THE OSTRICH. 151 



of this chapter, it is said, " The kings of the earth, and all the inhabit- 

 ants of the world, would not have believed that the adversary and 

 the enemy should have entered into the gates of Jerusalem ;" and 

 in ch. v. 2, " Our inheritance is turned to strangers, our houses to- 

 aliens." ' 



The ostrich, in her private capacity, is not loss inconsiderate and 

 foolish, particularly in the choice of food, which is often highly det- 

 rimental and pernicious to her ; for she swallows everything greedi- 

 ly and indiscriminately, whether it be pieces of rags, feather, woody 

 stone, or iron. They are particularly fond of their own ordure, 

 which they greedily eat up as soon as it is voided : no less fond are 

 they of the dung of hens and other poultry. It seems as if their 

 optic, as well as their olfactory nerves, were less adequate and con- 

 ducive to their safety and preservation, than in other creatures. 

 The Divine Providence in this, no less than in other respects, ' hav- 

 ing deprived them of wisdom, neither hath it imparted to them un- 

 derstanding.' This part of her character is fully admitted by Buf- 

 fon, who describes it in nearly the same terms. 



Notwithstanding the stupidity of the ostrich, says Dr. Shaw, its 

 Creator hath amply provided for its safety, by endowing it with ex- 

 traordinary swiftness, and a surprising .apparatus for escaping from 

 its enemy. They, * when they raise themselves up for flight, laugh 

 at the horse and his rider.' They afford him an opportunity only 

 of admiring at a distance the extraordinary agility, and the state- 

 liness likewise, of their motions, the richness of their plumage, 

 and the great propriety there was in ascribing to them an expanded 

 quivering wing. Nothing, certainly, can be more entertaining than 

 such a sight ; the wings, by their rapid but unwearied vibrations, 

 equally serving Jhfim for sails and oars ; while their feet, no less as- 

 sisting in conveying them out of sight, are no less insensible of fa- 

 tigue.' 



The surprising swiftness of this bird is expressly mentioned by 

 Xenophon, in his Anabasis; for, speaking of the desert of Arabia, 

 he states that Uie ostrich is frequently seen there ; that ' none could 

 take them, the horsemin who pursue them soon giving it over ; for 

 they escaped far away, making use both of their feet to rup, and of 

 their wings, when expanded, as a sail to waft them along.' This 

 representation is confirmed by the writer of a voyage to Senegal, 

 who says, * She sets oft* at a hard gallop ; but, after being exciied a 

 little, sjie expands her wings as if to catch the wind, and abandons 

 herself to a speed so great, that she seems not to touch the ground.' 

 * I am persuaded,' continues the writer, ' she would leave far behind 

 the swiftest English courser.' Bufibn, also, admits that the ostrich 

 runs faster than the horse, 



