St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1899-05-13
ON AN OSTRICH FARM
Bill arp Tells Of His Visit to Jack
sonvilie.


Strange Industry = Seems m
sfmpis ~ fsaisihE Cows
sr Sheep 4.
This ostrich farm was planted here
on last Thanksgiving day. II y q
branch of the one ut Galveston. A few
years ago these enterprising men gath
cred and bought So young birds in
Africa. They chartered vessel and
landed 80 OF them safely In Galveston.
The others died. Last fall Mr.. Pear
son, who Ii Mississippian. brought
over here number of adult birds and a
pair of those that came from Africa.
He has here now about 30, which are
grown and married and has a number
OF chicks from two days to four months
old. There is q large enclosure where
the males and females OF marriageable
age are turned In and kept until The
male makes his choice. The female ac-
quiesces without any coquetry. This
pair are then transferred to smaller
inclosure, where the male at once be-
gins the process of subjugation. He
treats her most shamefully strikes
her, bites her, pursues her and gives
the poor thing no rest. ] saw him att,
and wanted to take big stickand maui
him. Complete subjugation is his ami
mus and after he gets that she hunb1es
herself to the ground and pleads for
mercy and his whole manner Ii changed.
He takes her to wife and treats her with
ness the rest Of their married life.
Very many Of these birds have mated,
and every pair has separate inelosure.
say about 50x1O0 feet, where they raise
their young. The hen lays from IL
to 90 eggslays them ON the ground in
a saucerlike place, where the sand has
been scooped out. The eggs are In full
view and have no protection. When the
litter Is all laid the male bird begins
the incubation and sets upon them
every day from p. m. until o'clock
next morning. The female then
promptly takes her place and sets from
a. m. until p. m. but always takes
a few minutes off about noon 60 partake
Of her dinner, which the keeper pro-
vides, and consists of chopped cabbage
and clover hay and small stones and
oyster shells. forgot to mention that
the hen lays an egg every other day
and the time Of incubation lis 40 days.
My son, who was with me, remarked
to the old Englishman that our common
hen laid an egg every day and on Sum
day they laid two. lis thatso," said he.
81 was not aware of that. II Is indeed
very wonderful, and how does the hen
know when Sunday comes p
oh" said my son, they hear the
church bells ring"
wonderful, wonderful" said the old
man with the simplest credulity.
So devoted is the male bird to his first
love, his fiancee. that he cannot by force
or persuasion be induced to take anoth-
er. We saw a poor, miserable, lacerated
hen in hospital quarters. She had all
the skin torn from her breast and Mr..
Pearson said the keeper made 9 mis-
take when he transferred a pair and
placed the wrong female In the inclos-
ure and the male tried to kill her inn
mediately and liked to have succeeded.
She was not his bride, and he knewlt.
AS soon as the chicks break the
eggs and come forth they eat nothing
for two or three days. The mother
takes them up gently with her bin and
warns them under her wings or how
ers over them in the sand. I suppose
that is where the expression came from
under the shadow OF thy wings :
i saw but one new born chick. It WINS
only two days old. There were quite
number of half-grown birds and they
are ungraceful, unseemIy and almost
hideous. Indeed, the adult birds are
t not much better after their plunes
have been pulled out. Every nine
months they have to submit to this
degradation, for the plnnles bring In
the revenue. Each male bird gives but
liz black plumes at picking and these
are worth from $4 to 81 each. They are
exquisitely beautiful and II had been
rich would have purchased pair for
my bride. The females are light color
| of brown and white and furnish from
| 60 to 100 plumes in season. but they
| do not bring half 50 much.
Mr.. Pearson says that ostriches well
kept live to be rs years old and It does
T not cost much to keep them--not half
| as much as it does to keep horse or
cow.
Old Grover Cleveland is the largest
and finest bird on the farm. He stands,
i when erect, about III feet In his stock
ings and his mate, Frances, il the finest
female bird. They have raised one
/ brood and have begun on another. The
Prince OF Wales and his wife, Lily Lang
trv, are the next best Then comes
Mark Hanna and wife and Mckinley
and no wife, for, alas, he killed her in
/ a fit of passion, and has not yet chosen
i another.
Then there are Teddy Roosevelt and
| his wife, Cuba, and their little new
born child, Florida. Next are Admiral
schley and wife and next Mr.. Pearon
pointed out General Wheeler and wife
s.INhy, said /, General Wheeler hasnt
any wife.
No, but he wants one all the same
4 said he: and next came Bob Fitzsinl.
/ mons and wifef the Tneanesf bird in the
lot, said he, for hei an exception TO the
rule and fights bis wife and everything
else in sight.
1 Well, of course there was very fine
/ pair which were called Dewey and wife
/ and another pair called sagasta and
wife.
This n enough tD give the young PEG