The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-12-09
osrnIoH RAtstSo ~ Arric,
Habits Or the Ri-d that YIeid. tL. No.,
Valuable OF Feather.


Forn ne Strand Magnria,.
An ostrich farm in South Africa is a Ma. !
we'll worth visiting. You arrive nj the l,,,a
stead, a square, red brick building. with y -
Of relief and glad to be out Of the bliiiiur sl,..
and sandy plain. On every homestead the am.
familiar sights meet the eye. On tho pnc sI.
Of the house stand the kraals; on the other "a.
shed and wagon house. In the front stands 10
dam. adjoining the vegetable garden and land,
with, further away the camp.
Behind the house are the chanhcusc, ,ronn
floor, and butchers shop. where the niggc7s ar,
rationcd. In the camp run tho large stock and
cattle, ostriches and horses. and on the flats and
mountains the sheep and goats. In this article
shall conhne my remarks to ostriches. 4 wen.
fenced and secure enclosure Is quito a luxury n
the colony, and Is only 10 be mes with on III,
Weather farms, the owners Of which can afford
TO keep them In repair and to place in them
stock Of the most expensive kinds.
Every ostrich farmer has his camp, which
varies in size considerably. from 5000 to 5000
acres. and in It he keeps his 900 birds, as wei a,
q few cattle and horses. A camp is alvay,
selected ms being the best piece Of grazing ground
on the farm, and capable of holding more stock
in proportion than any other part OF the farm.
Here the birds remain, year in and year OUT. and
are only collected and brought together,
on the average, once every four months
These occasions are. let us say, In ,L.Ha
to pluck the prime feather. BY thcsc We
mean the long whites, numbering from eighteen
to twenty in each wing, eight or nine fancy
feathers, and a few long blacks. all taken at tH,
same time. Four months later the stump, 4
these feathers are drawn out, ard two muu.lI
later again that Is. six months after the prlmt,
the short blacks and tail feathers are taken.
OF these II Is impossible to give any accurate
number. As a rule, you pluck as many as posi-.
BILE without inflicting pain. at the same TINE
leaving enough to keep out the cold,
An ostrich. Ike most other animals, IL iti
anything new 10 It's ken. When dGtnCs,i'ue
It becomes dogile. and after a time assu;n,- :
the situation. FROM June TO september. or. ~
fact, till Christmas, thousands of chicks as
death every year from som" torn Of RcCld ,uf.
Chicks up 10 twelve months Old die from var.
grown are they the victims Of any sickness,
death usually resulting from a broken
killed fighting, or from scarcity Of food IN dimes
The nest of an ostrich is a very crude aGa
consisting simply OF a round hollow carved uN.
in the sandy ground. Sometimes the female
bird may be seen scratching In the ground urr.
paratorY to laying her first ngg. nut this i, MT
by the continuous sitting OF the birds on Tie one
spot. One pair Of birds will lay from ten %
twenty eggs. but, as is often the case. tire. o-
four birds will lay in one nest. thus makInstls
number OF eggs MP to seventy or eighty. The,
not comfortably cover more than sixteen GAS
the, remainder being thrown on one side and !r;s
Forty.iour DAYS is the recognized time allowed
for Matching. When n nest Is Matched oat ,as
family are taken nrt Of the camp and hrnu=.J
In continual contact with the farm hands. AID
are housed at night out OF the REACH 81 wild ans
well. but in winter. when fooi becomes scarce.
they should he fed morning and evening IN
II is during the breeding. season that the male
becomes so savage. and his note of defiance
"~b,oomi,g" as the Dutch call It's, heard
cobra-liSe fashion and gives utterance - three
deep roars. The flrst two are short, but tho
in asserting that the roar OF. the King % lrasts
and the most foolish OF birds resemble ons
properly savage they become a great source 81
amusement a Savs or s as ,o'ns ir think % Of dan;
receiving the pconYs Of tho fork through the
neck. On horseback one is even more obnoxious
horse is not afraid and will stand ap 10 the bird
there Is no fear of accident. As he charges,
as the bird makes the first strike catch him by
tho bird becomes exhausted from want Of
The female bird is seldom vicious. When she
has n nest or brood III Young chicks one must he
demeanor Is u very mud affair compared to the
males. Perhaps 4 may suggest Itself to some
three or four birds tackled you at oncef IL Is a
yery rare occurrence for more than one bird 10
birds all imagine at one particular moment that
you are the meat OF each OF them separately,
they first OF all tackle one another, the conqu,ror
Collecting birds for plucking is always a great
day on the farm. Orders are given over niglJ
to the, ,kafiIs and Hottentots TO catch every
available riding horse and have them sadd IL
up and ready next morning at sunrise. Tnrir
done, and every boy" on the farm who Can
ind a horse is mounted. and a re !ular cayalrau
enters the camp under the .superiG,endeucr o.
de boss van de p~laAts"-the master Ut IT,,
farm; Ihey Split up into parties ~ two each
the birds from the remote sp1ts 10 which they
have wandered. Warfare, OF course. j. ,r,,ir
ipdulGed in. II is MINISTERIAL 10 an ostriri II
there be one or fifty against him. lac fights Just
There exists u travellers tale at home that as
soon as an OSTRICH catches sight az "A human 'r-
ton To hide his head In tie sand. Another
iallacy equally devoid Of foundation is IT," hr.
lief that the female ltaNes her eggs in the sand
70 De Matched out IN the sun. This Is not 80.
The male and female sit alternately for f1ri,-
Tour days, the male at night, the female dGr'HE
the day time.
As an article Of food the ostrich egg is. to my
taste, the most nauseOus Of dishes. and far more
suitable as an effective weapon IN Chinese al /
From all one had heard previous 10 Lrrom,us
oneself an owner Of ostriches. the actual plucA-
ing OF the birds Is very embarrassing and Is
In q kraal, when every bird becomes as MEEK -
a lamb, and are caught one by one. \ bag Or
stocking is placed over the head and neck, whIlo
During winter the birds must be- attended 20
ana carefully watched. as sometimes tho
Tea,her Is very ineiement for weeks together
and birds are ant To fall OF in condition. II a
bird once begins To- sink in condition the greatest
is experienced In getting him right
again. and often no amount Of extra feeding iii
pun him through.