CHAPTER XII.

_THE HORSE TRIBE._

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ZEBRAS AND WILD ASSES.

BY F. C. SELOUS.

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ZEBRAS.

The Zebras have many points in common with the asses, from which latter group of animals they are principally distinguished by their beautifully striped skins. Both asses and zebras carry short, erect manes, and in both the upper portion of the tail is free from long hair. In both groups there are naked callosities on the fore legs only, whilst the head is larger in proportion to the size of the animal, and the ears longer than in the horse. In BURCHELL'S and GREVY'S ZEBRAS the hoof is intermediate between that of the horse and the ass; for although narrower than the hoof of the horse, it is broader and more rounded than that of the ass. In the TRUE ZEBRA, however, the hoof is thoroughly asinine in character, and the ears very long.

The TRUE or MOUNTAIN ZEBRA appears never to have had a very extended range. It was once an inhabitant of all the mountainous regions of the Cape Colony as well as of the great Drakensberg Range, and fifty years ago was also found amongst the rugged hills of Great Namaqualand. The mountain-zebra is the smallest of the group, standing only from 12 to 12½ hands at the shoulder. It is a most beautiful animal, the whole of the head, body, and limbs, with the exception of the under-parts and the insides of the thighs, being striped. The ground-colour of the body is white, the stripes being black and the muzzle bright brown. Both hind and fore legs are banded down to the hoofs. The stripes on the neck and body are narrower and more numerous than in Burchell's zebra, and on the hindquarters the median stripe, which runs down the centre of the back from the mane to the tail, is connected with the uppermost of the oblique longitudinal stripes by a series of short horizontal bars. The ears in this species are much larger than in Burchell's zebra.

The true zebra seems never to have been an inhabitant of the plains, like all its congeners, but to have confined its range entirely to mountainous districts. Speaking on this point, Captain (afterwards Sir) Cornwallis Harris wrote upwards of sixty years ago: "This beautiful and wary animal never of its own free will descends into the plain, as erroneously asserted by all naturalists, and it therefore never herds with either of its congeners, the quagga and Burchell's zebra, whose habitat is equally limited to the open and level lowlands. Seeking the wildest and most sequestered spots, the haughty troops are exceedingly difficult of approach, as well on account of their watchful habits and extreme agility and fleetness of foot, as from the abrupt and inaccessible nature of their highland abode."

An allied species, of which examples have been obtained by Mr. G. W. Penrice, occurs in Benguela, Portuguese West Africa.

I once saw the carcase of a zebra stallion which had been sent by rail to the Cape Town Museum by a farmer living in the neighbourhood of the village of Worcester. This animal had come down from the mountains, and joined a troop of donkeys running on the farm. Its intrusion was, however, resented by a male donkey, which fought with and overpowered it, and, having seized it with its teeth by the back of the neck, held it fast until it was secured by the farmer and his men. The captured animal, however, refused food, and soon died, when its carcase was sent to the Cape Museum for preservation.

GREVY'S ZEBRA is the largest and perhaps the handsomest of all the zebras. This fine animal is an inhabitant of Eastern Africa, its range extending from the central portion of Somaliland southwards to the Tana River. It appears to be plentiful in the country between Mount Kenia and Lake Rudolph, but has not, I believe, been met with to the west of that lake. Full-grown specimens of Grevy's zebra will stand from 14½ to 15 hands at the shoulder, with a girth of body immediately behind the shoulders of nearly 5 feet. The arrangement of the stripes in this species differs considerably both from that of the mountain-zebra of the Cape Colony and also from Burchell's zebra. The body-stripes are very narrow, numerous, and deep black in colour, and are separated by equally narrow white bands. The longitudinal stripes on the haunches are also shorter and finer than in any other species of zebra, and on the top of the quarters there is a white unstriped space on each side of the median line which runs down the centre of the back from the neck to the tail. The belly and insides of the thighs are white, and the legs banded right down to the hoofs as in the mountain-zebra, and the ears are as large as in that species.

