104 HOME LIFE ON AN OSTRICH FARM. 



bird at one plucking. At the same time, if a lady 

 wishes to buy a good feather in London or Paris, she 

 has to pay nearly the same price as in former times.* 



There are not many young animals prettier than a 

 little ostrich-chick during the first few weeks of life. 

 It has such a sweet, innocent baby-face, such large eyes, 

 and such a plump, round little body. All its move- 

 ments are comical, and there is an air of conceit and 

 independence about the tiny creature which is most 

 amusing. Instead of feathers, it has a little rough coat 

 which seems all made up of narrow strips of material, 

 of as many different shades of brown and grey as there 

 are in a tailor's pattern-book, mixed with shreds of 

 black ; while the head and neck are apparently covered 

 with the softest plush, striped and coloured just like a 

 tiger's skin on a small scale. On the whole, the little 

 fellow, on his first appearance in the world, is not un- 

 like a hedgehog on two legs, with a long neck. 



One would like these delightful little creatures to 

 remain babies much longer than they do ; but they grow 

 quickly, and with their growth they soon lose all 

 their prettiness and roundness; their bodies become 

 angular and ill-proportioned, a crop of coarse, wiry 

 feathers sprouts from the parti-coloured strips which 

 formed their baby-clothes, and they enter on an ugly 

 " hobbledehoy " stage, in which they remain for two or 

 three years. 



* Although, since these pages were written, ostriches have some- 

 what increased in value it cannot, of course, be expected that they 

 will ever again command the prices of former days. 



