or slaughter, when ever it was necessary that
one of the flock should be killed. The tamest cattle--those that
seldom ran away, that kept the flock together and led them
homewards--would be preserved alive longer than any of the others.
It is therefore these that chiefly become the parents of stock, and
bequeath their domestic aptitudes to the future herd. I have
constantly witnessed this process of selection among the pastoral
savages of South Africa. I believe it to be a very important one, on
account of its rigour and its regularity. It must have existed from
the earliest times, and have been in continuous operation,
generation after generation, down to the present day.

_Exceptions_.--I have already mentioned the African elephant, the
North American reindeer, and the apparent, but not real exception of
the North American turkey. I should add the ducks and geese of North
America, but I cannot consider them in the light of a very strong
case, for a savage who constantly changes his home is not likely to
carry aquatic birds along with him. Beyond these few, I know of no
notable exceptions to my theory.

_Summary_.

I see no reason to suppose that the first domestication of any animal,
except the elephant, implies a high civilisation among the people
who established it. I cannot believe it to have been the result of a
preconceived intention, followed by elaborate trials, to administer
to the comfort of man. Neither can I think it arose from one
successful effort made by an individual, who might thereby justly
claim the title of benefactor to his race; but, on the contrary,
that a vast number of half-unconscious attempts have been made
throughout the course of ages, and that ultimately, by slow degrees,
after many relapses, and continued selection, our several domestic
breeds became firmly established.

I will briefly restate what appear to be the conditions under which
wild animals may become domesticated:--1, they should be hardy; 2,
they should have an inborn liking for man; 3, they should be
comfort-loving; 4, they should be found useful to the savages; 5,
they should breed freely; 6, they should be easy to tend. It would
appear that every wild animal has had its chance of being
domesticated, that those few which fulfilled the above conditions
were domesticated long ago, but that the large remainder, who fail
sometimes in only one small particular, are destined to perpetual
wildness so long as their race contin