In America--both in the northern and southern divisions of the continent--herds of wild horses are numerous. These have all sprung from individuals that escaped from their owners, and in process of time have multiplied to a great extent. Of course they could have no other origin: since it is well-known that, previous to the time of Columbus, no animal of the horse kind existed in America. The wild horses now found there are descended then from a domestic breed; and this breed has been easily ascertained to be that used by the Spaniards in their conquests of Mexico and Peru. It is a race known as the Andalusian horse--nearly allied to the Arabian--and no doubt at an earlier period imported into the peninsula of Spain by the Moors. These horses are much smaller than the English hunter; but possess all the properties of a true horse--the shape, action, etcetera--and cannot, therefore, be considered as mere _ponies_. They are, in reality, well-blooded horses, of small stature; and no breed could be better suited to the climate of most parts of Spanish America, where they now run wild.
On the pampas of South America these horses exist in vast droves. The Gauchos, a half-civilised race of men, live amidst their herds, and hunt them chiefly for the hides. They early learn to capture and ride them; and a Gaucho is seldom seen off the back of his horse. He can capture and break one in in the course of an hour. The flesh also serves him as an article of food. Down as far as the Straits of Magellan the droves of wild horses are found. There the native Indians have tamed many of them--even the women and children going most of their time on horseback.
On the llanos, or great plains, that extend northward from the Amazon and Orinoco--that is, in the provinces of Venezuela--other droves of wild horses exist; and these, along with half-wild oxen, form the sole property and pursuit of a cla.s.s of men called Llaneros, who in many respects resemble the Gauchos. Again, proceeding to North America, we find the same species of horse running wild on the great plains to the north of Mexico; in California, and upon the prairies east of the Rocky Mountains. In Mexico Proper, as also in California, they are _owned_ by great landed proprietors; and are annually caught, branded, and sold.
Many of these proprietors can count from 10,000 to 20,000 head roaming within the boundaries of their estates, besides large droves of horned cattle and mules. In the vast regions between the settled parts of Mexico and the frontier settlements of the United States, the wild horses are the property of no one, but range freely over the prairies without mark or brand. These are hunted and captured by different tribes of Indians--Comanches, p.a.w.nees, Sioux, Blackfeet, etcetera, who also possess large numbers of them tamed and trained to various uses.
Like the Gauchos and Llaneros of the south, these Indians use the flesh of the horse for food, and esteem it the greatest delicacy! Among some tribes, where the buffalo is not found, the horse takes the place of the latter as an article of diet; and forms the princ.i.p.al article of subsistence of thousands of these people. Among most of the prairie tribes the chase of this animal, or the buffalo, is the sole pursuit of their lives.
Still further north ranges the wild horse, even as far as the prairies extend; and among the tribes of the Saskatchewan he is also found--used by them for the saddle, and also as a beast of burden. In these regions, however, the buffalo still exists in great numbers; and the horse, besides being eaten himself, is also employed to advantage in the chase of this animal.
The wild horses of America are not all exactly of one breed. Those of the Mexico-American prairies, called by the Spaniards _mustenos_ (mustangs), differ slightly from those found upon the llanos of South America; and these again from the horses of the pampas, and the parameros of Peru. These differences, however, are but slight, and owing solely to climatic and other little causes. But the mustangs of the northern prairies have among them an admixture of breeds, derived from American runaways along the borders of the Mississippi, and others escaped from travellers on the prairies; and there have latterly been discovered mustangs of large size--evidently sprung from the English-Arabian horse.
In the Falkland Islands the horse is also found in an untamed state.
These were introduced by the French in 1764; but have since become perfectly wild. Strange to say, they are only found in the eastern part of the island--although the pasture there is not more rich than in the west, and there is no natural boundary between the two!
In Asia the horse runs wild in large herds--just as in America. The range in which they are found in this state is chiefly on the great plains, or steppes--stretching from the Himalaya Mountains to Siberia.
