Chapter XII (2)

The legs of a horse,--these can hardly prove too short; for brevity of limb is always an accompaniment to depth of chest and proportionably powerful quarters. The long leg always attests to the light carcass; hence the motor agency of the limbs is deficient, while the cavities of respiration and of nutrition are necessarily diminished. A narrow thorax almost enforces low withers and an upright shoulder. The bone of the arm, or the humerus, is pushed into an undue slant by the forward position of the blade-bone, or of the scapula. This compels the front leg to stand too far under the body. Such an arrangement favors neither beauty, speed, nor safety; in fact, it is one of the worst forms which the components of the frame are capable of assuming.

The action of the shoulder-blade, during progression, is upward and backward, or it is drawn toward the highest processes of the withers. Low withers are, of course, opposed to extended motion in such a line. The lessened action of the bone necessarily limits the movement of the structures which depend from it, or the action of the humerus is governed by that of the shoulder-blade. The trivial motion permitted by low withers, therefore, limits the advance of the forearm, the parts being, as it were, tied together. The natural carriage of such a malformation is with the head and neck protruded, so as to favor progression by strain upon the cervical muscles. At the same time the body inclines forward, which throws the limbs backward, or out of their proper situations; and this circumstance accounts for animals of this particular make so frequently encountering “accidents.”

The gait characteristic of an upright shoulder is very peculiar. A bad forehand is the most common defect witnessed in London thoroughfares. In the metropolis of the world, it is indeed a rare sight to behold a carriage drawn by a pair of really good animals. The quadrupeds in general use for such purposes are mostly faulty about the shoulders. The forehand is placed upon the trunk in too upright a position. The job master is conscious of this defect. He always endeavors to convince his patrons that such a make is advantageous, where a creature is designed for harness. Possibly the tradesman might succeed in persuading his customers into a false belief, were not prejudice opposed to his suggestions. Ladies admire high action in the steeds attached to their vehicles; this is the kind of step which most of the horses just described are incapable of long exhibiting.

DIAGRAM, SHOWING THE NATURAL ACTION APPERTAINING TO A STRAIGHT
SHOULDER, AND ALSO ILLUSTRATING THE CHANGE SOMETIMES OCCASIONED
BY THE UNSCRUPULOUS EMPLOYMENT OF THE BIT OR OF THE BEARING-REIN.
]

Art or cruelty, however, can partially amend the faulty motion of the limbs. Force the head into an unnatural attitude by the unscrupulous employment of the bit or of the bearing-rein; retain the neck erect, without regard to the cramp induced, or heed of the strain cast upon the muscles,--and the torture, although the life be shortened and the safety of the owner endangered, nevertheless may occasion the feet to be raised during progression. This fact is illustrated in the following engraving. The natural mode of going is indicated by the letters A A; the possible change of form is to be seen in the parts distinguished as B B, although the action there depicted certainly displays a most unusual degree of amendment, to induce which must shorten the existence.

Any such improvement is always procured at a vast personal risk; for the head, being raised, partially throws the eyes out of use. It also impedes the circulation, ruins the mouth, distorts the body, and deranges the breathing. All these evils are inflicted to obtain the kind of pace which is never natural, but which closely resembles the sort of step that is characteristic of blindness in the horse. Few of the animals, thus treated, live to descend very low in the scale of equine existence. They mostly perish young; but the reader may recognize them drawing the broughams of gentility, and too often presenting one of the cramped, forced, and uneasy paces which are depicted below; for into such kinds of action all upon service ultimately subside.

On the other hand, the animal with a deep chest and with high withers, almost as a necessary adjunct, possesses a slanting shoulder; or, at all events, this probability is favored by that particular formation. Such an arrangement of parts must be accompanied by an upright position of the humerus and the advanced location of the fore limb. This conformation is bettered, materially, by an arched crest and a head “well set on.” Unfortunately, these latter points are seldom encountered, the proper disposition of the fore quarter being rarely attended with the last-named grace.

Such horses, however, Stubbs, the animal painter, used to delineate. Either the artist was particularly fortunate in his models, or beauty has been sacrificed in the anxiety to breed other properties. Such horses appear to have been common in England when the racer was compelled to possess endurance, and if report be truth, the last animals exhibited a greater speed than their descendants can display. Hunters were formerly something better than the rejected of the course; they could show a beauty equal to their strength. Creatures with the forehand such as has been described, are not only more pleasant to contemplate, but they are also capable of working with far less exhaustion to the system.

