File:The history of birds - their varieties and oddities, comprising graphic descriptions of nearly all known species of birds, with fishes and insects, the world over, and illustrating their varied (14563786249).jpg

Identifier: historyofbirdsth00bing (find matches)
Title: The history of birds : their varieties and oddities, comprising graphic descriptions of nearly all known species of birds, with fishes and insects, the world over, and illustrating their varied habits, modes of life, and distinguishing peculiarities by means of delightful anecdotes and spirited engravings
Year: 1880 (1880s)
Authors: Bingley, William, 1774-1823
Subjects: Birds Zoology
Publisher: Philadelphia : Edgewood Publishing Co.
Contributing Library: American Museum of Natural History Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Biodiversity Heritage Library

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, and have their throats inflated and their mouths open. At other times they make a kind of cackling noise, like some species of poultry: this they use when they have overcome or routed an adversary. During the night they often utter a doleful or hideous cry, somewhat resembling the distant roaring of a Lion, or the hoarse tone of a Bear or an Ox, as if they were in great agony. They will swallow, with the utmost voracity, rags, leather, wood, iron, or stone, indiscriminately. I saw one at Oran, (says Dr. Shaw,) that swallowed, without any seeming uneasiness or inconvenience, several leaden bullets, as they were thrown upon the floor, scorching hot from the mould P^ When Mr. Adanson was at Podar, a French factory on the southern branch of the river Niger, two young but nearly full-grown Ostriches belonging to the factory, afforded him a very amusing sight. They were so tame, that two little blacks mounted both together on the back of the largest. No sooner did he feel their weight, than he began to
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29r 298 THE CASSOWARY. run as fast as possible, and carried them several times round the village, as it was impossible to stop him otherwise than by obstructing the passage. This sight pleased Mr. Adanson so much, that he wished it to be repeated; and, to try their strength, he directed a full-grown negro to mount the smaller, and two others the larger of the birds. This burden did not seem at all disproportioned to their strength. At first they went at a tolerably sharp trot; but when they became heated a little, they expanded their wings, as though to catch the wind and moved with such fleetness that they scarcely seemed to touch the ground. Most people have seen a Partridge run, and consequently they must know that no man is able to keep up with it: and it is easy to imagine, that if the Partridge had a longer step, its speed would be considerably augmented. The Ostrich moves like the Partridge, with this advantage; and the two birds here spoken of would have distanced the fleetest race-horses

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