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THE AMERICAN MUSEUM JOURNAL 



The "hair" in the feathers on the neck 

 and head of an ostrich is the greatly elon- 

 gated barbless shnft of the feather 



The growing plume is highly sensitive to 

 any changes in the nutritive condition of the 

 bird. In this plume the tip or crown is well- 

 grown, but, because the bird became reduced 

 in condition, the rest of the feather is deeply 

 "barred," tapers strongly toward the butt, 

 and is otherwise defective. Defective growth 

 renders the plume almost valueless commer- 

 cially 



short time ostrich farming became one 

 of the leading pursuits of parts of Cape 

 Colony. In 1913, the year before the 

 beginning of the World War, the in- 

 dustry reached its zenith, when feathers 

 to the value of $15,000,000 were ex- 

 ported overseas, mostly to Europe and 

 the United States. An article of lux- 

 ury, ostrich plumes have naturally 

 suffered with the advent and continua- 

 tion of the war. 



Although the ostrich is indigenous to 

 Africa, it has been established that the 

 domesticated bird will thrive and repro- 

 duce under varied conditions, and the 

 remunerative nature of ostrich farming 

 has led to its introduction into other 

 parts of the world, particularly Arizona 

 and California in the United States, 

 and also Australia and New Zealand. 

 The plumes produced in these parts 

 are, however, by no means the equal of 

 those grown in South Africa; and, as 

 the bird is farmed only for the feathers 

 it provides, it seems doubtful whether 

 the industry can be made a success be- 

 yond the confines of Africa, especially 

 since the exportation of birds is now 

 prohibited by the Union Government. 

 As in so many other highly specialized 

 animal and vegetable products, pecu- 

 liarities of soil, climate, and the general 

 environment have much influence upon 

 ultimate success; and even in ostrich 

 areas in South Africa great differences 

 obtain in the degree of plumage perfec- 

 tion attained. 



It is no small achievement for the 

 South African farmer to have reduced 

 within fifty years a wild, highly nervous 

 bird to a thorough state of domestica- 

 tion, to have worked out the details of 

 management required for the produc- 

 tion of successive plumage crops of the 

 highest perfection, to have combated 

 the many parasitic diseases to which 

 the bird is subject, to have elaborated 

 methods of chick rearing, and, by selec- 

 tive breeding, to have improved the 

 plume to the high state of excellence it 

 has now reached. 



