Northern tribune. [volume] (Cheboygan, Mich.) 1875-1885, 1882-05-27
NORTHERN TRIBUNE.
SATURDAY. MAY 81, 1882.
An Ostrich Farm I'm Egypt.


visited the only ostrich farm in
Egypt yesterday. 1t lies in the desert
within five miles of Cairo, between the
spot where Plato taught school and the
tree under which the Virgin Mary and
the infant Jesus rested some 1900 years
ago. had understood that it was very
hard to gain admittance to the farm, as
the stock was very timid and easily
frightened, and knew of many travellers
who had been turned away from the
gates. Armed, however, with letter of
introduction to Mr.. Vedder, the
proprietor, took carriage, and after
pleasant drive through several of the
Kediye's lath-and plaster palaces l was
set down before the iron bars Of the en-
trance gate. My letter procured my in
slant admission. The ostrich farmer,
sun-browned, well-built, intelligent
Swede, dressed in sack coat, skull
ed, and together we went over the farm.
Ostriches are kept in fields of desert
sand about as large as town lot. These
fields are surrounded by mud walls about
seven feet high. and are entered by
wooden gates. The first field contained
about dozen large females 2@ years
old. They were of a gray color, well
feathered, and they appeared quite tame
as they stuck their long, fiat ducklike
bills over the seven-fOOt wall and at
tempted to pick at our hats, blinking all
the while knowingly at us with their
pink eyes. With their long legs, their
naked featherless necks, and their two
feet, one kick of which will cut mans
head from his shoulders, they formed a
queer sight, and when L is raised my
hand and said "ShOO-o-0w they spread
their wings and ran away at twO-minue
pace. seeming TO almost swim over the
ground.
"Each of these BIRDS" said Mr.. Ved-
der, lis worth from $1,000 to $500.
Their feathers alone bring each season
over $3.50, and we estimate each bird as
representing an income of $50 a year.
Between their feathers and eggs they
ought to produce that"
"Then ostrich farming is, / suppose, a
profitable business?" here asked.
'Yes, it should be-" was the reply; sit
costs very little to keep the birds. They
live on beans and barley and sand.
About So month with pay for our birds
food, and the sand, of which it eats
from fourteen to sixteen pounds daily.
costs nothing. have 100 acres of land
here, most of which is, as you see, desert,
and now have seventy Ostriches OF var
ious ages, from two and One-half years
to twelve days old. Besides this / have
spring | will have about l20 more
BIRDS
during season.
about twenty-five" responded the
farmer, snow is the laying season. In
the winter alone do they produce eggs.
After they have laid that number they
want to set. have two setting on their
eggs now. 1t takes fOrty-three days to
hatch them, and we do this both by the
natural and artificial method. That
house over there" pointing to little
building TO the right, lis the incubator.
We merely place the eggs between fan
mel and keep the temperature at blood
heat. Do you see that box at the side,
with glass holes at the end?" he cOntln-
ued. "Well that is our apparatus for
for eXaming the eyes of the young birds. |
If the eyes are white. the birds will pro-
duce neither feathers or eggs, and we
kill them, If pink, like those which you |
see to-day, there are good birds, and we
take good care of Them"
The next field we came to contained a
number of male birds which, to my eye, |
showed little difference from the female, |
We then visited number Of other en-
closures where we saw O5triches of all |
ages, and last came to some with bodies |
not larger than good sized rooster.
Their legs, however, were longer than |
those of the tallest Shanghai, and they |
cuddled themselves down on the warm |
sand, making peculiar squeaking noise |
as they did so. These Ostriches We're
only about twelve days old, and they
were the dearest little thing imaginable,
though their feathers were still as dOwny |
as youths mustache.
The feathers of the ostrich, by the way,
are of value according to their color; the
white ones, which come from under the
wing, being most valuable, worth $3.50 |
q pound in an undressed state. The
black and the gray ones are cheaper. -
Cleveland Leader.