sufficient for a heavy pad; lay it on the floor and beat all the dirt
out of it, then pick it all apart to get all the matted lumps out, lay
it on the stool top and pile it up about a foot high while loose, take a
piece of muslin or drilling, lay it on top of the moss or hair and draw
all the four corners down tight, tacking them about the center of the
edge of the wooden base E, then draw it all down and tack in the same
manner, drawing very tight, being careful to get it round and even and
leaving no wrinkle. In case the moss is not evenly distributed, take a
long awl and run it through the covering and carefully distribute it.
Next in order is the outside covering, which should be a fine piece of
silk plush or velvet. Get a piece large enough to work some fine flower
or motto in the center, then put it on in the same manner as the first,
only tacking it down near the lower edge of the wooden base E; by being
careful you can get it on without wrinkling it. The tacks should be
small and very close together. Put a piece of braid around the edge and
tack it on with upholstering tacks and the stool is completed.
SAWING OFF HORNS.
[Illustration: _No. 6._]
Cut No. 6 is to illustrate a frame on which to cut horns to be used for
footstool legs. Without a frame of this kind it is almost impossible to
cut them to set level with stool and floor. In fact, it is more
difficult than it would be for a carpenter to cut molding to fit
corners, etc., without a mitre box. It is very simple and is made as
follows: For a frame large enough to cut four horns, take a fencing
board and cut off a piece from it two feet long. The board is supposed
to be about six inches wide and one inch thick. Saw off another piece
the same length and nail it to the edge, as shown in cut. This we will
call the back of frame and the other the bottom. The back then is five
inches high, measuring from bottom board up. This completes the frame as
shown. The horns are now placed on the frame and nails driven around
them into the frame to hold them firmly in place. Place the horns close
together in setting on the frame and pour plaster paris over the points
of all, as shown in cut horn A. After the plaster paris has thoroughly
hardened, saw off another piece of the same board and nail it to front
edge of bottom board, and proceed to saw off the horns level with the
upper edge of back and front boards, as in horn A. Should you want the
legs longer or shorter, take wider or narrower boards for back and front
of frame. After taking the horns from the frame, proceed to put in the
wire through the butt of horn and rivet it; then put in the bolt and
nail F (as directed in a former article) and fill the horn with plaster
paris, as shown in the above cut (C). The horn is now ready, after
polishing, to be placed on the stool. It can also be placed on a board
and used for a hat hook, or for holding back window curtains, etc.
ARTICLE XII.
DIRECTIONS FOR POLISHING HORNS, HOOFS, ETC.
Go to a hardware store and buy two good wood rasps, flat on one side and
round on the other; then get three grades of emery or sand-paper, say
No. 1, No. 0, No. 00; then go to a drug store and buy ten cents' worth
of sweet oil and ten cents' worth of rotten stone. Get an old felt hat
and an old case knife and you are ready for business.
Take of either horns or hoofs, several at a time, and put them in an old
pot or kettle of boiling water, let it boil until they become soft,
which usually takes about half an hour; take out one at a time and rasp
it until it begins to cool and harden, put it back and take out another,
and keep this up until all are rasped down to the shape you want them.
Now take one at a time in the same manner and scrape them until they are
scraped smooth of all rasp marks, using the case knife for the scraper,
the edge of which has been ground square off like that of a shear blade.
Now take the No. 1 sand-paper and sand-paper down, then use the No. 0,
and finally finish up with the No. 00, rubbing-lengthwise of the horn.
We are now ready for the finishing touch. Take a piece of felt
sufficiently large to rub with, pour some of the sweet oil on it, then
dust with the rotten stone, and give the horn a thorough rubbing,
putting more of the rotten stone on occasionally, and keep up the
rubbing until you get a high polish. Such a polish will remain on for
years.
Another way to polish horns: Fasten them firmly on a bench or to the
wall. Take a strip of ticking or felt about three inches wide and three
feet long. Wet it in water and sprinkle powdered emery over both sides.
Take hold of both ends, place it around the horn and draw backwards and
forwards, around and around, until the horn presents a smooth surface;
then take another strip of the same description and use in the same
manner, except using rotten stone instead of the emery. There are
different grades of the emery, and only the finest is to be used in
polishing; a coarser grade can be used in the same manner in the place
of sand-paper, and is very good.
COLORING HORNS.
