It is most curious how a type happens. The Morgans, as has been shown in a previous chapter, came from a horse whose pedigree was not even considered, and to this day is known only by conjecture and not at all by established fact. He was considered a good horse in his day, but it was not until his sons begat colts of exceptional merit that it was thought worth while to inquire into his origin, and that of his antecedents. With Denmark it was, in a degree, different. Denmark was a Thoroughbred, though some who are over-critical, quarrel with the pedigree of his dam. Let that be as it may. In 1839, when he was foaled, begat by Imported Hedgeford out of Betsey Harrison, he was about as good a Thoroughbred as the generality of those we had in America. Moreover, he was a successful contestant on the turf and a good horse at four-mile heats. These disputes as to the purity of the blood of our early horses are rather academic than practical. In all of the early race-horses, not purely English, there were infusions of the American basic blood; and for that matter this was the case also in England, where the Thoroughbred at that time was only newly evolved with the aid of Oriental blood from the native strains. Here, however, is his pedigree of Denmark traced back for several generations: PEDIGREE OF DENMARK ┌── Highflyer ┌── Sir Peter │ └── Papillon ┌── Haphazard │ │ ┌── Eclipse │ └── Miss Hervey │ └── Clio ┌── Fihlo-da-puta │ │ ┌── Pot-8-os │ │ ┌── Waxy │ │ │ └── Maria │ └── Mrs. Barnet │ │ ┌── Woodpecker │ └── Daughter │ └── Heikel Imp. Hedgeford │ ┌── King Fergus │ ┌── Benningbrough │ │ └── Daughter │ ┌── Orville │ │ │ ┌── Highflyer │ │ └── Evelina │ │ └── Termagant └── Miss Craigie │ ┌── Dungannon │ ┌── Lurcher │ │ └── Vertumus └── Marchioness │ ┌── Phenomenon └── Miss Cogden └── Daughter