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Arranging various animals

When you discover some lizards, writhing while biting each
other &, which is the most difficult thing to mold,
because of the number of feet & because of the tip of their tails
which are very fine, Il take heed that should
trou some part be uncovered, that remains as if
suspended in mid air, to steady it, in order that the second cast, which
you will do on top for the second half, will not vary. And to steady it
over the void, take a little wax, & rub it & lay it on a
table, shaped like a big needle, then cut that which
you will need, & with the tip of a hot iron wire
join it where it will be necessary. Steady also
frame on the mold all that will
have detached from it (when you uncover the half of the stomach) with
some wax, taken lightly with the point of a pen-knife,
& joined & melted with the iron wire. And when
you will make your cast, one ought only to bring the wax to there &
the edge of the wax joined to the animal, & which, while
melting, will continue the casting up to the animal, without spoiling
anything, which is a secret.

One can arrange snakes bound together in embraces of love,
but that is only when they are small.


Flower in the mouth of the snake

If you want to put in the mouth of the snake some flower
q or some branch of a plant which contains the
antidote against its bite, take a little branch, as best
arranged as you can find, & pose its stem into its mouth. Then put
two little pieces of wax around the stem of the plant. And with
the end of a iron wire, that is hot, melt the
wax a little, & with the other hand, close
the jaws of the animal. And then you can cut the head to make it burn
with the flower. If the plant s is strong enough, it
will hold up by itself, and should it be weak like wormwood
leaf, which droops, the dampness of the sand will lift it up, & make
it swim & hold up without putting anything there, although you could
pass underneath it some thread, going through with a
needle.