Grevy's zebra is, as a rule, an inhabitant of open or thinly wooded country, and it appears to avoid anything in the nature of thick cover. In Central Somaliland Major Swayne met with it on low plateaux some 2,500 feet above sea-level, the sides of which fell in broken ravines to the river-valleys. This country is described as broken and hilly, and here Grevy's zebras were met with in small droves of about half a dozen. In the country between Mount Kenia and Lake Rudolph, Mr. A. H. Neumann frequently met with herds of Grevy's and Burchell's zebras consorting together. The contrast between the two species when thus seen side by side was very marked, the former animals looking like horses among a flock of ponies. Mr. Neumann never observed stallions of the two species fighting together, but on the other hand he states that the stallions of the larger species fight viciously amongst themselves for possession of the mares. Grevy's zebras seem never to collect in large herds, more than twenty, or at the outside thirty, being very seldom seen together.

Although this species is an inhabitant of arid plains and bare stony hills where the herbage is short, it requires to drink daily, and is never therefore found at any great distance from water.

The cry of Grevy's zebra is stated to be quite different from that of Burchell's. Mr. Neumann describes it as a very hoarse kind of grunt, varied by something approaching to a whistle, the grunts being long drawn out, and divided by the shrill whistling sound, as if the latter were made by drawing in the breath which had been expelled during the sustained grunt.

Like all other species of the genus to which they belong, Grevy's zebras, especially the mares when in foal, become very fat at certain seasons of the year, and their flesh is much appreciated both by natives and lions, the latter preying on them and their smaller congeners, Burchell's zebras, in preference to any other animal, now that the rinderpest has almost exterminated the great herds of buffalo which once roamed in countless numbers all over East Central Africa.

BURCHELL'S ZEBRA once inhabited the whole of South-western, South-eastern, Central, and Eastern Africa from the Orange River to Lake Rudolph; and though it has long ceased to exist in the more southerly portions of its range, it is still the most numerous and the best known of all the species of zebra.

The typical form of this species was first met with early last century by Dr. Burchell in Southern Bechuanaland. In this form the legs are white below the knees and hocks, and the body-stripes do not join the median stripe of the belly. In examples met with farther north the legs are striped down to the hoofs and the body-stripes join the belly-stripe. South of the Zambesi all forms of Burchell's zebra seem to have faint markings, known as shadow-stripes, on the pale yellow ground-colour of the spaces between the broad black stripes. North of the Zambesi varieties are met with in which these shadow-stripes are wanting. As, however, the differences between all the various sub-species of Burchell's zebra are superficial and not structural, and as, moreover, the habits of these animals seem to be the same in every part of their widely extended range, I shall henceforth speak of them as one species.

Burchell's zebra is without the small horizontal bars on the hindquarters, which in the mountain-zebra connect the dorsal stripe with the uppermost of the broad longitudinal bands running across the flanks. Its ears, too, are smaller than in the latter species, and its mane fuller. In size Burchell's zebra is intermediate between the mountain-zebra and Grevy's zebra, standing from thirteen to thirteen and a half hands at the shoulder.

Where they have not been shot down, Burchell's zebras often live in large herds of from fifty to over a hundred together. I have met with them almost at the level of the sea, as in the Pungwe district of South-east Africa, and all over the high plateaux of the interior up to a height of 5,000 feet above sea-level. They are partial to sparsely forested country intersected by open glades, but also frequent open plains entirely devoid of trees or bush, having been once numerous on the open downs of the Western Transvaal and Orange River Colony. They never live in dense jungle, but I have met with them frequently amongst broken rugged hills. Burchell's zebras are both fleet and enduring, but I have often galloped right amongst a herd of them when mounted on a fast horse, and in good ground. In broken, hilly, and stony ground, however, no horse can live with a Burchell's zebra. The hoofs of this species seem made for running in rocky ground, being deeply hollowed and as hard as iron.

