SOME CURIOUS DOMESTIC SHEEP . 49 



the male lambs when about two or three months 

 old on their horns when they are beginning to 

 sprout. The wounds are treated with a mixture of 

 oil and soot, and when they heal, instead of growing 

 at their usual places and spreading, come out as 

 one from the middle of the skull. The breed 

 which appears to be used for the purpose of manipu- 

 lating and converting into " unicorns " seems to be 

 exclusively the barwal, a Tibetan breed of heavy- 

 horned sheep. ... I am told that the object of 

 producing these curiosities is to obtain fancy prices 

 for them from the wealthy people in Nepal/ Not- 

 withstanding the above explanation, the majority 

 of naturalists are inclined to doubt whether a true 

 understanding has even yet been arrived at con- 

 cerning these sheep, for it has been pointed out that 

 the mere fact of searing the budding horns of the 

 lambs would not result in those appendages sprouting 

 out at the summit of the skull instead of towards the 

 side, and, moreover, if there is any secret attending 

 their production, it has been remarkably well kept 

 from the ever -prying eyes of zoologists. It is 

 true that the horns of a young animal might be 

 induced to grow together by binding them up, but 

 in that case we should expect the bony supports to 

 be bent aside at their bases as a result of the un- 

 natural strain put upon them, whereas, on the con- 

 trary, those of the unicorn sheep arise in quite a 

 straight manner from the skull. 



As previously mentioned, certain sheep show a 

 tendency to grow more than two horns, as many as 

 six sometimes being present. Examples of these 



D 



