No. 112.] 509 



and fast horses. It has been urged that since the introduction of 

 the various breeds of imported stock, Otsego has given less atten- 

 tion to horses, and that those siie does raise are under size : there 

 is no duubt that the mistaken and ruinous economy of employing 

 the. services of the one dollar horses that travel the country, 

 without pedigree, without action, oftentimes blemished and un- 

 sound, has been the cause of the deterioration complained of, and 

 had at one time left us with hardly a good stallion in the county. 



It is nearly four years since some of our most intelligent farmers 

 were roused up to this state of things ; companies of twenty w^ere 

 formed, stock subscribed, and horses of merit were brought into 

 this vicinity ; amongst them the thorough bred horse Prior, and 

 the larger and less highly bred horse American Chief; the former 

 of know^n and tritd excellence, showing extraordinary compact- 

 ness and power, a winner on i heavy con .e, and a w^orthy com- 

 petitor of Blue Dick, but with not quite foot enough to win. 

 American Chief ^s a very lofty showy a.iim/! of ir^ hands high, 

 active and powerful in his movements, and well calculated to give 

 us an increase of size, and a style that makes a good market horse. 

 His colts, now only four years old, have a general character about 

 them that makes it easy to get them together as matched horses, 

 and pairs have already been sold at high prices. The colts from 

 Prior are a year younger, and have hardly yet shown themselves. 



Great intere-t is felt as to the produce by these two horses, and 

 very opposite opinions strenuonsly maintained ; the one party 

 asserting that a cross from thorough breds on our rather under- 

 sized mares, will i)roduce a weedy light animal, neither suited for 

 market nor available as a horse of all work. Another party in- 

 sists that with so strong and pony built a thorough bred as Prior, 

 who stands 15J hands high, tlit^ie will be no diminution of size or 

 strength, but rathtr an excess uf both, to which will be added 

 activity, light easy movements, courage, speed, and blood like en- 

 durance. The two horses are certainly totally dinVrent in char- 

 acter, and the experiment will now be fairly tried as to which 

 course is best suited to the mares of this Cfunty. Until the 

 American Chiers colts came into market and brought highly re- 

 munerating prices, the greater number of our farmers continued 



