN BISON.--HALF COMPLETED.]

While the paper pulp is being prepared, melt some best Irish glue in the

gluepot, and make it of the same thickness and general consistency as that

used by cabinet-makers. Measure the different ingredients to be used, until

the result teaches you what good papier-maché is like, and after that you

can be guided by your judgment as you proceed. On taking the paper pulp

from the water, give it a gentle squeeze, but by no means squeeze it as dry

as you can. Now put it in a bowl, put over it about three tablespoonfuls of

your hot glue, and stir the mass up into a soft and very sticky paste. Next

add your plaster Paris, and mix it thoroughly. By the time you have used

about three ounces of the plaster, the mass is so dry and thick you can

hardly work it. Now add the remainder of your glue, work it up again until

it becomes sticky once more, then add the remainder of your plaster.

Squeeze it vigorously through your fingers to thoroughly mix the mass, and

work it until it is free from lumps, is finely kneaded, and is sticky

enough to stick fast to the surface of a planed board when you rub a bit on

it by firm pressure of the finger. If it is too dry to stick fast, add a

few drops of either glue or water, it makes little difference which, and

work it up again. When the paper pulp is poor, and the maché is inclined

to be lumpy, lay the mass upon a smooth board, take a hammer and pound it

hard to grind it up fine.

If the papier-maché is not sticky enough to stick fast to whatever a bit of

it is rubbed upon, it is a failure, and requires more glue. In using it the

mass should be kept in a lump, and used as soon as possible after it is

made. Keep the surface of the lump moist by means of a wet cloth laid over

it, for if you do not, the surface will dry rapidly. If you wish to keep it

overnight, or longer, wrap it up in several thicknesses of wet cotton

cloth, and put it under an inverted bowl. If it should by accident or delay

become a trifle too stiff to work well, add a few drops of water to the

mass, pound it with the hammer, and work it over again. If you wish to keep

a lump for a week, to use daily, add a few drops of glycerine when you make

it, so that it will dry more slowly.

The papier-maché made when the above formula was prepared had the following

qualities: When tested by rubbing between the thumb and finger, it was

sticky and covered the thumb with a thin coating. (Had it left the thumb

clean, it would have been because it contained too much water.) When rubbed

upon a pane of glass, it stuck tightly and dried hard in three hours,

without cracking, and could only be removed with a knife. When spread in a

layer, as thin as writing-paper, it dried in half an hour. A mass actually

used dried hard enough to coat with wax in eighteen hours, and, without

cracking, became as hard as wood; yet a similar quantity wrapped in a wet

cloth and placed under an inverted bowl kept soft and fit for use for an

entire week.

Such are the qualities of first-class papier-maché, and the manner of

producing them all. I have dwelt at great length on this material because

it is such an important and indispensable factor in general taxidermic

work. It will pay any taxidermist to become an expert in making it and

using it, and a little later, when we get to modeling intricate mouth

parts, and making all sorts of restorations and repairs, we shall see what

a valuable servant is papier-maché.

"MACHÉING" MOUNTED MAMMALS.--Surely it is unnecessary for me to devote

much space to directing how to fill up with papier-maché the holes, seams,

and cracks in a mounted mammal. Of course all cavities opened by shrinkage

or accident must be filled up. Use a sharp-pointed knife, press the fine

and soft maché deeply into every opening, make it catch _underneath_ the

skin, so that when dry it cannot flake off, or be knocked off; and smooth

it on the outside to the level of the skin. Use the maché liberally, and it

will be more certain always to remain as you leave it. Fill up rough seams

until they are smooth, so that the hair can be glued on if necessary.

Wherever dry clay shows, dig it out and replace with the other more durable

material, which can be painted, whereas dry clay can not.

PUTTY.--In the days of my youth I was taught by my European teachers to use

putty for all such work as that described above; but I very soon became

disgusted with it, and years ago ceased to use it for any purpose whatever.

It is greasy, inert, and yet purely temporary stuff. It never gets really

hard unless used in a great mass, and when used in small quantities for

fine work it is utterly worthless. Do not use it unless you are so situated

that you are positively unable to make papier-maché--and I cannot imagine

any such situation as being possible within the pale of civilization.

PAINTING ON PAPIER-MACHÉ.--Of course this material dries white, and must be

painted. If paint is put directly upon it, the oil and color is absorbed at

once, and it takes many coats to properly fill it up. To save time and give

the best results, first give your papier-maché work two coats of shellac,

which dries in a few minutes and fills up all the pores, so that your paint

will stay as you put it on. Use oil colors, but put them on with turpentine

to avoid the unnatural gloss that oil will give. In another chapter (XXVI.)

will be found detailed hints in regard to painting mounted specimens.

GLUING HAIR UPON MAMMALS.--It is very seldom that a dry skin is mounted

without there being upon it some spot or spots destitute of hair, which

must be repaired. Sometimes it is only a small spot, sometimes it is nearly

the entire head, or an entire leg from which the epidermis has come loose,

carrying the hair with it, and leaving an unsightly bare spot. It requires

a good deal of ingenuity, much skill, and tireless patience to glue hair

upon an animal so that it will so closely resemble the natural growth that

no one will notice the difference. But in every case, except some of the

seals and sea-lions, this can be accomplished, if it be necessary, although

very often it requires good judgment and the hand of an artist to do it.

Each mammal has its own peculiarities in regard to the quality, thickness,

length, and general set of its hair, all of which must be carefully

studied. When the hair grows long and thickly, the task is much easier than

if it be thin or short.

1st. Procure a pair of very small curve-pointed forceps, so fine they will

hold a single hair if necessary. (Price, 75 cents.)

2d. Procure a pair of small and sharp scissors, with sharp points.

3d. Procure a bottle of common fish-glue, or royal glue.

4th. If possible, procure a piece of useless skin, from which to cut the

hair necessary to use in making the repairs.

Very often it is impossible to procure any pieces of skin with hair

suitable for the purpose, and then the only way is to cut hair from the

specimen which is to be repaired, picking out with the forceps a tiny bunch

here and there in such a way that the bunches cut out will not show. This

can nearly always be done in making slight repairs upon thick-haired

animals, such as bears, wolves, monkeys, etc. But with such short-haired

animals as the tiger, zebra, and giraffe, the hair must be procured

elsewhere. Use the hair of any animal to repair the coat of another, so

long as it will answer perfectly, no matter what the genus or species may

be. Use tow, or jute, painted or dyed the proper color, if it is

sufficiently like the hair which will surround it.

In order to treat this subject intelligibly, we will undertake to separate

all terrestrial mammals into three classes, as follows:

1st. _Animals with very close, short hair; as the tiger, zebra, horse, and

giraffe._

Upon such animals as the above, the hair lies almost flat upon the skin,

completely covering it with a very smooth, glossy coat. To repair hair upon

such animals, procure pieces of skin having hair of the requisite quality,

and soak them in clear water until decomposition sets in, and the hair

easily comes out _by the roots_. The hair must not be cut off, or it will

not answer. Be sure that your fish-glue is good and strong, and about as

thick as castor-oil. Clean the bare surface of the skin by scraping it with

a knife to remove all dirt, and give the glue a chance to take hold. With

your small forceps, pull from the pieces of half-macerated skin a small

bunch of hair of the proper tint, and with a small camel's-hair brush apply

a drop of glue to the roots of the hair. Begin at the side of the bare spot

where the hair grows directly away from it, and lay down your little bunch

of hairs so that their tips shall fairly cover the roots of those nearest

the edge. Then press down the bunch of hair thus placed in position, work

the hairs slightly apart, and make them lie quite flat upon the skin.

Follow up this process with untiring patience, and the result will be

entirely satisfactory. I have seen large patches of hair glued upon a tiger

so successfully that when finished the sharpest eye could not detect the

repaired spots. But it was very slow work, requiring an hour's steady work

to cover a spot of not quite two square inches.

