Permanence and Evohition. 73 



derful tales we do not altogether reject he 

 would make allowance for error, and the natural 

 exaggeration by which a singular incident 

 becomes a marvellous one. He would sup- 

 pose that the strain of fox-hounds was really 

 crossed with the wolf, and that close examina- 

 tion would probably have detected the cross : 

 he would suppose that this crossed strain pro- 

 duced a very wolf-like animal, but by no means 

 a perfect wolf, and that selection did the rest. 



Now it appears to me that something of the 

 kind must have happened, specially when we 

 consider that the pea-fowl is a bird which has 

 never been subjected to the fancier's art, and 

 whose breeds or varieties might therefore till 

 quite recently not have been noted with care. 

 As the sport took place once among common 

 and white, another time among common and 

 pied pea-fowl, it seems likely that the cross 

 might have been introduced through a hen, 

 which, odd as such a mistake is, must have 



