THE AMERICAN BISON 205 



Orange River. But it is now the only zebra commonly 

 seen in captivity, and it still roams in herds over the 

 plains north of the river just mentioned. Its numbers 

 are, however, continually diminishing, for zebras are now 

 shot by the natives for their hides, which are very 

 valuable for leather, while their flesh is also much 

 relished. The colour is pale, yellowish brown, except 

 the limbs, which are nearly white. The head, neck, and 

 body, but usually not the limbs, are striped dark brown or 

 black. 4. The fourth and last kind is Grevy's zebra, 

 which inhabits the country south of Abyssinia. It is 

 generally marked like the true zebra, save that the bands 

 are narrower. Such is the distribution of the species of 

 the horse family in the present day. 



Wild horses were very common in Europe during 

 what is called the polished-stone period, before the 

 introduction of even bronze weapons. They were 

 domesticated by man before the historical epoch, but the 

 European domestic horse of modern times is in all prob- 

 ability largely, if not mainly, the result of the importation 

 into Europe, through Greece and Italy, of Asiatic horses 

 which were domesticated in times still more ancient. 

 They have been diffused by man almost all over the 

 globe, and in America and Australia, where none existed 

 when those regions were discovered by Europeans, they 

 now roam in great herds. Yet, strange to say, horses 

 were abundant in almost every part of America, from 

 Eschscholtz Bay down to Patagonia, in the most recent 

 geological age, though they had become quite extinct 

 long before the arrival of the Spaniards. A number of 

 fossil remains have been discovered which have been 

 supposed, mainly on account of their tooth structure, 

 to exhibit traces of the real pedigree of the horse. 

 What is certain is that a number of creatures have 