2d. _Animals with thick, long hair; as most monkeys, bears, wolves, all the

ruminants of cold climates, etc._

[Illustration: PLATE X. MANIKIN FOR AMERICAN BISON.--COMPLETED.]

In repairing the coats of such as the above, the necessary hair may be cut

off in bunches, either from the animal itself, or from old pieces of skin,

so long as the hair is of the proper length. Notice carefully the set of

the hair, and imitate it very exactly. The glue may be applied quite

plentifully to the roots of each bunch of hairs while you hold it in your

forceps, and usually quite a large bunch may be set on at a time, and

afterward spread out a little. In repairing the mountain sheep (_Ovis

montana_) and prong-horn antelope (_Antilocapra americana_), the point of

vital importance is to get every hair to set in precisely the right

direction, so that the surface will be smooth. If the hair is put on

carelessly, and without due observance of the above caution, upon the

repaired spot it will stick stiffly out like the bristles of a shoe-brush,

and the imperfection of the coat will be painfully apparent.

3d. _Animals with long hair growing very thinly; as upon certain portions

of orang utans, chimpanzees, and all members of the hog family._

Upon the animals indicated above, it will be found that the hair grows in

little bunches of three or four hairs in a bunch, but so thinly distributed

that the skin shows through quite distinctly.

Furthermore, in such cases the hairs stand out from the skin, and their

_roots_ are plainly visible. Successfully to repair such a skin is very

slow, tedious work, and cannot be done by a man whose time is very

valuable. A boy working for small wages is the best means to employ, but he

must be watched closely.

Procure the hair necessary for making the repairs. Then with a sharp awl,

or coarse needle, prick the skin full of holes to correspond in number and

distribution with the arrangement of the tiny hair bunches upon the skin

surrounding the spot. Prick the little holes rather deeply and slanting in

the right direction. Then take a bunch of three or four hairs in your

smallest forceps, dip the end in the fish-glue, and keeping the hairs well

together, set the bunch into one of the little holes. See that the hairs

stand out in the right direction, and proceed in this way until the bare

spot is covered.

CHAPTER XIX.

MOUNTING MAMMAL HEADS AS TROPHIES AND ORNAMENTS.

Sportsmen, if you really must kill all the large mammalia from off the face

of the earth, do at least preserve the heads that are brought low by your

skill and prowess. Now that our elk, moose, deer, caribou, antelope,

mountain sheep, and mountain goat are all disappearing so rapidly, and

nearly all these species are doomed to speedy extermination, head

collecting has become quite the fashion. There are in this country probably

two score of taxidermists who live by heads alone; and many hunters who

once lived by buffalo robes and beaver pelts now make a business of hunting

for heads to sell. I know many such, and their scale of prices for heads,

according to size and "points," shows that they have got the business "down

fine."

And why should not heads be collected and made much of, as well as pelts

and meat? A naturally handsome mammal head which has been skilfully mounted

is a thing of beauty and a joy forever. Wearied with the survey of inane

and meaningless pictures, stiff portraits, cheap statuettes, and tawdry

fancy decorations, the eye rests gladly and gratefully upon a fine head on

a handsome shield, hanging in a good light, and blesses the hand that

placed it there. Such an ornament calls forth endless admiration and query,

even from those who know no other chase than that of the mighty dollar, and

who, alas! have never found out by experience that

"There is a pleasure in the pathless woods."

And therefore I say, if you must go and kill things, save their heads and

mount them as an atonement for your deeds of blood. They will give pleasure

to you and your friends long after you have hung up your rifle forever. I

have gathered numerous curiosities and works of art in foreign lands, but

they do not excite one-half the admiration that is called forth by the

series of really fine heads of buffalo, deer, mountain sheep, elk,

antelope, and mountain goat of which I am the fortunate possessor.

Inasmuch as this chapter is intended chiefly for the benefit of sportsmen

and amateur taxidermists, we must begin at the beginning, and treat the

subject in somewhat full detail. We will consider that we have a deer as

our subject.

Many a fine deer head is spoiled forever by being cut off too close behind

the ears. With such animals as the lion, tiger, leopard, puma, and bear, a

long neck is not desirable unless the head is to be mounted in a glass

case, looking out of a thicket; and neither is it best for a buffalo head

to have a long neck. It may be set down as a safe rule, however, that the

heads of all deer, antelopes, sheep, goats, and the like, should have

moderately long necks. Having experimented fully with necks of all lengths,

I find that the most satisfactory to competent critics, and therefore the

handsomest, are those which strike a happy medium, such as the antelope

head shown in Plate XI. To secure this length, the head should be cut off

well back toward the shoulders, so as to leave a little surplus to be

trimmed off when the head is mounted.

_To Skin and Preserve a Deer Head_, proceed as follows:

1. Start at the back of the neck (on top) just in front of the shoulders,

or "withers," keep the point of the knife under the skin, with the edge up,

and divide the skin in a circle all the way around the neck, keeping down

to the point where the neck sets on the shoulders. You need not cut through

the flesh and bone of the neck at that point.

2. Never slit the skin open along the under side of the throat. Cut it open

in a straight line along the back of the neck, all the way along, up to a

point midway between the ears. From that point run two cuts like the arms

of a Y, one to the base of each antler or horn, as seen in Fig. 7. Run the

point of the knife close around the base of each antler, and cut through

the skin all the way.

3. Begin at the back of the neck, and skin downward on each side until the

entire neck is free. As you proceed you will presently come to the ear,

which stands up like a tree-trunk covered with bark. Cut the ear off close

to the skull, leave it for the present just as it is, and go right on down

toward the cheeks and throat, as far as you can go.

4. Begin next at the angle of the =Y=, on the top of the head, and skin

down between the antlers and over the forehead until you reach the eye. Now

proceed carefully. In many ruminants there is a deep cavity in the bone

directly in front of the anterior corner of the eye, called an "eye-pit."

The skin lines this eye-pit quite down to the bottom. Do not cut through

the skin, but get down to the very bottom of the eye-pit, and detach the

skin from the bone.

5. Be careful not to cut the corners of the eye, or the edge of the eyelid.

Keep close to the bony orbit, and insert the end of one finger in the eye

from the outside, to cut against when you sever the thin membrane that

surrounds the eyeball.

6. The nostrils must be cut through so far back from the end of the nose

that the cut will not be visible in the open nostril when viewed from in

front. The cartilaginous septum that divides the nostrils like a partition

wall must be split in two, edgewise, from inside, clear down to the very

tip of the nose, so that all the flesh can be cut away. Many a fine head is

spoiled by having the flesh left in the end of the nose. It seems all right

for a short time, but when it dries, it shrinks and shrivels up, and the

nose not only loses all character and beauty, but becomes an eyesore.

7. The lips must be cut from the jaw close to the bone, and afterward slit

open along the inside, laid out flat, and the flesh pared off carefully

with a sharp knife. Leave one-half to three-quarters of an inch of the

inner skin of the lip all the way around, so that the form of the lip can

be presently reproduced by replacing the flesh with clay.

8. A deer's ear consists of a big, leaf-shaped piece of cartilage, thick at

the base and centre, very thin at the edges and the upper end, and rolled

together on itself at the base to form a half cone, like a funnel with one

side partly cut away. Over this sheet of cartilage is stretched the skin,

with no flesh whatever between the two. This cartilage can be completely

skinned out and replaced with a leaden imitation. It must be skinned out;

for if it is not done, the hair will probably all slip off the ear; but,

even supposing that it does not, an equally bad thing happens. When the

head is mounted and dry, the ears will begin to shrink and shrivel up like

a pair of dry autumn leaves, and the beauty of the head is gone forever! In

skinning out the ear cartilage, a sharp scalpel of large size, or a

cartilage-knife, is the best instrument, and it should be held in the

fingers precisely as one holds a pen in writing. A good, keen pocket-knife

is plenty good enough for all emergencies.

[Illustration: FIG. 33.--Skinning a Deer's Ear.]

