Marvels of the Universe gil 
of nature, that is to say, in a wild 
state, this 1s true; but all the same, 
they are not artificial products, as 
the Chinese dragon, for instance, is 
artificial On the contrary, they are 
as “natural’’ as lions and tigers. 
Their several peculiarities are — per- 
fectly natural 
of innate or inborn tendencies of 
ce 
expression points ”’ 
growth, which have been fostered 
by man’s supervision. In some 
cases he has seized upon tendencies, 
which, greatly magnified, would in- 
crease his profit; in others, upon 
features whose only merit is in the 
a Sh 
and grotesqueness. But in no case THE FAT-TAILED SHEEP. 
greater extent of their freakishness 
has he made the character in This South African species requires to store sufficient nourishment to 
withstand long periods of scanty pasturage. The tail has therefore been 
question, he has only fostered 1ts abnormally developed for the storage of reserve supplies of fat. It will 
development by persistently selecting weish as much as seventy pounds. 
for his breeding-stock those individuals which possessed the coveted character in greatest 
degree. 
The history of our domesticated sheep well illustrates this. The sheep, to most of us, is, before 
all things, a wool-producing animal. Now this wool is entirely the product of domestication : of 
the process of selective breeding. Wild Sheep, and most breeds of sheep in hot countries, are 
hairy, like goats, with a more or less well-developed ‘“‘ under-fur.”’ In the domesticated sheep 
man has gradually bred out the hair, and enormously increased the under-fur, the Merino Sheep 
representing the maximum attained in this direction. This was originally a Spanish breed. But 
in 1783 Louis XVI. of France started an extensive Merino farm on an estate of his at Ram- 
bouillet. In the course of a century, 
on this estate, by careful selection, 
flocks remarkable for their great size 
were raised, and these were known as 
) 
“ Elephant Sheep,” and famed for the 
excellence of their wool and_ their 
superior hardiness. These Rambouillet 
sheep have since been spread over 
nearly the whole of the sheep -growing 
world. 
More remarkable, in some respects, 
are the Fat-tailed and Fat-rumped 
Sheep. The former is a South African 
breed, and is one of the most remark- 
able breeds jn the world. The tail 
is of great length and _ excessive 
width at the base, and at its maxi- 
mum may weigh as much as seventy 
FERNS 
THE FAT-RUMPED SHEEP. 
Here the rump serves the same purpose as the tail of the Fat-tailed 
pounds. In such cases the poor sheep Sheep. This Sheep is found in many parts of Central Asia, Persia 
Arabia, and North-East Africa—all countries, be it observed subject to 
is relieved, as much as possible, of its rs ROU en 
