round,
I dare say he was not a bad man; but I doubt if there was any sin which
smelt so rank in his nostrils as the loss of a lamb through
carelessness, nor any virtue he rated so high as that which was rewarded
by a first prize at the agricultural show. The form of his ideal, and
the direction of his hero-worship, were determined accordingly.

The name preferred by Snarley was, as I have said, "the Shepherd," and
the term was no metaphor. He was familiar with every passage in the New
Testament where mention is made of sheep; he knew, for example, the
opening verses of the tenth chapter of St. John by heart; and all these
metaphorical passages were translated by him into literal meaning. That
is to say, the Person to whom they refer, or by whom they were spoken,
was one whom Snarley found it especially fitting to consult, and whose
sympathy he was most vividly aware of, in doing his own duty as a
guardian of sheep.

For instance, it was his practice to guide the flock by walking _before_
them; and this he explained as "a way 'the Shepherd' had." He said that
when walking behind he was invariably alone; but when going in front
"the Shepherd" was frequently by his side. And there were greater
"revelations" than this. During the lambing season, when Snarley would
often spend the night in his box, high up among the wolds, "the
Shepherd" would announce his presence towards midnight by giving a
signal, which Snarley would immediately answer, and pass long hours with
him communing on the mysteries of their craft.

From this source Snarley professed to have derived some of the secrets
on which his system of breeding was founded. "'The Shepherd' had put him
up to them." He said that it was "the Shepherd" who had turned his
thoughts to Spain as the country which would provide him with a
short-eared ram. "The Shepherd" had assisted in the creation of
"Thunderbolt," had indicated the meadows where the "Spanish cross" would
find the best pasturage, and never failed to warn him when he was going
to make a serious mistake. In his brilliant successes, which were many,
at agricultural shows and such like, Snarley disclaimed every tittle of
merit for himself, assuring Mrs. Abel that it was all due to the
guidance of "the Shepherd." Of the prize-money which came to him in this
way--for Farmer Perryman let him have it all--Snarley would never spend
a sixpence; it was all "the Shepherd's money," and was promptly banked
"that the missis m