New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-05-05
GROUPS AT THE MUSEUM.
NEW GLIMPSEs OF TIE WILDWOOD NEARLY
READY FOR EW-YORKERS.

READY FOR NEW-YORKERS.
SOME OF THE THINGS TO BE SHOWN AT THE
NATURAL HISTORY BUILDING-now THE
COLLECTIONS ARE PREPARED-LtFE OF
NATURALIST ITS DIFFICULTIES
AND SUCCESSES.
There is good news in store for those children
and their elders who gather about the groups Of
birds in their nests at the Museum OF Natural
History Attractive the nest Of the cuckoo In
the wild grapevine the scarlet tanager in the oak
branch and the owls nest in the chestnut stump
have proved, they will be overlooked IS soon as
more striking new groups that are planned, and
some Of which are partly completed in the Museum
workshops, shall he shown. These include
family OF plebeian woodchucks about their ho'o
on a clover.bank: q pair Of rufed grouse, or
partridge, at the foot of pine stump, with their
Young in hiding beneath the brown leaves, while
the nest is Uttered with the shells from which
The chicks have DUST emerged; the Virginia
ouossum. with her young and her nest in hollow
tree: the Labrador duck bird that Is now en-
tinct. but which was accustomed to winter about
Montauk Point forty years ago; the muskrat: the
raocoon: the great Northern diver, or loon, from
Lake Winnepesaukcc; and family groups OF fhe
red fox, the Florida gnlinulc, the piebill gr,02,
with its aoating nest and the black duck
Some of these groups are nearly completed, and
Others exist only in rough drawings on wrapping
paper or in the ina snation of Mr.. Richardson, the
taxidermist OF the institution. The workshop
where these framentary groups are scattered
about is an interesting place. At one stand
some shelves with glass doors Uttered with books,
stuffed ducks and the plaster casts OF Mr. Crowley
which have been made to give other museums
hint OF the appearance Of this most interesting
rhimpanzec On the other side stands a pile OF
rocks and dirt with great holes in it that any
Nyack woodchuck might mistake for the home
Of his first cousin. But the Nyack woodchuck
would be mistaken. The pile is not rocks ana
earth at all, hut papicr mnchc SprInklcd Will
loan, and with holes exactly like those OF the
real woodehuck When this bank has bccn
thickly covered with the grass, red ana whltc
clover blossoms and red sorrel now belng mat"
for by it Mrs. MosriIgc the Museum artist, ana
has half dozen real woodchucks sitting about
with their cars prickcd up it will be as deceptive
as anything in the Eden Musee
FAMILY OF PARTRIDGEs.
The next case is protected from hquSi'Ne
eyes by wrapping OF brown paper ana snaruci
overhead by plaster cast OF the gnunt rieh'
arm and bony fingers Of Mr.. Crowley MI
Richardson cautiously lifts one corner OF the
wrappinr and reveals . huge pine stump with
rho green branch of q beech tree trailing across
it, At it's foot among litter OF drlcd c"\cs
struts a big cock partridge, every tcethcr stand
ing erect and his wings sweeping tie srouhu'
Near by is his mate, her head raised TO give tue
note of warning that has just left her Dill anu
has sent the chicks at her feet scurrylng unuef
the dried haves and sticks 10 hiuc
from the approaching hunter Usually inc
chicks succeed. and rarely does an lh'tuuer
vtch more than a glimpse OF them, but MI ldch'
ardson's eyes ore keen and he captured the chIIrG
family and brought them, pine stump nest ana
all from the depths Of Vermont iorcst 10 10
hight the eyes of young Ncw.forkcrs NO DO
nestle chicks, not even gosllnes or httic game
bantams are so cunning or so bcautliuly
marked as are little partridges and when the
case gets into the big hall upstairs IT. VIII Dc
surrounded by eager infantie crowds. The grouT
only needs now the scattering OF few broken
shells in the nest, and the placing among the dry
lenyes of the wax copies Of the blossoming tarelh
and two. leaved Solomo ns seal that were found
growing there, so the youngsters may look for lts
appcarance any time during the summer.
The older people will he more interested in thr
,possum group, on which work has Just been begun
in the large workshop Of the Museum where the
two assistants are kept busly hammering away
on pjeccs for exhibition The group IN It's pres
Ont state reveals some OF the secrets Of the axid
ernist's trade The OposSum nest was found
in the hollow stump Of huge tree, and the stumT
WAS cut down and brought on so ms 10 repreeen
faithfully the animals actual surroundings Bu'
the tree stump would he too heavy for exhibition
in o case. So a set of photographs was first mnh'
TO preserve the outlines Of the original the BARI
was carefully removed and kept, light, hono"
| copy Of the original trunk was made Of lumhc
| and wire netting and the bark was then tnckc'
| carefully upon this dummy, SO AS to preserve
the appearance OF the original Upon this th
opossums will be grouped later
The line between the real and the artiilCiH
| ia difficult TO trace in these Museum groups /
would he the simplest thing in the world TO pl!'
| 10 real rocks or paving stones as they are
| seon under SO many Of the bird nrstr Bu
| the real stones would he heavy, and, solid Il:
| these hook, they are all hollow frames of palael
| mache Among the most difficult OF art worl
| are the reproduction of the delicate wild graP'
| blossom ms seen in the cuckoo's nest, and TIT
| modelling Of the stamCns OF the apprehension
that surround the robins nest. Thrsc arc o
course Of wax, or some preparation OF waNct
cloth, because the perfect preservation OF leave
| and blossoms is impossible. But the arthcia
leaf and flower are so deltly joined TO the real
branch that a keen eye is needed TO spy where
one ends and the other begins. The birds, tn,
eggs and the nests also real and they
were not taken, as might at first glance be sup
posed, from the abundant stores Of The Museum
and posed in the most effective way. On a col
lecting tour the pair Of birds and their nest ar
| first spotted"
Then the old birds are shot with u gun nc
larger than pistol, except that the barrel Is
| longer, and carrying charge Of dust shot that
| hardly breaks the feathers OF IA humming bird