tlisstfieotkt, Value, and Uses of Ostrich Plumes.—As the feathers are gathered, they are sorted according to their quality, the operation being generally entrusted to negroes. The best white plumes, known as "bloods," are only the tail, and primary wing feathers; the black plumes are secondary wing feathers. The classification of Cape ostrich feathers, for London markets, are as fellows:—(1) WHITE; fine ; Prima, best ; Prima, long usual ; I. and II. mixed ; seconds ; seconds and thirds mixed ; thirds ; tame :—finest quality, cut quill ; Prima, usual ; Prima, ordinary defective tops ; seconds; seconds and thirds mixed. (2) FEMINA :—light colour, good quality ; usual ; half-dark; dark. (3) BYOKS :—white, with black spots. (4) Boos :—tail feathers, white usual ; light fem.; dark fem. (5) BLACK :—long and medium good ; medium and short ; short. (6) DRAB :—grey, long and medium ; medium and short ; short. (7) SPADONES :—white and light fem.; fern. ; drab. The relative qualities of the feathers from different countries are in the following order, beginning with the best :—(1) " Aleppo," from Syria ; the finest in plumage, breadth, grace, and colour ; very rare ; (2) "Barbary," from Tripoli ; (3) " St. Louis," from Senegal ; (4) " Egypt " ; do not bleach thoroughly white ; (5) " Mogador," from Morocco ; (6) Cape ; as good in colour as " Aleppo," but of inferior quality ; (7) " Yemen," or (erroneously) " Senegal," from Arabia; plumage thin and poor. Prices fluctuate somewhat, and range from over 60/. a lb. down to a merely nominal figure. In spite of enormously increased production, the demand seems to keep pace with the supply, though the price has fallen somewhat. Wild feathers always sell more readily than tame ones, the reason being that the latter are much stiffer, and less graceful, have " galleries " in the quill, and resume their stiffness, even after dressing and curling. The principal application of the plumes is for the decoration of court and military dresses, ladies' bonnets, hearses, &c.
Before use, the plumes are either bleached or dyed. They are first washed in soap lather, rubbed well with the hands, and passed through clean scalding water. The bleaching of white feathers is performed in the following way. The feathers are first exposed to the action of sun and dew, for about a fortnight, are washed in a hot bath containing Spanish white—the softest and purest white chalk,—and are then passed through three clesn waters ; next, they are blued by a rapid passage through a cold bath containing indigo ; after this, they are sulphured, by being suspended in a sulphuring stove ; and are finally hung upon cords to dry, being occasionally shaken, to open the fibres. A more recent process, invented by Viol and Duplot, is to immerse the feathers in resinous essences, such as turpentine, or in essential oils, at about 30° (86° F.), and to subject them to the action of light, for a longer or shorter period, according to the degree of decoloration desired. After this, they are finished in the usual way, by scraping the barbs with a blunt edge, so as to produce the much-admired curl. Dark-hued feathers, after being bleached by the last-named process, may be dyed almost any shade. Another method of bleaching is by a bath containing 4-5 parts permanganate of potash in 1000 parts water ; a similar solution of sulphate of magnesia is added, and heated to 60° (140°-F.) max. The previously washed feathers are put into the bath, taken out, rinsed, and passed through sulphuric acid at Tw.
Artificial Ostrich Feathers.—The Americans are said to be manufacturing large quantities of artificial ostrich plumes, the quill being composed of celluloid, or rattan cane, and the barbs of silk waste.
Other Plumes.—Besides the ostrich, there are many giant birds, belonging to the families Struthionidce and Apterygicke, possessing plumes of more or less value. One of the most important of these is the Rhea, or South American ostrich (Rhea americana), whose range extends from Bolivia, Paraguay, and S. Brazil, as far as the Straits of Magellan ; while two other species, Darwin's Rhea
(.R. Darwini), and the long-billed Rhea (R. macrorhynca), share with it portions of the same territory. The birds are at present ruthlessly hunted, and, a few years since, were being killed at the rate of 300,000-500,000 per annum. Though, from their hardy nature and omnivorous habits, the birds are easily kept in confinement, little has yet been done in this direction. The feathers are collected chiefly in the Banda Oriental, Bahia, Blanca, Entre Rios, as well as Patagonia, and are shipped from Monte-Video and Buenos Ayres. The exports from Argentine ports in 1874 were :—To the United States, 19 tons ; France, 18 tons ; England, 2 tons; other countries, 21 tons. Their value ie put at about 4s. a lb., the male feathers bringing the higher prices. They enter European commerce as " vulture feathers," and the majority of them, the dark-greys, are made into feather brooms.
Imports of Ornamental Feathers.—Our imports of ornamental feathers, including ostrich plumes, in 1878, were as follows:—From France, 120,928 lb. ; British possessions in S. Africa, 78,947 ; British E. Indies, 25,313 ; Egypt, 12,394 ; Aden, 4946 ; Malta, 4485 ; Holland, 4346 ; Morocco, 3083 ; Belgium, 1551; other countries, 8806 ; total, 264,799 lb., value, 1,002,902/.
Quims.--The feathers of geese are almost the only ones whose quills are utilized; though the orow, swan, eagle, hawk, owl, and turkey, render occasional contributions. Quills for writing are obtained almost solely from the five outer wing feathers of the goose, the second and third being the best ; the direction of the curve of left-wing feathers gives them a preference. The feathers are taken in the spring from living birds ; the quills of fattened dead birds are worthless for the purpose. For the manufacture of tooth-picks, and similar articles, however, such choice is not necessary. Writing quills are prepared in the following way :—In order to remove their greasiness, and pellicles of skin, and to render the quills bard and elastic, they are heated in a fine sand-bath, at a temperature of 54°-82° (130°-180° F.). This causes the inner skin to shrivel up ; the outer one is scraped off while the quill is still warm. While still soft and warm, the quill may be stamped with any desired device. Feathers which will not afford quills suitable for pens are ingeniously utilized in France. They are first thoroughly soaked in water ; a machine then removes the quill ; next, the thin horny layer covering the shaft, and termed brilliantine, is stripped off by a penknife, and, when dyed, is used in bonnet trimmings. The broad side of the vane is also removed by band. The shaft is then placed, small end foremost, under a roller that forces it against cutting edge, which removes the "upper shaving" of horny material that divides the vane on one side: a similar operation is performed on the "lower shaving.' These shavings are farther shredded by cutting-cylinders, and aro used, under the name of "feather-bristles," for brush-making, while short and waste scraps form stamens, &o., of artificial flowers. The soft, white, elastic pith, forming the interior of the shaft, is ground fine, and used for flocking wall-paper. Finally, the quills proper are thrown into water, and well washed to remove the outer skin ; next, they are cut into tooth-picks, by moans of dies in a press ; and then placed in a wire basket, and agitated in water, to wash out the pith ; after which, they are dried, and made up into bundles. Quills are also largely consumed for holding the hairs of artists' brushes, for anglers' floats, as a covering for cigarettes, and for frietion tubes.
Feathers and feather manufactures will be included in the proposed Wool Exhibition at the Crystal Palace, in June-October, 1881.
Bibliography.—J. de Mosenthal and J. E. Harting, Ostriches and Ostrich Farming' (London : 1877).