MULES AND JACKS 185 
surefootedness and steadiness ; if bold courage is required, 
by the great demands made, it is the mule that is drafted 
into service, because it is well known that he will be found 
equal to the occasion. He is found in the cotton-fields 
of the Black-belt, in the sugar-fields of the South, on the 
stiff prairie lands of the West, and on the difficult moun- 
tain trails. The mule has been born and bred to this 
environment. In it he serves better than any other 
beast of burden, for he asks less and does more; because 
he enjoys immunity to disease in a large measure; his 
span of life is many years; and his demands on his master 
are few, simple and reasonable. 
The mule also has place as a saddle and carriage ani- 
mal, notably in parts of the South and central West. 
218. Feeding. — There is a prevailing opinion that 
mules may be fed on less food than horses of the same size 
and weight; but this is an error. While it may be true 
that the mule will utilize inferior feeding-stuffs to a better 
advantage than his more aristocratic contemporaries, 
still, to do the work that he is called on to do, he requires 
a quantity of food equally as great as that of his horse 
relatives. The mule has marked preference for certain 
foods, or a marked dislike for other foods, a discrimina- 
tion even more sensitive than that of the horse. 
219. Distribution. — An English writer describes the 
distribution of mules as follows: ‘‘ The mule line extends 
north from the equator, including Africa and Europe, 
up to 45° of latitude, and in Asia and North America 
as far as 35°. On the south side of the equator 
we can include most of Africa, the northern part of 
Australia and South America, as far south as 35°. Within 
this vast radius hundreds of thousands of mules are bred 
each year. Many of the mules are big, heavy animals, 