The Calmuck Tartars tame them; and possess vast droves, like the Gauchos and Indians. They also eat their flesh; and among many tribes of Tartars mare"s milk is esteemed the most delicious of beverages.
After the true horse, the most beautiful species is the _Zebra_. Every one knows the general appearance of this handsomely marked animal, which appears as if Nature had painted his body for effect.
Of the zebra there are two distinct kinds--both of them natives of Africa, and belonging to the southern half of that great continent.
They are easily distinguished from each other by the stripes. One of them is literally striped to the very hoofs--the dark bands running around the limbs in the form of rings. The stripes extend in the same way over the neck and head, to the very snout or muzzle. This is the true zebra, an animal that inhabits the mountainous regions of South Africa, and which differs altogether from the _dauw_ or Burch.e.l.l"s zebra, also found upon the great plains or karoos of the same region.
The latter has the stripes only over the body; while the head and legs are very faintly streaked, or altogether of a plain brownish colour.
Attempts have been made at taming both of these kinds, and with some success. They have been trained both to the saddle and draught; but, even in the most tractable state to which they have been yet reduced, they are considered as "treacherous, wicked, obstinate, and fickle."
Another species of horse found also in South America is the _Quagga_.
This is very much like the zebra in size, shape, and in fact everything except colour. In the last respect it differs from both, in being of a plain ashy brown hue over the upper parts of the body, very indistinctly striped, and of a dirty white colour underneath. Like the dauw, it frequents the open plains--trooping together in vast droves, and often herding with several species of antelopes.
Another species of quagga, called the Isabella quagga, is supposed to exist in South Africa; but there are doubts upon this subject. The name is derived from the colour of a specimen seen by a very untrustworthy traveller, which was of the hue known as Isabella colour; but nothing is known of the animal, and most naturalists believe that the Isabella quagga is identical with the other species, and that the specimen reported by Le Vaillant was only a young quagga of the common kind.
All these species of African horses are generally cla.s.sed with the genus _Asinus_; that is, they are considered as _a.s.ses_, not _horses_.
We now come to other species of the a.s.s genus, which were all originally natives of Asia.
First, then, there is the domestic _a.s.s_; and of this species there are almost as many varieties as of the horse,--some of them, as the Guddha of the Mahrattas, not larger than a mastiff, while others exist in different parts of the world as large as a two-year-old heifer. a.s.ses are found of a pure white, and black ones are common, but the usual colour is that to which they have given their name--the "colour of an a.s.s."
Besides the domestic species, there are several others still found wild.
There is the Koulan, which is exceedingly shy and swift--so much so that it is difficult to capture or even kill one of them; since before the hunter can approach within rifle range of them, they take the alarm and gallop out of sight. They live in troops, inhabiting the desert plains of Persia and Mesopotamia in winter, while in summer they betake themselves to the mountain ranges. They are also found on the steppes bordering the Caspian and Aral Seas.
Another species of wild a.s.s is the Kiang. This inhabits Thibet. It is of a bright bay colour, and has a smooth coat; but the males are deeper coloured than the females. They live in troops of about a dozen individuals under a solitary male; and frequent places where the thermometer is below zero--though they dwell indifferently either on open plains or mountains.
The kiang has a variety of appellations, according to the country in which it is found. It is the Dziggetai, and the Wild a.s.s of Cutch, and also the Yototze of the Chinese; but it is very probable that all these are the names of different species. It is further probable, that there exist several other species of wild a.s.ses in the Thibetian and Tartar countries of Asia--and also in the vast unknown territories of North-eastern Africa--yet to be cla.s.sified and described; for it may be here observed that a monograph of the horse tribe alone, fully describing the different species and breeds, would occupy the whole life of a naturalist.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN.
THE OX TRIBE.
Our common domestic cattle furnish the type on which this family is founded; and it is well-known that of this type there are many varieties in different countries. Even in our own, so many are there, that a mere list of their names would fill one of our pages. We shall refrain therefore from giving any description of the different varieties--simply remarking that they are all supposed to spring from one original. This is, to say the least, a very doubtful hypothesis, since cattle have been found domesticated in many countries, and the period of their first introduction to the society of man is altogether unknown. It is far more likely that different species have furnished the varieties now known as domestic cattle.
