324 THE ZEBRA. 



plain, not rigidly maintained, offers a similar pic- 

 ture of osculating forms as were pointed out in the 

 earliest distribution of true horses; and if it be a 

 question yet to be solved, whether most of these 

 would not under the care of man similarly commix, 

 and in time produce races more perfect than any 

 of the wild, still the probabilities seem to be en- 

 tirely on the affirmative side. 



THE ZEBRA. 



Hippotigris zebra. 

 PLATE XXI. 



The name of this animal is properly a result of the 

 mistake made by the earlier travellers, who, finding 

 at the. Cape a striped Equine, concluded that it was 

 of the same species with that already known by the 

 equatorial tenn of Zebra, Mr. Burchell first pointed 

 out the difference between the tw^o, and proposed 

 the restoration of the original name to the Congo 

 animal, and to describe that of the Cape under the 

 appellation of Equus montanus, because the species 

 is properly an inhabitant of mountain districts. 

 Naturalists, however, seem to have preferred be- 

 stowing Mr. Burchell's own name on the species he 

 had so clearly pointed out, and left the Zebra's 

 attached to the animal, such as it had been fixed by 

 Linnasus. Tbis decision may be so far fortunate, 

 as we think it doubtful whether the Burchellian 

 Dauw is really the same as the Congo species. 