If you wish to give a horn a flesh color, secure a very light colored
horn, rasp and scrape it down very thin, and polish so that the horn is
transparent. Get some red paint (with plenty of dryer in it) give the
inside of the horn a coat of the paint, and set it away to dry. Before
applying the paint, wash the horn out well with soap and warm water and
dry well. The above gives a beautiful flesh color, which will last for
years, especially when filled with plaster paris.
TO REMOTE PLASTER PARIS FROM A HORN AND TO MAKE THE HORN ROUND.
After the plaster paris has become thoroughly dry it is very hard;
therefore to cut it out with a chisel is very tedious; but it often has
to be done. If the inside of the horn is smooth and a little tapering,
it is very easy to remove by boiling it until the horn expands or
becomes soft; then tap the horn with a smooth stick or hammer, and the
plaster will drop out in a whole piece. If you have put a rivet through
the horn before putting in the plaster paris it is more difficult to
remove, as the rivet holds the plaster firmly in the horn. In such a
case take a chisel and dig out the plaster paris down to the rivet, then
either cut the rivet with the chisel or file it in two and take it out;
then proceed as above directed.
To make the butt of a horn round, put the horn in boiling water; let it
remain about ten minutes; have a round wooden plug ready, which should
be wedge shaped; drive this in the horn while hot, and let it cool;
afterwards remove the plug, and the horn will remain round. This makes
quite a difference in the appearance of the horn where you wish to use
it for a hat rack, footstool, etc.
TO DRESS DEER HORNS.
Make an extra strong lye, using the granulated lye and hot water, say
one tablespoonful of lye to half pint of hot water. Give the whole horn
a thorough bath in the mixture, and let it set about one hour; then take
a stiff brush and give the horns a thorough washing; this cuts off all
the dirt that has accumulated in the rough knotty parts. The horns
should now be put in a barrel of water and let soak a day or two, to
take off all the lye, then wash well using a stiff brush. Now take an
old hand-saw and cut down through the skull, commencing one inch back of
the horns and coming out at the eye sockets, being careful to saw
straight through, so that when placed on a board they will set level.
Take a two-inch pine block as wide as the skull and three inches longer,
round off the top and bottom ends to suit the shape ox the skull, place
the horns on the block, holding them there with the hands. Put it up
against the wall and if the horns pitch too far forward take down and
cut off from the front of the board, sloping it backwards until the
horns hang at a proper pitch. Now drill about four holes through the
skull, and screw the skull fast to the board. Take a dozen or more
shingle nails and drive in the front of board an inch or more apart,
leaving the heads sticking out. These are to hold the plaster paris,
which is put on to level up before putting on the covering. After the
nails are all in, mix some plaster paris and pour over the skull and
around the edges to round it up in shape for the covering. After the
plaster paris is partially hardened, smooth it by scraping down the high
places, then let it dry. Take a piece of strong unbleached muslin large
enough to stretch over the skull and board, tack the muslin on the back
part of the skull board, then draw it down between the horns and tack it
to the under side of the board at the lower end, drawing very tight; now
commence at the edge of the muslin and cut straight in to the inner side
of horns, round out a little for the horn, and proceed to draw it all
down tight, and tack it on the under side of the block, being careful
not to make any wrinkles in the covering; trim it off to the tacks on
the under side. (Some prefer to have the muslin wet while putting it
on.) We are now ready for the outer covering, which should be plush or
velvet, and is put on in the same way as the first covering. It requires
some skill to make a smooth job of the first; yet by going slow, any one
should do a fair job. Next make a board to screw on the back of this,
which should be made in diamond shape or rounding on both ends, and
about six inches longer and one inch wider than the skull board; this
should be made of walnut and nicely varnished; after it has thoroughly
dried fasten it tight to skull board with screws, counter-sinking their
heads. Bore one hole at each end of the base board and counter-sink
them; then screw it to the wall. Varnish the rough part of the horns and
let them dry; then take some chenille or tinsel cord to trim around the
butt of the horns and around the back part or edge of the skull board.
Tack it on with upholstering tacks. Cow horns and sheep horns are
mounted in the same manner. The sheep horns should be cleaned with the
lye, as directed for the deer horns, but no scraping or polishing is
necessary; they look better rough. The cow horns should be polished, as
directed on page 102, before they are put on the board. No polished horn
should be varnished.
POLISHING HOOFS OF VARIOUS KINDS.
