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better than a wild boar. He is leggy, with heavy head, lean flanks, and 

 no hams to speak of. The prevailing color is sandy, although occasionally 

 black and white pigs are met with. I was informed that local pigs lost on 

 dressing on an average 25 per cent. The fact is that Greeks do not appreciate 

 fat pork ; they secure all the fat they need in olive oil. 



I have purposely left sheep last because they form the most important 

 and most typical live stock of the country. The flocks of sheep and goats 

 are estimated to total 5,000,000 head. It is perhaps difficult for us to realise 

 their mode of existence. Like the Merinos of Spain they form essentially 

 migratory flocks, changing their pastures with the seasons. In the winter, 

 for instance, they come down into the warmer and more sheltered valleys, 

 whilst the return of summer soon sees them on their way to erstwhile snow- 

 clad peaks. Such a practice implies the existence of vast areas of commonage 

 and open unfenced country. To see the sheep scattered over the mountain 

 sides is a pleasing sight indeed ; nor is it the eye alone that is flattered. The 

 great majority of the sheep are provided with sweet-sounding bells, which 

 in the distance recall the gurgling of running waters over a rocky bed ; and 

 as of old, from the shade of rock or stunted shrub, the watchful shepherd 

 pours forth melodies from the rustic pipe. These flocks are exceedingly 

 tame, and the shepherds appear able to gather them together by their cries. 

 It is not that dogs are wanting ; indeed, there are more than enough of them, 

 as the unwary visitor who approaches the camping ground often discovers 

 to his undoing. These dogs, however, are not sheep dogs in our sense of 

 the term, but merely watchdogs, whose special duty it is to keep off marauders, 

 jackals, foxes, &c. The extreme docility of the flock is exemplified by the 

 fact that they may frequently be seen on the roads following the shepherd 

 and not driven by him. 



In the country one sees sheep everywhere, and not always in large flocks. 

 Children may be seen shepherding half a dozen, or a dozen sheep and goats. 

 I have even seen single sheep tethered by a long rope to a picket driven in 

 the ground. I often thought as to the consequences of such treatment to 

 one of our wild station-bred Merinos ! 



In Greece sheep are exploited principally as milch beasts ; and as, from 

 our point of view, such a treatment is altogether novel, I availed myself of 

 every opportunity to cross-examine the shepherds as to their practices, the 

 gist of which I propose summarising. I must add that through the kindness 

 of Mr. D. Steele, manager of the Kopais Land Co., I was able to visit the 

 temporary settlement of some Wallachian shepherds, by whom I was received 

 with princely hospitality. These shepherds come down in the winter from 

 their snow-clad Thessalian homes into the rich Kopais pastures, where they 

 lead a life of patriarchal simplicity. Similar in type, I imagine, must have 

 been the old Highland clans. It was amusing to note the deference paid to 

 the head of the clan, who, although university-trained, was content to lead 



