GIANT ROAD-MAKERS 107 



makers. There has been an epoch of big birds just 

 as of big molhisks, reptiles, mammalian mammoths 

 and mastodons. And the greatest accomplishment 

 of these feathered giants was their skill and knowl- 

 edge of road-making. 



There are only a few of the large birds left to- 

 day, and they are the ostriches, chiefly of Africa 

 and Arabia; the rheas of South America; the cas- 

 sowaries of Papau and North Australia; and the 

 emus of Australia. All the larger birds are but 

 solitary survivors of a mighty concourse of feath- 

 ered giants which once covered almost the entire 

 earth. Some members of these extinct species 

 were as much larger than the ostrich as the ostrich 

 now exceeds the rhea in size. 



The ostriches are the largest of existing birds. 

 They might be aptly termed the giants of the bird 

 kingdom in its present state. It is not uncommon 

 to find a full-grown individual eight feet in height 

 and weighing three hundred pounds. These 

 strange giants have several marked characteristics, 

 and chief among these is the fact that they alone 

 have but two toes. Their heads are relatively 

 small, and their necks are strikingly long; while 

 their wings are small and covered with soft plumes. 



Probably because of their habitat and marvel- 

 lous endurance, ostriches are associated with the 



