THE WILD GOAT, &c. 375 



by Mr Brown, is our capricorne, which feems 

 to be nothing elfe than the wild goat degenera- 

 ted by the influence of climate. 



M. Daubenton, after fcrupuloufly examining 

 the relations of the chamois to the he-goat and 

 ram, fays, in general, that it has a greater refem- 

 blance to the he-goat than to the ram. Next to 

 the horns, the chief differences are found in the 

 figure and iize of the front, which is lefs eleva- 

 ted and fhortcr, and the form of the nofe, which 

 is more contracted in the chamois than in the 

 he-goat ; fo that, in theie two articles, the cha- 

 mois refembles the ram more than the he-goat. 

 But, by ftippofing, what is extremely probable,- 

 that the chamois is a conftant variety of the 

 fpecies of the he-goat, as the bull-dog and grey- 

 hound are conftant varieties in the dog-kind, we 

 will perceive that theie differences in the fize of 

 the front and the polition of the note, are not 

 nearly fo great in the chamois, when compared 

 with the he-goat, as in the bull-dog and grey- 

 hound, which, however, produce together, and 

 certainly belong to the fame fpecies. Befides^ 

 as the chamois refembles the he-goat in a great- 

 er number of characters than the ram, if he con- 

 stituted a particular fpecies, it inuft necefiarily be 

 an intermediate one between the he-goat and 

 the ram. Now, we have feen, that the he-goat 

 and ewe produce together : The chamois, there- 

 fore, which is an intermediate fpecies between 

 the two, and, at the lame time, has a greater 



Burnt 



