A very interesting species of the wild sheep is the dlocxv MOUNTAIN SHEEP, or 1310 Hone; (U. fauntaiee), of North America. It is equal in size to the a•gali, which it much resembles also in its general appearance, and in the size and curvature of its horns. The horns of the old rams attain so great a size, and arc so much curved downwind and forward, that they often effectually prevent the animal from feeding on level ground. The abode of this species is in the most craggy and inaccessible parts of the Hocky mountains. The flesh is of the very finest quality. The wool is very fine, and fully an inch and a half long; it is completely concealed by long hairy lie general color i brown, paler on the lower parts; the old rains are almost white in spring. Thu AOUDAD (0. tragekipltu.9is a native of then, of Africa. inhabiting chiefly the lofty parts of the Atlas mountains. It is sometimes called the bearded a•gali, although it has no beard on the chin; hut the throat, the chest. and the front of the forelegs are remarkably adorned with long shaggy hair. On other parts the hair is comparatively short, with an underclothing of short wool. The color is a uniform reddish-yellow. The tail is longer than in the other wild species, and is terminated by a kind of tuft of long hairs. The horns are not so large as in the other wild species. In size,the aoudad exceeds the moufflon, but is not equal to the argali. The French call it moufflon a motichettes, or ruffled mouffion. from the long hair of its forelegs.
The COMMON SILEEP (0. aries) was probably the first animal domesticated by man. We are told in the hook of Genesis that Abel was "a keeper of sheep," and that he brought an offering unto the Lord "of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat. thereof." And from that time until the death of Christ. lambs continued to be the most Frequent sacrificial offerings, both among the patriarchs and the Jews. The felting and weaving of wool were unquestionably among the earliest of the arts. The wool was probably at first pulled from the skin, a rude and even cruel practice, which it is said still subsists in same countries, and was not very long ago relinquished in the Orkney islands. We read in Genesis xxxviii. of Judah shearing his sheep, and there is abundance of other evidence that the better mode of cbtai Mug the fleece has been in use from re.note an tiquity. The leather made of the skin of the sheep is much employed in bookbinding, and for making gloves. in patriarchai times, the milk was mach used, as it still is in some countries; it is richer than cow's mir(, and the cheese made of it has a sharp taste and strong flavor, which, however, are greatly relished by some. In Britain the milk is now very little used. In some mountainous parts of India the sheep is even used as a beast of burden, carrying loads of front 13:i to 40 pounds, over rough trucks, and up steed crags, where almost no other animal could be employed.
Those who watch sheep carefully, or keep them as pets, find them by no means devoid of intelligence. They have, however, a stupid habit of following, without scruple, the leader of the flock; so that. when sheep are being driven across a narrow bridge, or where a fence separates the road from a precipice, if anything occur to deter them from proceeding in the proper path, and one break over the fence or parapet, more of the flock may be expected to follow, as has sometimes happened, to their utter destruction. Sheep very soon come to know the voice of the shepherd, and also the appearance as well as the bark of the shepherd's dog. Though they stand more in awe of the shep herd's voice or commands than of any other human being's, the dogs regularly moving among them fail to keep them in such subjeetioa as strange ones do.
The '• is from September till the mithEe of December, according to the variety of sheep and toe system of feeding. White-faced modern breeds have the nips early among them. and the hill flocks are later. The period of gestation is front 20 to 21 weeks. Ewes occupying sown or low-ground pastures lamb in March, while those not so well provided for—the mountain sheep—do not drop their Iambs usually till April. The ancient bate 13 generally have only one lamb in a season, but modern highly fed va•ie ties frequently have twins, occasionally triplets, but rarely more. Lambs intended to come early into the market are as often as possible dropped in January. Generally lambs are weaned in July and August. Weaning of breeding or store lambs, however, is a feature of modern sheep-farming; at one time it was not uncommon to see several generatimis persistently following the parent stem. The shearing season ranges from May 1 till the middle of July, according to the description of sheep, the nature of 1 the feeding, etc. Autumn is the most common time for the "dipping." "juicing," for "sment•ing" of the flocks, to kill vermin, prevent skin disease, and preserve and culti vate the wool crop.
The great object for which the ancient Britons possessed sheep before the Boman invasion was the production of wool. The demand for butcher-meat has now raised the value of mutton and lamb so much that the fa•mer'finds it profitable to devote mach of his attention to supply the market with these articles; and those breeds of sheep are reckoned most valuable which are most suitable for this purpose, even although the quality of the wool is inferior. When there was no food for sheep but the natural pas ture, the animals could not be fattened for the market except during summer, and not until they had attained an age of three, four, or five years; whereas much of the mutton now consumed is the flesh of sheep not more than two years old, fattening being aided by turnips, inaugold, oil-cake, etc.