A Feather. 



49 



vane. 



called ? Here is a piece of swan's down. Can you find 

 any down on this feather? Where is it? Yes, there is a 

 little down on the feather just below the wide part. Who 

 can tell the name of the stem of the feather ? Yes, it is 

 the quill. What is a quill like (finger-nail, horn)? Can you 

 see through quill? What shall we call anything that 



we can see through ? We 

 call the wide part of a feather 

 the vane. Is the vane alike 

 on both sides ? Which side 

 is wider ? What makes the 

 parts of the vane (barbs) 

 stick together ? Can you not 

 see the little hooks that hold 

 them together? Tear the 

 vane apart. Does it tear 

 easily ? Can you bend the 

 quill ? Can you cut it ? Is 

 it solid or hollow ? Is there 

 any hole in it? Yes, there 

 is a small hole at the lower 

 end. Can you find another 

 hole in the quill ? Yes, there 

 is another hole among the 

 down just below the begin- 

 ning of the vane. Josie, 

 what do we use feathers for ? 

 What kind do we put in pil- 

 lows? What kinds on our 

 hats and bonnets ? Of what 

 use are feathers to birds? 



We call a young feather just about to grow a pin-feather. 

 Will feathers burn? When they burn, what happens? 

 They melt and burn with a very bad smell. How do 

 ostrich feathers differ from those of the hen ? Why does 

 nature give the hen such thick stiff feathers, and the 

 ostrich such light thin loose ones ? Hold a hen feather up 



FIG. 7. FEATHER SHOWING PARTS. 