Begin at the fleshy base of the ear, detach the skin from the cartilage by

cutting, and by pulling and pushing the two apart with the thumb and

fingers (Fig. 33). Of course you must stop at the edge of the cartilage,

and be very careful not to cut through the skin there. Keep right on up the

back of the ear, gradually turning the ear wrong side out, until you reach

the tip (Fig. 34). The ear is now wrong side out, and the skin is detached

from the back of the cartilage, but still adheres on the inside. Now begin

at the tip, where the cartilage is thinnest (Fig. 35), peel it up, and by

the same process as before gradually work the inside skin loose without

cutting _through_ the skin at any point, until it is free quite down to the

base of the ear, so far within that when the skin is cut straight across

and turned right side out again, the point of detachment cannot be seen

(Fig. 36).

[Illustration: FIG. 34.--The Ear Half-skinned.]

It is likely that the beginner will find this a difficult operation, for it

really is so until one has done at least one pair of ears. After that, with

a fresh specimen, the process is simple and easy. Save the ear cartilage in

your salt-and-alum bath, for you will need it presently as a model in

making a leaden imitation to take its place.

[Illustration: FIG. 35.--Skinning down the Inside.]

[Illustration: FIG. 36.--The Cartilage Out.]

9. The skin is now off. To preserve it in the field, first pare away the

flesh that may have been left adhering to it, especially at the lips and

end of the nose, and wash it clean. If you have arsenical soap, anoint it

thoroughly over the inside, then literally smother it in salt. You need not

dry the skin if you have plenty of salt for it. If you have but a limited

quantity, attend to the poisoning to keep off insects, then rub on as much

salt as you have to spare, hang the skin up in a shady place over a pole,

open it out widely so that the air will circulate freely upon all parts of

it, and let it dry. In a dry climate a skin can be dried in this way and

successfully preserved (_temporarily_) even when you have neither poison

nor preservative of any kind to put on it; but it must be watched and

guarded with jealous care until you get it safely home, or in the hands of

a taxidermist, to prevent its being eaten up by insects, rats, or dogs.

In moist climates, ground alum is to be used in lieu of salt, and all skins

must be dried unless you have a salt-and-alum bath for them. In preserving

heads, the sportsman will find that ten pounds of salt, or in the tropics

ten pounds of alum, will go a long ways, if care is taken to keep a skin

open until it is nearly dry. Never, save as a last resort, dry a skin in

the sun, and never hang one up by the nose.

_The Skull._--Of course the skull must always be cleaned and saved, as

directed elsewhere.

_Paring down the skin_, preparatory to mounting. See Chapter XIII.

THE WORK OF MOUNTING.--We will suppose that the head skin has been fully

cured or relaxed in the salt-and-alum bath, pared down quite thin with

draw-shave and knife, the holes have been neatly sewn up, and the ear

cartilages skinned out. We will also suppose that the skull has been

cleaned with the knife in the first place, and afterward boiled and scraped

to remove the last vestiges of animal matter. If the skin and skull have

been thus attended to, the mounted head will be clean enough and free

enough from all animal odors, when dry, to go into my lady's boudoir, or

into the dining-room of the White House.

There are almost as many different methods of mounting mammal heads as

there are taxidermists, but I shall describe only my own. I have tried

various other methods than that to be described, but without satisfactory

results, and I offer this as being at once the simplest and easiest for the

amateur, as well as the professional worker, and above all, the one by

which the finest results are obtainable. The operator retains full control

of the shape of the specimen almost up to the last moment, which I consider

a _sine qua non_ in any method. The method should be your servant, not your

master. Judging from the extent to which this method has been adopted among

the taxidermists of this country since I first described it in a paper read

before the Society of American Taxidermists, in New York, in 1883, it may

be considered to possess some merit.

1. We have before us the clean skull. Procure about two pounds of plaster

Paris, and a piece of board an inch or an inch and a half thick, three or

four inches wide, and about two feet long. This is to be the neck standard.

With the hatchet round off the corners of one end. Then, with a saw and

cold chisel, cut a long, narrow hole in the base of the skull, so that the

end of the neck standard can pass through it into the brain cavity, and

strike against the top of the skull (Fig. 37). The opening should be cut

lengthwise with the skull, and only just large enough to receive the end of

the board comfortably. In case it is desired to have the head turned to one

side, looking to the right or left, the neck standard must be fitted into

the skull accordingly. An iron rod may be used instead of a wooden

standard, if the operator finds it more convenient.

[Illustration: FIG. 37.--Internal Mechanism of a Deer Head.]

2. Now place the skull upside down on the table, with the forehead on a

level with the table-top, and proceed to set one end of the neck standard

in the skull. This is done as follows: Into about a quart of water, placed

in a basin or large bowl, sprinkle the plaster Paris, a handful at a time,

until the water is filled with it and will take up no more. Then stir it

thoroughly with a spoon, and after placing the end of the neck standard in

the skull cavity in a _perpendicular_ position, pour the plaster around the

end of it, filling the brain cavity, and piling it up on the base of the

skull in a copious mass, so that when it hardens the board will be

immovably fixed. The plaster should also fill around the articulations of

the lower jaw, to make that also a fixture in its place. The neck standard

should be set _at a right angle_ with the axis of the skull. This may seem

strange to you at first, but you will presently see that the angle is

correct.

While the plaster is hardening, which it will do in about twenty minutes,

you must leave the head undisturbed and busy yourself with giving the final

touches to the skin, or to the preparation of some clay and tow for future

use.

[Illustration: FIG. 38.--Complete Manikin for Deer Head, without Clay

Covering.]

3. When the plaster has fully set, you are ready to decide upon the length

of neck to be shown, and the general pose of the head. Having decided upon

the former, which is a matter of taste, you can have an assistant hold the

side of the neck standard up against the side of a door-post in about the

pose you wish it to have, while you stand off and survey it at a distance,

and change the elevation until it suits you. Then, mark where the neck

standard is to be sawn off, and also the precise angle, and saw it off.

Having done this, have the head held up against the wall as it will be when

mounted, and see that the elevation of the nose is right. If it is too high

or too low, saw off the end of the neck standard at a different angle, and

be sure that the attitude is right before proceeding farther.

4. The next step is to cut a board to fit into the lower end of the neck.

Its approximate circumference can be determined by measuring the width and

depth of the neck the proper distance down. The shape of the board must be

about like that shown in Fig. 37--a broad oval, broadest at the top, or

else an ellipse. Bevel off the upper and lower ends on opposite sides to

match the outline of the neck, and then screw it firmly to the lower end of

the neck standard. It may be necessary to alter the shape of the neck-board

a little later on, which is easily done.

5. Now take some excelsior, or straw, or fine, soft hay, and build up a

false neck of the proper shape and size to fit the skin by placing the

material around the neck standard and winding it down with cotton twine

(Fig. 38). It is a very pleasing task to form a neck by this easy process,

and impart to it the graceful curves, the taper, and flatness near the head

so characteristic of the deer. You can show the windpipe and gullet by

sewing through the neck from side to side, and forming a hollow from the

corner of the jaw down the side of the neck, as shown in the figure. You

now have the form of the neck wholly under your control, and your eye and

hand will be held accountable for the result. Be careful to make the neck

_much smaller_ than it is to be when the skin is on. The thick coat of hair

makes a vast difference in the size, and adds perhaps half an inch, or

more, all around.

If you are mounting an old skin that has for years been in a dry state and

requires much powerful stretching to bring it out to its proper size, you

will be compelled to stuff the neck with straw in the old way, so as to put

great pressure upon it from within, and stretch the skin by sheer force. Of

course you will lose many of the fine points, but very often a skin is so

hard and refractory that it can be mounted in no other way. In working by

this method the neck is stuffed from the lower end, and the neck-board

fitted and screwed into place afterward.

6. Make the neck smooth by winding; make it symmetrical and true to nature,

and try the skin on it occasionally to test the proportions of your

manikin. There is to be no "stuffing" of the neck after the skin is once

on, therefore the manikin must be made correctly.

