THE DOMESTIC ASS. 223 



Joseplms mentions that Herod the Great killed forty of them on one occasion ; and to the natural 

 ]i;ission of the Persians fcr hunting so wild an animal, that country owed the loss of one of its most 

 estimable sovereigns, Buharam the Fifth. The catastrophe, which occurred fourteen hundred vi-.ns 

 ago, forms a romantic tale, which the people still relate to the passing traveller. It is as follows : 

 " The ruling passion of Baharam was the love of the chase. His favourite game was the (jour, or 

 wild ass, which is both strong and fleet, and it was in pursuit of one of these that he lost his life, 

 having suddenly come upon a deep pool into which his horse plunged, and neither the animal nor his 

 royal rider was seen again. This accident happened in a fine valley between Shiraz and Isfahan, which 

 to this day is called the Vale of Hervis, from being (on account of its fine pasture and abundance of 

 game) the favourite resort, from the earliest ages, of the kings and nobles of Persia. The whole ot 

 this valley abounds in springs, some of which are very large, and of great depth; their sources under- 

 ground are supposed to communicate. It is not surprising, therefore, that the body of Baharam was 

 never found, although every search was made for it by his inconsolable mother." 



The subjugation of the wild ass when young is often accomplished, at the present time, by the 

 Arabs of Mesopotamia. Mr. Layard states that the foals are of a light fawn colour, almost pink ; 

 that the Arabs sometimes catch them during spring, and bring them up with milk in their tents. He 

 endeavoured, in vain, to obtain a pair. The Arabs eat their flesh. When that traveller was in tin- 

 desert between Mirkan and Tel-Afer, he says : " As evening approached we saw congregated, near a 

 small stream, what appeared to be a large company of dismounted Arabs, their horses standing by 

 them. As we were already near them, and could not have escaped the watchful eye of the Bedouins, 

 we prepared for an encounter. We approached cautiously, and were surprised to see that the horses 

 still remained without their riders ; we drew still nearer, when they galloped oif towards the desert. 

 They were wild asses. We attempted to follow them ; after running a little distance they stopped to 

 gaze at us, and I got sufficiently near to see them quite well ; but, as soon as they found that we 

 were in pursuit, they hastened their speed, and were soon lost in the distance. In fleetness they equal 

 the gazelle, and to overtake them is a feat which only one or two of the most celebrated mares 

 have been known to accomplish." 



THE DOMESTIC ASS. 



IN the patriarchal ages the breed of this animal was greatly encouraged, and constituted no inconsider- 

 able portion of wealth among Oriental shepherds. It is on this account the number of asses in the 

 herds of Abraham and others is so frequently stated by Moses in the Book of Genesis. So highly 

 were they valued in those times of primitive simplicity, that they were formed into separate drove-, 

 and committed to the management of princes and other persons of distinction. 



The ass was long used for the saddle in the Oriental regions ; and persons of high rank appeared 

 in public mounted on this animal. Those which the great and wealthy selected for use were large and 

 elegant animals. Thus travellers describe a variety of the ass in Syria, much larger than the common 

 breed. Some of them, in Persia, are kept like horses for the saddle, which have smooth hair, carry 

 their heads well, and are quicker in their motions than the ordinary kind, which arc dressed like 

 horses, and taught to amble like them. Taveruier says that fine asses are sold in Persia dearer than 

 horses, "even to an hundred crowns each." In Egypt, also, these animals are very handsome, and are 

 used for riding by the Mohammedans, and by the most distinguished women of that country. 



The Romans had a breed so highly esteemed, that Pliny mentions one of the stallions selling for 

 a price exceeding 3,000 of our money; and he says that in Celtiberia, a province of Spain, a she-ass 

 has brought colts that were bought for nearly the same sum. Varro also speaks of an nss that was 

 sold in his own time, in Rome, for nearly 500. In Spain the breed of asses became, by care and 

 attention, large, strong, elegant, and stately animals, and often rising to fifteen hands high. The best 

 of them sold sometimes for a hundred guineas each and upwards. 



The ass, bike the horse, was imported into America by the Spaniards. That country seems to be 

 peculiarly favourable to this race of animals, for where they have run wild they have increased 

 immensely. They are caught in the following manner : A number of persons go on horseback, -,vith 



* Equus atinua. Linmeus. 