The cow hoof takes a high polish, and a number of useful articles can be
made of them—which are not only useful, but quite a novelty. Take a pair
of cow hoofs, which are neither bruised nor scaled, rasp them down in
good shape, then scrape, sand-paper and polish the same as directed in
polishing horns. The hoofs should be good matches, and both from the
same foot. Bore or drill two holes in one of them on the inner side,
about one-half inch apart, and place the two hoofs side by side on a
level board, seeing that the toes are even with each other. Take a piece
of wire or an awl and put through the holes in the hoof and mark the
place to make the holes on the other, so that when they are wired
together they will set even with each other. Drill small holes around
the tops, say a quarter of an inch apart; take a piece of malleable wire
of sufficient size and draw it through the holes in the sides of the
hoofs, drawing them firmly together, and twist the ends of the wire
together; this will hold them in place. Bind the upper edge of hoofs
with piece of cloth, sewing through the holes drilled for that purpose.
Stuff each hoof with tow or moss, and stuff with any goods to suit your
fancy, silk plush, velvet, etc. Put the filling in tight and let it come
above the level of hoof to make the cover rounding, then drawn down
tight. Draw the edges of the cover down and sew them with a strong
thread to the binding. Take a piece of fancy cord or ribbon and tack it
around the edge of the cover and you have a fancy pin cushion. To make a
match safe or tooth-pick case, polish the hoofs, wire together, and
drill the holes around the edge as before; then take some glue and
spread it well over the inside of each hoof; cut some red flannel to fit
the inside and press it in with your fingers until it is all smooth; cut
it off at the edge of top of hoof, and bind the edges with ribbon. This
makes a very pretty match safe or tooth-pick case. All hoofs are
polished in the same manner. Should the hoofs not set level after they
are put together, take a coarse piece of sand-paper and tack or hold it
on a level board, set the bottom of the hoofs on it and rub round and
round until they do set level. It would be best to attend to this as
soon as they are fastened together.
ARTICLE XIII.
ACORNS, TIPS FOR HORNS, ETC.
[Illustration]
A nickel-plated acorn, as shown in the accompanying cut, makes a very
fine finish on the point of a polished horn. B is a wire stem attached
to the acorn, and is intended for fastening it to the horn. They are
made as follows: If made of metal, they are cast on the stem and then
turned. If brass, they are polished; but if iron, turned and then
bronzed, painted or nickel-plated. If made of horn, first put in the
stem and then turn and polish them. To put them on the horn, saw off the
point of the horn, drill a hole in the end of same, the size of the
stem, put a little glue in the hole and drive the stem in tight. The
horn should be polished before putting the knob on. Round knobs are also
very nice, put on in the same way. This way of putting them on is much
better and easier than the old way of screwing them on.
ARTICLE XIV.
RECEIPTS FOR VARIOUS PREPARATIONS USED IN THE PRESERVATION AND SETTING
UP OF ANIMALS, FOWLS, ETC.
SOLUTION OF CORROSIVE SUBLIMATE.
Corrosive sublimate 1 teaspoonful
Alcohol ½ pint
Mix and let stand twelve hours, and it is ready for use.
ARSENICAL SOAP.
Arsenic in powder 3 pounds
Salts of tartar 1 pound
Camphor gum 6 ounces
Cocoanut oil soap 1½ pounds
Powdered lime 5 ounces
Cut the soap up fine and put it in a kettle containing one gallon of
soft water and boil until the soap is well dissolved, then add the lime,
salts of tartar and arsenic, stirring the mixture thoroughly; put the
gum camphor in a half pint of alcohol and place in a mortar and crush
it; take the kettle off the fire and add the camphor; mix well, and when
partly cooled put it in fruit jars and seal up. It is now ready for use,
and great care should be taken in using it, as it is a deadly poison.
PRESERVING POWDER.
Arsenic in powder 2 pounds
Alum in powder 1 pound
Mix thoroughly and keep in a dry place. This is also very poisonous.
CARBOLIC ACID.
The following solution of carbolic acid and water I have found very good
in preserving skins, bugs, etc.:
Carbolic acid ½ ounce
Soft water 2 quarts
Turpentine is also a good preservative, and is sometimes used in place
of corrosive sublimate.
THINGS WORTH REMEMBERING.
