552 



TRANSMISSION 



fourth, fashion has much to do, even among race horses, in 

 influencing selection, especially after an individual or a family 

 has acquired a reputation. 



Allowing as fully as possible for these facts, the records are 

 worth study for the light they throw upon the question of 

 inherent differences between individuals in respect to breeding 

 powers differences so great that as we proceed it will be 

 perfectly evident that the line of descent runs through few 

 individuals and quite independent of the mass. 



The total number of performers listed that is, that had 

 made track records good enough to admit them to the 2:30 list 

 at this date (1901) was 26,327, of which 17,625, or almost 

 exactly two thirds, were trotters, and 8702 were pacers. 



The Register showed that, in all, 34,299 stallions had been 

 recorded at this time, but the breeding record showed that only 

 6278, or less than one in five, had produced anything in the list; l 

 that is to say, roughly speaking, 6278 sires had produced 26,327 

 performers, or an average of 4. i + each. 



Great sires. Of these 6278 sires only 207 had produced ten 

 or more sires or dams of speed; that is, only 207 had bred well 

 enough to produce either ten stallions each, or ten mares each, 

 capable themselves of producing speed. 2 In other words, of the 

 whole 34,299 stallions and 6278 sires, only 207 bred speed well 

 enough to send it into the second generation to the extent of 

 either ten sires or ten dams producing speed. 



Now these 207 great sires themselves produced directly 5377 

 performers (4226-1151 p.), 3 which is more tJian one fifth of 

 the entire list of performers, and an average of 26 apiece, or 

 six times the breeding record of the average stallion. 



Again, these 207 great sires produced 3155 sires of performers, 

 and they in turn produced 16,536 trotters and pacers (11,737- 

 4799 p.). This is over half of all the sires and over 62 per cent 

 of all the performers of the breed. 



1 This was partly, as has been already noted, because some individuals were too 

 young to have made a full breeding record. 



'* This, of course, does not include those sires whose produce in sires and dams 

 together equaled ten. 



8 Note that 42261151 p. means 4226 trotters and 1151 pacers. 