I have always found the presence of Burchell's zebras a sure indication that water was not far distant, and it is my experience that these animals require to drink daily, and never wander more than a few miles away from the pool or river they frequent.

This species of zebra may often be seen in Southern Africa in company with other animals, such as buffaloes, blue wildebeests, elands, gemsbucks, roan and sassaby antelopes, and ostriches, and I have upon several occasions seen them come up to domestic cattle and horses. They are naturally not very wary, and in parts of the country where they have not been much molested are often very inquisitive, and will come trotting quite close up to a caravan, provided they do not get the scent of human beings. Foals of this species are easily caught, and become at once very tame and confiding; nor do I believe that adult Burchell's zebras are such vicious animals as is generally supposed, since I have seen several which were very quiet and well broken, whilst even the half-broken animals, which were at one time used on one of the coach-lines in the Transvaal, did not appear very vicious.

As with Grevy's zebra, the flesh of the species under consideration is much appreciated both by natives and lions. I have often seen the fat on the quarters of the mares quite an inch thick. It is of a dark yellow colour, and too rich to suit the stomach of a European. The meat is rather sweet in taste, but if fried with bacon not at all unpalatable.

Professor Ewart has lately carried out a very interesting series of experiments on the hybridising of zebras and horses. The results were very satisfactory. The zebra cross proved to be very hardy creatures, capable of wintering in the open on the hills of Scotland. The scientific data obtained were of singular value, as showing the effect of crossbreeding on subsequent generations of foals of the same mother. It has long been believed that the influence of the first sire was seen in foals of which other animals were subsequently the fathers. Thus, if a white mare threw a foal to a black stallion, it was considered that her subsequent progeny would occasionally be black, and instances were freely quoted to support this theory. The scientific name of "telegony" was given to this supposed influence of previous sires on future offspring. Professor Ewart's experiments, in which pony mares were first mated with a zebra and afterwards with horses, show that this theory of telegony is erroneous. The foals sired afterwards by ponies and horses showed no trace whatever of zebra stripes, but were normal pony foals, and not altered either in shape or disposition.

The QUAGGA, which became extinct about thirty years ago, never had a very extended range, but in the early part of the last century it existed in great numbers on all the upland plains of the Cape Colony to the west of the Kei River, and in the open treeless country lying between the Orange and Vaal Rivers. North of the Vaal it appears to have been unknown.

The quagga seems to have been nearly allied to Burchell's zebra--especially to the most southerly form of that species--but was much darker in general colour, being of a dark rufous brown on the neck and upper-parts of the body, becoming lighter on the sides, and fading off to white beneath and behind. Instead of being striped, too, over the whole body, it was only strongly banded on the head and neck, the dark brown stripes becoming fainter on the shoulders and dying away in spots and blotches. On the other hand, in size and build, in the appearance of its mane, ears, and tail, and in general habits, it seems to have nearly resembled its handsomer relative. The barking neigh "qu[=a]-h[=a]-h[=a], qu[=a]-h[=a]-h[=a]" seems, too, to have been the same in both species. The word "quagga" is pronounced in South Africa "qu[=a]-h[=a]," and is of Hottentot origin, being an imitation of the animal's neighing call. To-day Burchell's zebras are invariably called Qu[=a]-h[=a]s by both Boers and British colonists.

WILD ASSES.

The true asses are without stripes on the head, neck, and body, with the exception of a dark streak down the back from the mane to the tail, which is present in all members of the group, and in some cases a dark band across the shoulders and irregular markings on the legs.

