THE PRICIPLES OF DARWIN

Otago Witness, Issue 2913, 12 January 1910, Page 8

THE PRICIPLES OF DARWIN

THEIR APPLICATION TC BREEDING FARM ANIMALS. In an agricultural journal high and dry , science is out of place when it is not introduced in elucidation of some oi the many practical problems of improved ouifcivation or of higher. developments in various classes of live stock. But when science can be treated in Such manner as throws a flood of light upon important agricultural subjects, it should be encouraged by the entire landed interest and by the general community. Darwinism covers such a multitude oi common and everyday subjects with which the farmer deals that more frequent refer- j ences might with advantage be made to its main principles; and a more comprehensive statement is equally true—viz., that politics J and sociology are regulated very much on j the same broad Darwinian principles as show the cause of the disappearance of •carnivorous flying dragons that once ruled the air, the development of horses from animals admittedly no bigger than a fox, and, as I am inclined to think, no bigger than a flea, the development of the various breeds arid types of cattle, sheep, pigs, and poultry—all have been brought about by logical extensions of the natural principles which the late Charles Darwin had in his mind when, half a century back, he startled the entire world by a publication of the greatest scientific work of the century, if not the age, ■" The Origin of Species." Darwin's Various Works. — With a view 5 to the improvement of my youthful knowledge of breeding animals, I not only read "Origin of Species," but at least '2O times over I read Darwin's succeeding great work, entitled ''. The Jlascent of Man." In' 1871, when the latter work fell upon society.like a bombshell, science was more or less in its infancy, and Darwin's views were disliked, and not genar ; ally accepted, because of Lis new theory of the same source .for monkeys and men. The ancient universities of Oxford and Cambridge and other centres of learningwere very slow and backward in their dealings with science and philosophy'; no wonde, therefore, the general public refused to accept Darwin's theories. The majority of the objectors had never seen, " The Descent of Man," or they would have known, that nearly the whole, of both volumes treats of the breeding of animals. Amongst other works by Darwin are " Variation ■ of Animals and Plants under Domestication;" and "The Expressions of the Emotions in Men and Animals." Darwin's Theories Have Become Established Facts.— The centenary of the birth of Charles Darwin has recently been celebrated at Cambridge, and a general consensus of scientific and . philosophic opinion there assembled removes all remaining doubt _as to the soundness of Darwin's views, which were originally looked upon as; theories, but ar« now received as established facts. The practical questions, therefore, are: How do these 'theories apply to the everyday life of breeding animals and producing corn and other crops? How do they render assistance in the elucidation of agricultural problems, in the forefront of which is the raising of superior live stock? By actual experiment Darwin produced many varieties of pigeons from one wild paii\ thereby showing the flexibility and pliability of breeding—the ease with which different types may be produced', some of which will naturally be superior types. He also shows the causes of such variability in animals as supply and provide the initiative upon which improved types can be produced. Neat Cattle.— If that can be done with pigeons why cannot we have, neat cattle which combine the two advantages of generosity to the milk pail and also a constitution and disposition to fatten for the butcher on the minimum of food? Our heifers would then be good milked*, and the males would readily get beftfy. Practical farmers will not question the implied dictum that milk and beefiness rarely go hand in hand, and lucky indeed is the farmer who acquires this grand double-barrelled desiderata. Many good milking cows, though well fed. get very poor and light during the period covered by a free flow of milk, and some cow-keepers prefer this type, because it bespeaks plenty of milk: but the best cow T ever had gave about double, the milk of any other cow, and yet always carried a good, thick, muscular body. 1 put her to a shorthorn bull, and l bred a bull which inherited her good digestion and muscular development, ; but the milking qualities, which should have been latent in the bull, did not reappear in his daughters, because his sire was riot of a milking strain of blocui.

