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OPENING ADDRESS. 3 
blacksmith, sweating at every pore, would make the best 
of his time and opportunity to pare and trim each long 
erown hoof to more desirable proportions, and when all 
was done and the straps to be cast off, looking out every 
man for himself and—all for squalls. These were lively 
times and all was well that ended well. 
On one occasion the Sambur Deer aforenamed, vicious 
beyond bearing, was brought to reason by a cheese-paring 
of this kind and then left without straw in his paddock, 
very neatly paved with soft sandstone sets, which speedily 
wore down his hoofs (always much thinner than any 
Zebra’s) and so took the bounce and viciousness out of 
him. The Wild Ass however remained the most dreaded 
and dangerous beast of all; but he succumbed at last 
to one stronger than he; for he was found dead in his 
yard one winter’s morning after a severe frost with his 
hair all turned so much the wrong way that all the efforts 
of the stuffers were unavailing to get it smooth again, 
even for the show cases of the British Museum. 
Occasionally a field day of another kind came off at 
Knowsley: namely, the washing day of the Alpacas and 
Llamas. About 1842 or 43 Alpacas excited a great deal 
of interest. Pamphlets were published on their natural- 
ization, and a Liverpool firm took an active part in the 
endeavour to import them. Mr. Dawson and Mr. 
Edwards of Shaw Street were earnest in the matter, and 
evidence of the same still exists I believe at the Royal 
Institution in the shape of oil colour drawings of some of 
these animals. They were supposed to be hardy creatures 
and suitable for acclimatation in Scotland and elsewhere. 
Lord Derby eagerly tried his hand at Knowsley. A 
hundred adults were shipped for Liverpool, and some 
fifty young ones were born during the voyage from Peru. 
The treatment on board ship was, I believe, not always 
