LECTURES AND ESSAYS READ AT INSTITUTES. 145 



rich bay color. Last, but not least, would want him strong in the old English 

 Eclipse, blood like Imported Leamington or his son Lelaps, whose dam was 

 Imported Pussy, who possesses more strains running back to that horse than 

 Leamington himself. This being the great fountain head from whence nearly 

 all our great trotting sires emanated ;■ Membrino, Messenger, and Eysdyk's 

 Hambletonian are among the number. 



Then we would, if possible, select the number of dams desired, and of good 

 size, and rather long and roojny, would not care to have them possess the same 

 qualities as the horse, would have them possess good points, good milkers, and 

 strong constitutions. Their blood should resemble that of the stallion, that 

 is, with as many strains running back to Eclipse as is possible to find, with 

 natural trotting action, which is easy to find among thoroughbreds. These 

 mares should be as nearly as possible of a uniform size and color, having in 

 view the progeny resembling each other in temperament, bodily and mental 

 power, color and conformation, so that those not needed for service in stud or 

 on the track could be sold, singly or in pairs, for carriage purposes. Those 

 for breeding purposes we would have trained as before stated, as their acquire- 

 ments are also to be transmitted. When these colts so bred were old enough 

 to breed, we should look for another stallion of as nearly the same confor- 

 mation, disposition, color, and breeding as the other as possible without being 

 too nearly related. And so on until we had three or more of these stallions, 

 in order to avoid too close in-and-in breeding. If any of these stallions were 

 not satisfactory as reproducers, we would change for others, and occasionally 

 we should infuse into this family new blood, from the same source but from 

 other localities. By this process, in about six or eight generations, we should 

 expect, barring accidents and unknown causes, to see a family that would not 

 only be nearly uniform in color, size, soundness, and general conformation, 

 but we should expect to see a family of great performers such as the world 

 has never known, and we predict that the fastest time that will ever be made 

 in trotting will be made by a thoroughbred horse bred and trained in this way. 

 What an inheritance such a family of highbred horses would be to the individ- 

 ual and nation. There is nothing new or strange in the principle of uniformity 

 in color; it is fully illustrated by our breeders of sheep, hogs, and cattle. 

 There are numerous families of white, black, red, and mixed, as the breeder 

 desires. Still there are mysteries in breeding we cannot solve, and, as we 

 stated in our opening, the question of breeding is a problem hard to solve, and 

 we think cannot be fully demonstrated. 



The rules and principles we have been discussing are only general, but 

 underneath is an unseen, invisible hand that at times disregards all our 

 rules and plans, and a malformation is or may be the result of the best 

 known theory of breeding. Therefore we say that the law that shall make 

 breeding pass from the conjecture to that of a demonstrative science is 

 as yet unwritten. If it were possible to give us a mare that invariably pro- 

 duced the reflex of the stallion no matter how often the stallion be changed, 

 or, reversing the matter, were it possible to find a horse, no matter how many 

 mares he serves, that would invariably impress his own image on his progeny, 

 then the problem would be solved, but that seems to be impossible. Some 

 stallions have this power in a, marked degree, and when found are of priceless 

 value, for with them the breeder knows beforehand with tolerable certainty 

 what to expect. We know how certain lines have their own characteristics, 

 and we trace back not so much to the immediate as to some potent ancestors, 

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