MERINO, OR SPANISH SHEEP. 



the whole of their lives, but the latter are accustomed to undertake regular annual 

 migrations. The summer months they spend in the cool mountainous districts, 

 but as soon as the weather begins to grow cold, the flocks pass into the warmer 

 regions of Andalusia, where they remain until April. The flocks are sometimes 

 ten thousand in number, and the organization by which they are managed is very 

 complex and perfect. Over each great flock is set one experienced shepherd, who 

 is called the " mayoral," and who exercises despotic sway over his subordinates. 

 Fifty shepherds are placed under his orders, and are supplied with boys and intelli- 

 gent dogs. 



Under the guardianship of their shepherds, the Merino Sheep, which have spent 

 the summer in the mountains, begin their downward journey about the month of Sep- 

 tember ; and after a long and leisurely march, they arrive at the pasture-grounds, 

 which are recognized instinctively by the Sheep. In these pasturages the winter folds 

 are prepared, and here are born the young Merinos, which generally enter the world 

 in March, or the beginning of April. Towards the end of that month the Sheep begin 

 to be restless, and unless they are at once removed, will often decamp of their own 

 accord. Sometimes a whole flock will thus escape, and, guided by some marvellous 

 instinct, will make their way to their old quarters unharmed, except perchance by 

 some prowling wolf who takes advantage of the shepherd's absence. 



The very young lambs are not without their value, although they furnish no wool, for 

 their skins are prepared, and sent to France and England, where they are manufactured 

 into gloves, and called by the name of " kid." 



Many attempts have been made to naturalize this most important animal, but with 

 little success. At one time the Merino Sheep was in the highest repute, but as it does 

 not combine the mutton-making with the wool-producing power, it has long ago been left 

 unnoticed. On the Continent, however, the Merino Sheep has been most valuable, and 

 by judicious crossings with the already existing varieties, has produced a number of very 

 useful breeds. It is found that if a Merino be left untouched by the shears for two 

 seasons, the wool will double its length, and be equally fine in texture. In one case a 

 half-bred Merino was clipped after having been put aside for a whole year, and it was 

 found that her fleece weighed twenty-one pounds, the length of the " pile " being eight 

 inches. The health of the Sheep appears to be uninjured by permitting the animal to 

 retain its coat for two years. 



The Australian Sheep, which roams the plains in such vast multitudes, and which 

 furnishes so large a supply of wool to the world's commerce, owes much of its value 

 to a cross with the Merino, several of which animals were imported into Australia by 

 some far-seeing man of business. 



A few words may fitly be spoken in this place upon the peculiar hair which deco- 

 rates the Sheep, and which is called by the name of wool. 



Wool is a very curious kind of hair, and may be recognized at once by any one who 

 possesses a tolerable microscope. If a single hair of the Sheep's wool be subjected to a 

 powerful lens, a vast number of serrations are seen, which, when carefully examined, 

 resolve themselves into a series of notched ridges, which surround the hair closely. To use 

 a familiar illustration, the hair bears a strong resemblance to a number of thimbles thrust 

 into each other, and with their edges notched like so many saws. It is to this notched or 

 jagged surface of the hair that the peculiar value of Sheep's wool is owing, for it is by 

 means of these serrations that the hairs interlock with each other in that mode which is 

 popularly termed " felting." If a handful of loose wool be taken and well kneaded 

 the fibres become inextricably matted together, and form the substance which we 

 term " felt." In a similar manner, when woollen thread is made into cloth, and subjected 

 to the hard usage of its manufacture, the fibres of the different threads become so firmly 

 adherent to each other that they never become unravelled when the cloth is cut or torn. 

 The " felting " property is greatly increased by the propensity of woollen fibre to contract, 

 when touched by water. It is in consequence of this peculiarity that woollen fabrics will 

 always shrink when they are wetted for the first time after their manufacture. The reader 

 may naturally wonder why the wool does not become thus matted together when it is 

 upon the Sheep's back, and subject to the influence of nightly dew and daily rain. The 



