I So WILD TRAITS IN TAME ANIMALS. 



ing manner in the case of a farmer of my 

 acquaintance. This gentleman possessed a large 

 ram of a very pugnacious disposition. Every 

 one who entered the field where the sheep grazed 

 was assaulted by him ; and he was seldom con- 

 tent until he had laid his victims flat upon the 

 ground. To cure him of this inconvenient habit 

 his master adopted the following stratagem. 

 Entering the field unperceived by the ram, he 

 took his stand against the trunk of a stout oak- 

 tree which stood near the centre of the pasture. 

 The instant that the sheep perceived the intruder 

 on his domain he came trotting towards him, and, 

 as he drew near, lowered his head and made the 

 usual blind, headlong charge. The farmer 

 waited until the animal was about six feet off and 

 then stepped suddenly aside, with the result that 

 the ram's head banged against the rigid trunk of 

 the tree with a force which, althoug-h it did not 

 shake the latter, hurled him backwards on his 

 haunches. Although somewhat astonished to 

 find that he had such an unexpectedly "hard 

 master," the sheep's Avits were not sufficiently 

 alert to enable him to grasp the situation ; while 

 his fighting instinct impelled him to renew the 

 charge on the instant. The same thing happened 



