There is no reason why many should 

 not interest themselves so far as to 

 make collections or obtain specimens 

 or make observations for the use of stu- 

 dents, though only a few will have the 

 zeal, industry and patience to obtain a 

 real grasp of the subject. There are at 

 present only thirteen students of bees in 

 the United States, and some of these 



have done very little. Our country 

 should do better than this and it is 

 hoped that some of the young people 

 who read Birds and Nature may be- 

 come interested, and that later they 

 may become active workers in Apidol- 



ogy. 



T. D. A. COCKERELL. 

 WiLMATTE CoCKERELL. 



WHENCE THE FEATHERS WE WEAR. 



Fashion decrees the wearing of feath- 

 ers. Therefore feathers we must have. 

 But let them be ostrich plumes by all 

 means, since in their attainment, no hfe 

 need be sacrificed. It was when the 

 demand for these feathers, necessitated 

 an increase in their source of produc- 

 tion, that the idea of naturalizing the 

 ostrich suggested itself. 



France tried ostrich farming as long 

 ago as 1859 ^^^ was successful. Then 

 California with her wonderful resources 

 adopted the new industry. Twenty 

 birds imported from Africa were 

 brought by Doctor Sketchley to Placen- 

 tia in 1882. Later, fifteen mo|"e were 

 added to their number, and in 1891 sev- 

 eral flourishing farms were in existence, 

 all of which had successfully hatched 

 strong, healthy birds. Today nearly a 

 million dollars are invested in the indus- 

 try and the future is full of promise. 



The farms at South Pasadena are ob- 

 jects of never failing interest to visitors. 

 This is particularly true in the plucking 

 season. This plucking is not accom- 

 plished with a violent laying on of 

 hands. Neither is the bird tied down. 



When the time is near the flock is 

 examined and those birds whose feathers 

 are ripening, are selected and placed in 

 a pen, so that they cannot run about, 

 and perhaps, injure their valuable coats. 

 At the moment of operation the bird is 



enticed into a narrow passage, where a 

 cloth bag is thrown over its head. Then 

 men, who are perched on platforms out- 

 side the pen lean over the top and pluck 

 of¥ the victim's feathers with an odd 

 scissor-like appliance. Wounds, when 

 they occur, which is rare, are dressed 

 immediately. The tail feathers are 

 plucked out, not cut, as they reproduce 

 more readily than those on other parts 

 of the body. Throughout the opera- 

 tion the bird keeps up a dismal howling. 

 Pain, however, is not the cause. 



When first plucked, the feathers are 

 grey and brown. They must therefore 

 be dyed or bleached and curled before 

 they are ready for market. The ostrich 

 receives its first plucking at the age of 

 seven months, but the feathers do not 

 reach perfection until the bird is fully 

 twenty-one months old. After this the 

 pickings are made, once in seven 

 months, and, as eighty years is not a 

 great age for an ostrich, the big fellow 

 is a valuable possession. The feathers 

 from older birds are, however, but little 

 esteemed, in fact, these older birds, are 

 usually kept for breeding purposes only. 



The birds are generally divided into 

 trios, one male and two females. Each 

 trio requires about two acres of ground 

 to run. The chicks are hatched with in- 

 cubators. 



Louise Jamison. 



128 



