This is my way of stretching coon hide; use four-penny nails and use either the inside or outside of some old building, inside is the best. Drive the first nail thru nose. This holds the hide for starting. Pull each forward leg up (not out) on a level with nose and about seven or eight inches from nose according to size of the coon. Drive next nail at root of tail, and pull down, moderately tight. Now pull each hind leg out about one inch wider than the fore legs and a little below the tail nail. Now use a nail every inch and pull the hide up between the forward legs and nose, until it comes straight across. Next, treat the bottom of the hide the same as the top. Use plenty of nails. To finish down the sides, drive a nail first on one side and then on the other until finished. You will find when done that the hide is nearly square with no legs sticking out the sides and no notches in the skin. CHAPTER XXVI. HANDLING AND GRADING. MINK should be cased fur side in and stretched on boards for several days or until dry. SKUNK should be cased fur side in and stretched on boards for several days. The white stripe cut out, blackened, etc., reduces the value. RACCOON should be stretched open (ripped up the belly) and nailed on boards or the inside of a building. Some dealers allow as much for coon cased, from any section, while others prefer that only Southern coon be cased. FOXES of the various kinds should be cased and put on boards fur side in for a few days, or until dry. As the pelt is thin they soon dry, when they must be taken off and should be turned fur side out. In shipping see that they are not packed against furs flesh side out. LYNX should be cased and after drying properly are turned fur side out, same as foxes. OTTER are cased and stretched fur side in. The pelt being thick and heavy, takes several days to dry properly. They are shipped flesh side out. Sea otter are handled the same as fox, lynx and marten, that is, fur side out. BEAVER are split but stretched round and should be left in the hoop or stretcher for several days. BEAR should be handled open and stretched carefully. In skinning be careful and leave nose, claws and ears on the hide. WOLVES can be handled same as bear, also wolverine. FISHER should be cased and stretched flesh side out, but may be sent to market same as foxes or fur out. MARTEN should be stretched and dried on boards, fur side in, but turned as soon as dried. OPOSSUM are stretched on boards fur side in and are left in that condition after removing the boards. Cut the tails off when skinning--they have no value. MUSKRAT should be stretched fur side in and a few days on the boards is sufficient. They are left as taken off, that is, fur side in. Cut the tails off when skinning--they are worthless. WEASEL should be cased, fur side in. The pelts are thin and soon dry. Leave fur side in after taking off boards. BADGER are split and should be nailed to the inside of a building to dry.