ORIGIN OF THE THOROUGHBRED HORSE 81 



If, therefore, the value of a particular strain descending through the 

 female line is the same as that passing through the male branches, tlie 

 foregoing calculation would place the two D'Arcy Turks considerably ahead 

 of all competitors. The Yellow D'Arcy Turk, for instance, appears in all 

 three of these great pedigrees (altogether six times), while the White 

 D'Arcy Turk, through Hautboy, is met with nine times in two out of 

 the three pedigrees. Mr. Hanckey Smith and other writers on the horse 

 have drawn attention to this subject, and although I have on former 

 occasions disputed the correctness of his arguments, yet on a careful re- 

 consideration I am bound to admit that there is perhaps some tenable 

 ground for the hypothesis, even if we do not accept it. But though it is 

 quite true that, as I before remarked, these horses occur more frequently 

 than any other in the three pedigrees, yet still the strains are much more 

 remote ; and in the pedigree of Eclipse, for instance, the whole seven, when 

 put together, only amount to -j-lg- of that horse. Now this is only a trifle 

 over J^, while the Darley Arabian makes up exactly that proportion, and the 

 Godolphin Barb twice as much, or ■!•. But when, in addition to these facts, 

 it is considered that both the one and the other of the last-named horses 

 are continually being renewed as we come nearer to our own times, while 

 the re-appearance of the White D'Arcy Turk is much more rare, the argu- 

 ment is no longer felt to be tenable. Eclipse himself, I think, may very 

 probably have owed his good qualities to the numerous lines of the White 

 D'Arcy Turk ; but taking his son PotSos and his grandson Waxy, the 

 probability is all the other way. For Eclipse, being composed of a little 

 more than y^^- of the White D'Arcy, of y^^- exactly of the Darley Arabian, 

 and -|- of the Godolphin Barb, is put to Sportsmistress, possessing a trace of the 

 White D'Arcy Turk, but made up of |- of the Godolphin Barb, and -^j^ each 

 of the Darley Arab and Byerley Turk. The composition, therefore, of the 

 produce, PotSos, will be |- Godolphin Barb, -g^^ Darley Arabian, -g^ Byerley 

 Turk, and yf-g- of the White D'Arcy Turk. To make this calculation 

 intelligible, it is necessaiy to study the subject of breeding, to the chapter 

 on which my reader is referred for its explanation. Proceeding, however, 

 to the next step, we see PotSos put to Maria, who is composed of yVg- 

 D'Arcy White Turk, but then J of her blood is that of the Godolphin Barb, 

 WV of the Darley Arab, and yf 3- Byerley Turk. Her composition therefore 

 becomes f of Godolphin Barb, -^ of the White D'Arcy Turk (or a little 

 more than -|-), •^- of Darley Arab blood (or about ^), and yVg- Byerley Turk 

 (or about y\), proving, on this method of calculation, the superior claims of 

 the Godolphin Barb and Darley Arabian to those of the White D'Arcy 

 Turk, in estimating the value of the several elements of which Waxy is 

 composed. 



This arithmetical method of calculation is not to be entirely depended 

 on, for we shall find, in discussing the theory and practice of breeding, 

 that where 11 domestic animal (a) composed of eight several strains is put 

 to another (b) composed also of eight strains of blood, but one of them 

 being similar to one in (a), the produce shall be more than y (a) in appear- 

 ance and qualities, and this goes on increasing in proportion to the number 

 of times that the experiment is repeated. Eclipse, then, having nine 

 distinct lines of the White D'Arcy Turk, might be expected, on this 

 hypothesis, to be really composed of much more than the exact proper- 