Never attempt to dress a bird when its feathers are broken or badly
blood stained, unless it is a rare specimen.
Never dress a bird after the feathers begin to slip.
Never dress an animal after the hair begins to slip.
Never let a hide get dry before applying the preserving powder.
Never stretch a hide out of shape while taking it off.
Never forget to stop all wounds and the mouth and nostrils with cotton
as soon as you kill the specimen.
Never let a specimen get dry after stuffing it before shaping and
setting it up.
Never inhale the preserving powder, or get it in cuts or sores, for it
is a deadly poison.
Never be afraid of putting too much of the preserving powder on a hide.
Never be afraid of charging a good price for a well dressed specimen.
Always use the best material, such as eyes, tow, cotton, wire, etc.
Always try to improve on each specimen you dress that you may excel
others in the art.
TANNING HIDES WITH HAIR ON.
Very little has ever been written in regard to tanning skins with the
hair on. Indeed we may say there is scarcely any literature on the
subject, and this article must necessarily be very brief. Tanning with
the hair on is always somewhat difficult, but of course, some hides are
more difficult to tan than others. As an average, I will here give
directions for tanning a dog hide. The same process obtains in the
tanning of other hides. The only difference being in the length of time
required which must be regulated to suit each case. We will start with
the skin on the dog's back, and hence the first operation will be the
skinning process. To begin, make an incision from middle of under lip
back along the median line to the tip of the tail. Then make an incision
from the middle of each foot along the inner side of the leg to the
median line, and proceed to skin, being careful not to cut holes in the
hide, and at the same time to leave no flesh sticking to the skin.
When skinning the head cut the gristle of the ear back close to the
skull and separate the skin as near out to the point of the ear as
possible. Unless this skin is separated, it is difficult to tan the ears
without losing the hair, especially in warm weather. Be very careful not
to cut the eyelids; skin on over the nose and cut loose from the body.
Then go over the pelt and remove every particle of flesh which may have
been left on the skin, and be especially careful around the nose and
mouth. All the bones of the feet should be removed except the bones of
the toes. Next bathe the nose, ears, feet and tail with the preserving
fluids used in taxidermy. If you have none of the fluid, use plenty of
arsenic and alum, and then stretch the hide on a floor with the hair
side down and tack all the parts so that they will be stretched
perfectly smooth, after which salt all over thoroughly. Let it remain
until perfectly dry, and then take a piece of coarse sand-paper and rub
it down smooth and clear of any remaining vestige of fleshy particles.
Or instead of the preceding modus operandi, remove the pelt from the
floor when about dry, and lay it on a fleshing beam and with a fleshing
knife scrape off all remaining flesh and grease. Should there be grease
that cannot be removed with fleshing knife, tack hide back on the floor
and spread about three gallons of sawdust over it and rub thoroughly.
Clean the skin and cover again with salt, and when dry sand-paper as
directed above. Next place in warm water to soften it, and when soft
wash it thoroughly with soap. Then rinse and wring it, and put it into
the following liquid which should be contained in a wooden vessel. The
liquid consists of one gallon of soft warm water, one-half ounce of
commercial sulphuric acid, and one-third of a pound of corn starch.
After compounding, this liquid should be stirred about ten minutes
before the skin is introduced. When the pelt is put in, it should be
pressed well under, and stirred with a wooden paddle for thirty minutes
or until it begins to thicken and turn a dark reddish color. Then take
it out and hang it up, and let it drain about thirty minutes, after
which put it into a weak lye made either from wood ashes or from
concentrated lye which may be bought in any grocery store; strain the
liquid before putting the hide in. Stir the hide in this lye about
thirty minutes again, or until you are satisfied the lye has had time to
neutralize the acid from the preceding bath. The object of this latter
bath is to counteract the acid effect of the former. Take out of the lye
and hang up and let it drain about one hour, and then give it a thorough
washing on a wash-board with plenty of soap and warm water. Rinse
perfectly clean and again hang up to drain. When the hair is nearly dry,
tack it again on the floor taking care to stretch it into proper shape.
When partly dry take it up and rub and pull it until soft, which
completes the tanning. We are then ready to place the skull in position.
After skinning the head, remove the brains and eyeballs, and then boil
the skull until all the flesh can be scraped from the bones. The skull
being ready, fill the eye sockets with plaster paris made with water
into the consistency of a plaster, and then set in a pair of suitable
glass eyes, being careful to so adjust them as to give them the
appearance of natural eyes.