We shall proceed to describe the other bovine animals--which, although of the same family, are beyond doubt of a distinct species from the common cattle.
The _Zebu_ is one of the most remarkable. Its home is India and the adjacent regions; where it branches off into almost as many varieties as there are breeds of our own oxen. These varieties have different names; and they differ in size, shape, and other particulars; but the hump and long hanging dewlap render the zebu easily recognisable.
In India they are sometimes employed as beasts of the saddle and draught; and their flesh is also eaten, though with the exception of the hump (which is esteemed a great delicacy) it is not equal to English beef. Among the Hindus the zebus are regarded as sanctified creatures; and to slaughter them is deemed sin. For all that, these fanatics do not hesitate to _work_ them--sometimes hard enough. There are some zebus, however, that are considered more holy than common. These may be seen wandering idly about the villages, fed from the hands of the people; and if neglected in this regard, they walk uninvited into the rice enclosures, and help themselves!
The zebus are usually of an ashy-grey colour, though many are white; and their size varies from that of an ordinary calf, to the stature of a full-grown bull.
There is a variety of the zebu--or perhaps a distinct species--known as the Dante. It is an African animal--that is, Egypt is the country where it is chiefly found. Very little knowledge of it exists among naturalists. It is distinguished from the Indian zebu by having a smaller hump upon the withers and a narrower face; and it is supposed to be the animal represented on the ancient Egyptian tombs.
We next come to the kind of oxen termed _Buffaloes_; and of these there are several species.
First, there is the _Indian buffalo_; and it may here be remarked, that when the word buffalo is used, an animal with a huge hump upon its shoulders is usually understood. This is an error, arising, no doubt, from the fact that the _bison_ of America, which _has_ a hump, is generally called a buffalo. But the Indian buffalo has no such protuberance; nor yet the African species. The Indian animal is found both in a domesticated and wild state; but both are clearly of the same species. The wild one is called the Arna, and the tame one Bhainsa, in the language of the natives. The former is of much greater size than the latter--standing, when full-grown, as high as the tallest man! So strong are these animals, that an arna bull has been known to b.u.t.t down a good-sized elephant with a single stroke of his horns!
It is the Indian buffalo that is found in Italy--where it has been introduced, and is used for draught; its great strength giving it the advantage over horses, especially on the deep miry roads that exist in some parts of the peninsula.
The _Manilla buffalo_ is a smaller variety or species of the arna, inhabiting, as its name imports, the Philippine Islands.
The _African buffalo_, sometimes known as the _Kaffir buffalo_, is another of these great oxen, and not the least celebrated of the tribe.
It is an inhabitant of Africa, and is found chiefly in the southern half of that continent, from the Cape of Good Hope northwards. It is an animal of vast size and strength; often waging war with the lion, and frequently with man himself. In these encounters the buffalo is but too successful; and it is a.s.serted among the natives of South Africa, that there are more deaths among them, caused by buffalo bulls, than by all the other wild beasts of the country. Like his Indian congener, the shock from the ma.s.sive horns of an African buffalo is almost irresistible; and both the lion and elephant at times succ.u.mb to it.
There is a smaller African species about which less is known. This is the Zamouse or Bush cow, which differs from the true buffalo in having a flatter forehead, and being altogether without the dewlap.
We now come to the _American buffalo_, or _Bison_, as it should be called. This is indigenous to North America; and its present range is confined to the great prairies that extend eastward from the foot of the Rocky Mountains. It was formerly found much farther to the east--in fact, to the Atlantic coast; but its limits are now far beyond the meridian of the Mississippi. Hunters (both red and white) have driven it across the Rocky Mountains; and of late years it has been met with in the territory of the Upper Columbia. Its habits are too well-known to call for a description here, and its s.h.a.ggy coat, with the deformity of its huge shoulder-hump, are familiar to every eye. With one exception, it is the only species of the ox tribe indigenous to America--and it may be added, to North America--since no native bovine animal is known to exist in the southern half of the Transatlantic continent.