In Africa the wild ass is only found in the desert regions of the north-eastern portion of that continent, being an inhabitant of Abyssinia, Somaliland, Gallaland, the Soudan, and the arid districts bordering the Red Sea. The form of wild ass found in Somaliland differs in some respects from its near relative of the Nubian Desert, in that it is of a paler colour, has the dorsal stripe but faintly marked, and is without a cross stripe over the shoulders, whilst on the other hand it has numerous markings both on the front and hind legs. Naturalists are, however, agreed that, although there may be certain small differences in the colour and markings of the wild asses found in different localities of Northern Africa, such variations are of no specific value, and only one species is recognised.

The AFRICAN WILD ASS is a fine animal, standing between 13 and 14 hands at the shoulder. It lives in small herds or families of four or five individuals, and is not found in mountainous districts, but frequents low stony hills and arid desert-wastes. It is as a general rule an alert animal and difficult to approach, and so fleet and enduring that, excepting in the case of foals and mares heavy in young, it cannot be overtaken even by a well-mounted horseman. Notwithstanding the scanty nature of the herbage in the districts they frequent, these desert-bred asses are always in good condition. They travel long distances to water at night, but appear to require to drink regularly. Their flesh is eaten by the natives of the Soudan. The bray of the African wild ass is said to be indistinguishable from that of the domesticated animal, which latter is undoubtedly descended from the wild African breed.

In Asia three varieties of the wild ass are found, which were formerly believed to represent three distinct species; but since the points of difference between these varying forms do not appear to be of specific value, all the local races of the Asiatic wild ass are now considered to belong to one species.

These wild asses have a wide range, and are met with in the deserts of Asia from Syria to Persia and Western India, and northwards throughout the more arid portions of Central Asia.

In Tibet and Mongolia the wild ass inhabits the high mountain-plateaux, and lives at elevations of 14,000 feet and upwards above the sea. This local race, known as the KIANG, approaches in size to the African wild ass, standing 13 hands at the shoulder. It is dark reddish brown in colour, with a very narrow dorsal stripe. The ONAGER of Western India and Baluchistan is a smaller and lighter-coloured animal, with a broader stripe down the back. In parts of its range it is found at sea-level. In Persia and Syria a third local race of wild ass is found, which, however, differs from the two forms already enumerated in no essential particular.

Like their African congeners, the wild asses of Asia are inhabitants of the waste places of the earth, frequenting desert plains and wind-swept steppes. They are said to be so fleet and enduring that, except in the case of a mare heavy with foal, they cannot be overtaken by a single horseman.

The wild asses of the desert plains of India and Persia are said to be very wary and difficult to approach, but the kiang of Tibet is always spoken of as a much more confiding animal, its curiosity being so great that it will frequently approach to within a short distance of any unfamiliar object, such as a sportsman engaged in stalking other game.

Asiatic wild asses usually live in small families of four or five, but sometimes congregate in herds. Their food consists of various grasses in the low-lying portions of their range, but of woody plants on the high mountain-plateaux, where little else is to be obtained. Of wild asses in general the late Sir Samuel Baker once said: "Those who have seen donkeys only in their civilised state can have no conception of the wild or original animal; it is the perfection of activity and courage."

DOMESTICATED HORSE, ASSES, AND MULES.

BY W. P. PYCRAFT, A.L.S., F.Z.S.

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THE DOMESTICATED HORSE.

Like the wild camels, genuine wild horses are very generally believed to be extinct. The vast herds which occur to-day in a wild state in Europe, America, and Australia are to be regarded, say those who believe in the extinction theory, as descended from domesticated animals which have run wild. So far as the American and Australian horses are concerned, this is no doubt true; but of the European stocks it is by no means so certain. For Dr. Nehring--and he speaks with authority--assures us that the wild horses known as TARPANS, which occur on the steppes north of the Sea of Azoff, between the river Dnieper and the Caspian, are veritable wild horses, the last remaining members of enormous herds which occurred in Europe before the dawn of civilisation. These horses formed no small part of the food of the savage races of men then inhabiting this continent. This we know because of the quantities of their remains found in the caves of the south of France, for instance, associated with the remains of the men who hunted them. Further evidence of this we have in the shape of crude engravings on pieces of bone and deer horns, carved by the more artistic spirits amongst these early hunters. From these drawings we gather that the horse they hunted was small in size and heavy in build, with a large head and rough, shaggy mane and tail--a horse, in fact, almost identical with the above-mentioned tarpan. But long before historic records begin these horses must have been domesticated; man discovered that they could be even more useful alive than dead, and from that time forth the horse became his inseparable companion. "Cæsar found the Ancient Britons and Germans using war-chariots drawn by horses."

