Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-06-08

birds seem to feel very keenly the disgrace
of having their feathers plucked. They go
about hanging their heads and showing
chagrin very plainly. 1t is wonder, for
a more bedraggled, forlorn looking creature
than the freshly plucked ostrich does not
exist.
In It's habits, methods of life and preju-
dices the ostrich is one of the most curl
Gus creatures alive. 1t can not be tanned,
though 1t is easily trained In certain lines.
1t takes kindly to harness and seems to
enjoy brush on the road with a horse.
OLIVER W. one of the big birds on the
Jacksonville farm, draws a light wagon
carrying two men, and there are few trot-
tiers in the vicinity that do not breathe
dust when Oliver gets after them. Cor
bett.' another member of the flock, is q
good saddle bird, and is said by those who
have been astride of his mighty back to
have an easier gait than the smoothest
going horse, But, quietly as the birds SUBJ
init to such discipline, they are absolutely
unreliable. all of them: without sense of
gratitude or loyalty. The man who gets
in front of and IN reaching distance
does so at the peril of his life. After weeks
of kindly treatment, good feeding and pa
tient cOaXing an ostrich will fly at his
keeper and tear him to pieces with that
formidable claw, if he gets the opportunity.
Any endeaVOr to inspire a domeSticated oS-
trich with fear or respect for a human be-
Ing is vain He will attack man or horse
without hesitation, but from a small dog
he will flee In mad terror. beating himself
against the bars of his Enclosure in his
efforts to escape. Another thing which fills
the ostrich soul with dismay is a thunder
storm, and after particularly severe light
ming it is uncommon thing to find such
birds as have not found shelter dead of
pure fright
The Morning Race.
One of the most interesting characters
tics of these bipeds is the way in which
they take their constitutional every morn
ing. All the males engage in a foot race,
which concludes with combination cake
walk and reel In single file they race
around the pasture at a two-minute gait
until they are thoroughly limbered up, and
then, as If by preconcerted signal, they
form into a group and go into a series of
the most pOmpOuS gyratiOns. 1t Is a gro
tesque sight, particularly If they have been
lately plucked. When they are in full
plumage, with their great wings spread,
the ostrich parade is a beautiful sight, for
they are singularly graceful in spite Of
their great numbering figures.
The ostrich IS homogeneous and helps his
mate in the domestic arrangements. 1t Is
q curious sight to see the male bird max
ing the nest. He rests his breastbone on
the ground and kicks away the sand be-
hind him. When he has excavated one side
he turns his attention to the other, finish
Ing with a round hole about four feet in
diameter and one foot IN depth. If he is
bad tempered he is often rough with his
wife, giving her kicks and cuffs that
more than love taps, but he never gives
her cause for jealousy she doesn't seem to
mind his treatment
When a troop of ostriches sleep there is
always one on watch, sentinel, 1t
were. for when sinks to rest another
hops up to continue the watch. They sleep
in a sitting posture the body resting on
two callous spots, one on the breast, the
other near the end of the body. At rest
or in motion, herd of ostrches is fine
sight. but they are particular jaunty and
debonair when they rush to the fence and
thrust their long, fuzzy necks and great
beaks over to spy out the intruding visitor.
Look Innocent Enough.
They have great, mild eyes, and look
very bland and innocent, but the visitor
must be careful, even when beyond the
range of the feet, to keep out of reach of
their great mouths, for they will snatch
and eat anything they can reach, matches,
lighted pipes, hats. parcels, even whole
newspapers. They will swallow a box of
oranges, one at gulp in marvelously
quick time. Stones as large as an ostrich
egg have been taken from the stomach of
a dead bird; they need hard substances to
grind their food.
The Market Price.
The commercial value of an ostrich has
hardly been fixed. One hundred birds were
sold in Pasadena year ago for $4,000, an
average of S13O apiece. The owner of the
Phoenix farm refused $4,000 for 175 birds
They yield on an average little over a
pound of feathers at a plucking, and the
pound sells for $3.50. Twenty-Five dollars
per bird is considered a very good result
At the Florida and South Pasadena farms
the feathers prepared for retail mar
ket, which, Of course, increases the profit
very materially.
So great has been the demand for os-
triches In late years that the wild African
bird has nearly disappeared from the face
of nature. There is no danger Of the
species becoming extinct, however, as
thousands are herded in the African cor