BIRDS 



123 



ands along the coasts, and used for food and other jnir- 

 poses. 



Ducks and geese furnish us with soft pillows and downy 

 beds. The finest down comes from the nests of the eider 

 duck along the far northern sea coasts. This duck lines 



Fic. 23, Feeding the Chickens. 



her nest and covers her eggs with feathers plucked from 

 her breast. 



Man, or rather woman, has borrowed the plumage of birfls 

 for personal adornment, and an immense trade flourishes in 

 ostrich plumes and the feathers of many other birds. 



As a minor economic item, may be mentioned the catching 

 and sale of song and pet birds, such as the canary, mocking- 

 bird, and parrot. 



