i64 THE WILD CAT OF BRITAIN. 



of size, colour, and markings was said to be quite indis- 

 tinguishable from the wild Felis catus. Bullington Wood is 

 one of an almost continuous chain of great woodlands, ex- 

 tending from Mid-Lincolnshire to near Peterborough. Much 

 of the district has never been preserved for game, and 

 keepers are few and far between ; hence the wild animals 

 have enjoyed an almost complete immunity from persecu- 

 tion. Cats are known to have bred in these woods in a wild 

 state for generations, and there is no improbability that the 

 cat in question may have descended directly from the old 

 British wild cat. Under all the circumstances, however, it 

 seems more likely to be a case of reversion under favourable 

 conditions from the domestic to the wild type. 



''In Ireland, strange to say, notwithstanding reports to 

 the contrary, all endeavours to find a genuine wild cat have 

 failed, the so-called ' wild cat ' of the natives proving to be 

 the ' marten cat,' a very different animal. 



"We thus come back to the question with which we 

 started, nam.ely, the question of origin of the domestic cat ; 

 and the conclusion, I think, at which we must arrive is, that 

 although Felis catus has contributed to the formation of the 

 existing race of domestic cats, it is not the sole ancestor. 

 Several wild species of Egyptian and Indian origin having 

 been ages ago reclaimed, the interbreeding of their offspring 

 and crossing with other wild species in the countries to 

 which they have been at various times exported, has resulted 

 in the gradual production of the many varieties, so different 

 in shape and colour, with which we are now familiar." 



Before quitting the subject, I would point to the fact 

 that when the domestic cat takes to the woods and becomes 

 wild, it becomes much larger, stronger, and changes in 

 colour; and there can be little doubt that during the 

 centuries of the existence of the cat in England there must 

 have been numberless crosses and intercrosses, both with 

 regard to the males of the domestic cat as with \N\i^ fe7nales , 

 and vice versa ; yet the curious fact remains that the wild 

 cat still retains its peculiar colouring and form, as is 