7. When the neck is at last finished, work up about half a pailful of

potters' clay until it forms a soft, sticky paste, and cover the neck with

a coat of it about an eighth of an inch thick, to insure absolute

smoothness.

8. Put a proper quantity of clay on each side of the skull to form the

animal's cheeks, and enough upon the back of the skull, forehead, and

muzzle to replace the flesh and skin that has been cut away. On no account

attempt to stuff a fresh head with tow, or any fibrous material, for it is

a practical impossibility to keep it from becoming too large. Instead of

clay you might possibly use papier-maché, putty, or plaster Paris, if you

prefer either; but clay has many and great advantages over all other

materials. Plaster Paris acts too quickly to be of much real use, putty is

greasy and inert, and papier-maché dries too slowly when underneath a skin.

9. Before putting the skin in place, sew up whatever rents there may be in

it, and replace the cartilage of the ear with thin sheet lead, or sheet

tin, cut the proper shape and trimmed down thin at the edges. Rub a little

clay on the metal to enable the skin to stick to it. Sheet lead can be

purchased at about 10 cents per pound at almost any large plumbing

establishment. The finest material, however, and which I have used for

years, is pure sheet tin, which the National Museum procures of The John J.

Cooke Co., Mulberry Street, New York, at 26 cents per pound. It is thin,

easily cut and shaped, and just stiff enough to work perfectly in imitating

the shape of an ear cartilage. Good, firm, card-board can be used for the

ears instead of lead, when you can not get either of the sheet metals.

10. Anoint the skin copiously with arsenical soap, give it time to absorb

the poison, then put it in place on the skull and neck, and adjust it

carefully. Fasten the lips together at the end of the muzzle by taking a

stitch in each and tying the thread. See that the eyes come exactly over

the orbits, and then put two or three tacks through the skin of the

forehead, into the skull, to hold it in place. Sew the skin tightly

together around the base of the antlers, and sew up both arms of the =Y=.

11. Sometimes the skin of the neck is so much stretched that to fill it out

would make the neck, when finished, entirely too large. In such cases, with

a clay-covered manikin, it is possible to make a fresh skin contract

mechanically by crowding it together in minute wrinkles in order to make an

undue fulness disappear.

12. Before sewing up the skin along the back of the neck, (which must be

done with very strong _linen_ "gilling thread," well waxed to keep it from

rotting) put enough clay at the base of each ear and on the back of the

skull to properly form those parts. Observe that in a live deer the base of

the ear is quite close up to _the burr of the antler_, and it also has a

peculiar shape, which should be studied and faithfully reproduced, but can

hardly be described.

13. If the manikin is of the right size and shape, you are now ready to sew

up the skin; nail it fast with small brads around the lower edge of the

neck-board, and trim the surplus off neatly and evenly. Screw the head upon

a rough shield or piece of board, so that it will stand alone on your table

while you are working at the face.

14. Unless you have carefully studied a deer's head in the flesh, or have

a cast to work by, you can not reasonably expect to be able to make the

head precisely as it should be. Fifteen minutes of close and studious

examination and note-taking of a head in the flesh will do for you what my

poor pen could not hope to accomplish with ten pages of written matter.

15. There yet remains that part of the work which requires the most

artistic treatment. In finishing the face, the first thing is to shape the

cheeks, which is quickly done provided they are filled with precisely the

proper quantity of clay. By trial you will find whether more clay must be

put in, or some taken out. After the cheeks, form the eyebrow, fill the

orbit with clay, and with a small wire nail fasten the skin down in that

deep pit which is found in front of the anterior corner of the eye. Press

the skin down upon the muzzle, fill in the lips with clay, and fold them as

they were before skinning. Before bringing the lips together, fill out the

nose, the chin, and corners of the mouth--but _not too full_, however. That

done satisfactorily, bring the lips together as they were in life. No

wiring or sewing is necessary, nor even pinning. It is to be supposed that

you have kept the skin of the lower jaw pulled well forward into place, and

if so, the lips will go together easily and stay there for all time to

come. In modeling the end of the nose and the nostrils, _give the latter

good depth_. Make the opening so deep that no one can ever see the bottom

of it. No little fault disgusts me more than to see the nostrils of a deer,

buffalo, or elk all plastered up with putty, as if the animal had never

drawn a breath. Make your animal look as if it were _breathing_, rather

than standing up with rods in its legs, and its hide full of rubbish.

[Illustration: PLATE XI. HEAD OF PRONG-HORN ANTELOPE. MOUNTED BY THE

AUTHOR.]

16. The eyes come next. Arrange the lids carefully over the clay, which

nearly fills the orbit, then insert the glass eye, (which in every ruminant

should have an elongated pupil and white corners), and work it into its

exact position. Do not have too much clay behind it, or it will have a

bulging, overfed, or choked-to-death expression. Do not let it protrude

until it could be knocked off the head with a bean-pole, or lassoed with a

grape-vine. Keep the eye well down in the orbit, and the front corner well

sunken. An animal's expression depends upon the eye more than any other one

thing, and the expression of the eye is dependent upon the disposition of

the eyelid and the line of sight. A good glass eye has just as much power

of varied expression as has a living, naked eyeball--which is _no power

whatever_--unless it be the eyeball of an angry cat.

17. See that both eyes look at the same point, in front, about eight feet

distant; that precisely the same amount of iris shows in each, in short,

that both are exactly alike in every respect. A deer should have a mild,

but wide-awake--not staring--expression, and the attitude should not be

unpleasantly strained, either in the curve of the neck or the carriage of

the head. Avoid the common error of making a deer's head too "proud." No

goose-necks or goitre on your deer, if you please.

Having finished the eyes and fashioned the nostrils, cut some pieces of

pasteboard, bend them to the right shape, and either sew or pin them upon

the ears to hold them in precisely the right attitude until they dry. If

the ears have lead in them they will support themselves. Lastly, wash the

head thoroughly to get all the dirt and clay out of the hair, and comb it

until it lays naturally. Now hang the head up in a dry room and leave it

for a month, if possible, two weeks at all hazards.

When quite dry and shrunken, brush it well, and rub around the mouth, nose,

eyes, and ears with a tooth-brush to remove the last remaining suggestions

of clay. (See chapter on "Finishing Mounted Mammals."). Paint the end of

the nose and edges of the eyelids with vandyke brown and black, using oil

colors. The hairless parts of the lips are entirely concealed, consequently

there is no painting to be done around the mouth unless the shrinkage has

slightly parted the lips. If this has occurred put some black paint in the

crack.

By all means mount a handsome head upon a rich and handsome shield. Tastes

differ widely, but for my part I dislike a thin, light shield, and one not

nicely finished is also an eyesore. The wood should be of a color that will

harmonize best with the color of the head upon it. The finest shields are

made of cherry ebonized, or red-wood, black walnut, oak, mahogany, or

maple, and highly polished. The best shape for a shield is such as that

seen behind the caribou head in Plate XVI.

CHAPTER XX.

FACIAL EXPRESSION AND MOUTH MODELING.

We have now reached one of the most interesting features of all taxidermic

work. There is no royal road to success in this direction, nor aught else

that leads thither save hard study, hard work, and an artistic sense of the

eternal fitness of things.

The large _Felidæ_ (tiger, lion, leopard, etc.) are the finest subjects for

the taxidermist that the whole animal kingdom can produce. They offer the

finest opportunities for the development of muscular anatomy, and the

expression of the various higher passions. The best that I can do with the

space at my disposal for this subject is to offer the reader a few hints on

how to produce certain expressions, illustrated by an accurate drawing from

one of my mounted specimens.

In the first place, _strive to catch the spirit of your subject_.