Sheep.— On the same principle a study of. Darwin might help us to a breed' of sheep which should produce superior mutton, together with weighty fleeces. The ehort-woolled mutton iis generally considered the best, there being more lean or muscle in th© saddles and other parts, this extra muscle having resulted from th© muscular exertion for many generations of climbing' downs and liilly districts in search of scanty foods. This is pure Darwinism, just as the long necks of the flamingo and the giraffe have been evolved in the first instance by the' necessity of fishing in deep- waters, and l in the second by the fact that the giraffe is a tree-feeder, therefore the longer his neck fatter his chance of a plentiful supply of suitable food; hen.ee .he vigorously survives to '.reproduce h;s long-necked variety, whereas his shorter-necked companions, not being so well fed, are naturally less prepotent, or may actually die of starvation. This is Darwin’s natural selection pur© and simple. Is it not, therefore, fair to argue that if sheep with better fleeces were put upon hilly districts like Brighton Downs, they-, would gradually acquire the thick,, muscular backs and general lean meat so much appreciated in the' Southdown, and so deficient in certain long-woolled breeds. Shire Horses. — Great advances have undoubtedly _ been made in many of our domesticated animals, but there is no such thing as finality, and it is important to attribute the improvements already made to the real cause; that a perseverance in the right direction must cetainly lead to further improvements, for which there is plenty of room. Take the case of Shire l horses, the production oi which has, sine© the foundation of the Shire Horse' Society, advanced by leaps and bounds. The problem of the improvement of the heavy horse is admittedly far easier than that of the light horse, because th© intricate and obscure questions of nerve force and the hidden action of respiration and circulation enter more extensively into considerations connected with speed, which 'kills the steed l ; hence the easier problem of the Shire may more or less .account for its satisfactory solution. _ Yet, even in connection with breeding Shires, I must beg to differ from many experts. Many successful breeders hold that much lime in the land is the main cause of the muchdesired bone and feather, but I cannot agree. The good Shires bred in the Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire and other fens derive their superiority in bone and hair, not from the plentiful supply of lime in the land, nor from any other special ingredient of th© land, but their superiority results primarily from the general richness of the land, and in a secondary degree from the exemption from extremely hard work by the brood mares. The cuUivation of heavy .clay lands ■ is so punishing that the energies of brood mares are therein much exhausted, leaving less energy and constitution for reproduction; whereas, th© fens cultivate so easily that the work is only a healthy exercise to the massive Shire brood mare. Effects of Various Foods. — Again, it is an error to suppose that because an excess of any elementary substance is given to an animal, that animal will assimilate a large quantity of it. Anyone who studies the digestive and bowel systems and the different constitutions of animals will find that some take most from whence there is least, this seeming paradox being readily explained. A rich food, containing a high percentage at nutritious particles, is not digested, whereas easily-digested foods containing only a small proportion of nutriment are more readily assimilated. How to Select Live Stock.— The best animal, of course, is that which can readily appropriate all, or nearly all, the riches in the food; and the surest ways of filling- the stockyards and the pastures with these good doers, which alone are profitable, is to observe the three following rules: —First, let a farmer (if possible) breed his own stock, then, whatever error he commits, he never need fall into the error of breeding from anything that has not a good constitution. It does not require a show-ring judge to tell the constitution of any animal: it can be seen through the window. Secondly, be lavish and even extravagant in the feeding and general treatment of the young animal, and the foundation of his constitution will be so stoutly built during Kis infancy that he will with approaching - maturity be enabled to digest anything and to extract nutriment from coarse and common foods. Ho is. therefore, most economically raised 1 . When young he requires close attention, but' not a large quantity of food, though it must be suitable and good, and an animal fed as herein suggested will cost far less than any other to raise to maturity. The self-same principle holds good in plants, many of which would be far better and more cheaply grown if light artificial manure, at the small cost of 10s per acre, were drilled in with the seed. The vigour of the infant nlant so stimulated would enable it to collect plant food from great distances. Darwinism shows that the competition between various wild animals is not unlike the cruel competition, between differ ent varieties of plants, but the subject is too vast for a column, and I cannot now deal with the crying evil and national disgrace of the British neglect of such hunter types of horses as are required l for military purposes.—Farmer and Stock-breeder.