Page:The Zoologist, 1st series, vol 4 (1846).djvu/36

1202 of which have larger ears than the others, crossing these with others possessing the same abnormal form in an equal degree, I conceive that there is a chance of the progeny, or some of them exceeding either of the parents in monstrosity, and by constantly selecting the best marked of these varieties, 1 gradually obtain animals very different in that respect from their ancestors. The breed of dogs called King Charles's spaniels, as represented in the pictures of Vandyke, have the same pecu- liarities as those of the present day, the short muzzle, high arched forehead, long ears, &c., but not in the same degree, while there is no cross which would tend to produce these characteristics, inasmuch as no breed has them so strongly marked. The present dogs, therefore, must be derived from what I may call superlative varieties of the former one. The same may be said of other breeds which have been gradually improved by careful and attentive breeding. Now this alone would in the many ages which have elapsed since the dog has been domesticated by man, produce strongly marked distinctions and give rise to many kinds of dogs, which not only have no wild type but never could have had, since dogs of the very slight speed and defective powers of scent which some of our artificial stocks have, could never exist in a state of nature, they would be starved. The second mode of obtaining varieties is by crossing the former, and when once the system of breeding between different varieties is commenced the results are almost infinite : it is well known that a bitch once put to a dog of another breed will often throw puppies like him even to dogs of her own sort. I have seen what seemed to me a pure-bred setter, which I was informed was the offspring of two pointers, nay more, that the bitch never had a litter without a setter in it. This might have arisen from two causes, either from the bitch having formerly had a litter by a setter, or from their being a cross of the setter in her stock. If then the bitch had been put to a dog of a different breed, say to a greyhound, would it surprise you to see ope puppy of the litter a lurcher with the coat of a setter, a Persian greyhound in fact ? This will shew that a multitude of breeds may be produced, where once well-marked stocks begin to be intermixed. Now the classification which I should propose for varieties is this. Take an original form (I fancy that no breed we have now is so well defined as to say of it, " this is the type of the form"), arrange on one side the different crosses which we suppose it to have met with, and the results of those crosses, on the other side the breeds which appear to be modifications or but slight alterations produced by education and circumstances of the original. Thus :—

Crossed with.

Results.

Modifications.

Bloodhound Foxhound Harrier j Coachdog. j

Hound

Spanish Pointer

English Do.

Spaniel

Beagle

Otter Hound

German Boarhound.

Smaller Bulldog =

Spanish Pointer =

Poodle =

Smooth Terrier =:

Scotch Do. =

Larger Mastiff =

I give this as a specimen. This might be carried out with such types as we have. I am far from supposing, as some do, that the most strongly marked form is the original one ; as I said before, I fancy the most marked peculiarities have been produced by selections of breeders. I am inclined to think that by a combination of these two causes and an attentive consideration of them, the thousand and one breeds of dogs may be reduced to about half a dozen original forms combined and improved. What