lOO WILD TRAITS IN TAME ANIMALS. 



original cause of any peculiarity of colour, but 

 it seems probable that the mottled markings 

 seen on grey and " hammer - marked " horses 

 were at one time protective. 



Doubtless the abundant growth of hair upon 

 the neck of a horse served some essential pur- 

 pose in wild equine economy ; but it is not easy 

 for the modern naturalist to explain its raison 

 d'itre. One finds a mane of some kind to be 

 exceedingly common among quadrupeds, and the 

 peculiarity does not depend upon mere kinship, 

 for it is found distributed among very diverse 

 orders. As a rule, it does not amount to more 

 than an upright ridge of hair, such as is found 

 upon the necks of many antelopes and all the 

 horse's humbler relatives. If we are to accept 

 Prejevalsky's wild horse as a true representative 

 of the aboriginal stock from which our domestic 

 animals have sprung, it would seem as if the 

 mane has been considerably developed since the 

 time when the horse was made captive ; for this 

 animal has but little more hair on its neck than has 

 the kiang or Thibetan wild ass. It is, however, 

 very doubtful whether either this animal or the 

 wild tarpan of the steppes of Tartary has a clean 

 record of independence. It is not at all unlikely 



