160 on varieties of domestic animals. — Oct. %- 
By a similar procefs, the colour, the jinene/s, the 
length, the softnefs, the crispine/s, the lanknefs, or 
any Other peculiarity of wool might be greatly im- 
ing the great improvements that may be made by a selection of the 
best sort for breeders; and therefore have never attempted to make 
such a selection, 
3: In consequence of their ignorance of this peculiarity they have 
bestowed no care in the choice of their rams, so that no other rule 
has been adopted in the choice of rams but a kind of necefsity. At 
the time of castrating the ram lambs it often happens that one or 
both the testicles have not then desce ded into the scrotum, so that 
the gelding of such being more difficult and dangerous than the othefs, 
-to save that trouble and avoid that danger, all these ridgelingss, as they 
are called, are left to be rams, without regard to the quality e their 
wool or other properties. 
4. But they do not stop here. Though the natives are ignorant 
of the powerful tendency with which animals are naturally endowed 
to pérpetuate the peculiarities of the parents by breeding, they know 
well that if the same individual once carries a fleece of fine wool, it 
will continue to do so all its life; and as the finest of that weol is 
much prised,—when any person finds a lamb having a very fine fleece, 
he is anxious to preserve the property of it to himself as long as pof- 
sible: but as thg theep are allowed to roam very much at large, they 
have observed that. the rams are in much greater danger of straying 
from the parent flock at the rutting season than the castrated fheep ; 
and as these stragglers are often ndt recovered to the owner, he thus 
loses the fine fleece which he values somuch. To guard against this 
dreaded evil, he is at great pains to see that all the ram lambs that 
have fine fleeces be carefully geldeds Thus does he yerify in good. 
earnest the old fable of Esop, and actually kills the goose for the sake 
of its golden egg: There isnot perhaps upon record such a striking 
instance to be found of the powerful tendency of nature to preserve 2 
breed, in spite of the efforts of art to destroy it, as this very case af- 
fords. The conduct of these persons however appears to be so very 
extraordinary, that while I thus state it with impartiality, Iam for- 
ced to appeal to thousands of people now living for the truth of it, lest 
jt might be supposed to be a mere fabrication of my own. 
