thickness, and bend like a bow : those are hollow 
from the roots to the very points, having only that slight 
substance within, which all quills are known to have: the 
longest of these prickles is eleven inches ; and it is a 
quarter of an inch in diameter at the root, being thicker 
there than towards the extremity : the point seems to be 
broken off. 
The part, however, which distinguishes this animal 
most, is the head ; and which, though small, like that of 
an ostrich, does not fail to inspire some degree of terror. 
It is without feathers, and in a manner armed with e. 
helmet of horny substance, that covers it from the root 
of the bill to near half the head backwards. This hel- 
met is black before and yellow behind. Its substance is- 
very hard, being formed by the elevation of the bone of, 
the skull ; and it consists of several plates, one above 
another, like the horn of an ox. Some have supposed 
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 peculiar oddity of this natural 
armour, may be added the colour of the eye in this ani- 
mal, which i$ a bright yellow 7 , and the globe being above 
an inch and an half in diameter, gives it an air equally 
fierce and extraordinary. At the bottom of the uppe* 
eye-lid there is a row of small hairs, over which 
there is another row of bla-ck hair, which are orettv 
like an eye-brow. The sides of the head, about the 
eye and ear, being destitute of any covering, are blue, 
except the middle of the lower eye lid, which is white. 
The neck is of a violet colour, inclining to that of slate ; 
and it is red behind in several places, but chiefly in the 
middle. About the middle of the neck before, at the rise 
of the large feathers, there are two projections formed by 
the skiir, which are somewhat like the gills of a cock, 
with this difference, however, that they are blue as well 
