| → mental qualities of animals 1869 1872 |
| general disposition of individuals 1859 1860 1861 1866 |
|
| → vary much, could 1869 1872 |
| is extremely diversified, can 1859 1860 1861 1866 |
|
| → many 1869 1872 |
| a multitude of 1859 1860 1861 1866 |
|
| → wild animals, which, 1869 1872 |
| certain species, which might, 1859 1860 1861 1866 |
|
| → might give 1869 |
| give 1859 1860 1861 1866 |
| might have given 1872 |
|
| → or spontaneous variations 1869 |
| variations 1859 1860 1861 1866 1872 |
|
| → various 1869 1872 |
| the inheritance of all 1859 1860 1861 1866 |
|
| → time, being inherited. 1869 1872 |
| time. 1859 1860 1861 1866 |
|
|
more fearful than small; and the magpie, so wary in England, is tame in Norway, as is the hooded crow in Egypt. |
|
| That the
→mental qualities of animals
of the same
born in a state of nature,
→vary much, could
be shown by
→many
facts. Several
be
of occasional and strange habits in
→wild animals, which,
if advantageous to the species,
→might give
rise, through natural selection, to
new instincts. But I am well aware that these general statements, without
in detail,
produce but a feeble effect on the
mind. I can only repeat my assurance, that I do not speak without good evidence. |
| Inherited
Changes
of
Habit
or
Instinct
in
Domesticated
|
| The possibility, or even probability, of inherited variations of instinct in a state of nature will be strengthened by briefly considering a few cases under domestication. We shall thus
be enabled to see the
which habit and the selection of
→or spontaneous variations
have played in modifying the mental qualities of our domestic animals. It is notorious how much domestic animals vary in their mental qualities. With cats, for instance, one naturally takes to catching rats, and another mice, and these tendencies are known to be inherited. One cat, according to Mr. St. John, always brought home game-birds, another hares or rabbits, and another hunted on marshy ground and almost nightly caught woodcocks or snipes. A number of curious and authentic instances could be given of
→various
shades of disposition and
and likewise of the oddest tricks, associated with certain frames of mind or periods of
→time, being inherited. But let us look to the
case of the
breeds of
it
|
