SHEEP AND GOATS. 243 



The merino sheep, which originated in Spain, are widely 

 celebrated ; no variety is more valuable for wool-raising. 



FIG. 180. 



MERINO SHEEP. 



These sheep are not large, and may be recognized by 

 the small head and slender legs. The wool is long and 

 curly, and becomes as white as snow when the animal 

 is washed. The feet, the muzzle, and the forehead are 

 often black. 



In the sheep the horns, borne only by the male, are 

 directed first backward, then curve downward and for- 

 ward, forming a spiral. In the goats, both male and 

 female have horns, and these are turned upward and 

 backward ; the horns of the female are small. Goats 

 usually also have beards on the chin, while that of the 

 sheep is never bearded. There are a number of species 

 of goat, all of them European or Asiatic. They inhabit 

 great heights in the wildest mountains, and are timid 

 and wary. One of the largest is the steinbok, or Euro- 

 pean ibex, 



The antelopes are closely allied to the goats ; most of 

 the tolerably large number of species are found only in 



