The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1891-04-11
LIFE ON AN OSTRICH FARM.
Continued from Page l.,
A RARooN IN A swoON.

A BABOOS IN A sHcOH.
So Sarah" one of the pets on the farm,
was a female baboon, which had been
tame from infancy. She dearly loved
sweets, which were often given to her
wrapped up in multitude of papers, one
inside the other. 1t was amusing to
watch the patient and deliberate man
ner in which she would unfold each
paper in turn, taking the greatest care
never to tear one, and proceeding with
all the caution of a good Mahommedan
fearful of inadvertently inluring por.
ton of the Koran. This time, instead OF
the tit-bit, dead night-adder was
wrapped up and presented. When sne
unfolded the innermost paper, and the
snake slipped out, with a horrid writhe,
across her hand, Sarah quickly sank
backwards and tainted away, her lips
| turniug perfectly white. By dint OF
| throwing water over her, chafing her
hands and bathing her lips with brandy,
| she was revived from her swoon, though
| not without some difficulty.
| WHERE WAS THE KITTEN?
| Another pet was Jacob, more than
usually comical and greedy secretary
| bird. He was like boa constructor IN
his capacity for putting himself out
| side" the animals on which he led
lizards.r rats, toads, frogs, fat juicy locusts,
Young chickens, alas and some OF the
| smaller pets Il left iDcautiously within
his reach. even little kittens-all went
down whole. The last-named animals
we're his delicacy, and he was fortunate
to get plenty of them. His enormous
appetite, and our difficulty in satisfying
it, we're well-known in the nelghborhood,
and the owners of several prolific cats,
instead of drowning the superiuous pro-
geny, bestowed them on us as offerings
to Jacob. They were killed and given
to him at the rate of one day. Once.
however, by an unlucky accident, one Of
them got his clutches without the
preliminary knock on the head; and the
old barbarian swallowed it alive. Fol
some minutes we could hear the poOl
thing mewing piteously in Jacobs inte
rior, while he himself stood there listen
ing and looki. all around in a puzzleC
: manner to see where the nose came
from. He evidently thought there VIII!
another kitten somewhere, and seemed
much disappointed at not finding it.
THE VALUE OF OsTRICHEs.
The ostrich is not now the potentialit.
of wealth that he was few years ago
In the early days of ostrich-farmin
Mrs. Martin says splendid fortune
were made. Then feathers were wortl
Gl0O per h., the plumes Of one bird at
single plucking realizing on an averag
s25. For good pair of breeding-bird
94OO, or even $500, was no uncommon
price and little chicks only just out of tn
egg, were worth G10 each. Indeed, tn
u unmatched eggs have sometimes bee
valued at the same amount. But sine
the supply has become so much create
than the demand, things are sadl
Y changed for the farmers; our best pal
of ostriches would not now sell for NOR
than G12, and experience has taught U
to look for no higher sum than tbirt
shillings for the feathers of the hant
soonest bird at one plucking. At til
same time, if lady wishes to buy
good feather in London or Paris, she hs
to pay nearly the same price as
former times.