266 COMMON r,lMTIS|[ AXIMAF.S 



The Horse. 



" A horse ! a horse ! My kingdom for a horse ! " 



Kinrj Richard III., v, 4. 



There can be no question that man owes a greater 

 debt to the horse than to any other animal. The 

 civilisation we have attained has been made possible 

 because of the existence of the horse, who has been 

 the friend, servant and companion of man from 

 before the dawn of history both in peace and in war. 

 Motor traction is now rapidly replacing the horse in 

 a great many directions, and the horse is by no 

 means the common object it was a few years ago 

 on the streets of towns and on country roads. But, 

 however man may improve the motor, there will 

 always be a need for the combination of strength 

 with intelligence, which the horse is ready to place 

 at our service, and his power of sympathetic com- 

 panionship and docility of temper will long endear 

 him as a friend that man will find it hard to part from. 



It would be impossible to attempt even a brief 

 description of the numerous races of domesticated 

 horses, but it is assumed that the Norwegian dun 

 pony may be taken as the tj^pe to which Linnasus 

 gave the name Equus cahalhis. The horse is usually 

 distinguished from asses and zebras b}^ the tail being 

 completely covered with long hairs growing right up 

 to the base. The mane is fuller; the front part 

 falling over the forehead forms a " forelock.'^ The 

 head is proportionately smaller and more graceful in 

 contour, the ears are shorter and the feet broader. 

 The Norwegian ponies have a dark stripe along the 

 spine, and there is a tendency to striping on the fetlocks. 



