258
THE ALPINE REGIONS.
large dogs, and accompanied by some stout donkeys, bearingtlieir chattels, bring up the rear. On arriving at the moun-tains, the flock is separated into four divisions, to each of whichis assigned a separate district; these are, the ewes with lambs,the rams and young ewes, the milch ewes and wethers, andthe sheep for the slaughter. The mutton of the Bergamesqueis inferior in flavour to that of the native sheep; but thewool is valuable, and there are two shearings annually. Themilk—though very small in quantity, a ewe, according toTschudi 1 , only yielding five or six table-spoonfuls a day, andtroublesome to obtain, since the beast will not stand to bemilked, but must be held a prisoner—is esteemed; for, whenmixed with three times the quantity of goats’ or cows’ milk,it makes a cheese, the flavour of which is much admired.Although this breed is most abundant in, it is not confinedto, the district above named ; but may be seen in many ofthe valleys which descend towards the north of Italy . TheCottian Alps are supplied largely with sheep from the plainsof Piedmont, and great numbers also visit the Dauphindmountains from Provence ; large flocks annually deserting thehot, stony, mirage-covered plains of the Crau , near Arles , forthe cool, rich Alpine pastures. They are conducted by theirshepherds in much the same way as the Bergamesque sheep;and here too the keeper of the flock w r alks in front after theEastern fashion.
Goats, of course, are to be found almost everywhere in theAlps; in Switzerland alone there were, a few years ago, not lessthan 368,000. They make themselves as much at home aspigs in an Irish cabin, and pervade every place. Far moreintelligent, lively, and sociable than the sheep, they would begeneral favourites with travellers, were it not for their disagree-able odour. The natives, however, do not seem to mind it; andcertainly after a time it does become less offensive. The goats