612 
ON BREEDING. 
and we believe, on a reference to the “ stud book," it will be 
found that a greater number of winning horses have been pro¬ 
duced from mares who have never raced than from those who 
have; yet the chances are in favour of those w ho have proved 
themselves good ones on the turf, when we consider the extra¬ 
ordinary exertions that they have been obliged to make from 
the early age, probably, of two or three years old. We ought 
not, therefore, to consider what they have not done, but what 
they might have done had not their constitutions been so much 
abused. What particularly recommends this method as the 
safest and the best, is, that many horses seem to possess good 
racing qualifications—such as muscle, length, and power, justly 
united, and their forms may be perfectly handsome, yet from some 
constitutional defect—such as want of bottom—they have been so 
distressed in running as to be beaten by others who do not pos¬ 
sess the same external advantages of shape and figure: hence 
the attention that is necessary to be paid by breeders to 
“ symmetry 1 ’ must not take the precedence of “ blood.” 
This leads us to another principle on which the improvement 
of animals depends. The word blood must be considered synony¬ 
mous with race, breed, descent, &c.; it being used to express 
the natural, fixed, and inherent properties of a breed or kind. 
“ Its utility for the purposes of the breeder is, therefore, to enable 
him to discriminate with greater nicety and correctness in the 
selection of such animals as are most adapted to the improve¬ 
ments he has in view .” 
The Arab attaches great importance to “ bloodhe pre¬ 
serves the pedigrees of his horse and mare more carefully than 
his own; and never allows any ignoble blood to be mixed with 
that of his valuable breeds. He is well aware that mental qua¬ 
lities, as well as personal qualities, are propagated by breeding. 
This is very plainly seen in the various crossings between the 
black and white races: children produced from the copulation 
of different races exhibit the middle between the two tints of 
their parents. This law holds good universally, not only by the 
superficial characters of colour, hair, &c. but all other physical 
and moral qualities are equally influenced by those of the pa¬ 
rents. “ The intellectual and moral characters of the Europeans,” 
says Mr. Lawrence, “ is deteriorated by the mixture of black or 
red ‘ blood; 1 while, on the other hand, an infusion of white 
blood tends in an equal degree to improve and ennoble the qua¬ 
lities of the dark varieties.” The same takes place in the vege¬ 
table creation: the tastes and properties of fruits are considerably 
altered by artificially impregnating one with the farina of ano¬ 
ther of the same class. The hereditary transmission of native 
