Am.  Jour.  Hharin. 
May,  1902. 
Chamois  Skins. 
225 
hunters  will  follow  them  for  days  over  dangerous  mountain  passes 
until  they  finally  bring  their  prey  at  bay. 
The  animal  is  about  the  size  of  a  goat  or  deer ;  of  a  dark  chestnut- 
brown  color,  with  the  exception  of  the  forehead,  the  sides  of  the  lower 
joints  and  the  muzzle,  which  are  white.  Its  horns,  rising  above  the 
eyes,  are  black,  smooth  and  straight  for  two-thirds  of  their  length, 
when  they  suddenly  curve  backward.  Their  hoofs  are  admirably 
adapted  to  avail  themselves  of  little  roughnesses  or  projections  on 
the  mountain  sides,  or  icy  glaciers.  It  has  long,  thick  and  coarse 
hair. 
What  is  known  in  the  market  as  chamois  skin  is  really  an  oil- 
tanned  sheep  or  lamb-skin  lining.    The  supply  of  skins  from  the 
chamois  animal  is  very  limited;  enough  could  not  be  obtained  in  a 
year  to  supply  the  United  States  for  more  than  a  single  day. 
The  writer  made  special  inquiry  on  a  recent  visit  to  Switzerland 
about  the  annual  crop  of  this  class  of  skins.  From  all  that  he  could 
learn,  about  five  thousand  to  six  thousand  skins  would  be  a  fair 
average  yearly  crop. 
The  accompanying  wood-cut  is  a  good  representation  of  the 
chamois  animal.  I  will  also  submit  a  specimen  of  one  of  the  skins 
of  the  chamois  tanned  in  oil.  This  I  know  to  be  a  genuine  chamois 
skin. 
This  skin  is  heavier  than  the  skin  of  the  sheep  or  lamb,  also 
Rupricapra  Targus  (Chamois). 
