236 THE HORSE AND ITS RELATIVES 



so constructed as to be readily taken to pieces, when 

 the constituent parts are easily carried on mule- 

 back, through country which would be impracticable 

 for ordinary field-artillery. In addition to their 

 surefootedness, mules, in proportion to their size, 

 are stronger and more enduring than horses ; like 

 the ass, they will also thrive on poorer fodder, 

 while they are likewise less liable to disease than 

 horses, and are said to be longer-lived. In America 

 mules are very largely employed ; and in Brazil, 

 when the lines of railway are left, travelling in the 

 drier districts is to a great extent accomplished in 

 light carriages drawn by four or six mules, which 

 are driven by the coachman. 



"Obstinate as a mule" has become a proverb; 

 but the supposed obstinacy and vice are largely 

 the result of ill-usage ; and, although some in- 

 dividuals are incurably vicious, mules when properly 

 treated and handled are quite amenable animals. 

 Many years ago I rode a mule for several months 

 in the Punjab, and found it in every respect an 

 admirable mount. 



A large number of light-coloured mules, parti- 

 cularly in the Punjab, exhibit dark barrings on the 

 legs, and occasionally a shoulder-stripe. Writing on 

 this subject, Darwin ^ observes that " such mules 

 are generally light-coloured, and might be called 

 fallow-duns. The shoulder-stripe in one instance 



^ Animals and Plants under Domestication^ vol. ii. p. 16. 



