TilE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



337 



THE HORSES OF THE CAPE. 



Tlic Cape Colony, as Mi'. W. Ilawes told the public 

 at the Society of Arts, on AVeiincsday, March 9, in a 

 very excellent paper on " its products and resources," 

 now exports other things besides wool and wine. 



If it has taken the start even of the leading Austra- 

 lian pastoral colony in its clip of wool, it is also now 

 occupying a prominent position in the shipment of 

 horses for the Indian cavalry. Due attention is also 

 paid to improving the breed of cattle. The breeding of 

 horses and sheep has long received the greatest atten- 

 tion, and very shortly the live stock of the Capo Colony 

 will bear comparison, head for head, with that of any 

 colony or older country. 



We called attention recently to what was doing in 

 Capo wools — in the improvement of the breeds, and 

 the character of both fleece and carcase ; and espe- 

 cially in allovvicg the wool to attain a full growth, in- 

 stead of shearing half-yearly. When we find that the 

 colony last year exported 18,000,000 pounds of wool, 

 that it possesses at the present time about 7,000,000 

 sheep, 500,000 head of cattle, 150,000 horses, and 

 1,500,000 goats, it certainly holds the most prominent 

 position in the quantity of its live stock of any of our 

 colonies. 



But it is with its horse-kind that we propose to deal 

 in our present remarks, because an important and 

 growing trade has sprung up recently in the supply of 

 Cape horses for our troops in India. The Capo is 

 more favourably situated for the shipment of horses 

 across the Indian Ocean than Australia, and the losses 

 on shipboard from thence have been less. Moreover, 

 there is a greater number to select from ; and, but for 

 the heavy mortality a year or two ago from the horse- 

 sickness, the quantity of horses in the Cape Colony 

 would have been even larger than at present. Not 

 many years ago the Cape farmers had to import horses 

 and mules from Soutli America : now they are able to 

 export horses to Calcutta. Certainly the Cape horse is 

 smyll, and would not satisfy the eye of an English se- 

 lecting officer ; but his endurance during the longest and 

 hottest day surpasses that of almost any other horse. A 

 considerable number ol" the best horses of one of our 

 cavalry regiments which were sent from India to the Cri- 

 mea, and which arrived there in good condition, were 

 imported iVom the Cape a iew years before. It has 

 been well suggested that by crossing the native breeds 

 of the Cape with English thorough-bred stallions 

 the sort might be greatly improved. The colonists 

 may depend upon a constant demand from India 

 80 long as they take care to maintain the cha- 

 racter of their horses ; but the transport to India is 

 too costly to warrant one unsound horse being shipped. 

 About 4,000 Cape liorses were shipped last year, valued 

 at £133,000. This is a fresh field for agricultural skill 

 and capital which the prudent, persevering, and never- 

 receding industry of the Cape farmer will no doubt 



enlarge and imj)rovc, as lias been done in every other 

 department of his rural kingdom. 



An Indian remount agency has now been perma- 

 nently established at the Cape, and at least 5,000 horses 

 a-ycar ra;iy readily be disposed of. 



It is very desirable that the statistics and resources 

 of our colonies sliould be more generally known at 

 home, for very much ignorance still prevails, even in 

 official quarters. As an instance of this, wo find re- 

 corded in our last Cape advices— At a dinner given at 

 Cape Town, to Col. Apperley, the selecting officer ap- 

 pointed by the Indian Government, his excellency Sir 

 George Grey stated that when first the intelligence of 

 the Sepoy mutiny reached the Cape, he felt satisfied in 

 his own mind that the demand for horses in India would 

 be immense, and that the whole efficiency of our army 

 in that empire would depend on this want being 

 promptly supplied. And knowing, as he did, the vast 

 capabilities of the colony, he wrote to the Governor- 

 General, informing him that they could supply from 

 hence the Indian army with horses, and that he would 

 procure 500 at once and ship them. He further added, 

 that there really was no end to the number this colony 

 could supply. " When the Indian authorities received 

 that letter," continued Sir George Grey, " they were 

 altogether surprised, as they had no idea that the 

 Cape of Good Hope could supply anything like 500 

 horses. We then received almost immediately, or at 

 least shortly after, authority from England to procure 

 horses for India, and so we set to work. The order 

 that came out was to jn'ocure 1,000 horses for India j 

 and in thus asking for 1,000 to bo sent, they evidently 

 considered they were asking for what they had hardly 

 a right to expect, and that they were throwing on the 

 government here a task which it would be hardly able 

 to fulfil. Now, I may just advert to the computation 

 which I made of the number of horses which could 

 have been sent on to India. I believed that 3,000 

 horses could have been supplied instead of 1,000. I 

 was so satisfied of the capabilities of the colony that I 

 sent home this computation and asked for fuither in- 

 structions, as I believed that 3,000 horses could be 

 procured and shipped." 



The result of this first effort is surprising, so far as 

 the colony is concerned. They have de.'^patched up- 

 wards of 50 transports with troops, and more than 

 4,000 horses. The employment of so many 

 transports must have been of immense advantage 

 to the shippmg interest, and consequently it must 

 have given an impetus to trade. The purchase of 

 so large a number of horses has also given 

 a stimulus to the breeders, and exercised a favourable 

 influence on the agricultural districts, which will be 

 abiding. Still further advantages will redound to the 

 horse-breeders of the colony if they rear a superior class 

 of animals for future shipment to India. The farmers 



