THE EUMINANT ORDEE. 



261 



possess is very limited, and tlieir constitution is weak ; indeed, 

 tliey would soon entirely disappear, were it not that man protects 

 them with assiduous and continual care. 



In our climate the ewe does not in general produce more than 

 once in a year ; but in warmer countries they often bear twice 

 in that period. The length of gestation is five months, and the 

 ewes preserve their milk for seven or eight months after the 

 birth of their young, although the lambs are not allowed to 



Fi;;'. Oo. -KL'bSfll {CapnA-isammotruijus, Gray). 



suck for over two or three months. At the age of one year 

 Sheep are able to reproduce, and they continue fruitful to the 

 age of ten or twelve years. 



Very considerable differences exist in the various varieties ot 

 Sheep. The Big-tailed Sheep is a breed which is remarkable for 

 the shape of its tail ; in them this appendage is expanded to so 

 great an extent with fat, that it often assumes the form of an 

 fmrnense excrescence. This race exists in the temperate parts of 