The under jaw should be wired to the upper, or bound securely to it by a
small cord or wire. Saw the skull and back corners of under jaw off, so
that when the sawed surface is fastened down flat on a board, the nose
will be somewhat elevated from the floor, while the back part of the
skull will lie on the floor. Fasten the skull to the small boards with
wire, and then stretch the skin over it. Soak only the skin of the head
in water, and sew up the mouth by drawing the lower lips up under the
upper in the natural way. The skin should be inside out while the lips
are being sewed. If in the process of skinning you have cut the skin
clear out through the lip, it must be sewed together far enough to
inclose the skull and the under board, which should not extend more than
two inches back of the skull. Build out the end of the nose with plaster
paris to make it natural shape and draw the skin over the skull. Be very
careful to have the nose and eyes all right. Tack the skin to the under
side of the board which should in width correspond to the thickness of
the dog's neck. The edges of the neck skin should be sutured together
under the board and tacked to it. Cut the skin, which is lapped under,
following the line of back end of board out to the side edges of the
board. Turn this flap out and sew the underlying end to the upper skin,
or to the skin of back of neck, and close to the back end of board; this
brings the skin on a level of under side of board; now round off the
turned out flap so as to conform with the line of the neck and fore
legs; the head will now need some stuffing to round it up in proper
shape. Take some cotton and put it in through the ears with a wire,
placing it where needed to give the head a proper shape; arrange the
skin around the eyes, nose and mouth; then let dry before lining. Put a
good supply of the alcohol and corrosive sublimate on the ears, nose and
lips, as soon as head is dressed. Now for the lining, procure a
sufficient amount of felt to line it, say of a dark green color; then
get enough to make a strip one and a half inches wide and long enough to
go around the edge of hide; this should be an orange color.
Take this strip and pink one edge of it, then baste the lining on to
skin letting the edges of it project about two inches out from edge of
hide. Now comb the hair around the edges of hide back towards the center
of same. Then take the pinked strip and lay it on the hair side of skin,
the smooth edge along the edge of the hide and the pinked edge laying
back on the hair; then sew the pinked strip, lining and hide together,
running close to the edge of hide. Now turn the pinked strip out on to
the projecting lining and sew another seam around just out side of the
hide, thus sewing the lining and the pinked strip together. Now pink the
out edge of lining to suit your taste; then take some yarn or zephyr and
knot the lining and hide together, the same as in knotting a comfort,
and the job is complete.
To make a robe sew a number of hides together and line them, simply
binding the edge with a straight strip.
TO SOFTEN HIDES.
Where a hide has become hard by getting wet, or from some other cause
after tanning, wet it on flesh side with water and hang up. When partly
dry give it a thorough rubbing. If that fails to soften it, oil it with
Neatsfoot oil and rub it in well.
TO CLEAN RUGS AND FURS.
When rugs and furs become dirty from use take hardwood sawdust, dampen
it and rub well into hide. Shake out and repeat until clean.
TO KILL MOTHS IN FURS, ETC.
Sprinkle them well with arsenic shaking it well down on hide. Tie up and
lay away for a few days. Then dust all the arsenic out and clean with
the sawdust. In stuffed birds use the arsenic alone, but handle it with
care for it is a deadly poison.
EXTRAS.
A FAMILY LINIMENT.
Alcohol 1 pint
Gum Camphor ½ ounce
Aqua ammonia 3 ounces
Oil of Sassafras ½ ounce
Laudanum ½ ounce
Mix.
Wishing to use the above for neuralgia or rheumatism, add to three
ounces of the preparation 4 grains menthol (in crystals).
FIVE DAY CORN OR WART CURE.
Cannabis 5 grains
Salicylic Acid 29 grains
Collodion ½ ounce
Caster Oil 10 drops
Directions:
Mix thoroughly, and before applying dampen the corn or wart with
turpentine; then apply, being careful not to get the preparation on the
sound flesh. Repeat this every night before going to bed for five
successive nights. Now bind a slice of lemon on excrescence, let it
remain one hour, and then wash and scrape off corn or wart. You may of
course repeat as often as necessary, or until excrescence is entirely
removed.
FURNITURE POLISH.
Turpentine ½ pint
Yellow lubricating oil ½ pint
Muriatic acid 1 ounce
Directions: