438 THE ASS. 



reasonable share of labour and fatigue, with cheer- 

 fulness and alacrity. To the peasantry they are 

 much more serviceable than Horses, since they have 

 not only greater proportionate strength of body, 

 and are more sure of foot, but also because they 

 are infinitely more healthy, and are kept at much 

 less expence. Their constitution is so hardy, that, 

 even in the depth of winter, the most wretched 

 hovel is sufficient shelter for them from the cold; 

 and so temperate are they with respect to food, 

 that they can subsist on such vegetables as almost 

 any other animals would refuse to eat. The thistle 

 and plantain, which generally grow in abundance 

 on waste lands, and along the sides of roads, afford 

 to them a sufficient feast after their day of toil is 

 concluded. If we observe the Ass with attention, 

 whilst grazing on this miserable fare, his whole de- 

 portment will be seen marked by mildness and 

 content. 



When he is young, he has the general character 

 and appearance of a handsome, sprightly, and even 

 graceful animal; but age, harsh treatment, and ex- 

 cessive fatigue, frequently render him slow, stub- 

 born, and headstrong. He is, notwithstanding, 

 capable of the strongest attachment to his master, 

 and will oftentimes immediately distinguish him 

 from amongst a crowd of other persons. He knows 

 the places where he has lived, and all the roads 

 along which he has been accustomed to travel. 

 When, as is oftentimes the case, he is loaded be- 

 yond 



