The times., 1898-10-25
UGLIEsT BIRD IN CREATION!
Some Facts About the Ostrich md
las Piumagc-Intcrest Exhibit
at :. kanu. Sons a Co.

Not one woman in ten has the slight
est idea OF just what an ostrich feather
is. Strange observation. perhaps. but one
that I've arrived at after an experience of
, almost twenty years in the handling OF
I these goods" remarked Mr.. Willis Hay
den. millinery buyer for S Kann. Sons
& Co, TO Times man yesterday. The
ostrich, you must know. has been robbed
Systematically for ages. Its plumage was
worn a thousand years ago. and the Af-
rican tribes still employ the larger feath-
ers of the bird for personal adornment.
| Nature seems TO have played one of her
saddest pranks when she bestowed upon
the ostrich such a luxuriance of feathered
beauty, for despite the fact of Its mag
nificent plumage, there is no creature on
/ land or sea that is so gawky and outIand-
/ ish in appearance. If you'll walk to the
| back of the store with me I'll show you
/ a full-grown bird that we are exhibiting
/ in conjunction with our big feather sale.
I There is quite a history connected with
/ this fellow. He was the first ever brought
/ to this country for breeding purposes, and
! was selected on account of his perfect
! proportions Like thousands that have
! since been brought here, he could not
stand the climate, even of California. You
/ will notice that the longest plumase is
! that of the wings and the tail These
! feathers are the ones used in expensive
| millinery trimming. The shorter plumage
| of the back is employed in punches and
| sold to the trade in the form of tips In
| their natural condition ostrich feathers
are dirty brown or mottled gray in
color. They do not possess the curl and
| softness which You see in this handsome
! black plume but are rather straight.
Here's one Of them now See how much
it is shaped Ike the blaze of an African
spear head-broad in the middle and ta-
pering at the ends. But wave It
through the air and observe how the
slightest breeze makes il bend. The oS-
trich plume of commerce is not a single
feather, as most persons enormously sup
pose.
1t is formed of three and sometimes
four very fine plumes which are split
in the middle and cleverly bound at the
quill There is often an extra piece at
the end to give the tip of the plume a
deeper drop. There is quite an art in
their finish. First of all they are thor
Oughly cleaned and ironed out fiat. Then
they are carefully dyed and matched
The most intricate and delicate operation
then follows-the curling. On extremely
costly plumes this is done by hand, but
lndl WOuiu prove Il process lar TOO eXpen-
s!ve where cheaper grades are concerned
There is one indication of a good feath-
err continued Mr.. Hayden which is an
almost infallible test of excellency.
You see these regular lines radiatine
along the feather from the Quill Now
strange as 1t may seem to you. I have
known customers TO refuse plume with
these marks-declaring that they were
worthless Now. in reality these apparent
malformations indicate that the bird has
taken exceedingly good care of itself.
They are what is known to the trade as
'bill-pecks. This fine amazon" has
them plainly defined from one end to the
other. OF course. the best stock is obtain
ed from the domesticated birds. They
are raised under conditions which tend TO
keen their plumage perfect. The great
fiocks at Cape Town supply the worlds
best goods. but fine feathers are gotten
from Alenpo. Senegal Barbary. and
Egypt. There are no California herds
or flncks now. The birds were unable
to endure the climate of this continent
and died so rapidly that the experiment
was not a paying one. The stock that
was obtained n-s---' r too poor a grade
to enter into competition with the African
feathers"