32 Permanence and Evolution. 



mean from any Rengger happened to know. 

 In New Zealand the feral cats assume a streaky 

 grey colour like that of wild cats. This is one 

 of the commonest colours in the tame cat 

 Where is the evidence that their colour was ever 

 anything else ? 



THE HORSE. 



Very little need be said about this animal, of 

 whose wild origin little is known. There are 

 a great number of breeds and sub-breeds, which 

 reproduce their like with remarkable persistency, 

 even colour, as Darwin remarks, being trans- 

 mitted with great accuracy ; and we see that 

 several races of wild horses exist in various 

 parts of the world, which have been supposed to 

 be feral, but may just as easily be truly wild. I 

 see therefore no ground for saying with Darwin, 

 that few will agree with Colonel Hamilton 

 Smith ("Naturalist's Library") in maintaining 

 that the horse has proceeded from five different 



