EGYPTIAN AND ARABIAN HORSES. 



465 



tapeivd and bare, wide-open nostrils, a lonjj;, arched neck, slron/j^ 

 chest, hind quarters high and rounded, belly inconspicuous, tail 

 ^hort and hne, nervous legs with short, tlexibl(> ]:)asterns, and hard 

 and ample hoofs. When the thr(>e princii)al (pialities, that of head, 

 hind (juarters, and of legs, ai'e found together the horse is considered 

 jierfect. But. on the other hand, when a horse shows any unluck^v 

 sign they will have him neither for mount nor for stallion. For 

 there are several natural signs which the Arabs regard as signihcant, 

 some as sinister for the owner or rider, <^thers as favorable and luck 

 bringing. Whatever superstitions they may show in similar matters 

 it is certain that these ideas have had root in long-extended observa- 

 tions, and that superstitious as they are they would never consent to 

 reduce by two-thirds the price of their horses bearing unlucky signs 

 if there were not some mvsterious foundation of truth in these beliefs. 



The greater parts of these signs are small feathers, or epis, situated 

 on different parts of the body. An ** epi *" is a little mesh or tuft of 

 hair which makes a slight projection on a horse's hide. Each one of 

 these has to -the Arab a significance according to the place where it 

 occure? and the length and fineness of the hair. 



Here is a list of the most characteristic epis familiar in Mesopo- 

 tamia, Syria, Nedjed, which is to say in the countries whei'c the most 

 beautiful horses of the Orient are found. The numbers refer to the 

 fiirure — 



--Q 



Sketi-h of an Arabian horse showing the situation of principal epis. 



1. Kanadil: Two epis situated in the forelock near the temples: 

 they are considered among the favorable signs. 

 SM 1904- — 30 



