Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1917-10-23

W
w reports from the Pacific coast, the ostriches
w which constituted Americas hope of build
ing up great new industry, are being slaughtered,
sold for pittance and even given away.
Ostrich feathers are not especially fashionable
at present and the war has made it difficult TO
reach some of the markets. and destroyed others
At the same time alfalfa hay, which is the staple
ostrich food is worth twenty-one dollars a ton,
whereas it used to cost but ten or twelve and has
gone as low six. The grain and other food which
the birds require is correspondngly high. The men
who have invested in ostriches are not financially
able to go supporting the birds until the market
comes back. Thus industry that is especially in
teresting, and has great possibilities, is in danger
of complete collapse.
Experts of the biological survey here, who
interested in our budding ostrich industry say that
it has been suffering since the European war
began and that 1t has always been unfortunate in
financial way The tendency to exploit rather than
develop, which is seen in many American industrial
projects seems to have been the bane of ostrich
farming 1t started in 1882 with the importation
of a few birds. These attracted attention, and be-
fore the business was fairly it's feet, attempt
was made to convert it into show proposition.
Various ostrich farms were converted into MENACE
ries where the selling of post cards, little feathers
and other souvenirs became more important than
the production of feathers and the development of
the industry along substantial lines Visitors fed
and scared the birds, and the practice was bad in
other ways.
A little farther along in its career some sort of
plan was launched to gain corporate control of the
entire industry, which resulted disastrousy to 1t.
In another case the financial backing suddenly
withdrawn from farm which had thousand
birds. Mortgages were foreclosed, and ostriches
were sold for whatever they would bring, and even
given away. At this time large number of birds
transferred from the Salt river valley in Ari
iona to California.
In 1910 the ostrich industry had reached such
proportions that the department of agriculture
sidered it worth investigation, and the expert
who made this study, A. r. Lee of the bureau of
animal husbandry, reported that ostrich farms
could be operated at fair profit, and indicated
that he believed the industry had considerable pos
sibilities At that time there about six thou
sand breeding or feather-producing ostriches in
this country. Most of them were in Arizona, Cal
ifornia and Arkansas, with a few in Florida and
Texas. Breeding birds were selling for eight hun
dred dollars pair and chicks at hundred dol
lars apiece. Some money was being made, al
though the industry was emphatically in the
detrimental stages, and indeed scarcely be said
to have ever gotten beyond them in this country.
In addition to the value of it's feathers, the
ostrich has great possibilities egg producer,
provided only market for the could be de-
veloped in this country. They considered excel
lent food and are eaten in Africa.
II the eggs are removed from the nest the fe-
male ostrich will go on laying far beyond the
number she would produce in the wild state. A
record of hundred eggs in year has been
made. and the average, which could probably be
improved, is about ffty-fve eggs a year. An
ostrich egg weighs three and one-half pounds and
contains as much food value as about two and a
quarter dozen hens eggs OF average size. An
ostrich is therefore capable of producing about as
much egg food yearly eight to a dozen hens.
Ostrches in summer will live almost entirely
green alfalfa and in winter consume each about a
pound of grain and three pounds Of alfalfa hay per
day. 1t would seem therefore that in times when
the feather market is of and there Is great de-
mand for chicks the sale Of ostrich eggs might go
a long way toward paying for the upkeep of the
hocks or course the industry would have to be OF
sufficient size to create market for it's products
and to give the market continuous and adequate
Nv of rnh IA M hat
the industry would never have attained any great
size unless 1t developed that something