With a front limb of this nature, the movements of the leg are regulated by that of the shoulder. When the blade-bone is drawn upward, the humerus leaves its almost erect position, and assumes a forward inclination. This causes the arm to be advanced, and propels the leg and foot. Thus the movement of a part governs the motion of the whole: a grace or harmony of action is the result. The various components of the member change their relative positions to one another without effort, but with evident intention; all parts of the limb are simultaneously advanced. The work is not cast upon one set of muscles to the injury of another region. A well-made animal is one perfect whole, and formerly was common throughout the land. People may sigh that such quadrupeds are now lost to the nation: this regret, however, does not accord with the folly that upholds the racing mania, which has engulfed the once-prized native breed of English horses.

The articulated skeletons which are exhibited in museums present but poor resemblances of the living framework as it is arranged by the hand of nature. In these artificial preparations, the fore limbs are always straight, as are the supports of a kitchen table. But contemplate the living example. The positive perpendicular is never observed. The member abounds in gracefully swelling prominences and admirably poised inclines. The chest may be wide; but the hoofs are placed close together. Such a necessity renders an erect line an impossibility. Try the same rule in another direction. Let a plummet be dropped from the point of the shoulder of a living and well-made animal; it will mark the limit to which the toe is extended when the healthy horse is resting the limb. Such a fact proves the sheer upright form of the member to be an unnatural distortion and a positive impossibility.

The importance of the shoulder and of the arm bone having been enlarged upon, there remains to direct the reader’s attention toward that which in general acceptance constitutes the forearm, as well as the knee, the leg or the shin, the pastern and the foot. Where the limb quits the trunk, it should be characterized by muscular developments, since at this place resides the chief of that power by which the lower portions of the member are directed. The flesh should bulge forth, and cannot be too abundant; for a thin forearm is incompatible with goodness in a horse.

The point of the elbow should be prominently emphasized, as this bone affords a leverage whence many influential muscles originate, and which some of the principal flexor agents directly operate upon. Toward the knee the swelling should gradually subside, leaving upon the surface of the joint a broad, clean, and firm appearance. At the back of the knee there should stand forth, or rather should stick out, an osseous point, the size of which is of every value. Its aspect may not please the inexperienced fancies of the boy; but the uses of this development are, in no little degree, governed by its magnitude. It affords a point of insertion to the short flexors of the limb, as well as gives shelter to the perforans and perforatus tendons in their passage toward the pastern and the foot. Its magnitude, therefore, not only favors muscular action, but also indicates the dimension of those important structures which this bone protects.

A LONG AND SLANTING PASTERN.

A NATURAL PASTERN.

AN UPRIGHT PASTERN.

AN OVERSHOT PASTERN.]

The forearm should be long; the shin ought to be comparatively short. The reach depends on the first, the length of which secures an extra amount of motor activity. No muscles of importance are located upon the shin: bone and tendon are the principal components of this region. The part should not be absolutely straight, for such a form is incompatible with all idea of living beauty; but at the same time it ought to present no obvious inequalities or sudden enlargements. The bone should be compact, giving to this portion of the limb, when viewed from the front, almost the appearance of being deficient in bulk; but when regarded from the side, the lower part of the leg cannot be too broad; for breadth and strength are here synonymous.

The above rule applies with equal stringency to both legs,--to the hind limb below the hock as well as the more forward member from the knee downward. Each should be thin, when viewed from the front. Neither can well be too deep, when seen from the side. Both should appear solid, and each should feel almost of metallic hardness. The pastern joint should not present a level surface, when viewed laterally; and as it proceeds downward to join the foot, a graduated enlargement should exist.

Much comment is usually indulged upon the horse’s pastern. The degree in which this part may or may not slope, has been authoritatively defined. The reader will best judge of these opinions, by considering the purposes for which the pastern was created. Its intention is to endow the tread with elasticity. The fetlock of a racer, when the animal trots, may be seen to touch the earth every time the weight rests upon the foot: nevertheless, the thorough-bred has, during the contention, to endure the very excess of action. There must, therefore, be something erroneous in the popular judgment which connects weakness with the motion of this part, or no racer could ever reach the goal; and if a quadruped does occasionally break down, the likelihood of such a misfortune is not regulated or to be foretold by the pliability of the pastern joint. However, that the reader may estimate the value of the prejudice, various pasterns, designed according to the general phraseology, have been submitted to his inspection.

