22 CHARACTEE OF DOMESTIC VAKIETIES. [Chap. I. 



bred and crossed them, and examined their skeletons, 

 it appears to me almost certain that all are the 

 descendants of the wild Indian fowl, Gallus bankiva ; 

 and this is the conclusion of Mr. Blyth, and of others 

 who have studied this bird in India. In regard to 

 ducks and rabbits, some breeds of which differ much 

 from each other, the evidence is clear that they are all 

 descended from the common wild duck and rabbit. 



The doctrine of the origin of our several domestic 

 races from several aboriginal stocks, has been carried to 

 an absurd extreme by some authors. They believe that 

 every race which breeds true, let the distinctive 

 characters be ever so slight, has had its wild prototype. 

 At this rate there must have existed at least a score of 

 species of wild cattle, as many sheep, and several goats, 

 in Europe alone, and several even within Great Britain. 

 One author believes that there formerly existed eleven 

 wild species of sheep peculiar to Great Britain ! When 

 we bear in mind that Britain has now not one peculiar 

 mammal, and France but few distinct from those of 

 Germany, and so with Hungary, Spain, &c, but that 

 each of these kingdoms possesses several peculiar breeds 

 of cattle, sheep, &c., we must admit that many domestic 

 breeds must have originated in Europe; for whence 

 otherwise could they have been derived ? So it is in 

 India. Even in the case of the breeds of the domestic 

 dog throughout the world, which I admit are descended 

 from several wild species, it cannot be doubted that 

 there has been an immense amount of inherited 

 variation ; for who will believe that animals closely 

 resembling the Italian greyhound, the bloodhound, the 

 bull-dog, pug-dog, or Blenheim spaniel, &c. — so unlike 

 all wild Canidse — ever existed in a state of nature ? It 



