CHAPTER IV 

 SHEEP 



Wild Sheep of Asia. On the plains of Asia there 

 may be seen to-day small flocks of wild sheep. They 

 are larger than our common sheep, with such im- 

 mense horns that it would require a foot line to reach 

 around one at its root and a four-foot line to measure 

 their length. The wool of the wild sheep is brown, 

 with a buff-colored streak along the back. These 

 wild sheep are strong, quick, and suspicious, so they 

 are very hard to catch. They are hunted for their 

 flesh and their skins, which are made into clothing. 

 They have a coat of fine soft wool to keep them 

 warm, and over this is a long coarse hair, which 

 serves as a raincoat. 



Another Kind of Wild Sheep. In the mountains 

 of Greece is another type of wild sheep, smaller and 

 less active than those of Asia. It is believed that 

 our domestic sheep have come from one or the other, 

 or perhaps both, of these wild types. 



Taming the Sheep. Some writers think the sheep 

 was tamed before the horse or cow, because they 

 were small and could not defend themselves so well. 

 Sheepskins made fine clothing for the cave man. 

 The first animal we find mentioned in the Bible is 

 the sheep, but the Bible mentions other domestic 

 animals. 



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