Socks and Flocks 



a guide or courier while visiting in 

 that country, and used him as an 

 interpreter in the interview of which I 

 speak. I had noticed occasional flocks 

 out on the Campagna and over towards 

 the Alban Hills, and thought to learn 

 something of methods there in vogue. 

 Among other queries propounded to 

 the minister I asked as to how the 

 surplus of the flocks, the annual in- 

 crease, was disposed of. A reply was 

 quickly given in Italian, but Raphael 

 was obviously embarrassed and at a 

 loss to know how to translate. His 

 English was all right for ordinary 

 tourist purposes. In art galleries or 

 amidst the ruins of the Forum or 

 Pompeii he was quite at home. But a 

 little matter of distinguishing between 

 the ovine male and female brought 

 about in this case a somewhat amusing 

 denoument. He grinned and stam- 

 mered as he turned to give me the 

 reply; finally blurting out laughingly, 

 knowing that he was "in bad" from 



[i4Sl 



