be made as light as possible, or they may slip from the mouth and break the egg being operated on. The chief point to be attended to in their construction is that the lower orifice should be as large as the size of the pipe permits. It is of course necessary that they should be perfectly smooth outside, towards the lower end.*

Fig. 6 represents a tube for emptying small eggs by suction. The bulb is to receive the contents of the egg and prevent them from reaching the mouth of the operator and thus causing nausea. This instrument is best made of thin glass, as thereby it can be easily kept clean. The same remark applies to this as to the last with respect to the size of the lower orifice.

A piece of thin wire (fig. 7), long enough to pass entirely through the tubes, should be always kept at hand by the operator to remove

obstructions which are likely to occur from small pieces of the embryo or half-dried yelk being accidentally drawn into the tubes or blowpipes.

Fig. 8 represents a syringe, which will be found useful in rinsing out the inside of an egg. It may be made of any metal, though the

* In the absence of a blowpipe, a reed, straw or grass stalk, will be found to be a tolerably efficient substitute.

Fig. 11.

Full size.

pewter ones are apt, from their weight, to be clumsy. Nickel is recommended, as for the common blowpipes. The lower orifice should be as large as possible. The ring at the top should be large enough for the insertion of the operator's right thumb- as it must be remembered that he has to work it with one hand.

Figs. 9 and 10 represent scissors of shapes likely to be found very useful; fig. 9. for cutting through the bones of the embryo before it is extracted, and fig. 10 for cutting off portions of it while it is being

extracted by one of the hooks represented in figs. 11, 12 and 13, which should vary in size from that of an ordinary pin to that of stout wire. The length of their straight portions should be rather more than the diameter of the egg they are used on.

Fig. 14 represents a knife with a curved blade, somewhat like a billhook, and may be useful in cutting up the embryo prior to extraction.

Figs. 15 and 16 represent a penknife and scalpel with elongated blades or shafts, to admit of their being introduced into the egg to cut up the embryo. Fig. 15 is also, perhaps, the best instrument with which to remove the lining membrane from the hole. This is done by inserting the blade perpendicularly, and slightly scraping the edge of the hole as soon as it is drilled.

Fig. 17 represents a forceps for extracting the pieces of the embryo when cut up. The spring should not be too lively, as its resiliency may occasion breakage. The grasping surfaces should be roughened to prevent the pieces slipping.*

*

5. Preparation of Specimens.

Eggs are emptied with the least amount of trouble at one hole,t which should be made at the side of the specimens, as shown in the annexed engravings (figs. 18 and 19), with one of the drills already described (figs. 1, 2, 3). The hole should of course be proportioned to the size of the egg and the amount of incubation it has undergone. Eggs that are hard sat upon are more easily blown by being kept a few days, but the operation must not be deferred too long or they are apt to burst violently immediately on being punctured, though this may be avoided by holding them under water while the first incision is made. The hole being drilled, the lining membrane should be cleared away from the orifice with a penknife (fig. 15), by which means not only is the removal of the contents, but also the subsequent cleansing of the

* Most, if not all, of the implements here described may be obtained of any surgical-instrument maker. I have pleasure in mentioning the name of Mr. J. Evrard, of 35, Charles Street, Middlesex Hospital, as that of the workman who for some years past has supplied several of my friends and myself. He fits up neat and convenient pocket-cases with a set of all the most useful tools for egg-blowing and bird-skinning. Mr. David Mackenzie, of 58, South Bridge, Edinburgh, I have been informed, furnishes drills, blowpipes, &c., and at a most reasonable rate. I believe that the Smithsonian Institution of Washington will, with its usual liberality, equip any of its correspondents in America according to their requirements.

Those who may still prefer to blow eggs by means of two holes are particularly requested not to make them at the ends of the eggs, nor at opposite sides, but on the same side (fig. 20). In this case the hole nearest the smaller end of the egg should be the smallest, and the contents blown out at the other. If the holes are made at the ends of the eggs it not only very much injures their appearance as cabinet specimens, but also prevents their exact dimensions from being ascertained accurately; and if they are made at opposite sides the extent of the" show surface" is thereby lessened.