It frequently happens that the attitude desired for a feline or other

carnivorous animal is one expressive of anger, rage, or defiance. For a

single specimen, the most striking attitude possible is that of a beast at

bay. Unless a carnivorous animal is to be represented in the act of seizing

something, the mouth should not be opened very wide. It is a common fault

with taxidermists to open the jaws of such an animal too widely, so that

the effect striven for is lost, and the animal seems to be yawning

prodigiously, instead of snarling. Open the jaws a moderate distance,

indicating a readiness to open wider without an instant's warning. The

thick, fleshy part of the upper lip is lifted up to clear the teeth for

action, and the mustached portion is bunched up until it shows two or three

curving wrinkles, with the middle of the curve upward. This crowds the

nostril opening together, and changes its shape very materially. In most

carnivora, but most strikingly so in bears, the end of the lower lip falls

away slightly from the lower incisors.

In old lions and tigers the face wrinkles pretty much all over, especially

across the nose and under the eyes. In all the _Felidæ_ the opening of the

eye changes most strikingly. When angry, the eye of a ruminant animal opens

its widest, and shows portions of the eyeball that are never seen

otherwise. In the carnivora, the reverse is the case. As if to protect the

eye from being clawed or bitten, the upper eyelid is drawn well down over

the ball, as seen in Plate I. (Frontispiece), and the eyebrows are bunched

up and drawn near together until the scowl becomes frightful. The decks are

further cleared for action in the disposition of the ears. Instead of

leaving them up ready to be bitten off, they are "unshipped," and laid back

as far as possible, close down upon the neck, and out of harm's way. The

tongue also pulls itself together, contracts in the middle, curves up at

the edges, and makes ready to retire farther back between the jaws at the

instant of seizure.

All this time the body is not by any means standing idly and peacefully at

ease. The attitude must match the expression of the face, or the tragedy

becomes a farce. The body must stand firmly on its legs, alert, ready

either to attack or defend, head turned, body slightly bent, or slightly

crouching, and, unless the animal is _walking_, with the tail switching

nervously from side to side. If the animal is walking forward, the tail

should be held still and in the same vertical plane as the body. The finest

attitude for a large carnivore is one which represents it at bay, and

awaiting attack. A cat is an animal of a thousand attitudes. Very many of

them, if reproduced exactly in a mounted specimen, would look very uncouth

and devoid of beauty; therefore, choose those which are at once

characteristic and pleasing to the eye.

MODELING AN OPEN MOUTH.--In mounting a feline animal with mouth open and

teeth showing, beware what you do, or you will make the animal laughing

instead of snarling. This is often done! In fact, in my younger days I did

it once myself--but without any extra charge.

In modeling an open mouth, first fill the inside of the lips with clay, and

also back them up underneath with clay until the lips, when fixed in

position, have the expression desired. The inner edge of the hairless

portion of the lower lip should fit up close against the jaw bone, and

perhaps be tacked down upon it temporarily. Very often it is necessary to

hold the lips in position, while drying, by sewing through the edges and

passing the thread across the jaws from side to side. The skin of the nose

must be fully backed up with clay, so that no hollows are left into which

the skin can shrink away in drying. It is often desirable to hold the end

of the lower lip up to its place, while drying, by driving a small wire

nail through it into the bone.

Do not fill the mouth full of clay, for it must be borne in mind that the

final modeling of the soft parts of the mouth must be done in papier-maché.

It is no small task to dig out of a mouth a quantity of clay and tow after

it has become hard; therefore, leave a place for the tongue.

[Illustration: Modeling Tools of Wood.]

A head must be thoroughly dry and shrunken before the mouth can be finished

and made permanent. In drying, the lips draw away from the gums somewhat,

which is just as it should be. The first step is to clear away the dry clay

from around the teeth and lips, and get everything clean and ready for the

maché. Then make some fine papier-maché, as described elsewhere, that is

sticky enough to adhere firmly to smooth bone, and of such consistency that

it works well in modeling. With this, and your modeling spatulas and other

tools of steel, zinc, or hard wood (see Figs. 39-44), cover the jaw bones

to replace the fleshy gums, and fill up to the edges of the lips so that

they seem to be attached to the gums as in life. Coat the roof of the

mouth, and model its surface into the same peculiar corrugations that you

saw in the mouth immediately after death.

This is slow work. It requires a good eye, a skilful, artistic touch, and

unlimited patience. If you are an artist, prove it now by the fidelity with

which you copy nature in this really difficult work.

In modeling the surface of papier-maché, you must have a clean,

well-polished modeling-tool, like Fig. 42, and by wetting it now and then

so that it will slip over the surface, your work can be made very smooth.

Next comes the tongue. The only perfect tongue for a feline animal is a

_natural_ tongue, skinned, and stuffed with clay. The papillæ on the tongue

of a lion, tiger, leopard, or puma simply defy imitation, and after many

experiments with many different animals I found that with the real tongue,

and with that only, one can reproduce nature itself and defy criticism. Of

course, this is possible only when you have the animal in the flesh, and

can cut out the tongue and preserve it in alcohol until you are ready to

mount it.

[Illustration: Modeling Tools of Steel.]

To prepare a tiger's tongue, for example, first preserve the whole tongue

in alcohol, for safe keeping. When ready to proceed, slit it open

lengthwise underneath, and skin it carefully. Take a piece of sheet lead,

cut it and hammer it into the right size and shape, and fit it in the mouth

as nearly as possible in the shape the finished tongue is to have. By

judicious hammering with the round end of a machinist's hammer you can give

it any shape you desire. When it is just right, cover it with clay to

replace the flesh of the tongue, treat the skin with arsenical soap, put it

over, and sew it up. Now fit the tongue into the mouth, and by pressure

with the fingers change its shape wherever necessary in order to make it

fit exactly as you wish to have it. When finished, lay it aside to dry. The

accompanying figures were drawn from the finished tongue of the tiger

represented in Plate I., where it is seen in place.

[Illustration: FIG. 45.--Side View of Tiger's Tongue.]

When the tongue is dry it must be painted with oil colors, using a little

turpentine so that the surface shall not be too glossy, nor have a

varnished look. Vermilion and white are the best colors to use, and above

all do not make the tongue or lips look like pink candy, or red flannel, or

red sealing-wax. Call up the household cat at an early stage of the

proceedings, and use her mouth as a model, whether she will or no. A

patient old tabby is an invaluable ally in the mounting of feline animals

of all sorts, and Towser will also help you out with your _Canidæ_. When

modeling the mouth or muscles of a gorilla or orang utan, catch the first

amateur taxidermist you can lay your hands on--the wilder and greener the

better--and use him as your model. Study him, for he is fearfully and

wonderfully made. The way some of my good-natured colleagues used to pose

for me as (partly) nude models at Ward's, when I once had a ten-months'

siege with orangs, gorillas, and chimpanzees, was a constant source of

wonder and delight to the ribald crew of osteologists who knew nothing of

high art.

[Illustration: FIG. 46.--End View.]

[Illustration: FIG. 47.--Tiger's Tongue, Top View.]

Fortunately the tongues of most large mammals are smooth, and are easily

reproduced by using the same leaden core as described above, and covering

it first with papier-maché, drying it, and coating with tinted wax, laid on

hot with a small flat paint-brush called a "fitch." With small specimens it

is not necessary to make the tongue as a separate piece, or put a leaden

core in it. Fill into the mouth a sufficient quantity of papier-maché, pack

it down, and then proceed to model the surface of it into a tongue, shaped

to suit the subject. Such a tongue is, of course, a fixture in the mouth.

_Cleaning Teeth._--Before finishing a mouth with wax, the teeth must be

washed clean with a stiff brush. If they will not come out white enough to

suit you, wash them with a solution of two parts muriatic acid and one part

water, applied with a tooth-brush if possible. Let it stay on the teeth

about a quarter of a minute, when it must be washed off with an abundance

of clear water. If the acid stays on too long, it will destroy the entire

outer surface (enamel) of the teeth.

