which I find very useful at this stage. It may be described as a series of zinc tubes, varying in size from one inch to six inches in diameter and two feet long, cut in two lengthwise, and placed side by side in a pine frame made to receive them. In these grooves the skins are placed according to size. The semicircular shape of the bed keeps the back and wings in the natural position, and the feathers smooth and regular. The front part of the specimen being uppermost, it is always visible, and if need be the skin can be taken up while drying and any irregularities adjusted.

Another way of disposing of the skin when made is to form a cosy bed for it in a soft sheet of cotton. Arrange the feathers and shape of the skin as desired, lay the specimen gently into the bed prepared for it, and do not touch it again till it is perfectly dry.

In larger specimens a different mode of treatment has to be adopted. With ducks, for instance, where the head is large and the neck small, the skin cannot be turned over as described. The plan then is to skin as far down the neck as possible, and to cut it off, leaving the head still inside of the skin. An opening is then made in the skin from the centre of the crown, a little way over the back of the head, through which the head is turned out, cleaned and then preserved. The eye-sockets and other apertures are filled with cotton, the head put back into its place, the opening carefully sewed up, and the skin filled out as already described. In birds of this size it is necessary to sew up the original opening, bringing the feathers together so that the disturbance may not be observed.

In skinning oily water-fowl, it is sometimes necessary to sew a strip of cloth around the opening as soon as it is made, to prevent the feathers being soiled by contact with the grease of the body. With birds of large size, a hook is sometimes passed through the bony part of the body just where the tail has been separated. To this a string is attached, by which the body is suspended while the skin is being removed. This plan gives more freedom in handling large birds, the only objection to it being that the skin is apt to be stretched.

Some birds are so fat that it is always necessary to have an absorbent of some kind at hand to take up the grease which would otherwise soil the feathers. Cornmeal is the best thing to use, but plaster of Paris does very well, except for birds of black plumage which it leaves slightly shaded with gray. The latter material may also be used with advantage for removing blood stains and other impurities which the birds may have contracted from their surround

ings. The soiled places are moistened with hot water before the absorbent is applied, and they are patted with the hand while the plaster is drying off. This must not be done while the birds are in the flesh, for the application of hot water will increase the flow of blood from the openings.

In putting away birds which are too large for the setting-board, a good way is to make a paper cylinder which will slip easily over the bird while in the flesh. When skinned and filled out in the usual way, the slip is again drawn over the specimen and allowed to remain till it is dry. In making skins of birds with long necks and heavy heads, it is necessary to put a long wire, or a tough sapling, through the whole length of the body and neck, because the skin becomes very brittle when it is dry, and runs the risk of being broken in handling.

Proficiency in the art of mounting birds can only be acquired by long practice, and a lot of poorly mounted specimens sitting about a house are neither useful nor ornamental; but anyone, by following these instructions, should be able, with a little practice, to inake up skins fit to appear in any public museum or private collection.

NESTS AND EGGS.

Next in interest to a good collection of mounted birds, or skins, is a collection of nests and eggs. By this I do not mean simply an accumulation of nests and eggs, the number of which constitutes the value of the collection, but a carefully handled nest, and a correctly identified set of eggs of every bird known to breed within the district over which the collector extends his observations.

The suggestions following are for the guidance of those who may wish to include them in their collections:

Nest-building I regard as most interesting and important in the study of a bird's history, for it tends to bring out all the intelligence and taste of a species better than anything else in which we see it engaged. There are some actions in a bird's life over which it has no control, such as the depositing of eggs of a certain size and color, and the hatching of them in a given time. These things are fixed already, but the selection of the site for the nest, the material of which it is to be composed, and the careful finish bestowed on

it, are all matters which vary with the different species. Between individuals of the same species there is also, frequently, a great difference in the skill exhibited in nest-building.

