DAPPLED AND STRIPED HORSES 67 



' chestnut ' the colour of a Horse, which, if it were a Cow, would be 

 ' red.' And to call a Horse tan-coloured would be simple heresy. 

 Nevertheless, what is called a golden-bay is nothing but a rich tan- 

 colour, which in other individuals shades off into the dun, the sponge- 

 colour, the cream, and the white ; while in another direction this tan 

 shades off into the chestnut, the bay, the brown, and the black. 



All the experts whom I have consulted agree in saying that the 

 Horse, when recently foaled, is never dappled, but is of a uniform 

 dark colour, excepting albinos. 



I asked a farmer who is a great hunter, and who has also bred 

 Horses, and has had ample opportunities of seeing young foals, 

 whether he had ever seen a recently born foal which was dappled. 

 He replied — not one. I am informed that the dappling, when it 

 does come, begins to appear when the foal is a few years old. This 

 is rather curious, for in the case of some Deer, as shown in Fig. 30, 

 the young one is plentifully spotted, while the adult has no sign 

 of spotting.^ 



No one seems to have made any accurate observations on the 

 dappling of the Horse — when it commences, how it commences, and 

 how it proceeds, although there are many records of Zebra-striping 

 in the Horse. Among the thousands of Horses in the streets of 

 London, one sees all possible variations of dappling — from a few 

 spots to the whole body covered with maculations. Does the same 

 individual go through all these phases of dappling, or are certain 

 variations permanent? Does dappling commence gradually and 

 go on to its maximum extent, and then gradually disappear, or 

 how ? A veterinary surgeon told me that the dappling varies with 

 every change of coat of the Horse ; and all seem to agree that as the 

 Horse grows. older the white colour increases and the dark colour 



^ In the Natural History Museum there is a very young Jaguar which is wholly brown 

 without any spotting. 