The _European buffalo_--or as it is sometimes called _Lithuanian buffalo_--bears a considerable resemblance to that of the prairies. In size it is perhaps superior; but the two are much alike in general appearance--especially in their ma.s.sive form, and the long brown hair, of woolly texture, so thickly set upon their necks and shoulders.
The European buffalo is nearly extinct, and exists only in some of the forests of Lithuanian Poland, where it is rather half-wild than wild; that is, it freely roams the forests, but only as the deer in our own extensive parks, or the white cattle, known as the wild Scotch oxen--in other words, it has an owner.
A very remarkable species is the _Yak_, or _Grunting Ox_. This is found only in the high, cold countries that lie to the north of the Himalayan Mountains--in Thibet and Tartary. There is only one species, but this is both wild and tame--the wild sort being the larger and more formidable animal. The domestic variety is used by the people of Thibet for carrying burdens; and both its milk and flesh are in great demand in these cold countries of poverty and hunger.
The yaks dislike the warmth of summer; and during that season seek to hide themselves in the shade, or under water, in which they swim well.
Their grunt exactly resembles that of a hog. The calves are covered with rough black hair like a curly-haired dog; but, when three months old, they obtain the long hair that distinguishes the full-grown animal, and which hangs so low as to give it the appearance of being without legs! They willingly live with common cattle, and will breed with them; but the wild yak bull is an exceedingly fierce and dangerous animal.
The tail of the grunting ox is very full, or bushy; and although the hair of the body is usually black, that upon the tail is universally of a pure white. This hair, when dyed red, is used by the Chinese to form the tufts worn in the caps of the mandarins. It is the _chowry_ or fly-brush of India.
Like other domesticated cattle, the yak is found of different breeds-- known by the names of n.o.ble yak, Plough yak, etcetera.
Next in succession comes the _Musk Ox_ of America, which, from its long hanging hair, and also from many of its habits, bears a good deal of resemblance to the grunting ox. The musk ox is a native of North America; and there his range is confined to the most remote regions of the Hudson"s Bay territory. He is met with in the inhospitable track known as the Barren Grounds--and also along the coasts and islands of the Arctic Ocean--but nowhere so far south as the boundary of the United States or the Great Lakes. But for the land expeditions of several Arctic explorers, the existence of the musk ox would hardly have been known; and, as it is, his habits are but little understood. He is not of large size--being between the stature of an ox and a sheep--and in general appearance he resembles the latter more than the former; hence, among naturalists, he is styled the Sheep ox (_ovibos_). He and the Bison, as already remarked, are the only _indigenous_ oxen of America.
To return to Asia. In its south-eastern parts--the Indies--we find several other species of the ox tribe. There is the _Gayal_ or _Jungly-gau_, which inhabits the eastern parts of Bengal, especially the mountains that separate this province from Arracan. Of this there is a tame and wild species--the latter an inhabitant of forests, living rather upon the shoots of trees than upon gra.s.s. It is a large animal, more like the common ox than any of the buffaloes; and it is also less fierce in its disposition than the latter.
Next to the gayal is the _Gam_--also a forest-dwelling ox, of large size; and, like the other, browsing upon the leaves and twigs of trees.
The gam inhabits several forest-covered mountains in Central India, where it is only found wild. Attempts have been made to domesticate it, but without success--since it is both a shy and fierce animal; so much so that even the calves will not live in captivity!
Another Indian ox is the _Takin_, which inhabits the country of the Kamptis, in the eastern ranges of the Himalayas, and about which there is a dispute among naturalists, as to whether _it is an ox_!
We conclude our sketch with the _Anoa_, which belongs to Celebes--a small species bearing some resemblance to the antelopes; and the _Banting_ or _Sumatran Ox_, a native of Java, Borneo, and also, as its second name denotes, of the Island of Sumatra.