But the stock of domestic horses drawn from this tarpan breed appears to have died out almost entirely, the majority of horses now existing being probably descendants of the native wild horses of Asia, the product of a still earlier domestication. In Egypt the horse, as a domestic animal, seems to have been preceded by the ass; but about 1900 B.C. it begins to appear in the rôle of a war-horse, to draw chariots. Its use, indeed, until the Middle Ages was almost universally as a war-horse.

From the time of its domestication till to-day the history of the horse has been one of progress. The care and forethought of the breeder have produced many varieties, resulting in such extremes as the London Dray-horse, the Racer, and the Shetland Pony.

The coloration of our various breeds of horses is generally without any definite marking, piebald and dappled being the nearest approach to a pattern. Occasionally, however, horses are found with a dark stripe along the back, and sometimes with dark stripes on the shoulders and legs. Darwin, discovering a number of horses so marked belonging to different breeds, came to the conclusion that probably all existing races of horses were descended from a "single dun-coloured, more or less striped primitive stock, to which [stock] our horses occasionally revert."

"If we were not so habituated to the sight of the horse," says the late Sir William Flower, "as hardly ever to consider its structure, we should greatly marvel at being told of a mammal so strangely constructed that it had but a single toe on each extremity, on the end of the nail of which it walked or galloped. Such a conformation is without parallel in the vertebrate series." By the aid of fossils we can trace out all the stages through which this wonderful foot has passed in arriving at its present state of perfection: we can see how it has become more and more beautifully adapted to fulfil the requirement demanded--a firm support to enable its owner to cover hard ground at great speed. The study of the structure of this foot, and a comparison with the intermediate forms, make it clear that this toe corresponds to the third finger or toe of the human hand or foot--according as we compare the fore or hind limbs--and that its development was at the expense of the remaining toes, which gradually dwindled and disappeared, leaving in the living one-toed horse only traces of the second and fourth toes in the shape of a pair of splint-bones, one on either side of the excessively developed third toe.

The horses, it must be remarked, may be distinguished from the asses by the fact that the tail in the former is clothed with long hair throughout; in the latter long hair springs only from the sides and end, forming a tuft. Furthermore, the horses have a remarkable horny excrescence, resembling a huge black and flattened wart, on each hind leg just below the "hock," or heel-joint. This excrescence is commonly known as the "chestnut." Its function is unknown. A similar pair of "chestnuts" occurs on the inner side of the fore limb just above the wrist, or "knee," as it is generally called. The "chestnuts" of the fore limb occur also in the asses, but not those of the hind limb.

THE ARAB HORSE.

This magnificent and justly celebrated animal is chosen first for consideration because it is probably a direct descendant of an original wild breed--the Asiatic wild horse. How far back the domestication of this breed began will probably never be exactly known. Till the third century after Christ the Arabs were almost certainly camel-riders; but by the sixth century of our era we find them in possession of a breed of horses which they regarded with great reverence, and spoke of as an heritage from their forefathers. They were probably introduced from the Caucasus or Asia Minor. The Arab horse found its way into Europe, perhaps accompanied by an allied breed--the Barb--with the Arab invasion of Spain in the eighth and ninth centuries, leaving traces of its sojourn in the Andalusian and the French Limousin. But the great value of Arab blood was not appreciated till armour ceased to be used, the excessive weight of this demanding a horse of heavy build.

