THE HORSE FAMILY. 



51 



remain rudimentary; and the examination of 

 the feet of the ancestors of the horse reveals 

 to us the fact that there were actually five 

 toes in the first representatives of this group. 

 Examples of foals born with two or three 

 more or less developed toes are not rare. 



We wish further to draw special attention 

 to the smallness of the brain and its lowly 

 organization, indicated by the fact that the 

 hemispheres of the cerebrum do not cover 

 the cerebellum. This lowly organization is, 

 to be sure, in a certain measure compensated 

 by the number of the convolutions, which in 

 their disposition follow the same general plan 

 as those of the tapirs, but are much more 

 complicated. Between these two animals 

 the relations in respect of brain-structure are 

 somewhat similar to those which subsist be- 

 tween man and the macaque. The general 

 plan is the same, but in the lower type it is 

 shown in its original simplicity, while in the 

 higher it is complicated by a thousand 

 secondary formations. We likewise mention 

 the structure of the digestive organs, which 

 is in accordance with the plan exhibited in 

 all herbivorous perissodactyles : a simple and 

 relatively small stomach, a very thick colon 

 and caecum. The two teats are situated in 

 the region of the groin. 



The wild horses — for it is only these with 

 which we have to do — live in great herds in 

 prairie and steppe regions. That is their true 

 home. For this social life in lands with a 

 wide horizon they are wonderfully organized. 

 Mountains they shun, and they seek the 

 woods only to enjoy the shade for a brief 

 interval. It must be allowed that neither 

 the keenness of their senses nor their powers 

 of defence are sufficient to adapt them for a 

 life in the thickets, where each individual is 

 compelled to have his qualities developed in 

 the highest degree. The range of vision in 

 horses is not very great ; they can distinguish 

 only near objects clearly. Their scent is dull. 

 Only their hearing is very acute, and enables 

 them to distinguish the least audible com- 



ponents in distant noises. Observations on 

 the development of the senses have been 

 made chiefly, though not exclusively, on 

 domesticated horses that have run wild. It 

 has been established that in the pampas the 

 mustang does not scent the jaguar at more 

 than thirty paces off, and that the lion is 

 always sure of getting within the necessary 

 distance for a spring when a zebra is the 

 object of his pursuit. 



The herds live under the leadership of 

 some old males, which have to watch over the 

 well-being of their subjects. We cannot but 

 admire the courage of these proud creatures, 

 which, seeming to rejoice in battle, dart down 

 upon an attacking carnivore, the whole herd 

 arranging itself in a circle with the foals in 

 the middle, and all ready to strike with the 

 hoofs of their hind-legs. In fighting with 

 wolves stallions try to seize their antagonist 

 with their teeth by the nape of the neck, then 

 to lift them up and dash them on the ground, 

 after which they trample them underneath 

 their feet. 



But these battles, from which perhaps the 

 military art has derived the formation of 

 squares, are only exceptions to the rule, and 

 take place only in cases of sudden attack or 

 when the herds are driven to straits. Usually 

 the herd seeks its safety in rapid flight. 

 Tearing along in furious gallop, with ears and 

 mane erect, the herd dashes away with the 

 speed of the wind, driving their young ones 

 before them, the males galloping on the 

 flanks and at the end of the column to protect 

 the herd in its hurried flight. No carnivore 

 can follow them long. The Cape hunting- 

 dogs alone can keep up the pursuit for 

 several hours, and even then they are compelled 

 to content themselves with the stragglers who 

 have got wounded in the flight; they are not 

 able to follow the herd, which at last dis- 

 appears beyond the horizon of the immense 

 plain. 



The leading traits of wild horses are ac- 

 cordingly these : dull senses, little intelligence, 