To enable the purchaser to arrive at a sound decision, it is necessary to state that the inclination of this region is governed by the major flexor tendons which are situated underneath or behind them. Their slanting, therefore, is regulated by no peculiarity in the forms of the bones themselves, but is controlled by and dependent upon the condition of another structure. A short, upright pastern, if it can bear any evidence at all, testifies to a stubborn and unyielding state of the great flexor muscles, the weight being then thrown upon the osseous supports. The play of the pastern denotes nothing more than the healthy elasticity of the flesh upon the tendon proper to which the osseous structures repose. The bones have no motor power belonging to themselves. The upright and the overshot pastern suggest no change in the more solid frame; but such alterations prove that excessive work has strained the great flexors of the limb, and destroyed the inherent property of elasticity with which every muscle is endowed by nature. The burden being then supported by an osseous pillar instead of an elastic band, of course jar or concussion ensues upon the abnormal change.

Thus, alteration in the natural position of an oblique bone is of great importance to a purchaser; and to judge properly of the pastern joint, the substance swelling forth beneath the elbow must be regarded. Should this portion of the body be mean or wanting in development, hard work will probably induce it to become rigid, or labor may, ultimately, cause the pastern joint to shoot forward and out of its proper situation.

The flexor tendon likewise influences another part. The perforans is inserted into the sole of the coffin-bone, or into the bone of the foot. The direction in which the toes point is, therefore, regulated by a substance so far distant that the attempt to connect the two organs may, to the uninformed mind, seem somewhat ridiculous. Yet, the statement being correct, the fact renders the position of the elbow of more importance; for according to the situation of that bone the hoofs will be directed. Thus, an ulna or an elbow which is drawn toward the trunk will be attended with a toe inclined outward. When the bone turns from the body, the forward portion of the hoof is directed inward. When the framework is properly constructed, the hoofs point forward; for horses’ hoofs are liable to those derangements which the human foot exhibits, and generally with like results. Only, in man, striking one leg against the other, during progression, is not attended with the unfortunate consequences which such an occurrence often will induce when this accident happens to the quadruped.

HOOFS POINTING FORWARD.

HOOFS POINTING OUTWARD.

HOOFS POINTING INWARD.]

By the pasterns recently exhibited it will have been observed that the inclination of the bones influences the slant of the hoof. The two structures are so connected one with the other that neither can be independent, for the direction of the pastern, of course, determines the nature of the weight imposed upon the foot. Thus, should the foot receive more than a normal pressure, this circumstance, by throwing the weight upon the bones, occasions the muscles to contract, and produces upright or overshot fetlock-joint. Nevertheless, the hoof is operated upon by other agency. Diseased action will also interfere with the growth of its outward covering. The member may, under such injurious excitement, when long continued, eventually become deformed.

The place of birth also influences the horn. Thus, a quadruped brought up on the fens of Lincolnshire, generally displays a flat sole, a weak, a low, and a slanting crust. The horse whose native land is dry or sandy, mostly exhibits the hoof high in the quarter and thick in its incasement. The creature with feet of the intermediate sort, which a few years ago were esteemed the model form, is generally the inhabitant of a moist, but not of a wet district. The horn, therefore, is indirect evidence of the rearing; and the author has now to consider how far its condition can, by itself, be regarded as a positive proof of any other fact.

There is one defect not generally observed, but which should always be studied in every examination of the feet. It may surprise the reader, when the author declares it to be very far from an uncommon circumstance to encounter a horse with odd hoofs, or with feet of different sizes. Such a peculiarity is totally independent of the defective inclination of the toes, and may be seen in horn of any possible condition, or in feet of any variety of form.

An animal becomes lame in the foot. If the lameness is removed in reasonable time, the affection disappears, and leaves no trace behind it. But let it continue for months, and during such a period the sufferer will throw little or no weight upon the diseased member. The part will be rested. The purpose or function of the organ will be counteracted by the will of the animal. The consequence of long disuse will be a proportionate decrease in size. Upon recovery, the loss of bulk is seldom restored; for if the foot is then employed, so also is the sound one; and the action being equal, of course it does not particularly affect one extremity, but operates on both alike.

