Travels in the interior of South Africa, comprising fifteen years' hunting and trading; with journeys across the continent from Natal to Walvis Bay, and visits to Lake Ngami and the Victoria Falls . in number, of the ostriches kept in the gardensat Government House, having been plucked while the birds were underthe influence of chloroform, were replaced in a few months by others ofequal beauty. The success of the experiment so humanely conducted isnot without its commercial importance, and may perhaps lead to thedomestication of these valuable and magnificent birds, whose feathers areworth in
Travels in the interior of South Africa, comprising fifteen years' hunting and trading; with journeys across the continent from Natal to Walvis Bay, and visits to Lake Ngami and the Victoria Falls . in number, of the ostriches kept in the gardensat Government House, having been plucked while the birds were underthe influence of chloroform, were replaced in a few months by others ofequal beauty. The success of the experiment so humanely conducted isnot without its commercial importance, and may perhaps lead to thedomestication of these valuable and magnificent birds, whose feathers areworth in the Cape Town market £10 the ton weight. 340 IlLlIMAXS WAVELS. [chap. XV. dated by the sea at every change of the moon, as well as,at much raver intervals, by the river. The first thing thatstrikes the observer here is an extraordinary mirage, whichcontorts everything visible into the most fantastic skimming the surface of a distant inlet or lagoonassume the appearance of large ships in full sail, and anylittle black spot in the distance seems as large as a a flock of flamingoes near an old boat, I regrettedthat the intervening water prevented my going after them;. DISTANT OF YiALYISCH HAY. but it being pointed out to me that this was merely the effectof the mirage, I started after the birds and soon killed acouple of them. Besides large flocks of flamingoes, pelicans and cormorantsof various descriptions abounded. The former pursue .theirprey nightly in the shallow lagoons, driving the fish, by flap-ping their wings on the water, near the shore, and catchingthem while floundering. During our stay at Walvisch Bay we saw, nearly everyday, two or three whales playing about in its waters. They chap, xv.] WALVISCH BA Y. 347 abound on this coast. A captain of my acquaintance liastaken, in one month, twenty-two fish, yielding 200 barrels ofoil. A general fishing establishment might perhaps be suc-cessfully formed here, the only drawback being the dis
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1860, booksubjectnaturalhistory, booky
