380
[Class XYl
its wild and domestic state, affords a very plentiful supplyof useful fur. When dressed and dyed in imitation ofother skiLs, it is manufactured into a great variety ofcheap and useful articles for the middle classes. Thewool has recently been manufactured into a peculiar clothadapted for ladies’ use, but by far the greater number ofskins are still used for hatters’ purposes. The English silver-grey rabbit was originally a breed peculiar toLincolnshire, where great attention was paid to it; but■warrens have since been formed in various parts of thecountry. Skins of this variety are continually exportedto China and Russia , where they are much esteemed, andcommand a comparatively high price. The Hudson’sBay rabbit is beautiful in the length and texture of itsfur, but the skin is so fragile, and the fur so liable to falloff with slight wear, that it has little value as an articleof dress. The white Polish rabbit is a breed peculiar tothat country; its skin is often made into linings forladies’ cloaks, and being the cheapest and most useful furfor that purpose, the animal is imported in great numbers.
Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris). —This attractive little animalabounds in most countries, especially in Siberia and thenorth of Europe. It is from the Russian dominions thatwe derive our principal supply of the skins of this agilecreature, which exceeds in number that of any of the fur-producing animals. It is said that 15,000,000 are everyyear captured in Russia , our supply from thence exceed-ing 3,000,000 annually. The fur of the squirrel, of whichthere arc several varieties, is light, warm, and durable;some of the lighter colours are dyed iu imitation of sable.The colour of the Siberian squirrels varies from a pearlgrey to a dark blue grey: the under parts, which arewhite, are frequently cut out and made into cloak-linings,remarkable for their lightness: the tails are manufacturedinto boas for foreign markets; they are also extensivelyused in the manufacture of artists’ pencils.
Chinchilla ( Chinchilla lanigcra ). —There are two chiefvarieties of chinchilla, the produce of South America :those from Lima are short in the fur, and inferior inquality to those from Buenos Ayres and Arica ; thecolour is a silvery grey, Arica producing the darkest andbest-coloured skins. The general appearance of theanimal places it between the squirrel and the rabbit: inits natural abodes it has the agility of the former, andresembles the rabbit in living in holes and burrows. Theextreme softness and delicacy of the fur adapt it only forladies’ use. Though much admired and frequently wornin this country', it is more extensively consumed in France ,Germany, and Russia .
Racoon ( Procyon . lotor) — The racoon is an inhabitant ofNorth America : the skins are imported into this countryin immense numbers; but meeting with no demand forour home trade, are re-exported by merchants who pur-chase them at the periodical sales. They are usedthroughout Germany and Russia for lining shubes andcoats, and, being of a durable nature and moderate inprice, are esteemed as one of the most useful furs.
Common Badger (J lelcs vulgaris); American Badger(Melcs L'Abradonca). —The skin of the European badger,from the wiry nature of its hair, is generally used for themanufacture of superior kinds of shaving brushes; butthe skins exported from North America have a soft, finefur, which renders them suitable for many purposes forwhich the larger furs are used.
Cat.—In Holland the cat (Felis domestiens) is bred forits fur; it is fed on fish, and carefully tended until thefur arrives at its greatest perfection ; large numbers arealso collected in England and many other countries. Thewild cat (Felis cat us) is much larger and longer in its fur,and is met with in extensive forests, particularly in Hun-gary ; the colour is brownish grey, mottled, and spottedwith black. The softness and durability of the fur renderit very suitable for cloak-linings, and it is also made intowrappers for open carriages and railway travelling.
Canada Lynx (Felis Canideti'is) ; Lvux Cat (FelisUnfa). —The fur of the lynx is long, soft, and of a greyishcolour, sometimes, as in the Norway lynx, covered withbrown spots; the belly is white, silky, and not unfre-quently spotted with black. The change of fashion hasfor some time discarded it from tins country ; but it is
dyed, prepared, and exported in considerable quantitiesfor the American market, where it is much valued andadmired. It is generally used for cloaks, linings, andfacings, for which purposes it is very appropriate, beingexceedingly soft and light.
Furs are subject to injury by several species of moths,whose instincts lead them to deposit their eggs at theroots of the fine hair of animals.
Linnaeus mentions five species that prey upon clothand furs, of which Tinea pcllionclla, T. rcstiuncila, and T.tapctzella are the most destructive. No sooner is theworm hatched than it eats its path through the fur, andcontinues increasingly destructive until it arrives at itsfull growth, and forms itself a silken covering, fromwhich in a short time it again emerges a perfect moth.
Another cause of the decay of furs is the moisture towhich they are frequently exposed ; the delicate structureof the fine under-fur cannot be preserved when anydampness is allowed to remain in the skin. This fact iswell known to the leather manufacturer, who, havingwetted his skins, allows them to remain in a damp cellarfor a few days for the purpose of removing the hair,•which is pulled out with the greatest facility after re-maining only one week in a moist condition. It followsfrom these observations that to preserve furs it is neces-sary to keep them dry, and to protect them from moths;if exposed to damp or rain, they must be dried at amoderate distance from the fire; and when put by forthe summer should be combed and beaten with a smallcane, and very carefully secured in a dry brown paper orbox into which moths cannot enter. During the summerthey should be examined once a month to be again beatenand aired, if the situation in which they have beenplaced be at all damp. With these precautions, the mostvaluable furs may be preserved uninjured for manyyears.
The Jury award Prize Medals to the following Ex-hibitors in this department:—
Beyingtons and Morris, King William Street, London (332, p. 535), for d collection of good and well-manufac-tured furs and skins, both natural and dyed, of stonemarten, baum marten, Kolinsky, sable, and ermine.
Clarke, Robert, and Sons, Cheapside, London (307,p. 53d), for a well-assorted collection of manufacturedfurs in ermine, mink, musquash, grebe, and seal.
Central Committee, Nova Scotia (2, p. 970), for achoice collection of skins, the produce of Nova Scotia ,fully described in Illustrated Catalogue, with the namesattached to the specimens.
Drake, R., Piccadilly, London (30G, p. 534), for threevery beautiful muffs made from the choicest skins ofthe Russiau sable, the grebe, and miniver.
Eugers, F., Moscow, Russia (not in Catalogued, for afur carpet, well designed, and of good workmanship,
Gever, J., Pesth, Hungary (34b, Austria , p. 1024\ fora national cloak called the Bunda, made from Hungarian lamb skins ; the tanned leather, which is richly em-broidered, forms the exterior of the cloak.
Hudson’s Bay Company, Feneliurch Street, London (301, pp. 529-534), for a choice collection of fur skins,the produce of their possessions in North America ,consisting of twenty-seven groups, which are fullydescribed in the Illustrated Catalogue, with their scien-tific names.
Keilich, Henry, 9, Butterland Street, Iloxton, London (not in Catalogue), for models of a miniature tigress andcubs, displaying great ingenuity and excellence in designand workmanship, each hair of which is said to have beenseparately fixed by the hand.
Konig, L., Berlin (139, Prussia,p. 1056), foracamailleof superior workmanship, made entirely from the tails ofthe mink.
Meyer, M. and S., Bow Lane, London (304, p. 534),for a variety of manufactured articles made from theskins of the rabbit, and dyed in imitation of more costlyfurs, by which a cheap, warm, and ornamental clothingis brought within the means of the working classes.
Russian Imperial Cabinet, St. Petersburgh (not inCatalogue), for a pelisse lining made from the necks of