IV] THE ORIGIN OF THE LIBYAN HORSE 455 



Europe or in modern India are commonly striped, and as we 

 have shown that the striped horses of Kattywar owe their 

 superiority to the infusion of Libyan blood, and since the 

 striped dun horses of Spain are certainly a blend of the old 

 dun European horses and the Libyan, we may conclude with 

 high probability that stripes in all such cases are mainly due 

 to the infusion of Libyan blood. 



An analysis of the instances of striped horses here adduced 

 proves that the great majority were pure Arabians, English 

 thoroughbreds, Spanish horses derived from North Africa, 

 Pampas horses descended from Andalusian horses, three-quarter 

 bred and half-bred horses, English carriage-horses and cobs, 

 well-bred Welsh and Devonshire ponies, Kattywar, Burmese, 

 and Javanese ponies largely infused with Arab blood, the 

 progeny of dark sires saturated with Arab blood, and the off- 

 spring of dark Highland ponies. Prof. Ewart has lately informed 

 me that he has seen three Mongolian ponies which show 

 markings. They are particularly well defined in one in his 

 own possession, but, as she is very fleet and shows clear 

 indications of a good deal of Arab blood, we must not hastily 

 ascribe the stripes to her Asiatic rather than to her Libyan 

 blood. The account given on an earlier page (p. 138) of the 

 Mongolian ponies shows that they are much mixed in blood, and 

 as there is good reason to believe that the Chinese became 

 acquainted with the fleet horses of the West at a compara- 

 tively early period, we need not be surprised if the Mongols, 

 like the Turcomans, Kurds, and other horse-keeping tribes of 

 Asia, were always anxious to infuse Arab blood into their own 

 slow ponies. 



Mongolian ponies have not come under the observation of 

 scientific men to the same degree as the horses of other parts 

 of Asia, and, consequently, the absence of more instances may 

 be simply due to lack of information. Prof. Ewart has recently 

 received from Mr Hagenbeck a Prejvalsky two-year old mare 

 which has a distinct dorsal band, faint markings across the 

 withers, and conspicuous bars in the vicinity of the knees and 

 hocks. We have already seen that the Prejvalsky horses are 

 thus marked, but unfortunately as the question of the purity of 



