ts when
dead, and after lapse of time, the colouring matter in some cases totally
disappears, and nothing can restore the loss of pigment but artificial
treatment of the faded parts. To do this satisfactorily is not one of
the easiest matters in the world, inasmuch as two things are to be
strictly guarded against. One--thick painting, which hides all the
characteristics of the scutellae, or plates of the legs and toes, or
fills up the minute papillae of the face; the other--imparting a too
shining or varnished appearance to the parts coloured. So little colour
is required for this purpose that I have found the oil-colour tubes used
by artists to be the handiest and cheapest. The colour, when squeezed
out, is to be thinned with turpentine only, until it readily flows off
the brush on to the beak or legs of the specimen; if properly done it is
very transparent, and of just sufficient quality to give the necessary
brightness without undesirable shininess.

The colours that are most useful are chrome yellow, yellow ochre,
Prussian blue, permanent blue, light red, burnt umber, flake white,
and vermilion. With these every shade of grey, blue, green, red, or
pink can be obtained; they are all cheap, but if a quantity of
vermilion is desired, it is cheapest bought as a powder at the
oilman's, and mixed as required. When colour tubes are not procurable,
the same colours are to be obtained at the oilman's in powder, or
ready mixed, which latter must be thinned with one part transparent
paper varnish to two parts turpentine (turps), the varnish being added
or decreased as dry or mixed colours are used.

"Brunswick black," a cheap and durable brown, if laid on thinly, i.e.
thinned with turps, is sometimes used for colouring the noses of
mammals. It must be recollected, however, that greys predominate in
some noses over browns, and that the surface is seldom of one tint,
hence "Brunswick black" is seldom used by artists, who prefer to make
tints from some of the colours mentioned.

Faces of parrots must be whitened with dry "flake white" applied with
a piece of cotton wool.

The bills of toucans, and similar birds, require some nice colouring
to blend the various tints one within the other. If the reader
requires a more scientific method of doing this, I must refer him to
"Waterton's Wanderings in South America," in which work he will find
an account of the manner in which that eccentric naturalist cut out
the insides of his to