Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1886-11-19
OSTRICH FARMING,
Experience Of nIan Who hns Been IN at
ricA aud Trtod the Industry,

iHAHbAAulNN VI q " fAh VIM lNN BfNI ~ *
ricA aud rrtcd the Industry,
ABmENE, TEN. Nov. 10, 1856 This
new industry which Is being tried g. Cali
furnia had its origin In Bdtsh South AZ.
rica Ostrich feathers have been an ar
ucle OF commerce from time immemonil
aud viii continue To- be 30 gs long as what
Is called "llshon" demands their uHu.
the only method of obtaining ostrich
feathers TIL comparatively aicw years ago
was by the chase ot the wlld bird There
ARE numerous Instances Of Dutch aud
Elglsh settlers in South Africa having
tame ostrichus, but these were 10 oil cases
merely kept as pgts.aud as rarities, though
sometimes tho feathers 81 sucn binds
would be sold II IA opportunity offered
About 1863 Mr.. Douglas living near
Grahamstuwn, in the eastern province Of
Cape Colony, conceived the idea
Of starting an OsttiCh finn. Eeath.
ers were in demand and If
, they could be procured nc thought
at y less cost than by the old way
| through traders or by hunting them
oneself good and paying business
might be started, aud altogether In q new
llDe He thought and acted, and the trst
ostrich farm was started In Cape Colony.
The way an ostrich farm is worked Is as
| follows; The birds are divided into the
breeders, which are kept separate, gen
orally male bird with one or two hens
and sometimes more, but two Is by far
the best he young birds are again
divided according 10 age and strength,
and birds which, though matured, are not
breeding, or those which ave not quite
old enough to breed, are kept separate.
The birds are generally kept IN en-
closures, though sometimes the nom
breeders which are old enough are
h6rded la the open Az FIRST
the ostrches were allowed TO hatch theiI
own eggs, bat in time the question was
raisod would II mot be more profitable to
use ncubaturs anu keep the birds laying
and not allow thom To spend their theii
time Matching. After many trials and
some mistakes the question was solved
and most OF the birds raised on ARMS are
now batchcd In ihcgbitors, When first
out OF the shell tho ostrich Is covered
with d soft brOWnlsh down THIS gradu-
ally gives place TO feathers, and at about
six months of age the fest plucking takes
place. Al this age the feathers are not OF
much value, Each year they increase,
aud at three aud four are ~ maturity
The male IL by far the most valuable In
regard to feathers. Tho body Is covered
with black feathers The wing feathers
are white; these command She best
pri1es. Tho tail Is also white. The
female IL more somher bird, the
! body feathers being drab colored, and IN,
j wing feathers white, but not SO valuable
however as those of the male. The tai
Is also white. Pucking generally takes
4 plsce twice every year, and according Il
, the rlpeness OF the feathers they ar,
pulled or cut; II cut care is taken tc
draw the quilts little while after els,
1 the next crop Of feathers would not be s,
good The feathers are then sorte,
I according to sex, age, etc Of the birds
J cleaned and dispatched TO market, wher,
, they arc sold and bought up by tn,
| feather brokers, who seud them 10 tn,
4 different ports from whence they ar,
! shipped. Australia has been going II
I rather extensively for ostrich raising, anC
this has rather annoyed our cousins q
\ the cape who do not wish to see an in
dustry taken from them, which they con
slider exclusively IS their own So ia
I has this feeling reached that there ma
been talk OF legislating against the OK
|. portation OF the ostrich where II is to b,
used Tor a commercial purpose.