SHEEP 263 



"You compared that to a snowball increasing in 

 size as it rolls, " said Jules. 



"Yes, my friend; the succeeding generations, al- 

 ways chosen from among the best, are the successive 

 layers that bring their complement to the increase 

 of the ball. " 



"The Leicester sheep must have acted on the 

 snowball wonderfully, to increase its weight from 

 thirty kilograms to one hundred and fifty. 7 ' 



"I admit that such a transformation is not 

 brought about in a single year, and that Bakewell 

 must have had great confidence in his method to de- 

 vote his whole life to the pursuit of the end foreseen 

 by his genius. ' ' 



"What is this famous Leicester sheep like?" 

 asked Emile. 



' * Its trunk is all of a size, almost cylindrical. The 

 head is small, bald, and without horns. It is sup- 

 ported by a neck so slender and short that the head 

 appears to spring directly from the trunk." 



"To judge by the picture you are showing us, one 

 would say that the head came out of a hole made in 

 the middle of the fleece." 



1 i That comes from the smallness of the neck. The 

 wool, long and coarse, takes the form of pointed 

 locks hanging down and not very close together, so 

 that the whole fleece weighs much less than one 

 would suppose from the size of the animal. The 

 four legs are thin and naked. All the bones in short, 

 are remarkably light, having only enough solidity 

 to support the animal's massive bulk of flesh." 