The Arab does not appear to have been introduced into England till the seventeenth century; but the result of that introduction, as we shall see presently, has been fraught with tremendous consequences. In its native land it appears to have been bred chiefly for the purposes of warfare. The success with which the breeders' judicious selection has been rewarded is plainly seen in the wonderful powers of endurance on long marches; so that, at the end of a raid, the animal is still fresh enough either for flight, if necessary, or for a final rush on a retreating enemy. Besides, Arabs possess great courage, and are frugal both in the matter of food and drink.

As a race-horse, one enthusiast assures us, the Arab is superior to every other natural breed; he is beaten only by his own half-breed offspring--the English Race-horse. But this seems to be rather an over-estimate.

The colour of the Arab varies; white is the most highly esteemed, but bay and chestnut are common, black being rare. Strange as it may seem, the white breed is never born white.

The great affection of the Arab for his horse is proverbial. The following story is certainly worth repeating: "The whole stock of an Arab of the desert consisted of a mare. The French Consul offered to purchase her, in order to send her to his sovereign, Louis XIV. The Arab would have rejected the proposal; but being miserably poor, with scarcely a rag to cover him, his wife and children starving, he was tempted greatly. At length he yielded. He brought the mare to the consul's house, and stood leaning on her neck, and looking, now at the gold, and now at the horse. The gold was good to look upon; it would make him rich for life. Turning at last to his favourite, he said: 'To whom is it I am going to yield thee up? To Europeans, who will tie thee close, who will beat thee, who will make thee miserable. Return with me, my beauty, my jewel, and rejoice the hearts of my children.' At the last of these words he sprang upon her back, and was in a few moments out of sight."

THE BARB.

This is an African breed, which, like the generality of African horses, is distinguished from those of Asia by its long limbs and small girth at the loins, thus resembling the foals of other breeds. It displays great powers of enduring hunger and thirst; and is fleet, with a high and graceful action. The barb takes its name from its native land--Barbary. It is a larger breed than the Arab.

LEVANT AND PERSIAN HORSES.

These are very closely allied to the Arab, but generally of larger size; and in Southern Persia, at least, less delicately framed. The Turkoman horses are related to those of Northern Persia.

THE ENGLISH RACE-HORSE.

This animal is the product of very careful selection and gradual improvement of an original native breed, extending over several centuries. Long since, so long ago as the reign of James I., it had reached a high degree of excellence.

Upon this native stock there has been built up, by the infusion of Arab blood, the swiftest horse which the world has ever known--the BRITISH THOROUGHBRED. "Of this breed, it may be stated," says Mr. Allison, "that every such animal in the stud-book of the present day, in this country or any other, descends ... from one of three original Eastern sires--the Darley Arabian, the Byerley Turk, or the Godolphin Arabian." This is an extremely interesting fact, and constitutes a lasting monument to the enterprise and acumen of the British horse-breeder.

The Byerley Turk hailed from the Levant, and was introduced by Captain Byerley about 1689. From the Byerley Turk came Herod, the most celebrated of his descendants, who has given rise to the Herod line, which to-day is but feebly represented.

The Godolphin Arabian, or the Godolphin Barb, was born about 1724. From his grandson Matchem is derived the Matchem line, which is also to-day bordering on extinction.

The Darley Arabian carries us back to the reign of Queen Anne. Flying Childers and Bartlett's Childers are directly descended from him; and from the latter is descended Eclipse, the fastest horse which the turf has ever known. It is interesting to note that the descendants in the Eclipse line enormously outnumber those of the other two lines which we have considered. Of his descendants, one of the most illustrious is Stockwell, who has been described as the most extraordinary sire of all time, whose blood is coming more than ever to the front.

THE TROTTING-HORSE.

This is an American breed. The trotting-horse is a combination of barb and Arab on an English stock. Most of the trotting- and pacing-horses of America may be traced to an English thoroughbred--Messenger--who was imported into America in 1780. This horse became the founder of the greatest trotting family in the world. The speed attained by some of the fastest trotters is wonderful, a mile being covered in some three or four seconds over two minutes.

