and other considerations, I think it highly probable that our domestic
dogs have descended from several wild species. In regard to sheep and
goats I can form no opinion. I should think, from facts communicated
to me by Mr. Blyth, on the habits, voice, and constitution, etc., of
the humped Indian cattle, that these had descended from a different
aboriginal stock from our European cattle; and several competent
judges believe that these latter have had more than one wild parent.
With respect to horses, from reasons which I cannot give here, I am
doubtfully inclined to believe, in opposition to several authors, that
all the races have descended from one wild stock. Mr. Blyth, whose
opinion, from his large and varied stores of knowledge, I should value
more than that of almost any one, thinks that all the breeds of
poultry have proceeded from the common wild Indian fowl (Gallus
bankiva). In regard to ducks and rabbits, the breeds of which differ
considerably from each other in structure, I do not doubt that they
all have descended from the common wild duck and rabbit.

The doctrine of the origin of our several domestic races from several
aboriginal stocks, has been carried to an absurd extreme by some
authors. They believe that every race which breeds true, let the
distinctive characters be ever so slight, has had its wild prototype.
At this rate there must have existed at least a score of species of
wild cattle, as many sheep, and several goats in Europe alone, and
several even within Great Britain. One author believes that there
formerly existed in Great Britain eleven wild species of sheep
peculiar to it! When we bear in mind that Britain has now hardly one
peculiar mammal, and France but few distinct from those of Germany and
conversely, and so with Hungary, Spain, etc., but that each of these
kingdoms possesses several peculiar breeds of cattle, sheep, etc., we
must admit that many domestic breeds have originated in Europe; for