SEVENTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK-PART X. 007 



The average farmer will find more profit and surer, and with far less 

 outlay originally, in breeding high-class mules for sale than in breeding 

 blooded and trotting horses. Some mules, too, possess considerable speed, 

 one of the best sleigh animals I ever saw or rode behind, for a long trip, 

 was a large, fine-limbed mule. He seemed to delight to be hitched to 

 carriage or sleigh, and frequently trotted a mile in an even three min- 

 utes. It used to be my delight to catch some of the fancy teams on the 

 road and beat them, for if I could not at first clean them up by speed, I 

 almost invariably could by endurance, and my mule seemed to like the 

 sport as much as did his driver. 



When it is intended to make a specialty or regular business of mule 

 breeding, by the exercise of care and judgment, and not being In too 

 much of a hurry, a considerable total saving can be accomplished in the 

 purchase of brood mares for the purpose. Even though you may have 

 an abundant capital, it is not necessary to purchase fine, young and ex- 

 pensive mares to breed from, but attend the sales at the horse bazaars 

 of the large cities, provided you are a good judge of horseflesh, and if 

 you are not, then secure the services of some one who is. There are 

 many animals which are put up for sale there and which are sold cheap, 

 because they are footsore and useless for the time being in a city, owing 

 to a season's hard work on the hard pavements; or they may have had 

 some slight mechanical injury, all of which will usually be remedied 

 in a few weeks or a few months in the country. Then, again, there 

 are cities who use horses they do not care to keep, and sell them at 

 a bargain. In this way of buying, a single season or two will enable 

 you to fill out your quota of breeding mares, and effect a saving on the 

 entire investment of from one-third to one-half, and have a bunch of as 

 fine brood mares as could be bought anywhere for the purpose. 



The things to be avoided in making such purchases are to refuse to 

 purchase any mares which are vicious, for vices and tricks are almost 

 invariably apt to breed, as will any disease or weakness, while an ordinary 

 ailment or a mechanical injury will not. As most horsemen are aware 

 of this and know how to recognize the diseases and disorders, it is not 

 necessary for me to enumerate them, though even the best of horsemen 

 will often get fooled, especially when purchasing an animal which they 

 have seen for the first time, and necessarily do not have an opportunity 

 to "try him out" before paying for the animal. However, if any of us 

 knew just how never to make a mistake, things would be just too easy 

 for anything. 



There is one point in mule breeding that is perhaps not as much 

 considered as it might be, and that is that much of the "mule look" In 

 the mule can be tempered and improved by first breeding the mare to a 

 stallion, having her first colt by him, and then afterwards breeding to 

 the jack. It is an undoubted fact that the first offspring greatly in- 

 fluences subsequent ones. For instance, breed a mare first to a jack 

 and you will undoubtedly get a fine mule as the result. Afterward breed 

 even continuously to a stallion and every one of the mare's progeny 

 will have a very noticeable mule look, no matter how fine the animals 

 may otherwise look. By reversing the operation, the appearance of the 

 mules will be greatly softened and improved, and the value consequently 



