THE QUESTION OF BLACK MARKINGS. 267 



arise from both ; for while in all the herds there is some 

 tendency thereto, it seems far the least in the herd 

 which is the freest and the wildest, and that is the one 

 at Chillingham. Yet even in this there has always 

 been a tendency to certain black markings, which are 

 common to all the herds. Black as well as red ears, and 

 spots upon the neck — which last the most rigid selection 

 has not altogether suppressed at Chillingham, as the 

 skin of the Prince of Wales's bull showed — these may 

 be considered, I think, hereditary tendencies. But I do 

 not believe that in a state of nature the Forest breed 

 would ever become black, at least in this country. I do 

 not indeed assert that if you reared black calves, from 

 Chartley or elsewhere, and bred from them inter se, you 

 might not produce a black race ; but then this would 

 be the result of strong selection by man, in an opposite 

 direction from that of which naturalists now complain. 

 But it is not certain that even then you would obtain 

 such a result, for the experiment has not been tried; and 

 it is quite possible that these dark-coloured calves 

 might, when they grew up, assume much lighter 

 colours, as is the case with those of a kindred race on 

 the Russian Steppes. Suppose, however, that these 

 black calves had been born from parents of the Forest 

 breed while still wild (which we have no reason for 

 believing they ever were), and they themselves had 

 continued of this colour, is there any reason for 

 thinking that they would, to any material degree, have 

 affected the colour of the race ? I apprehend not. 

 Certain individuals would perhaps have been found, as 

 they have been now, spotted with black on the head, 

 neck, and sides, or, as in some of the Continental cattle, 

 of a light fawn colour or ashen grey on some of these 



