THE CASSOWAfct. 37 



Description. 



the ostrich, does not fail to inspire a degree of 

 terror. It is in a manner armed with a helmet 

 of horny substance, black before and yellow be- 

 hind. Its substance is very hard, being formed 

 of the elevation of the bone of the skull, and con- 

 sisting of several plates, one over another, like the 

 horn of an ox. It has been supposed by some 

 authors that this was shed every year with the 

 feathers; but the most probable opinion is, that 

 it only exfoliates slowly like the beak. To the 

 peculiarity of this natural armour may be added 

 the colour of the eye, which is a bright yellow, 

 and the globe being above an inch and a half in 

 diameter, gives it an air equally fierce and extra- 

 ordinary. At the bottom of the upper eye-lids 

 is a row of small hairs, and over them another 

 row of black hairs, which have much the appear- 

 ance of eye-brows. The holes of the ears are 

 very large and open. The sides of the head are 

 of a dark blue, except the middle of the lower 

 eye-lid, which is white. The neck is of a violet 

 colour, inclining to that of slate ; with a tincture 

 of red behind in several places, but chiefly in the 

 ; middle. About the middle of the neck before, 

 are two processes formed by the skin, which 

 somewhat resemble the gills of a cock, but that 

 they are blue as well as red. The skin which 

 covers the fore-part of the breast, on which this 

 bird leans and rests, is hard, callous, and without 

 feathers. The thighs and legs are extremely 

 thick, strong and covered with a kind of scales; 