_Waxing a Mouth._--Of course it will answer, and sometimes quite well

enough, perhaps, when a mouth has been handsomely and smoothly modeled in

fine papier-maché, to sand-paper it and paint it over when dry with two or

three coats of oil color. You can hardly do otherwise, in fact, when you

are not prepared to work with wax. But the really fine way, however, is to

coat your dry papier-maché with tinted wax as follows:

Procure from the nearest dealer in artists' materials some cakes of white

wax. You must also have a small oil or gas stove, or a spirit-lamp, and rig

above it a wire frame on which you can set your wax cup. The wax cups

should be small, and made of pressed tin, so that they contain no soldered

joints. The wax is to be applied hot, or at least quite warm, for bear in

mind that if you heat your wax too hot it changes its color quite

perceptibly, and makes it dark and yellow. Wax should _always_ be clear and

transparent, and when the excess of heat turns it yellow, throw it away.

Regulate the heat carefully, so as to make it gentle. Melt a small portion

of a cake of wax in one of your clean tin cups, and if it is the tongue,

roof of the mouth or gums, that you have to cover, color the wax a delicate

flesh tint by putting into it a very little vermilion, or other suitable

color, from your Windsor & Newton oil-color tube. Oil colors mix very well

with hot wax; but in using it, it is necessary to keep the wax well stirred

with the brush, or the color will settle to the bottom.

Take a clean, dry bristle brush, of the right size (the flat brushes are

always best for wax), with a good, compact point, dip it into the hot wax,

stir from the bottom, and then, before the wax on your brush has even two

seconds in which to get cool, apply it to the surface to be covered, with a

quick, dextrous touch, sweeping it on broadly to keep it from piling up and

making the surface rough. This wax business requires genuine skill, and,

after beginning, one must not be discouraged because it does not "go right"

at first, but try, try again. After your hand has acquired the trick, the

beauty of the results will amply repay your labor.

It is very difficult to change the surface of a coat of wax after it is

once on; therefore try to get it right with the brush. Of course, if the

color or surface does not suit you, scrape it all off, and "to 't again."

To treat the roof of the mouth, the specimen must be turned upside down. At

the point where the black lip joins the pink gums, the two colors can be

nicely blended by letting the last layers of pink wax lap over a trifle,

upon the black, so that the latter will show through the former here and

there, and give the line of demarcation a mottled appearance, with the two

colors thus blended together. Much can be done by taking advantage of the

transparency of thin layers of wax when its color is light.

After the wax has cooled, something can be done to smooth the surface, and

give it a very shiny appearance, by carefully scraping the surface over

smoothly with the edge of a knife, or a sharp bone-scraper. The latter tool

will be found of great value in modeling a mouth in papier-maché, and also

in trimming up the wax after it has been applied.

_Cleaning Glass Eyes._--Always have the glass eyes of a finished specimen

faultlessly clean and well-polished, to give the brilliancy of life. If

paint gets on the glass, remove it with a drop of turpentine, and polish

afterward with a bit of cotton cloth. Some of the old-fashioned

taxidermists have the habit of smearing a lot of nasty lamp-black in the

eyes of every mounted mammal, for what purpose no one knows--but possibly

in imitation of actresses, some of whom have the same unaccountable trick,

and a hideous one it is in its results, in both cases. There is only one

point in its favor--it is the easiest way in the world to give an animal a

black eye.

CHAPTER XXI.

RELAXING DRY SKINS OF BIRDS.

As usual with most processes in taxidermy, there are several ways in which

a dry bird skin may be softened, and made ready to mount or make over. I

will first describe the one I consider the best in all respects.

TREATMENT OF SMALL SKINS.--Open the skin and remove the filling from the

body, neck, and head. Tear some old cotton cloth into strips from one to

two inches wide, wet them in warm water and wrap one around each leg and

foot until it is completely covered with several thicknesses of the wet

cloth. Lift up the wing and put two or three thicknesses of wet cloth, or

else thoroughly wet cotton batting, around the carpal joints, and also

between the wing and the body. Put some more wet cotton, or rags, inside

the skin, in the body and neck, wrap the whole specimen completely in

several thicknesses of wet cloth, so as to exclude the air, and lay it

aside. If the skin is no larger than a robin, in about twelve to fourteen

hours it will be soft enough to mount. The scraping and cleaning will be

considered later.

TREATMENT OF LARGE SKINS.--Under this heading it is necessary to place

nearly all birds above the size of a robin, for the reason that the legs

and feet, being large and thick in comparison with the skin of the body,

require special treatment in advance. The legs and wings of some birds

require several days' soaking, and were the thin skin of the body to be

relaxed for the same length of time, it would macerate, and the feathers

would fall off. The legs and wings of large birds must, therefore, be

started first in the relaxing process.

Let us take, for example, the skin of a ruffed grouse (_Bonasa umbellus_).

If the skin is an old one, cover the toe-nails and beak with hot wax, or

else by much soaking the horny sheaths will flake off. Wrap the feet and

legs with wet cloths, as described above, and let the skin lie without any

other wrapping for one day. By the end of that time the joints can be bent

somewhat, and they should be manipulated until they bend easily. When they

will do this, put wet cloths around the joints of the wings, under the

wings, inside of the body and the neck, and wrap the whole skin in a wet

cloth of the proper size. By the end of the second day the entire skin will

be soft and pliable, and smelling like an African shanty--damp and musty.

Of course the larger the skin the longer it will take to completely relax.

Sometimes the wings of very large birds require soaking half as long as the

legs, but care must be exercised not to soak any feathered parts too long,

or the feathers are liable to fall out and cause trouble. By this process

skins may be softened and made ready to mount, according to their size, as

follows: Wren to robin, in twelve to fourteen hours; ruffed grouse, two

days; great blue heron, three days; bald eagle, four days; condor, five

days; ostrich, six to seven days. Skins which are less than one year old

soften in about half the time they would require if five years old, and if

properly made in the first place, will make as handsome mounted specimens

as would fresh skins.

WET SAND.--Some taxidermists soften dry bird skins by burying them in wet

sand after the legs and wings have been relaxed in the way already

described. I have tried it occasionally with small skins, and found that

the results were quite satisfactory.

A GOOD "SWEAT-BOX."--Professor L.L. Dyche, of the University of Kansas,

described to me a sweat-box which he has used, and which is certainly a

good one for the creation of a damp atmosphere for the softening of skins,

and also to keep half-finished birds in over night, to prevent them from

drying up. What a deal of trouble the bird taxidermists of my acquaintance

might have saved themselves during the last ten years had they known of, or

devised, this simple but perfect contrivance. It is made by selecting a

wooden box, of the right size to suit, providing a hinged cover, and

coating the entire inside with plaster Paris an inch or so in thickness. To

make use of it, it is filled with water and allowed to stand until the

plaster lining has soaked full, when the rest of the water is emptied out.

If a layer of wet sand is spread over the bottom, the saturation of the air

inside the box, when closed, will be still more complete.

A HEROIC METHOD OF RELAXATION.--Mr. William Brewster thus describes "A New

Wrinkle in Taxidermy," in Messrs. Southwick & Jencks' "Random Notes," vol.

ii., No. 1:

"Wishing to turn a mounted bird into a skin, and having but a limited time

to devote to the task, I tried an experiment. Taking a funnel, and

inserting the pointed end in the stuffing between the edges of the skin on

the abdomen, I poured in a quantity of hot water (nearly boiling hot)

taking care to regulate the injection so that it should be rather slowly

absorbed by the stuffing, and holding the bird at various angles, that

every portion of the anterior might become soaked. The effect was magical;

the skin quickly relaxed, and within fifteen minutes I could bend the neck

and make other required changes without any risk of a break.

"My first experiment was with a gull; afterward I tried other birds, both

large and small, with equal success. I found also that the plan worked

equally well with skins which had been overstuffed, or otherwise badly

made. In a very few minutes they would become nearly as tractable as when

freshly taken from the birds, and much more so than I have ever succeeded

in making them by the use of a damping-box. The only difficulty experienced

was that the water, especially if turned in too fast, would escape through

shot-holes and other rents in the skin, thus wetting the plumage in places.

Of course, after the required improvements or changes have been made, the

stuffing is so thoroughly saturated that the skin must be placed in a very

warm place to dry. I dried mine most successfully by placing them on a

furnace register, and leaving them exposed to the full blast of heat for

several days."