The difference in the feet may not be so startling as to enforce attention to the deformity. It is seldom of this nature. Most probably it will require some discrimination to detect it. In the last engraving, the author endeavored to depict the defect as it was generally exhibited. None of the hoofs there delineated positively match, though very probably the reader had not remarked their differences. However, the slightest disagreement is an accepted proof that disease has been present,--at what time, whether recently or long ago, of what nature, whether structural or functional, the examiner cannot tell: he, however, assumes lameness has existed, has endured for some period, and he fears that the organ which has been afflicted may retain a liability to repeated visitations of a similar misfortune.

The so-called model foot is very liable to change, and not less likely to exhibit disease. It is very pretty to look at; but it does not, as a rule, undergo much work without alteration. This opinion, however, must be regarded only as announcing a general law; for though the intelligent Mr. Bracy Clark puts forth engravings illustrative of the effects which work produces upon the model foot, nevertheless the writer of the present volume has seen hoofs of this description which have, without apparent injury, endured constant shoeing, as well as perpetual battering upon the dreaded London pavement.

The slanting crust, weak heels, and low soles are, however, not to be commended. These are among the worst points which the equine form can present, and they are too commonly the forerunners of sad internal disease, as ossified cartilages, sandcrack, pumice foot, etc.

After long reflection, the author must express a preference for the high or the stubborn hoof. When doing this, he is consciously opposing his unsupported opinion against the firmly and repeatedly expressed judgment of his professional brethren. He therefore can ask no man to agree with his decision; but he humbly requests the reader to peruse the grounds of his conviction, before hastily condemning its declaration.

The horse is a native of a dry and an arid soil. Such a region induces that which the inhabitants of this country stigmatize as an excess of horn or an abnormally high sole. This kind of hoof therefore would appear to be natural to the animal: at all events, such a foot must have been general before the invention of iron shoes. Moreover, when the immense weight of the creature’s carcass is considered, and the manner in which bearing is increased by speed is also properly regarded, a necessity for the stoutest hoof must be fully apparent.

In addition to the above inferences, the author may advance his own observation, carefully made through a number of years: that all animals exhibiting strong crusts are not, necessarily, cripples; but that the creature with such a development of horn is in consequence less, infinitely less, liable to pedal derangements. The contrary conclusion has been upheld, because most men thought the excess of horn must check expansion, and also severely pinch the internal structures. With regard to the last deduction, all outward developments are produced by and are governed by the inward organs which these shelter. The secreting member may be soft, and the secreted substance may be hard; still, by a wise provision of nature, the tender structure rules the insensitive material which it produces. Therefore the horn cannot press upon or pinch the internal portions of the foot, any more than the skull can compress the healthy brain which it protects.

Then as to the supposed want of expansibility. The hoof may appear stubborn when between the human fingers; but while supporting the body of a horse, it is exposed to the operation of a force altogether greater than any which man is able to exert. The question therefore is not whether the hoof is very yielding, but whether it is so obdurate as to resist the huge weight of the animal when aiding the mechanical force of speed and the vital action of muscular power.

The author, however, while making the above declaration, supposes form to be united with stoutness. Where the heels have become “wired in,” and the crust has assumed the upright figure, the internal structures must be in an altered condition, and the points of bearing for the different portions of the limb must be entirely changed. The quarters in the last kind of foot are, frequently, remarkably stubborn. They are rather inclined to crack than to expand. Such parts will not, by their innate elasticity, fly inward on the leg being raised from the ground, and thus regulate the amount of blood which shall be poured into the hoof; neither will they expand when the weight is cast upon the foot, and thus allow free egress to the current which is violently expelled in consequence of the superimposed burden driving the fluid upward.

The upright hoof and narrow heels are, generally, all but unyielding. They have lost their natural function, and the harmony of the whole is destroyed. In consequence, the blood, instead of being expelled from the hoof, cannot escape from the pressure of the bony structures. The vessels within which the fluid circulates are not formed to sustain uninjured so vast a burden. They rupture under the weight; hence this peculiar form of foot is commonly accompanied with corns. Therefore, because corns are a disease, and because disease, being once generated, is not in its course or duration to be prognosticated with certainty, an upright hoof and wired in quarters are decided unsoundness: although stoutness, simply considered, is rather a recommendation than a defect.

The author may not dwell at greater length on this portion of his subject; but those who desire further information may with advantage consult Miles’s works upon the horse’s foot, which are the best, the cheapest, and the most lucid books upon this topic in the English language. They are written in a style which the most unlettered may comprehend; but when recommending them, the author, in his own justification, may state that the views therein expressed frequently differ from those opinions which are contained in the present volume.

