Report of the Commissioner of Agriculture for the year 1863 (1864) (14586510117)

Identifier: reportofcommissi00inunit (find matches)
Title: Report of the Commissioner of Agriculture for the year 1863
Year: 1864 (1860s)
Authors: United States. Dept. of Agriculture Newton, Isaac, 1800-1867
Subjects: Agriculture Agriculture
Publisher: Washington : G.P.O.
Contributing Library: Lincoln Financial Foundation Collection
Digitizing Sponsor: The Institute of Museum and Library Services through an Indiana State Library LSTA Grant



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female horse, ormare, while the word hinny is applied to the product of the reverse cross of thestallion upon the jenny, or female ass. In these two different hybrids, con-taining a similar admixture of blood, we find a most remarkable difference ofcharacter, which cannot be explained philosophically, but which is often citedas showing the relative impress of dam and she upon their progeny. In themule we find the general characteristics, such as the head, ears, voice, tail, feet,and temper, are asinine, and the males are two or three times as numerous asthe females, while in size the progeny more nearly resembles the dam; but inthe hinny, or progeny of the stallion on the jenny, the qualities of the horsepredominate, with diminished size, this latter quality appearing to depend upputhe female. There is a common impression that the mare which has once been coveredby a jack will never again produce a good horse colt, and that she should, be PlATE XXV. .lUJJl ,ll 5n 2 3 I ^ a- o 1 ^fc ^^
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MULE RAISING. 181 kept for mule breeding exclusively. This would make it appear that the maleexerts an influence upon the female that is not confined to her immediateprogeny, but is transmitted through her to her future offspring. This prin-ciple is admitted as established by some physiologists, and the following inci-dent is often cited in proof of the position: A mare that had been covered bya quagga, or zebra, and produced a striped mule from that cross, afterward hadcolts that were begotten by three different stallions; each of these horse foalswas striped, and resembled the quagga in other respects. The same is said tobe the result after breeding a mare to the jackass. The authority for the aboveis not given, but it is generally admitted to be correct. Mr. Lyell tells us thatit may be laid down as a general rule, admitting of very few exceptions amongquadrupeds, that the hybrid progeny is sterile; and there seems to be no well-authenticated examples of the continuance of the mule