THE NATURALISTS’ COMPANION. 
77 
(^()BHESF(),yi)E.Y(\l^. 
This Col omii is ojumi freo (o joarlj siilisrrihei's only. 
C. J. W., Suiiimerville, N. C.—We can 
furnish you with a set of taxidermists’ in- 
; strunients for fe.oo. It is not necessary to 
go to the expense of buying a set, for all 
that is really necessar}' is a file, a pair of 
scissors, cutting pliers to cut wire with, 
pincers or small hand-vice to hold wire 
while filing it to a point, a button-hook 
and a scalpel, which may l)e made by break¬ 
ing the blade of a very light jack-knife 
one inch from the handle and then filing 
it as shown on page to. No. i of this paper, 
or we can furnish you with a good one for 
6 o cents. For arsenieal soap see “Taxider- 
mv.” thispssue. The best method for pol¬ 
ishing shells is to put the shell is a pan of 
cold water, with a cjuantity of quicklime, 
and boil it from two to five hours,aeeording 
to the thiekness of the epidermis. The 
shell afterward must be gradually cooled and 
some strong acid applied to the epidermis, 
when it will easily peel off. The shell is 
afterward polished wdth rotten-stone and 
oil, put on a pieee of chamois leather. Af¬ 
ter the opperation of polishing and washing 
with acids, a little sweet oil should be rub¬ 
bed over to bring out the colors and destroy 
the influence of the acid. 
J. S. T., Adrian, Mich.—We have no 
knowledge as to when egg colleeting began 
or the origination of the blow-pipe. 
We have numerous other inquiries which 
we will endeavor to answer in the Decem¬ 
ber number. 
THE OSTBICH. 
(avis STEUTHIO). 
The ostrieli is u bird wliicli is 
only found in the sandy deserts of 
Africa and Arabia, where it roams 
about in small docks, feeding upon 
various grasses, seeds, and other 
vegetable matter. It is the largest 
bird now existing, being upwards of 
six feet in height, and weighing con¬ 
siderably more than two hundred 
pounds. It has a long neck, small 
liead, and large, bold eyes. Its legs 
are long and so powerful that it is 
ca})ab]e not only of runidng swiftly 
Imt of striking siuli a blow with its 
loot that leopards and other beasts 
of i)rey tind it too formidable a ('rea- 
tureto be easily attacked. Its wings 
ai’e so short that they ai’e useless for 
flight, but are of considerable assist¬ 
ance to the bird when hard })ressed 
by persiiers. At such times it 
stretches them out, dapping them 
strongly, and thus greatly increases 
its speed. The wing of an adult 
bird con tains twenty-four long,hand- 
some leathers. The plumage of the 
male bird is aglossy black, and that 
of the female, gray Avitli a sprink¬ 
ling of white feathers. The nest of 
the ostrich is a jiiere hole scooped 
in the sand. A large number (.)f 
eggs are de})osited here, the nest 
being the joint property of several 
females. Except in the very hottest 
regions the ostrich does not leave 
her eggs to be liatched entirely by 
the heat of tlie sun ; she sits upon 
them by night, at which time the 
atmosphere would be too cold for 
them ; but they are left to the sun’s 
heat during the day. The eggs, 
which weigh about three pounds, 
are somewhat valuable i)s an article 
of food, and the thick, strong shell 
is used for various purposes, prind- 
pally as a water-A'essel. 
Mattie C. Garrett, 
Steubenville, O. 
The Ilawkeye Observer and this 
paper one year for 50 cents. 
The oldest bank-note in existence 
in Europe is in the St. Petersburg 
museum. It was issued in 1399 B. 
C,, by the Chinese Government. It 
is said that bank-notes were used in 
China at least as early as 2500 I>. C. 
