INBREEDING.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Issue 1240, 22 January 1914, Page 12

INBREEDING.

Incestuous breeding has often in the past been instrumental in the production of phenomenal racehorses, says “Vigilant” in the London ‘ Sportsman,” and likely enough it contributed to the successes gained by descendants of Evening Star, dam of Daugh ter of the Star, whose, daughter Hippia, in winning the |'Oaks of 1867, gained the first ciaspic success for the popular blue and yellow of the house of Rothschild.? Evening Star was by Touchstone out of Bertha, bty Rubens, and the point is Touchstone and Bertha .were nephew and aunt, the latter being a half-sister to Banter, the dam of Touchstone. Banter was by Master Henry out of Boadicea, and Bertha by Rubens out of the same mare.

In regard to intense inbreeding, in the female line, having produced a number of wonderfully good racehorses, I might give as an example of Monarque, winner of the French Derby of 1855 and of the Goodwood Cup in 1857. His maternal greatgranddam was, in similar fashion to Evening Star, ancestress of Day Comet, the outcome of the mating of uncle and niece—instead of nephew and aunt. Monarque became the sire of Gladiateur, which is not only the sole French-Bred horse that has ever won the Derby, but also probably the best of them all, with the exception perhaps of Ormonde. The breeding of the celebrated old-time horse, Flying Childers, was still more incestuous, for his granddam was by Span ker out of the latter’s own dam. When Monarque won the Goodwood Cup as a five-year-old for Count Lagrange by a head from Mr. Merry’s three-year-old Risebar (rec. 21b>) rare old Fisherman was a bad third, and among the unplaced division was another French horise, Florin, and Mr. R. Ten Broeck’s two Americans, Pryor and Pryoress. The last-named later in the year carried off the Cesarewitch after a dead-heat with E. Hakin and Queen Bess.