The only time I ever saw them employed there, was
against a peculiarly aggressive male ostrich, who attacked all
intruders into his particular domain with the utmost ferocity. The
bird fell like a dead thing, and he assumed a very chastened demeanour
after this lesson. The South American ostrich, the Rhea, though
smaller and less dangerous than his big African cousin, can be most
pugnacious when he is rearing a family of young chicks. I advisedly
say "he," for the hen ostrich, once she has hatched her eggs,
considers all her domestic obligations fulfilled, and disappears to
have a good gossip with her lady friends, leaving to her husband the
task of attending to the young brood. The male bird is really
dangerous at this time, for his forward kick is terrifically powerful.
The ostrich can run faster than any horse, but it is quite easy to
circumvent any charging bird. All that is necessary is to turn one's
horse quickly at right angles; the ostrich has such way on him that he
is unable to pull up, and goes tearing on a hundred yards beyond his
objective before he can change his direction. This manoeuvre repeated
two or three times leaves the bird discomfited; as they would say in
Ireland, "You have him beat." I confess that I have never seen an
ostrich bury his head in the sand to blind himself to any impending
danger, as he is traditionally supposed to do; I fancy that this is a
libel on a fairly sagacious bird, and that in reality the practice is
entirely confined to politicians.
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