Among the lowest types of bird-life, we find species which make no nest of any kind, but deposit their eggs on the rocks, or on the sand by the seashore. Others make the merest apology for one, and it consists only of a few straws; while still another species admits the desirability of a nest, but dislikes the trouble of building it, and therefore appropriates that of another species. But as we advance upward in the scale, we find, especially among the nests of the smaller birds, some beautiful specimens of bird architecture, one of the finest being the work of our tiniest, the Humming-bird. The Summer Yellow Bird builds a beautiful nest in the fork of a lilac in the shrubbery; and while observing a handsome elm tree budding out in spring, I never think it complete unless it has the pretty, pensile nest of the Baltimore Oriole swaying at the point of one of its long, pendulous branches.

The principal objection to a collection of nests is the amount of room that they require, but the finest nests are those of the smallest birds, and a great number of these can be kept in a tray subdivided as required, and they are never-failing objects of interest. Some nests are found saddled on a limb, and are loosely built of twigs. This kind should be removed very carefully, and afterwards sewn together with inconspicuous thread, to keep the fabric as near as possible in its original shape. Others are in the forks of thick bushes, and the branches to which they are attached should be cut and the nests and their connections lifted out. Those of the ground-building birds require very careful handling, and often the safest way is to cut out a piece of the sod in which the nest is placed and bring it along, to keep the domicile from falling to pieces. Occasionally, a rare nest is found which it is impossible to remove. Of this the collector should make a careful record in his note-book, giving the general surroundings, date of occurrence, situation, size of nest, materials of which it is composed, number of eggs or young, action of the parents during the examination, and any other item of interest observed at the time, which will soon be forgotten if not recorded.

The impossibility of making a full collection of nests has been shown, but there is nothing to prevent anyone making a full collection of eggs. The most important point in this work is the correct identification of the eggs, and unless the collector makes up his mind

at the start to be sure of this in every case, he had better leave the matter alone, for without this, his collection, whatever the extent of it may be, will be absolutely worthless.

For anyone observant of the habits of the birds in the woods, the best guide to their nest is found by watching the actions of the birds, especially the female, during the breeding season, for she is sure eventually to betray the whereabouts of her treasures. But birds' nests are often close together, and their eggs so nearly alike that the only way to be absolutely certain of the identity of the rarer species is to secure the parent, either while she is on the nest or when she is seen fluttering away from it. This seems a cruel act, and the collector should not repeat it unless he is actually in need of the species.

On taking a set of eggs, the first thing to do is to remove any stains which they may have acquired from their surroundings; but this must be done with care, for in fresh eggs the colors sometimes yield to the process and disappear. Eggs for a collection are now emptied through one hole about the middle of the side. It should first be pricked with a needle, and then the drill applied and worked with the finger and thumb till a smooth round hole is made, large enough to allow the contents to escape. The blowpipe should then be used, either close to the hole or a little way inside. In the latter case the blowpipe must be loose in the hole to allow the contents to escape around it. If the material inside is thick, and does not run freely, it should be cut up with a piece of fine wire with a sharp bent point, and removed with the aid of a small syringe.

When thoroughly clean, the egg should be laid aside to dry on some substance which will absorb the moisture, cornmeal being recommended because it does not adhere to the shell. Where eggs

are in an advanced stage of incubation, those of small size can rarely be saved, but the embryos in larger ones may be cut to pieces by widening the hole a little and introducing a sharp hook. The contents can then be removed piecemeal, but great care and much time are necessary to accomplish the task. In some cases it is considered safer to allow the embryo to remain in the shell till it is decomposed. To assist the process of decay, a strong solution of caustic potash is introduced, and this is allowed to remain till the embryo becomes soft and pulpy, when it will yield to the ordinary

treatment.

The safest mode of carrying eggs from the field, or sending them away by mail when prepared, is to have each egg wrapped in cotton

batting and placed in a box of suitable size subdivided for the purpose. In some collections, the species to which they belong, and other particulars, are given by marking them on the shell with a soft pencil, but I dislike this mode, for it destroys the look of the egg. A better way, I think, is to have a number attached to the box or nest containing the eggs, and a corresponding number in a catalogue in which can be given all the necessary particulars in detail.