464 FROM NORTH POLE TO EQUATOR. 



Apart from the horse, the most useful, and therefore the most 

 important domestic animal of our nomadic herdsman, is the sheep. 

 This animal is very large and well-built, but very much disfigured 

 by the protuberances of fat on the rump. The massive body rests 

 upon long but powerful legs; the head is small, the nose narrow 

 and blunt, the ears pendulous or erect, the horns weak, the skin 

 hard but thick, the udder very much developed, the fat rump often 

 so enormous that the creature can no longer carry it, but bending 

 its knees lets it drag on the ground, unless the herdsman comes 

 to its aid by fixing a little two-wheeled cart under the tail, and 

 placing the burdensome appendage on that. When the Kirghiz 

 rams are crossed with sheep without this protuberance, their 

 descendants acquire the singular appendage in two or three genera- 

 tions, while if smooth-tailed rams be paired continuously with fat- 

 rumped sheep the reverse takes place. 



Though the character of the Kirghiz sheep resembles that of 

 our sheep in all important respects, it cannot be disputed that the 

 free life on the steppes, the long journeys which have to be made, 

 and the difficulties which have to be surmounted in the course of 

 these have developed its physical and mental capacities to an 

 incomparably higher degree than is attained by our domestic sheep. 

 Nevertheless, even in the steppe the clever goat acts as leader and 

 guide to the relatively stupid sheep, and it is therefore only right 

 that I should describe the goat next. 



The Kirghiz goat is of medium size, massive and well-built, the 

 body powerful, the neck short, the head small, the limbs well-pro- 

 portioned, the eye large and bright, the glance full of expression, 

 the erect ear pointed, the horns comparatively weak, and either 

 directed backwards and outwards or half turned on their axes, the 

 hair abundant, especially on beard and tail, that on the forehead 

 being long and curled; the prevailing colouring is beautiful pure 

 white with black markings. 



The Kirghiz always treat sheep and goats exactly alike, and 

 they feed together in flocks. The poor Kirghiz of one aul make 

 up a flock among them, the rich man, whose beasts are numbered 

 by many thousands, has often several. The shepherd, usually a 