Looking back upon such portions of the frame as have formed the subject of the late remarks, there are certain points which are invariably present in every well-made animal. A very broad, full chest is advantageous for slow work; but for slow work only. Where speed or activity is desired, depth of thorax is indispensable; yet the cavity should not be narrow or the sides flat; while the exterior of the ribs should apparently encircle sufficient space. The general contour should, moreover, excite no idea of fixedness: the part should convey a notion of its capability for easy and for rapid alteration of magnitude.

The abdomen should neither be large nor small. The exhibition of either failing announces a radical defect. The belly ought rather to gracefully continue the line of the chest, than by its protuberance, or the reverse, to enforce its existence specially upon the notice of the spectator. All may be considered right when the form elicits no remark; but when it challenges observation, the fact does not indicate that everything is as the purchaser could desire.

The position and the muscularity of the shoulder are the main points in the forehand. With respect to the limbs, these should leave the body as though they were parts of its substance. They can hardly be too large where they emerge from the trunk; and the forearm can scarcely be too long. The knee-joint should be broad and flat; while the bone which projects forth posteriorly should be well pronounced and evenly situated. The shin should be hard to the touch, and broad, when viewed laterally. The leg should seem straight and strong; the feet standing close together, and the toes pointing in a forward direction, rather than inclining to the outward or to the inward direction.

Such is a general view of organs, all of which are of equal importance. Breathing and digestion are such vital functions, it would be supererogation did the author pretend to point out _their_ importance. It may be otherwise with the fore limbs. Their use is not popularly comprehended; those members are exposed to numerous accidents and liable to many diseases. This predisposition is generally explained, by saying they are nearer to the heart than the hind legs are, and the straighter form is more favorable to a descent of the arterial current than is the angularity of the posterior extremities; therefore this portion of the frame is more open to acute affections.

The facts stated are certainly correct. So is the less freedom allowed to the forelegs, by confinement in and fastening the head to a manger in a stall. Such, however, is not the whole truth. There are other causes in operation. The province of the fore limb is to uphold the trunk. Thus, at all times, the member has to support no inconsiderable burden; but when that load is increased by the weight of a rider or is augmented by the drag of the collar, the tug of the shafts, and the generally pendent position of the head, the reader may conjecture the force with which the limb must be driven to the earth, especially during any rapid increase of motion.

The continued battering to which the leg is subjected naturally exposes it to much suffering, which the comparative fixedness in the stable greatly aggravates. As the uses are severe, so are its afflictions painful; and it hazards nothing to assert that very much of the sorrow which visits the animal is dependent upon the diseases or the accidents which are inseparable from these forward supports of the body and of the load.

When, however, the person called upon to exercise a judgment in the purchase of a nag is so new to the subject as to be incapable of forming an opinion, there is one primary test which seldom deceives; and upon the evidence thus evolved the merest tyro is fully qualified to pronounce. Let such a man mount the animal, and, when seated in the saddle, he can surely decide whether he appears to be close upon the neck or placed far behind upon the back. A well-made animal, by the inclination of the shoulder and by the amplitude of the withers, forbids the forward location of its rider; whereas a worthless quadruped, by the lowness of the first dorsal spines and the upright position of the blade-bones, allows the rider almost to rest upon its neck--thereby, because of the greater weight to be supported by the front limbs, increasing the natural liability of the forward members to exhibit disease.

The reason why such a formation should be specially noticed is, upon reflection, made apparent. The hind legs, by their greater motor power, always have a disposition to throw the weight upon the forward member. When this tendency is augmented by the burden on the back, the consequence must be a destruction of any approach to an equilibrium.

The horse’s body is, by nature, given four props--one at each corner of the trunk. But when a human load is lodged almost over the fore limb; when the front leg is placed far behind the chest; and when the head swings in advance,--all approach to a proportionate amount of burden is destroyed. The forward extremities then take a position almost in the middle of the substance, a proportionate incumbrance being removed from the posterior extremities. The hind members have less to do, and excessive duty is imposed upon the weaker organs, the motor machine being deprived of safety during progression.

While on the back, the rider should ascertain the shoulders are of equal bulk, or have not suffered injury, and that the trunk is sufficiently developed to afford a secure grip for the thighs of the master. Many animals are so narrow as to necessitate sensible muscular exertion on the part of an equestrian, and thus materially to detract from the pleasure of horse exercise. This matter is the more important, because stoutness of the body allows a fair inference to be drawn as to the substance of the haunches. It is true, no absolute law may therefrom be deduced; but as expectation is warranted, the fact should always be remarked.