Fig. 20.

specimen, facilitated. The small end of a blowpipe (figs. 4 and 5) should then be introduced, while the other extremity is applied to the mouth, and blown through, at first very gently. If the embryo is

found to be moderately developed a stream of water should be introduced by means of a syringe (fig. 8), and the egg then gently shaken, after which the blowpipe may be again resorted to, until by the continued use of both instruments, aided by scissors (figs. 9 and 10), hooks (figs. 11, 12 and 13), knives (figs. 14, 15 and 16), and forceps (fig. 17), the contents are completely emptied. After this the egg should be filled with water from the syringe, gently shaken, and blown out, a process which is to be repeated until its interior is completely cleansed, when it should be laid upon a pad of blotting paper or fine cloth, with the hole downwards, its position on the pad or cloth being occasionally changed until it is perfectly dry. During this time it should be kept as much as possible from the light, especially from the sunshine, as the colours are then more liable to fade than at any subsequent time. In the case of small eggs, very when fresh the contents may be sucked out by means of a bulbed tube (fig. 6), and the interior afterwards rinsed out as before. It is always advisable, as far as possible, to avoid wetting the outside of the shell, as the action of water is apt to remove the "bloom," affect the colour, and in some cases alter the crystallization of the shell; consequently dirt stains or dung spots should never be removed. While emptying the contents it is as well to hold the egg over a basin of water to avoid breakage in case of its slipping from the fingers. Should the yelk of the egg be dried up, a small portion of carbonate of soda may be introduced (but with great care that it does not touch the outer surface of the shell, in which case the colour is likely to be affected), and then the egg filled with water from the syringe, and left to stand a few hours with the hole uppermost, after which the contents are found to be soluble, and are easily removed by the blowpipe, assisted by one of the hooks. It is almost

unnecessary to add, except for the benefit of beginners, that the manipulation of the different instruments requires extreme caution, but a few trials will give the collector the practice necessary for success. Eggs should never be written on until the shells are perfectly dry, or the ink will be found to run, and the inscription will be rendered illegible. Eggs with chalky shells, such as those of the anis (Crotophaga), gannets and cormorants (Pelecanida), and others may be conveniently marked by incising with a pin or the point of an egg-drill, so also those of the ptarmigans (Lagopus), care being taken in this case to select the dark-coloured patches to write upon. The inscriptions should always be placed on the same side as the hole or holes, and confined within the smallest limits possible. For drilling the hole or holes the side presenting the least characteristic markings should be selected.

Eggs that are very hard sat upon, of whatever size they be, should be treated in the following manner, which is a method superior to any other known at present to the writer for preventing injury arising to them. The annexed engraving (fig. 21) shows a piece of paper, a number of which when gummed on to an egg, one over the other, and

Fig. 21.

left to dry, strengthen the shell in such a manner that the instruments above described can be introduced through the aperture in the middle and worked to the best advantage, and thus a fully formed embryo may be cut up, and the pieces extracted through a very moderately sized hole; the number of thicknesses required depends of course greatly upon the size of the egg, the length of time it has been incubated, and the stoutness Five or six is the least number that it is

of the shell and the paper. safe to use. Each piece should be left to dry before the next is gummed on. The slits in the margin cause them to set pretty smoothly, which will be found very desirable; the aperture in the middle of each may be cut out first, or the whole series of layers may be drilled through when the hole is made in the egg. For convenience sake the papers may be prepared already gummed, and moistened when put on (in the same way that adhesive postage labels are used). Doubtless patches of linen or cotton cloth would answer equally well. When the operation is over a slight application of water (especially if warm) through the syringe will loosen them so that they can be easily removed, and they can be separated from one another and dried to serve another time. The size represented in the sketch is that suitable for an egg of moderate dimension, such as that of a common fowl.