s of the ostrich,
and the various modes of taking it, we are indebted to a gentleman
who spent many years in Northern Africa, and collected these
details from native sportsmen, his principal informant being
Abd-el-Kader-Mohammed-ben-Kaddour, a Nimrod of renown throughout the
Arab tribes of this region.

The ostrich country, says Ben-Kaddour, may be described as a
rectangle, of which the towns of Insalah, Figig, Sidi-Okba, and
Warklah form the angles; that is, it comprises the northern skirts of
the Saharian desert, where water and herbage are plentiful in
comparison with the arid plains of the centre. Throughout this region,
ostriches may frequently be seen travelling in pairs, or in companies
of four or five couples; but wherever there has been a recent fall of
rain, one is almost sure to find them grazing together in large
numbers, appearing at a distance like a herd of camels. This is a
favourable opportunity for ostrich-hunting, especially if the weather
is very warm; for the greater the heat, the less vigour have the birds
for prolonging the chase. It is well known, that though the ostrich
cannot raise itself into the air, it is nevertheless so swift of foot,
that it cannot be fairly run down even by the horses of this region,
which, on an emergency, are known to run 180 miles in a single day. An
ostrich-hunt is, therefore, undertaken by at least ten horsemen
together, who, being apprized of the spot where a large group are
feeding, approach with extreme caution, and form a cordon round them.
To prevent the birds from escaping from the circle thus formed, is all
they attempt, and it requires their utmost dexterity. The terrified
creatures run hither and thither; and not managing their breath as
they would do in an ordinary pursuit, they at length become exhausted,
and betray it by flapping their wings. The sportsmen now fall
deliberately upon them, and either lead them away alive, or fell them
with a blow on the head. Their first care is to remove the skin, so as
to preserve the feathers uninjured; the next is to melt down the fat,
and pour it into bags formed of the skin of the thigh and leg,
strongly tied at the lower end. The grease of an ostrich in good
condition fills both its legs; and as it brings three times the price
of common butter, it is considered no despicable part of the game. It
is not only eaten with bread, and used in the preparation of kooskoos,
and other articles of food, but the Arabs reckon i