61 



alternative have we to the telegony theory as an explana- 

 tion of the facts in that case ? 



There can be no doubt that the colt and filly were each of 

 them marked with stripes. Weismann's suggestion is that 

 these markings were due to atavism or reversion to an an- 

 cestral type. This is assuming that the ancestors of the 

 horse were striped animals, and that reversion, which is 

 well known to occur among pigeons, occurs also among 

 horses. 



Such stripes as were possessed by these foals are nowa- 

 days known to occur in foals borne by mares which have 

 been mated only with males of their own species. 



Weismann says "they are not very uncommon on purely- 

 bred foals, and ordinarily disappear as the animal grows 

 older." Professor Ewart says, " I have seen eleven pairs of 

 stripes on a Shetland foal." Darwin also tells us he bred a 

 foal with many stripes ; and he was well aware that such 

 stripes appear on horses of many breeds, consequently it is 

 supposed his opinion as to telegony having occurred in 

 Lord Morton's experiment was due in part, at any rate, to 

 the description of the manes of the two foals. In the filly 

 the mane is described in the celebrated letter as " short, 

 stiff, and standing upright," and in the colt as long, but 

 stiff and arching upwards. Oil paintings of these animals 

 by Agasse, now in the museum of the Royal College of 

 Surgeons, made, it is supposed, about a year later than the 

 letter was written, do not show the manes as described. 



This does not, however, throw any discredit either on 

 the truth of the description in the letter, or on the fidelity 

 of Agasse's paintings. Manes of horses alter. Professor 

 Ewart has an Arab whose mane was short, stiff, and up- 

 right, like that of the filly ; six months later it was longer, 

 and arched upwards from the neck like that of the colt ; and 

 as it grows longer he says it will hang lank and close to the 

 neck. 



The question as to whether telegony is a fact or a myth, 

 is obviously one for direct experiment, under carefully 

 arranged conditions, and Professor Ewart in 1894 decided 

 on conducting a series of experiments in the hope of once 

 for all settling it. 



It is a question of profound scientific interest, and at the 

 same time of great practical importance to the fancier and 

 the stock-keeper. 



The results obtained up to the present are given in the 

 book recently published, called the " Penycuik Experi- 



