AN EPICUREAN OSTRICH.

Samoa Times and South Sea Gazette, Volume 2, Issue 87, 31 May 1879, Page 2

AN EPICUREAN OSTRICH.

Captain Caleb Cronkmon, an old resident of New York, owned a gigantic ostrich, that was as familiarly known in the region as himself. The great bird disappeared recently, and this is the story of its latter days, as related by Captain Cronkman to an inquisitive Sun reporter: " One morning in June," said the captain, " I was aroused by a crackling sound at my door, and I discovered in the hall a gigantio ostrich which hod just bitten off my door-knob and was at thai moment devouring it. With the aid of some of the gentlemen in the house I secured the bird and turned him into the back yard. The next morning an advertisement appeared offering a reward for the ostrich, which had escaped from a menagerie. I was so charged with the bird's unique endeavour to satisfy his appetite that I bought him and got him cheap by turning over the reward in part payment. I occupied the rear room on the second floor, with a window opening on the roof of the extension. 1 put up a fence around the roof, and thus made a nice pen for the ostrich. And for some days I gave a glazier constant employment in restoring the window glass that the ostrich had eaten out. Finally I settled this bother by planking up the window, and thereafter the only trouble the ostrich gave me was when he took advantage of the carelessness of some gentleman who had left the bathroom window open. On such occasions the ostrich would slip down into the dining-room and eat a few plates and tumblers; but, as a rule, he got enough of the fragments of broken crockery and glassware which the house afforded, with now and then a juuk-bottle salad, or a dish of crooked nails us a delacacy. But one day, about three weeks ago, he crept down into the dining-room, and remained there undisturbed for a longer„time than usual, and before he was discovered he had cleared one tabic of orockery, glassware, knives and forks, spoons, caster and all, and finished up by swallowing the tablecloth. Notwithstanding the great quantity and nourishing quality of the food taken, he seemed to pine away from that meal forward, and about two weeks ago I had him taken over to my Hobokeu farm, thinking that a change of air and scene might be beneficial. Still he grew worse, and finally, about a week ago, I bought out a hardware store on Union Hill and turned the bin! into it, hoping that the sight of all the hardware on the shelves, with the privilege of eatiug whatever pleased his fancy, might brace him up. lint in spite of all these efforts, he faded and died. We run him through a stone crusher, and found in him about two barrels of iron, stone, and glass, and, last of all, that tablecloth, whioh was the real cause of his death. The wonderful machinery which could crush a stone jug like an egg-shell was overcome by that paltry tablecloth, which had got so twisted and wedged among the cogs and bearings that the apparatus could work no longer, and doubtless life was a burden to the ostrich until he died."