SKELETON OF OSTRICH. 



647 



In some tril>cs eacli Ostiicli feather worn on the head is an emblem of an enemy- 

 slain in battle. 



The flesh of the Ostrich is tolerably good, and is said to resemble that of the zebra. 

 It is, however, only the young Ostrich that furnishes a good entertainment, for the flesli 

 of the old bird is rank and tough. The fat is highly valued, and when melted is of a 

 bright orange colour. It is mostly eaten with millet flour, and is also stirred into the 

 eggs while roasting, so as to make a rude but well-flavoured omelet. 



Those who are fond of hunting employ a more sportsman-like though less profital)le 

 mode of procuring this bird. Mounted on swift liorses they give fair chase to the nimble- 

 footed bird, and generally manage to secure it by sending one of their number to head it 

 on its course, and shooting it as it 

 dashes by. The speed of the Os- 

 trich is very great, though hardly so 

 considerable as has been supposed. 

 Some writers set it down as run- 

 ning sixty miles per hour, while 

 others only give it half that rate. 

 When going at full speed, its legs' 

 move so rapidly that they hardly 

 seem to touch the ground ; and as 

 the pace of a running adult Os- 

 trich is from ten to fourteen feet 

 in length, its exceeding swiftness 

 may be imagined. 



For a short distance, the speed 

 of the Ostrich is perhaps quite 

 as great as the higher of the 

 above statements ; but it seldom 

 keeps up that astonishing rate of 

 goina; for more than half a mile, 

 and then settles down into a more 

 steady rate of progress. Being a 

 long-winded bird, it would tire 

 out most horses, did not it always 

 run in curves, so that the horse- 

 man by taking a direct cotirse 

 saves much ground, and is able 

 to get a shot as the huge bird 

 comes dashing by him. By the ac- 

 companying sketch of the Ostrich 

 skeleton, the reader will be better 

 enabled to understand the great 

 powers of the bird and the curious 

 modifications of its structure better 

 than liy many pages of description. 

 The long and powerful legs with 

 their two toes at their extremity 

 are firmly yet flexibly jointed into 

 their sockets, and their form is 

 wonderfully adopted for the at- 

 tachment of the stalwart muscles 



which move them. Not only are the legs employed for progression, but they can be used 

 with tremendous effect as offensive weapons, knocking over a hytena with a stroke, and 

 deterring even the agile leopard from coming within their reach. The Ostrich always kicks 

 forward, and when hunted with dogs it is sure to inflict severe injuries on young and 

 inexperienced hounds before it is pulled down. The strong sharp claw with which its toe 



SKELETON OF OSTRICH. 



