Page:The Zoologist, 4th series, vol 2 (1898).djvu/84

52 ordinary stripes on the neck and body; that even in some Burchell's Zebras there are stripes across the croup and rump which suggest the "gridiron" of the Common Zebra (E. zebra); and that while in summer the dark stripes are nearly black and the light stripes cream-coloured, in winter the dark stripes are occupied by fairly long brown hairs, while the light stripes are made up of equally long white hairs; the light tufts at the side of the mane, however, are white summer and winter. It may be added that Matopo, like the majority of the Burchell group of Zebras, being adapted for a life on the plains, has rounded hoofs and comparatively short ears. He thus differs from the Mountain Zebra (E. zebra), and from his stable companion, a white Egyptian Donkey, in which the hoofs are long and narrow, while the ears measure 11½ in., five inches more than in Matopo.

The oldest hybrid (Romulus), as already noted, was born on the 12th of August, 1896, the period of gestation being three hundred and forty-two days,—in the mare it is usually from three hundred and forty to three hundred and fifty days. The dam of Romulus was a 13-hands, black Island of Rum pony, lent for the experiments by Lord Arthur Cecil, of Orchardmains, Kent. The well-bred black ponies of the Scottish Western Highlands and Islands, which have long been under observation, form a distinct breed, well adapted in many ways for crossing with Zebras. Their resemblance to Eastern Horses has been accounted for by saying they have descended from sires which escaped from the ships of the Spanish Armada.

Romulus, when a few days old, was the most attractive little creature I have ever seen (Plate III., fig. 1). He seemed to combine all the grace and beauty of an Antelope and a well-bred Arab foal. Instead of, like his sire, looking as if freshly painted for a Lord Mayor's Show, he was faultless in colouring and in the disposition of the stripes, spots, and bands. The body colour was chiefly of a bright golden yellow, while the stripes and spots were of a rich dark brown; but what was especially remarkable was the indescribable sheen of his coat, the dark bands being especially