43 - Ostrich

Very large ostriches.

Magnificent birds

feathers alone worth having.

As the ostriches approached,

in our direction

they varied their pace,

as though in sport

springing, trotting, galloping and chasing

each other round and round

so that their approach was by no means rapid.

Only one was male,

the white plumes of the wings

and tail contrasting finely

with the deep glossy black

of the neck and body.

pg 193
Painted on back inside cover of Vol. 1
Swiss Family Robinson

by Johann Wyss

Altered by Sasheena Kurfman 2010