THE SHOULDER. 277 



experience of practical men like Mr. G. M. Sexton, 

 Secretary of the English Cart-horse Society. He admires 

 " the shoulder well let down into the chest, and with a 

 moderate slope ; it is not necessary to be too oblique, 

 as with a hunter or a race-horse, but just sufficient to 

 ensure free action of the fore legs, encased with plenty 

 of muscle, which will enable him to lean into the collar 

 . It is essential that he should be a free, 

 fast walker .... Action means power, time and 

 money." Mr. F. Street, in The History of the Shire Horse ^ 

 advocates, " Shoulders well thrown back." Mr. Thomas 

 Dykes, late Secretary of the Clydesdale Horse Society, 

 remarks in the Stud Book of that breed, that " the 

 shoulder should be more oblique than in the English 

 draught-horse. This, indeed, is one of the distinctive 

 features of the Clydesdale, as his formation of shoulder 

 is largely owing to his long, quick step, for which he is 

 so justly admired. The upright shoulder of the English 

 cart-horse may certainly give greater power in the collar, 

 but if shortness and slowness of step be considered, this 

 cannot be called an advantage. The English horse, 

 besides, is more accustomed to sheer dragging and to 

 working in chains, while his Scottish rival is chiefly 

 employed in the two-wheeled cart, which occasions a 

 considerable amount of weight being balanced on the 

 animal's back. A medium slanted shoulder gives a 

 horse, in such circumstances, an advantage ; and doubt- 

 less those who carted the minerals of Lanarkshire in ante- 

 railroad days, found this formation well adapted for their 

 purpose. Even yet no one will affirm that it is unsuited 

 to the traffic of the day, if he will only take the opportunity 

 offered for forming an opinion by the sight of the Clydes- 

 dale horses yoked to cart or lorry in the streets of Glasgow." 

 Mr. Reynolds, M.R.C.V.S., in his Essay on the Breeding 

 and Management of Draught-horses, while recommending 

 that the shoulders should be massive and well thrown 

 outward to afford ample space for the collar, cautions 