The haunch is that portion of the frame upon which a capability for work is chiefly dependent. This region, therefore, should appear to be the embodiment of strength. It should not seem soft, or invite those pats which inexperienced horsemen are fond of administering to this portion of the body, but the aspect ought rather to suggest firmness and power; for here resides the force which must propel the load or direct the bound. Always choose an animal with good haunches, and invariably regard the position of the tail; as the situation of the dock, when on a line with the back-bone, denotes the greatest possible length, and therefore the largest amount of muscular activity to be present.

Never purchase a horse which is recommended as fully equal to carry your weight; for the dealer who asserts this is, by his interest in the sale, incapacitated from forming a just opinion. But ostensibly appear to seek a horse for a friend--never for yourself--and state the nominal owner to ride at least four if not six stone heavier than the would-be purchaser. There is a saying, that an animal will run away with too light a load; but that assertion is mere nonsense. Most vicious quadrupeds are weakly creatures. The powerful frame is generally united to an even temper. Strength does not endanger the female equestrian, although ladies generally are mounted upon the best-made, the strongest, and the most valuable steeds. Indeed, this argument is never urged, save when a gentleman hesitates to accept a weakly quadruped, or desires to obtain the one which the dealer is not very anxious should be purchased.

In illustration of this subject an engraving is inserted, which represents better-made quarters than are commonly beheld on a native or coarsely-bred animal. But the reader can hardly fail to remark that though the developments are not deficient in width, yet the general aspect rather denotes softness than expresses strength or suggests determination. The tail is well set on for this kind of quadruped; still, the point of the rump-bone is not even indicated. The spectator must guess at its precise location, as he cannot, by the unaided vision, detect its exact situation. Bulk is not absent, yet that which should be its attendant is not prominent. The bones of the leg seem long, but the hocks are not remarkable for size or conspicuous for form. The limbs are not moved with that independence of action which gives to the step of the horse its air of resolution, but they are advanced as though one was timid of proceeding too far without the other.

Yet, the inquirer may journey long and travel far before he will meet the equal of the quarters here depicted. The generality of these parts, on the animals of the coarser breed, are much narrower; the tail is seldom encountered springing from a position so near to the level of the spine; while, short as the extent of the posterior muscles may appear in the previous illustration, these are frequently to be seen of more circumscribed dimensions.

In contrast to the foregoing, the accompanying engraving depicts the quarters of a blood horse. In this illustration, symmetry and beauty are equally preserved; but, with these qualities, also are blended other attributes, which ennoble and elevate the object. Strength, power, and determination are impressed upon the image. Every muscle goes direct to the part on which it operates. The posterior line, on being traced from the dock to the leg, does not seem to hesitate between the bone of the member and the stifle-joint. The leg itself is thicker, but its greater substance depends upon the presence of muscle. The hock is cleaner, and uses of the part are better characterized. The calcis, as the backward projection is technically termed, stands forth prominently and affords the greater leverage for the motor agents to act upon.

When the quarters of the two breeds are contrasted, the difference is found to be extreme; the pervading attributes of each characterizes the innate qualities of the animal to which the part belonged. The distinctions which divide the two are by these members well indicated. There was, some time back, a loud discussion as to what kind of horse was best fitted for ordinary purposes. The old staging days should have settled such a question; for then fast coaches found the employment of the nobler quadrupeds to their interest. Where slow and heavy propulsion is desired, the coarser animal is infinitely to be preferred. For all the gentler purposes of society, the thorough-bred is, in the author’s opinion, to be recommended. Only, these fine creatures should be properly reared; they ought not, as now, to be produced with all the haste of greed, and cast upon the general public when found unsuited to the purposes for which they were generated.

It is offensive, if not painful, to hear persons speak of certain horses as though particular quadrupeds were created only for special uses. A good horse is fit for nearly every purpose; but such an animal is generally employed for the saddle. A thorough-bred, with lofty and well-developed quarters, is too valuable not to be appropriated by the race-course. A blood, with so much bulk and stoutness as to indicate the qualities of endurance rather than of speed, is always destined to become a hunter. Horses of the purer breed are supposed not well suited for gentlemen’s hacks. Good animals of this description are only too valuable for common purposes; but no creature is, by its intelligence, its activity, its gracefulness or its beauty, so admirably qualified for the companionship of man as the noblest type of the equine race.

