The principle of
selection I find distinctly given in an ancient Chinese encyclopaedia.
Explicit rules are laid down by some of the Roman classical writers.
From passages in Genesis, it is clear that the colour of domestic
animals was at that early period attended to. Savages now sometimes
cross their dogs with wild canine animals, to improve the breed, and
they formerly did so, as is attested by passages in Pliny. The savages
in South Africa match their draught cattle by colour, as do some of
the Esquimaux their teams of dogs. Livingstone shows how much good
domestic breeds are valued by the negroes of the interior of Africa
who have not associated with Europeans. Some of these facts do not
show actual selection, but they show that the breeding of domestic
animals was carefully attended to in ancient times, and is now
attended to by the lowest savages. It would, indeed, have been a
strange fact, had attention not been paid to breeding, for the
inheritance of good and bad qualities is so obvious.
At the present time, eminent breeders try by methodical selection,
with a distinct object in view, to make a new strain or sub-breed,
superior to anything existing in the country. But, for our purpose, a
kind of Selection, which may be called Unconscious, and which results
from every one trying to possess and breed from the best individual
animals, is more important. Thus, a man who intends keeping pointers
naturally tries to get as good dogs as he can, and afterwards breeds
from his own best dogs, but he has no wish or expectation of
permanently altering the breed.
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