SCRAPING AND CLEANING RELAXED SKINS.--After a dry bird skin has been

softened, it then remains to scrape it clean and manipulate it all over to

get it into thoroughly elastic working order, as soft and pliable (if

possible) as when first taken off. Small skins should be scraped with the

round end of a small bone-scraper, which has a sharp chisel edge, but the

large ones must be scraped with a small-toothed skin-scraper such as is

used on small mammals.

Of the many thousand species of recent birds, only the ostriches, penguins,

and a few others have the feathers distributed evenly over the whole body.

In all the _Euornithes_ they are arranged in regular patches or groups,

called _pterylæ_, between which lie the naked or downy spaces, called

_apteria_. In thin-skinned birds it is the _pterylæ_ that need to be

attacked with the scraper, and so scraped and stretched and pulled apart

that the skin widens, and each feather is free, as in life, to move on its

own root independently, and take whatever position it should have on the

mounted bird. Turn the skin completely wrong side out, scrape it all over,

and get every part fully relaxed, and into thorough working order. Large

birds, or birds with thick, fat skins, require plenty of work to get out

all the grease, and get the wings, legs, and head into a thorough state of

collapse. In large, long-legged birds, the tendons must be removed from the

leg, the same as if the specimen were a fresh one, for otherwise the wire

may split the skin of the tarsus wide open, and make a very bad and

unsightly turn at the heel besides. It is a difficult task to remove the

tendon from the leg of an old, dry heron or crane, but it must be done.

_Damaged Skins._--It not infrequently happens that in cleaning and scraping

a rare and valuable old skin it proves to be "burnt" with grease, and goes

to pieces like so much brown paper.

"Now is the winter of our discontent."

If the skin is not torn too badly it may be lined with thin cotton or linen

cloth, which must be cut and fitted within, and sewed fast to the skin all

over. This plan, though rather tedious to work out, develops admirably when

determinedly and carefully pursued.

If the skin goes all to pieces, a manikin must be made, and the pieces

glued upon it, one by one, beginning at the tail,--a process which is so

simple it is unnecessary to describe it in detail. In Fig. 50 is seen a

manikin all ready to receive its feathers, wings, and head.

[Illustration: PLATE XII. WORKSHOP OF A BIRD TAXIDERMIST.]

CHAPTER XXII.

MOUNTING SMALL BIRDS.

We will suppose that the skin of a small bird--a robin, blackbird, or

thrush--now lies on the table before us all ready for mounting. Perhaps it

is a dry skin which has been thoroughly relaxed, scraped, and worked into

pliant shape; but, for the sake of the beginner, we will assume that it is

a fresh skin which has just been taken off, poisoned, and turned right side

out again, in accordance with the directions for skinning small birds which

have been given in Chapter VI. The body of the bird lies before you, and

instead of making up the subject as a dry skin, we will mount it.

In mounting small birds the following tools are absolutely necessary to the

production of good results: A pair of flat-nosed pliers six inches long,

for bending and clinching wires, price sixty cents; a pair of six-inch

cutting pliers, for cutting wire, eighty-five cents; a pair of

bird-stuffer's forceps, four to six inch, price twenty to seventy-five

cents; a nine-inch flat file, twenty-two cents. Make for yourself a

stuffing-rod, by taking a piece of _stiff_ brass or iron wire, a little

larger and longer than a knitting-needle, hammering one end flat, with a

slight upward curve, and inserting the other in an awl-handle.

Of materials you will need some excelsior; some clean, fine tow; a little

putty or potter's clay; a spool of cotton thread, No. 40, and some suitable

glass eyes. With our tools and materials ready at hand, and the skin of our

bird lying before us right side out, we are ready to begin a new

operation,--mounting.

For a bird the size of a robin or cat-bird, cut two pieces of No. 18 soft

or "annealed" iron wire (hard wire heated red hot and allowed to cool

slowly), each three times the length of the bird's legs, from foot to end

of long leg-bone, or tarsus. File one end of each wire to a slender and

very sharp point, and rub a little oil or grease on each so that it will

easily slip when inside the leg.

[Illustration: FIG. 48.--Wiring a Bird's Leg.]

Now take one of the bird's legs between the thumb and finger of the left

hand, holding it at the foot with the back part uppermost, and with the

other hand enter the point of one of the sharpened wires at the centre of

foot, push the wire up the _back_ of the leg and over the heel until the

point reaches to where the leg has been skinned. Be sure that you do not

run the wire up the _side_ of the leg, either at foot or knee, for if you

do it will show badly when the bird is dry. Also be careful not to run the

sharpened wire out through the skin just above the heel. To avoid this,

grasp the leg at the heel between the thumb and middle finger of left hand,

and by strong upward pressure of the first finger under the end of the

leg-bone, and of the fourth finger under the foot, both joints of the leg

can be held exactly in line until the wire passes the heel safely and

enters the open skin above (Fig. 48). Then we turn back the skin of the leg

till we see the point of the wire, after which we push the wire on up until

the point passes the end of the leg bone. We now cut off the thick upper

end of this bone, (the tibia), and wrap a little fine tow smoothly around

the bone and the wire, to replace the flesh cut away. The other leg must,

of course, be similarly treated. We are now ready to make the body.

We have kept the body of our specimen for reference, and now we measure the

length of both body and neck, cut another wire not quite twice their length

and file it sharp at both ends. This will be the neck-wire. Now take a

handful of excelsior (tow or oakum will also serve), compress it into an

egg-shaped ball--smaller and more pointed at one end than the other, and

wrap a very little fine tow loosely around it, to make it smooth on the

outside when finished. Now wind stout linen thread around it, shaping it

all the time by pressing it between your left thumb and forefinger, until

at last you have a firm body, smoothly wound, of the same general shape and

size as the natural one. When the body is half made you may run the

neck-wire through it lengthwise, letting it come out above the centre of

the larger end, because the neck is but a continuation of the backbone,

which lies at the top of the body. When the wire is inserted, the upper

side of the body--the back--must be pinched together and made more narrow

than the breast, which is round and full. Be sure that the body is not too

large. Better have it too small and too short than too large or long, for

the former can be remedied later on by filling out. When the body is

finished, bend up the end of the neck wire for an inch and a half at the

lower end of the body, enter the point in the lower part of the body and

force it down and backward until the end is firmly clinched and will

forever remain so, no matter what is done with the other end. Make the neck

by wrapping fine, soft tow _smoothly and evenly_ around the neck wire from

the body upward for the proper distance. Make the false neck a trifle

larger than the real one, but no longer. The body is now ready for

insertion.

[Illustration: FIG. 49.--Cross Section of Body.]

The next step is to take a thread and tie the elbows together, fastening to

each humerus just above the elbow-joint. Now take the false body in the

right hand, open the skin, introduce the sharp end of the neck-wire into

the neck skin, force the wire through the top of the skull in the centre,

and push it through until the neck and body come nicely into place. Now see

whether the body is of the right size. It should not be so large as to fill

the skin precisely, for if so it is too large.

[Illustration: FIG. 50.--The Finished Body and Neck, with Legs in

Position.]

We must now fasten the legs to the body, and will take the left one first.

The leg is still perfectly straight. Hold the lower part firmly between the

thumb and finger, grasp the leg-wire, push it on through the leg and enter

the sharp point at about the centre of the left side of the false body, and

slanting a little forward. (See Fig. 51.) Now push the wire through the

body until it projects more than twice the thickness of the body on the

right side. Bend the end of the wire until it forms a hook, with the point

just touching the body. Now pull the wire back until the point is again

forced through and out on the left side for half an inch, which is then

bent down and forced firmly into the excelsior, and securely clinched. Wire

both legs in this way, and the bird will be so firmly put together it would

be almost impossible to pull it asunder.

[Illustration: FIG. 51.--How the Leg Wires are Inserted and Clinched in the

False Body.]