Russia is the only European country with a distinct breed of trotter--the ORLOFF. This breed was made by crossing Arab and English horses with the native races. The Orloff has not the speed of the American horse, but has greater powers of endurance. The trotting-season in Russia is winter, the races taking place on the ice.

The PACER is not a distinct breed, but so called on account of its curious method of trotting. In trotting the left fore and right hind leg strike the ground at the same moment; in pacing the fore and hind leg of the _same side_ move in unison. Some wild animals--as the giraffe--are pacers. "Many American horses," says Mr. Winans, "are able to move with either action, a set of lighter shoes often sufficing to convert a trotter into a pacer." Pacing is a swifter mode of motion than trotting. The record time stands at one mile in 1 minute 39½ seconds, as again the trotting record of one mile in 2 minutes 3¾ seconds.

THE HUNTER.

This also is not a distinct breed, as some suppose. Any good riding-horse may be used as a hunter. "Hunters" have been made by infusing the blood of the race-horse with native breeds. The chief requirements are a muscular neck and chest, with a rather short body, and shorter and stouter legs than the race-horse.

From the half-bred hunter we pass by insensible gradation to the ordinary saddle- and carriage-horses. The ideal carriage-horse, however, is more of a distinct breed than the hunter, and known as the CLEVELAND BAY. It has been produced by mingling the blood of the thoroughbred with that of a horse of stouter make than that of the hunter type.

The record broad jump for the hunter, we might mention in passing, is variously stated to be from 33 to 37 feet!

THE SHETLAND PONY.

This is a native of the Shetland Islands, and remarkable for its small size, docility, and hardihood. It is allowed to run nearly wild, and made to forage almost entirely for itself. In the winter it grows a coat of great length, which, soon becoming matted, forms a most effective protection against cold and wet. The DARTMOOR, EXMOOR, and NEW FOREST are likewise small breeds, but lack the symmetry and beauty of the Shetland.

CART-HORSES.

Under this head are included all the large, heavily built draught-horses. These are of European origin, and without intermixture of foreign--Asiatic or African--blood. In England the most important breeds are the BLACK or SHIRE HORSE, the CLYDESDALE, and the SUFFOLK PUNCH. These are wonderful instances of the results of selective breeding towards a definite end--large size, accompanied by great physical strength and powers of endurance. To accomplish this, speed has had to be sacrificed.

ASSES AND MULES.

ASSES.

The DOMESTIC ASS, so common to-day in these islands, is of African origin, and has, moreover, departed but little in either form or colour from the wild race. This is probably due to the fact that the ass has not been subjected in this country to that process of rigorous and careful selection that the horse has undergone.

We have no record of its first introduction to these islands, but it was certainly known in the reign of Ethelred, though it was a rare animal. Later it appears to have died out, and to have been reintroduced in the reign of Elizabeth; but it has never become popular. This is unfortunate; its sterling qualities have never been really appreciated by us. Spain, Italy, and Malta have all succeeded in raising some fine breeds. The United States has, however, produced the finest of all in animals standing some 15 or 16 hands (5 feet or 5 feet 4 inches) high.

MULES.

The term MULE, strictly speaking, should be reserved for the offspring of the male ass and the mare: the offspring of the opposite cross is called the HINNY. Mules are valued on account of their great powers of endurance and their sure-footedness. The finest and handsomest are bred in Spain, the United States, and North-west India.

It is interesting to note that mules exhibit a strong tendency to revert to the dun-coloured and striped coloration believed to belong to the primitive horses. The spinal and shoulder stripes which sometimes appear in horses, and more frequently in asses, occur yet more frequently in mules. The legs of the mules appear particularly liable to revert to this striped coloration in the United States, it is said nine out of ten being so marked.

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