The manner in which the racer trots is asserted to express the action which is natural to all of the thorough-breed. Before the reader agrees to that assertion, he should remember the trot is not a natural pace, nor one which the racer is broken to exhibit. Seen upon the course, the foot evidently moves too near the earth to clear the ruts of most English highways. Yet, as there shown, the motion is not to be despised. During it, at each step the limbs are extended; the reach is admirable, and affords a far better foundation for excellence in a hack than the up-and-down pounding motion which is so highly esteemed by the ignorant.

The greatest possible speed, with the least possible amount of exertion, is secured by the thorough-bred trot. The ground is covered, while the pace is easy and pleasant to the rider. It is very opposite to that which medical gentlemen occasionally recommend as a “hard-trotting horse.” A child might sit upon the back of a well-bred steed. The author recollects to have only seen one animal of this description employed as the riding companion of a gentleman. The master (a northern nobleman) was evidently proud of his possession; for the hack abounded in energy and with fire. The life never appeared fresher in a colt; but, on inspecting the teeth, the writer was pleasantly surprised to behold indications which denoted that at least twelve years had been passed. The following illustration will suggest to the inexperienced reader the more striking peculiarities which characterize the well-bred action.

Any quadruped is supposed suited for the collar when it displays points which unfit it for the saddle. A prime saddle horse, however, always makes the best harness animal; only, it is considered too valuable for such a purpose. There is but one law which is absolute with draught horses. In them, the forelegs are pardoned a few faults; but the hind quarters should always be powerful. That is desirable in all quadrupeds; for draught of every kind it is essential; it should never be overlooked, or the want of such a property ever be pardoned.

There is another point of importance. Any gentleman purchasing a draught horse--no matter whether for cart, for carriage, or for phaeton--be it for any kind of vehicle, he should be certain, before the transfer is concluded, that the new possession stands high enough. Nothing looks worse than small horses before a tall carriage. The living power may be in excess--it can hardly appear too mighty--but an inch below the requisite size gives to the most elegant and the newest of “turn outs” a shabby and a mean appearance. The draught may be light; the horses may not be overweighted; still, no fact or knowledge can reconcile the eye to the general effect, where animals are small for the machine to which they are harnessed.

Of recent years there has been displayed a desire to infuse the Eastern blood into the heavier breed which is native to this country. The desire was commendable; but its gratification has led only to evil. It has enabled the dregs of the race-course to be palmed off upon the public. A thin and lanky offshoot of thorough-bred stock can be of no value. These things should not be bought by gentlemen for any kind of service. The time has come, when it is simple prudence that the public should refuse longer to absorb the cast-offs of the stud farm. No doubt, before the breeding of blood stock became a general practice, the infusion of Eastern fire and activity was a national boon; for a reference to engravings of a few years back exhibits the animal suited only for a plow used as ladies’ palfreys. The following copy from a figure, presented in the famous folio work by a former Duke of Newcastle, will give the reader some notion of the kind of horse once chosen to carry the fairest portion of creation in the British isles.

From the above illustration, which may be well supposed to embody the height of fashion and the cream of style shortly after the accession of Charles the Second, the reader can imagine the practical knowledge possessed by those writers who speak of James the First as having greatly improved the _native_ breed of horses, and quote the benefits conferred upon the national race by the more temperate but equally determined enthusiasm of Cromwell, operating in the same direction.

At this place, the reader must have patience while the method of judging the limbs is pointed out. When the dealer exhibits an animal, the customer’s eye always should endeavor to ascertain the bulk or substance of the creature which he is expected to purchase. To do this, let the eye be directed toward the chest, to ascertain if the forelegs are separated by any breadth of thorax, or whether they spring from the body almost from the same point. This decided, a glance may be given to the line of the forelegs; these parts also can be viewed as the gentleman passes backward. Having reached the last situation, he observes if the thighs are large and fleshy, keeping the legs well asunder; also, whether the hocks are rightly placed, are huge, and are cleanly shaped.

Such remarks are important, since the disposition to cut is generally decided by the width of the horse’s trunk. Any deficiency in this respect indicates weakness, as well as declares a general unfitness for severe labor. This circumstance being observed, it is usual for the horse to be run up and down the ride. While the limbs are in motion, the spectator should notice the peculiarities of their carriage. A flexion of the front shin to the outer side warrants a belief in the existence of a splint. When the hind limb is not properly flexed, but the toe is allowed to graze the ground, it is a positive proof that the hock is disabled by the presence of a spavin.

