184 Walter Goodfelloiv—Some Reminiscences of a Collector


cages were hanging and then blew out his own brains. If only the

inmates of the “ Zoo ” could speak, what dramatic tales they could

tell perhaps of their capture and long eventful journeys by land and

sea before reaching our shores.


Talking of Leatherheads reminds me of an incident in New Guinea.

I had brought a large collection of birds down to the coast at Port

Moresby, chiefly Birds of Paradise, and among them was a young

raggiana which I had reared by hand from the nest. A very raw youth

from Queensland was looking my birds over one day, and remarked

in his queer drawling voice, “ I see you have a young Leatherheadhere.”

I told him it was a Bird of Paradise, but he said, “You needn’t try

to kid me, I’ve seen too many Leatherheads not to know one when

I see it.” To a superficial observer it might have passed for one.

The face of the Leatherhead is mostly bare of feathers, hence its

name. The entire head of a young raggiana remains bare after the

rest of the body is completely feathered, and the orbital region even

longer, the feathers gradually closing in round the eyes. The same

thing I also observed with a Black Manucode I once reared from

the nest.


I wonder how many readers have kept Cassowaries as pets ; yet I

can vouch for them as being very delightful, at least when young,

and sometimes even when full grown, but individuals even of the same

species vary immensely. I have had many kinds, but one or two


stand out in my memory. One of them was a One Wattled Cassowary


( C. unapyendiculatus ). I got it along the Tanah Merah coast of North

Dutch New Guinea from the natives. It was already quite a large

bird as it began to turn into the adult black plumage almost at once.

I cannot imagine why it was so tame, as no natives in that country

make pets of any birds. In some villages one often sees Cassowaries

of different species running about, old and young, but all have to

fend for themselves more or less and are kept solely with a view to

being eaten one day. At that time I had a Tamil servant who had

been on a pearl lugger named the Shitty Belle , so he promptly


dubbed her “ Skitty ”, which I afterwards changed to “ Kitty ”,


and “ Kitty ” she (or he) always remained. From the first day it

passed to my ownership it showed plainly that it liked to be in close



