Taxidermy

by Leon Luther Pray

Fig. 36.

With the skin and mannikin in readiness make up a batch of plaster of paris in thin glue water, only enough glue stirred in so that it can barely be felt when the fingers are rubbed together in the water. This should retard the plaster setting for from four to six hours and give ample time for finishing the deer's face. This compo. will set immediately if used in a skin that has been treated with formaldehyde, sulphuric acid, or alum, as the glue becomes tanned and impotent by them.

Make this compo. thick and stiff and mix into it some chopped manila fiber. For finishing one deer face and ear-butts about a quart and a half of the compo. should be made. This should cover the face thinly, fill the ear-butts, set the eyes, and fill nose and mouth details out.

In beginning the setting of the scalp into place, cover the lead ears thinly with the compo. and slip them into the ear skins. The lead will have to be partly folded together to accomplish this and spread again when inside. If edges of ears have been torn open in skinning, sew them up neatly from the outside, using a small round needle and small thread before the lead is placed.

With the cartilages set, fill the ear butts with compo., squeezing it out upon the lead a little way that it may brace the ears when set finally.

Set the mannikin in the vise for convenience. Cover skull with a thin layer of compo. where bone is exposed and slip the face skin into place. Hold the scalp up now by tying a heavy cord under the jaw and behind the horns. Draw the neck skin into place and tie it up with a piece of cord about the neck near base. Now, for better convenience in sewing, remove the head from the vise, set front of neck base on the floor and lean the antlers against a chair seat, back of neck up. Draw corners of antler cuts together back of the horns.

Begin at one horn and sew to joint of the Y cut. Sew from the other horn and then continue down the neck to the base, using medium stitches and drawing tight. This method of sewing a game head is the only exception, in taxidermy, to sewing toward the head. For a raw scalp use a sail needle and waxed ends. For a tanned scalp, a large fur needle and strong linen.

With the sewing completed, turn to nailing the scalp to the back-board. Turn the free edge of skin down over back of board and nail firmly with short broad headed nails so that when the surplus is trimmed off a turned over edge of skin two or three inches wide will remain, held snugly by nails set two inches apart. Count upon finishing a raw head all up at one go when using the plaster compo. This is the only compo. which can be recommended to hold raw, haired skins down, as the material must set before the skin begins to dry and pull.