A worse evil, however, is, when the forelegs, during progression, crossing each other, the trot becomes a sort of “hand-over-hand” pace. This kind of action is accompanied by “speedy cut,” or by a wound made upon one leg, immediately below the knee, with the shoe on the opposite foot. That defect justifies an instant rejection; for such a liability is incompatible with safety, as the blow too often brings the animal and its rider to the earth. The legs being close is the cause of “brushing” or of “cutting,”--a most troublesome defect, which inflicts a wound considerably nearer to the ground than speedy cut.

Before purchase, the hair on the inner side of the legs should be carefully examined. If a cicatrix or a bare spot is discovered near to the seat of cutting; if any paint or coloring matter can be detected upon the part; or if the hair does not lie perfectly smooth upon the place of injury,--have nothing to do with the animal. It is quite true that most fresh and nearly all young horses will cut--others strike only toward the end of a long journey; but it is also true that particular horses, however fresh or however tired they may be, never strike or cut. The quadruped which a gentleman desires, is one that does not contain evidences of a liability to accident or to disease. He wishes for a sound animal; and one disposed to strike certainly cannot, in the author’s opinion, be so esteemed. Every man wants a horse for service; but the creature which may at any moment receive a wound that shall incapacitate, assuredly cannot be esteemed a serviceable possession, in any meaning of the words.

While examining the legs, the gentleman should also notice the shoes upon the different feet. If these are rusty, the fact demonstrates that the horse has been wearing wet swabs, and has been long stationary in the stable. The circumstance is suspicious. In horse dealing a justifiable suspicion is always acted upon as an established fact. If the shoes are of rude make and much worn, it looks badly; and though it is no recommendation, it justifies no inference. But if the shoes be thicker at one part than at another; if the horse, being a nag, should wear very high calkins; if the toe be shortened, or one side of the metal is obviously narrowed,--it denotes precautions against clicking and against overreaching: the first being a most audible annoyance, which may lead to the forcible tearing away a fore shoe; and the last causing a fearful, a terrible, and an incapacitating wound upon the heel of the foreleg. Also, should the toe of the hind shoe be ground down, while the heel exhibits no obvious wear, the fact demonstrates the existence of a spavin. Either clicking, overreaching, or spavin is legitimate cause for rejection.

The reader, from a perusal of the foregoing remarks, will comprehend a few of the difficulties which beset the purchaser of a horse; and these may warn him, in some measure, of the dangers that surround a person so engaged. The author is a veterinary surgeon, of some experience; but he would be very sorry to buy a steed for himself upon his unsupported opinion. He would always have the animal examined by a professional man ere the purchase was concluded. How greatly, therefore, must the general public stand in need of such protection! Especially when the known hazard of the transaction and the confusion necessarily accompanying a direct personal interest in the business help to confound the intellect and to overpower the judgment!

All persons complain of the roguery that is mixed up with horse dealing. The complaint is just; but it is not just that the public should vent it. It is the general abuse and the inhuman treatment to which animal life is subjected that renders such practices necessary. The cruelty and the roguery are associated as closely as cause and effect. Let the provocative be discarded, and its result, of course, must cease. But no man should blame the conduct which his own deeds have willfully generated. To hurt and to injure a patient and an obedient animal is a positive sin,--a violation of the trust confided by the Creator to the creature. To defraud, in a money transaction, is simply a crime,--an offense committed upon the laws by man established over man. Then, what right has he who violates one of the ordinizations of nature, to point at and to sigh over the person who merely breaks a human institution?

Christianity, if its benefits were exemplified in man’s actions toward the creatures living under his dominion, would immediately operate upon society. The horse, under better treatment, would of course not be liable to those injuries and accidents which roguery in the dealer merely endeavors to conceal. There would be no occasion for cheating when the creature exhibited no scar or defect which the seller was interested to hide or to deny. Thus one stain upon the present civilization would be abolished; for, notwithstanding the numerous assertions to the contrary, the author has yet to see the man who practiced dishonesty from a sheer love of iniquity.

The well-to-do may lament the immorality of the class below them; but if gentility would look less leniently upon itself, probably the exhibition of crime might be viewed as no more than the apex of a pyramid whose base is deeply planted in the frailties which are common to general society.