3 2 4 THE TEMPER OF ANIMALS 
ment, was dangerous in the stable, and savage even 
when running. In the actual race for the Derby, he 
tried to bite the jockeys on the horses in front of 
him, and when being put into the horse-box for the 
journey, gave more trouble than a Murcian bull. 
Yet this savage temper was not accompanied by 
unusual courage and endurance, and in severe races 
the even-tempered “ Bendigo ” was his undoubted 
superior. “ Peter,” another race-horse noted for his 
stubborn obstinacy, once gave an interesting object- 
lesson in temper as between man and horse at Ascot. 
The horse fought with his jockey (Archer) for twenty 
minutes at the post, but the indomitable good-humour 
of the jockey won. When the flag fell, the horse 
went off with a rush, but stopped in the middle of 
the race to kick. Archer neither moved nor struck 
him, and “ Peter ” then went on like the wind, and 
won ! But horses of this temperament are the ex- 
ception, not the rule ; and the success with which we 
have developed power and courage, without producing 
animals like “ Cruiser ” or the celebrated “ General 
Chasse,” of whom his owner, Mr. Kirby, the dealer, 
who sold largely in Russia, used to say that “ the 
Emperor Paul was nothing to him,” is one of the 
triumphs of domestication. The union of reckless 
courage and habitual ferocity is rare in the animal 
world, and the general law of good-nature remains 
absolute and unquestioned. 
