WHAT SELECTION HAS DONE. 137 



And it all has been done by man first making 

 up his mind what he wants. And, when his 

 mind is made up, it is followed by accurate and 

 long - continued and patient observation, wise 

 selection, and great painstaking. 



The long coat of many of our domesticated 

 dogs has been produced by method in breeding, 

 namely, selecting and rearing only dogs that had 

 a tendency towards a long coat. 



The original dog was and is wolf-like in appear- 

 ance, with a close, woollen coat that resisted all 

 sorts of weather. The long coats are not suffi- 

 ciently close to the body to afford much protec- 

 tion against bad weather ; they are, therefore, 

 more ornamental than useful. 



The natural weather-resisting coat was, and 

 still is, close, thick, and more like flannel in 

 appearance and touch than anything else. 



We are told that if a smooth-coated dog is 

 kept for any length of time in & cold, damp 

 kennel, and left to rough it, the coat has a ten- 

 dency to revert back to the coat of the wild dog. 



Selection is so important in everything in con- 

 nection with the farm and garden, so important 

 to success, that it cannot be too often or too 

 strongly insisted upon. 



Take poultry. The two points that the suc- 

 cessful rearer has to aim at is to rear in the early 

 spring a nice-looking, meaty chicken that can be 



