no WILD TRAITS IN TAME ANIMALS. 



this region which closely resemble the finer speci- 

 mens of our domestic breed. Ancient Egypt 

 was almost certainly the scene of his apprentice- 

 ship as a servant of humanity. The appropriation 

 of the valuable qualities of the ass to man's use 

 was an achievement of the early inhabitants of the 

 Nile Delta, and we have inherited the benefits 

 derived from it. The Persians and the dwellers 

 in Central Asia never succeeded in domesticat- 

 ing either the Syrian or the Thibetan wild ass, 

 although ancient sculptures representing mules 

 seem to show that it was used for breeding pur- 

 poses. The hybrid obtained by a cross between 

 an Asiatic ass and an Arab mare is usually a 

 much more shapely and active animal than the 

 ordinary mule. 



The experience of the keepers at the Zoologi- 

 cal Gardens, and other places where Asiatic wild 

 asses are kept, has proved abundantly the ancient 

 sayings as to the savage and intractable nature 

 of these animals. In addition to this, another 

 reason why the onager was not used by the 

 ancients can be found in the fact that the horse 

 was domesticated in Asia long before he was 

 introduced into Egypt. 



We have seen how many of the most valuable 



