Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1908-07-03
FEAT IN TAX|DERMY'
Scientist Makes First Exact
Cast of a Fish.
REPRODUCTION IN COPPER.

Natural History Tells How He Used
Hot Wax In His Experiments-Plss-
ter Model of Living Frog Made.
Here IS n scientist who has accom- !
plshed feat never before performed, 7
He is J. ID. Higgins, head of the de /
partment Of preparation aud exhibition
of the American Museum OF Natural
History In New York city, and after
years of experimenting he has succeed
{ ed in making an exact cast In copper
/ of a living animal.
/ The experiments which eliminated In
/ the successful reproduction We're per
formed recently at the museum on two
frogs and grew out Of new method
Of making reproductions of fish and
batrachians which Mr.. Higgins discoy.
cred.
1T has heretofore been an impossi-
biity to mount a fish, lizard or frog
SUCCESSFULLY" said the taSidermist
when seen by a New York Evening
Mail reporter. Ever since the history
OF taxidermy began men have striven
In vain TO mount a fish so that II re
tains all the characteristics ii pos
sessed when alive. II has been just as
impossible To make a correct and dura-
BILE plaster cast of fish. frog or lizard
"In the first place. IL has been i'm
possible TO mount q fish without giving
II coat of shelac and oil, and then
the colors have to be painted on. The
result is that all the fine details OF the
skin-the scales, lines. etc,-are coated
over so as to be obscured. and the I'm
ished product is of no use from scien-
titic point OF view. Then II has been
! necessary In mounting fish TO make an
Inward framework on which 10 stretch
the skin and which can never be exact.
and eXactness Is absolutely essential IL
a specimen Is to be of any use to the
scientist Then mounted fish always
shrink After fish is framed, oiled,
painted, etc. 1t becomes practically a
manufactured product, with all the fine
points which make II of scientific value
{ obliterated.
! "In making a plaster cast OF the
same fish similar troubles are expert
enced. In the first place. plaster does
: not take all the fine detail. In the case
Of plaster, shellac. oil and a great deal
OF paint must also be used, and In the
- end the cast is OF no more scientific
value thanNthe mounted fish. which is
none at all.
"In the case of batrachians like the
frog and lizard 1t is impossible TO skin
them without tearing and otherwise
mutilating the skin, and the result Is
also that when they are finished they
: are so doctored up as to be useless.
For years taxiderInists have sought TO
avoid these drawbacks, but with no
success. but | believe have at last
n discovered a method whereby exact re-
4 productions perfect in the mnutest de
tail can he made of fish and reptiles.
My method is first TO pose the fish
:. Then make a wax mold Ivy spraying
hot wax over the specimen. | use wax
because II takes the finest detail. W, i,l
L plaster does not. Then | remove the
fish from the mold. and by means OF
copper eectroplating apparatus plate
the interior of the mold with copper
II which fills up every detail and line In
l. the wax, BY pouring hot water on the
wax it is melted from the copper repro
duction, which is then bathed IN thii
solution of silver TO color ii white
The silver plate is used to give
white body to the reproduction so that
" it will not have to be painted on. thus
!, eliminating one coat of paint which
d would tend to fill up detail The g"car
t,n. u
white is that the white soon turns vel
y low, destroying the effect and making
the specimen worthless as Il cOrrec'
he color, The silver plate never turns vel
ii low. Then by oxidizing it with heat
o. the rdescent hues of the living FISH
can be exactly reproduced, which Ii
&c impossible with white paint
re after the copper reproduction has
ar been bathed in silver it is merely nee
~ essary to paint on the dark colors OF
> the fish, and the work is complete
~ You then have an exact reproduction
re of the fish that is impervious to change
n, and will remain as it is practically for
al ever.
= "The metallic color of living fish has
been sought in vain for years in paint
III but on a metallic model this effect |.
e natural. All danger of an opaque tin
10 is done away with, and we have
no model perfect in every detail, colo
and hue and durable as metal
~ After making my first fish model
~ hit on plan for taking a cast of
~ living frog. This has never been done
IN before. The frogs have heretofore beer
always cast In plaster after they wer,
dead, when, of course, they had to b,
C posed with a danger of losing thei
I'd own natural position while in life.
he Il procured two large frogs, CAV,
~ them Knockout drops, and when they
were sitting in their own natural posi-
'' ton. but completely unconscious,
Il, sprayed hot wax over Them thus max
70 Ing an exact mold similar to that in tn,
h. case of the dead fish OF course tn,
wax killed the frogs, but | had tn,
mold, made while they were still alive
'g This mold l treated in the same way
as | did the fish mold, and the result
was an exact reproduction in metal O
- 4 living frog sitting in natural posi-
ton"
Ps Mr. Higgins said that he believed hi
al LOO u