242 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



The farm or general purpose horse should be in weight from 1000 

 to 1400 pounds, medium height, blocky made, and of a good dispo- 

 sition. The disposition in this class of horses is indispensable. On 

 the farm they come constantly in contact with the boys and girls, 

 and in manv cases are almost retjarded as one of the family. In 

 such cases one with a vicious disposition or unruly habits would be 

 entirely worthless. The disposition must be such that they can be 

 educated to perform all kinds of work. The color is a mere matter 

 of fancy ; such a color as would be desirable for some would be en- 

 tirel}' objectionable to others. When in pursuit of a horse for ray 

 own use, if he has all the other qualifications for a good horse, the 

 color is no objection. The best color for me is a good horse. 



The}' must possess certain roading qualities, not such as would be 

 required for a gentleman's driving horse or speed horse, but capable 

 of moving off with ease at the rate of from six to ten miles per 

 hour with a light, elastic step, head well up, with an easy movement, 

 showing by his actions ambition, perseverance and endurance. A 

 horse that has no life, so to speak, no ambition, no elasticity in his 

 movements, no roading qualities, whether he weighs 1000 or 2000 

 pounds, has no attraction for me. 



I have but a word to say in relation to heavy draft horses. There 

 are but few of them raised, and but few used in the State of Maine. 

 The demand for them is limited. Their qualifications are their great 

 weight and ability to walk fast. Weighing from 1600 to 2000 

 pounds, the}', of course, are not expected to possess great roading 

 qualities. They are not driven faster than a walk generally, and 

 should be fast walkers. 



I have attempted to give a bird's eye view of what I consider to 

 be the different classes of horses raised in the State of Maine, and 

 the question arises, which of the classes is it most profitable for the 

 farmers of Maine to raise? I am not going to undertake to answer 

 this question for all, for the reason that people must be governed by 

 circumstances. If a man has a brood mare that is capable of pro- 

 ducing fast colts b}' judicious mating, that man should breed fast 

 horses ; or if a man has a mare especially adapted to the raising of 

 gentlemen's driving horses, then by judicious mating he can success- 

 full}' raise that class of horses. But while there is one brood mare 

 capable of producing either of these two classes, there are at least 

 twenty that are better calculated for raising general purpose horses. 



