GOATS. 



243 



The colour, again, may vary from pure white to brownish black ; and there are 

 great differences as regards the size and shape of the body. The ears may be 

 either upright or pendent, and when in the latter state sometimes attain an 

 enormous length. 



Goats were domesticated by the prehistoric inhabitants of the 

 Swiss lake -cities, and were likewise well known to the ancient 

 Egyptians. Noticing only a few of the more remarkable modern races, one of the 

 most valued is the Angora goat, a native of a district of Asia Minor, but which has 

 been imported into several parts of Europe. It is a large species, with long, flattened, 

 and spirally-twisted horns in the males ; and has been regarded by some writers as 

 a direct descendant of the markhor. The body is low, the legs are stout, the head 

 and neck short, and the ears pendent. The white hair is long, wavy, and silky, 

 and it is used in the manufacture of a peculiar kind of cloth. During the cold 

 weather these goats are kept in stables, but throughout the rest of the year are 

 suffered to roam at large ; the flocks are very large, each buck being accompanied 

 by about a hundred does. They are shorn in April ; and during the heats of 

 summer their hair is carefully washed and combed in order to prevent its deteriora- 

 tion. Some few are born without horns, and it is stated that in such cases the 

 hair is short and close. 



Of equal celebrity with the last is the Kashmir goat, which is a 

 Kashmir Goat. 



rather small but strongly-built variety, characterised by the presence 



of a thick under-coat of wool beneath the long hair. The neck is short, the head 

 somewhat thick, the eyes small, and the pendent ears longer than half the length 

 of the head. The horns are long and flattened, with a sharp edge in front, and 

 curved outwards and backwards; their tips being inclined inwards. There is 

 considerable variation in colour ; but generally the sides of the head, the upper 

 parts of the body, and the tail are silvery or yellowish white. Some individuals 

 are uniformly coloured throughout, and may be either pure white, yellow, light or 

 dark brown, or even black. Although most abundant in Tibet, the Kashmir goat 

 extends to Bokhara, and the country of the Kirghiz ; while of late years it has 

 been introduced into France, Wlirtemberg, and Austria. These goats are valued 

 for their under- wool, which is combed out during the summer, and is known in 

 Kashmir as pashm. From this pashm are manufactured the Kashmir shawls, and 

 also a very fine and soft dove-coloured cloth, pashmina. A certain quality of 

 pashm is also obtained from the Himalayan ibex. Enormous flocks of these goats 

 are kept in many parts of Tibet. 



The Syrian or mamber goat of Eastern Europe and South- 

 western Asia resembles the preceding in the length of the hair, but 

 is distinguished from all other breeds by the extraordinary length of its pendent 

 ears, which are half as long again as the head. These goats are of large size and 

 very tall ; the horns are usually present in both sexes, and curve in a semicircle ; 

 the profile of the face is convex ; and both sexes have a small beard. The long 

 black hair is shaggy and silky. 



The Nile or Egyptian goat is another allied breed, agreeing in 



size with the ordinary domestic goat, but with longer legs and shorter 



horns, and especially distinguished by the small size of the head and the extreme 



