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Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication, the — Volume 1 by Charles Darwin
page 86 of 624 (13%)
stripes, arising from the mane, decreased in length, in a reversed manner
as compared with the shoulder-stripes on the above-described Devonshire
pony. I have seen a bright fallow-dun cob, with its front legs transversely
barred on the under sides in the most conspicuous manner; also a dark-
leaden mouse-coloured pony with similar leg stripes, but much less
conspicuous; also a bright fallow-dun colt, fully three-parts thoroughbred,
with very plain transverse stripes on the legs; also a chestnut-dun cart-
horse with a conspicuous spinal stripe, with distinct traces of shoulder-
stripes, but none on the legs; I could add other cases. My son made a
sketch for me of a large, heavy, Belgian cart-horse, of a fallow-dun, with
a conspicuous spinal stripe, traces of leg-stripes, and with two parallel
(three inches apart) stripes about seven or eight inches in length on both
shoulders. I have seen another rather light cart-horse, of a dirty dark
cream-colour, with striped legs, and on one shoulder a large ill-defined
dark cloudy patch, and on the opposite shoulder two parallel faint stripes.
All the cases yet mentioned are duns of various tints; but Mr. W.W. Edwards
has seen a nearly thoroughbred chestnut horse which had the spinal stripe,
and distinct bars on the legs; and I have seen two bay carriage-horses with
black spinal stripes; one of these horses had on each shoulder a light
shoulder-stripe, and the other had a broad back ill-defined stripe, running
obliquely half-way down each shoulder; neither had leg-stripes.

The most interesting case which I have met with occurred in a colt of my
own breeding. A bay mare (descended from a dark-brown Flemish mare by a
light grey Turcoman horse) was put to Hercules, a thoroughbred dark bay,
whose sire (Kingston) and dam were both bays. The colt ultimately turned
out brown; but when only a fortnight old it was a dirty bay, shaded with
mouse-grey, and in parts with a yellowish tint: it had only a trace of the
spinal stripe, with a few obscure transverse bars on the legs; but almost
the whole body was marked with very narrow dark stripes, in most parts so
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