g BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



mares. In the reign of Henry Seventh and Eighth, it was ordered 

 that the magistrates at Michaelmas should scour the heaths and 

 commons, and destroy all mares beneath a certain size. Why 

 were these orders but to prevent their degeneration ? The 

 influence of the destruction of individuals having a particular 

 characteristic, is shown by the eifects on the average height of the 

 men of France, of the destructive wars of Napoleon, by which 

 many of the tall men were killed, the short ones being left to 

 become the fathers of families. This at least is the conclusion of 

 those who have closely studied the subject of the conscription, and 

 it is certain that since Napoleon's time, the standard for the army 

 has been lowered two or three times. 



But to come down to the authors of our own times. Henry 

 William Herbert, better known to us as Frank Forrester, in his 

 work "The Horse of America," says : 



"It is commonly supposed that one or both of the parents 

 should be of mature age, and that if both are very old or very 

 young, the offspring will be decrepit or weakly. A great many 

 of our best horses have been out of old mares, or by old horses — 

 as for instance, Priam, out of Cressida at twenty ; Crucifix out of 

 Octaviana at twenty-two ; Lottery and Brutandorf, out of Man- 

 dane at twenty and twenty-one, Voltaire got by Voltigeur 

 at twenty-one, and Bay Middleton was the sire of Andover 

 at eighteen." And in our own day of horses whose parents 

 are known to have arrived at full maturity. Gen. Knox stands 

 first among the horses of New England. His sire was six 

 years old, and dam seven. Gen. Knox got Gilbi'eth's Knox and 

 the Littlefield horse when he was six years old — the dam of the 

 Littlefield horse being seven years old, and the dam of Gilbreth's 

 Knox died of old age only two or three years after he was foaled. 

 Brown Harry, who in this State stands second only to Gen. Knox, 

 was sired in 1855, by the oldest Black Hawk then living, being 

 probably eighteen years old ; and his dam when he was foaled had 

 passed her twentieth year. Prince Harry, who received the first 

 premium as a four-3'^ear old, at the last State Fair, was sired by 

 Brown Harry when he was eight years old, and his dam was 

 eleven. No one can doubt that the parents of all these horses 

 mentioned had arrived at full maturity. 



On the other hand, many young stallions and mares have suc- 

 ceeded well, and in numerous instances, tlie first foal of a mare 

 has been the best she ever produced. In the olden time, Mark 



