THE HORSE FAMILY. 



55 



the Kulan of the Kirghiz, the Jiggetai of the 

 Mongols, and the Kiang of the Tibetans are 

 one and the same species, comprising a few 

 very slightly different geographical varieties. 

 Besides the short and somewhat massive 

 head the animal has the same very harmonious 

 proportions, the same graceful outlines, slim 



legs, and thin hoofs. The ears are somewhat 

 longer than those of the horse, but shorter 

 than in the mule. The line of the back is 

 straight, but slightly elevated at the croup; 

 the tail is furnished with a long tuft; the 

 mane is erect and pretty thick. The general 

 colour is a light isabel-yellow. The belly 



-^^- 



„-!*>' 



Fig. 151. — The Tibetan Wild Ass [Eqiius hemionus). 



'Si-tm- 



and inner sides of the legs are whitish yellow; 

 the mane and tail dark brown. The dark 

 line on the back sends no branches down the 

 shoulders. Examples of this species are now 

 to be seen in almost all menageries. Most 

 of them come from the Jardin des Plantes at 

 Paris, into which Dussumier introduced a few 

 pairs, which propagate there. On several 

 occasions some of these animals have been 

 trained with pretty fair success. Numerous 

 variations in colour have been observed. 



We have now to face the question of the 

 origin of the domesticated horse {^E. caballus), 

 which man has diffused over almost the whole 

 surface of the earth. The problem is not less 



complicated than that relating to the origin 

 of the domestic dogs, and all the more 

 difficult of solution since we know very few 

 wild species that could be brought into 

 relation with the domestic races. 



With regard to the Ass [E. asinus) there 

 are, perhaps, scarcely any differences of 

 opinion. We may feel certain that the two 

 species above-named, the onager and the 

 African wild ass, have each contributed their 

 contingent to the formation of the different 

 races. 



But with reference to the domesticated 

 horse we can take into consideration only the 

 kiang or Tibetan wild ass among living 