The legs move freely up and down the leg-wires. Push them up toward the

body until the heels are in precisely the same places they were before you

skinned the bird--almost hidden in the feathers at a point about opposite

the middle of the bird's wing. Now bend the legs forward at a proper angle

(see a living bird or a _good_ picture) and push some finely cut tow down

on each side of the body to fill out the place of the thighs. Insert a

little more cut tow, evenly distributed, in the breast, where the crop

would properly be, and some more at the base of the tail.

Be sure there are no lumps or wrongly placed masses of chopped tow anywhere

in the skin, for if there are any you can not expect to get a smooth and

well-shaped bird.

Now take a needle and thread, begin at the upper end of the opening in the

bird--on the breast,--and with careful fingers sew the skin together

without tearing it or catching the feathers fast. Fill in a little tow, if

necessary, as you proceed, but not enough to fill the skin hard and full,

and when you reach the lower end of the cut draw the skin of the tail

sharply forward for half an inch to take up what it has lengthened by

stretching, and sew it fast by several long cross-stitches. At the last

moment fill in a little more tow at the base of the tail, sew up the

opening, and cut off the thread. The most difficult part of the whole

operation is now before us. It now remains to put the specimen on a perch,

pin the wings fast to the body, adjust the feathers and wind them down,

stuff the head, pin the tail, and put in the eyes.

With a piece of pine board four inches square, and two round pine sticks,

each about three inches long, make a rough T perch, similar to the one

standing vacant on the table in Plate XII. The cross-piece should not be

too large for the bird's feet to grasp comfortably. With a small gimlet, or

awl, bore two holes in the cross-bar, on a slant, about an inch apart, run

the leg-wires through them, perch the bird naturally, and twist the wires

together once underneath, to hold it firmly. Study a living bird or a good

picture, and give your specimen a correct and natural attitude.

Cut a piece of wire five inches long, sharpen one end, bend it into a T

shape, as in Fig. 50, and run the sharp end through the base of the tail

underneath, and on up into the body. The tail feathers are to rest on and

be evenly supported by the cross part at the lower end, which may be

either straight or curved, as occasion requires.

With the small forceps, plume and dress the feathers all over the bird,

catching them near the root, a bunch at a time, and pulling them into place

where necessary. Work them against the grain by lifting them up and letting

them fall back into place. It will be a great help if you can at this stage

procure a dead bird of the same kind to examine, and see precisely how the

feathers lie. One such specimen will aid you more than pages of

description.

It often happens that the back, breast, or side of the bird is not quite

full enough at some point, or, in other words, is too hollow. Now is the

time to remedy such defects. Lift the wing and cut a slit lengthwise in the

skin of the body underneath it, and through this opening insert fine

clipped tow wherever needed. The forceps is the best instrument to use in

doing this. The opening under the wing is _of great importance_, for it

gives you command of one entire side of the bird's body. You can by means

of this hole fill out the back, breast, or shoulders, if not full enough,

and make other important changes in the bird's form. There is no need to

sew up the opening when you have finished, for when the wing is pinned in

place it will be entirely hidden.

The wings must be fastened to the body before the feathers can be fully

adjusted. Cut six small wires, each two inches long, and sharpen at one

end. Let us wire the left wing first. Hold it between the left thumb and

forefinger, and with the right hand push the point of one of the small

wires through the angle of the wing, commonly called the shoulder. When the

point is well through, hold the wing in place against the body, adjust it

with great care, and when you see that the feathers of the shoulder fall

properly over the angle of the wing, push the wire through into the

excelsior body until it holds firmly. Push another wire through at the base

of the large quills (primaries), and another through the upper part of the

wing, just below where it leaves the body. These wires are well shown in

Fig. 52. The wing now fits closely against the body, and the feathers fall

over it smoothly, so as to completely cover the upper part of it.

Wire the other wing in the same way, taking great care that one is not

placed farther ahead than the other, nor farther up or down on the body.

The tips of the wings should touch each other exactly at the point. Look at

your bird from all sides before finally securing the second wing.

With the wings firmly wired and the feathers nicely adjusted, we next

proceed to stuff the head. With the scissors cut up some fine tow or

cotton, and by inserting it through the mouth with the forceps, a pinch at

a time, fill out around the back and sides of the head, the upper part of

the neck and the throat. Do not fill the skin too full, and take care that

both sides of the head are precisely the same shape and size. Take plenty

of time and do your work nicely.

When the head has been properly filled out, fill in each eye-socket with a

little soft clay or putty, insert the glass eyes, and embed them in it.

Study the eyes of your dead bird, and imitate their appearance and position

with those of your mounted specimen. It is a good plan to put a drop of

mucilage around the inside of each eyelid and thus gum it down upon the

glass eye. Be sure that the eyes are exactly opposite one another, and that

one is not higher nor farther back than the other.

Fasten the mandibles together by thrusting a pin up through the lower

mandible into the skull, or else by passing a pin through the upper

mandible at the nostrils and tying around the bill behind it with a

thread.

It now remains to wind down the feathers with thread to give the bird the

exact outline we desire, and to make the feathers lie smoothly. Attend to

this with the closest attention and care, for on the success of this

process depends the smoothness of your specimen when finished.

[Illustration: FIG. 52.--The Winding of the Bird.]

The best method of winding ever known is that developed and practised by

Mr. F.S. Webster, whose wonderful skill in the treatment of birds is

already widely known. His birds are marvels of smoothness and symmetry, and

I take great pleasure in describing his method of winding as the best

known. First make six hook-wires by filing six pieces of wire, each two

inches long, to a sharp point at one end, and bending the other with the

pliers in the form of a double hook. (See Fig. 52.) Insert three of these

in a line along the middle of the back, and two along the middle of the

breast, as seen in the cut. The wing-wires are not to be cut off, but left

sticking out for half an inch. The bird is now divided into equal halves,

and there are three wing-wires on each side, so that it will not be very

difficult to wind both sides alike.

Now take a spool of white thread, No. 40, fasten the end to the hook-wire

on the top of the back; take the base of the pedestal in the left hand and

proceed to wind down the feathers. By means of the hook-wires you can wind

from point to point at will, so as to bind down the feathers where they lie

too high, and skip them entirely where they lie low enough. Get the general

outline of the bird first, and apply the thread with a light and skilful

touch, so that it will not make creases in the bird. A little practice will

enable one to wind a bird with gratifying success.

The next thing is to spread the feathers of the tail evenly, and pin them

between two strips of thin card-board placed crosswise to hold the feathers

in position until they dry.

Lastly, adjust the toes so that they grasp the perch properly, and set the

specimen away to dry where it will not be touched. In about two or three

weeks, when it is thoroughly dry, cut the threads off with a pair of

scissors, pull out the hook-wires, cut off the projecting ends of the

wing-wires close down to the wing, and cut off the wire at the top of the

head close down into the feathers.

Mix a little varnish and turpentine together in equal parts, and with a

paint-brush paint the feet and bill in case they happen to require it.

Clean the eyes and rub them until they shine. You can perch the specimen

now permanently on the artificial twig, turned T perch, or natural twig, or

whatever else you have had in mind. In doing this, clinch the leg-wires

together underneath the perch, and cut off the ends so that no portion of

the wire will show. Be _neat in everything_, and study to make the bird

look alive.

Do not be discouraged if your first bird is a dead failure, nor even if

your first dozen birds are fit only for immediate destruction. If you get

discouraged because your first attempt at anything is not a complete

success, you are not fit to succeed. Better never begin than stop short of

success. If you have a love for taxidermy, and the patience and

perseverance to back it up, you are bound to succeed.

CHAPTER XXIII.

MOUNTING LARGE BIRDS.

After all that has been said in regard to mounting small birds, and

relaxing and cleaning dry bird skins, there remains but little to add on

the subject of bird-mounting, and that little relates to large birds. For

all birds, up to the emu and ostrich, the principles remain about the same

as those illustrated in the mounting of a robin. Moreover, the mounting of

birds is now so generally understood it is unnecessary to dwell at great

length on this subject.