DUTCH AND BELGIAN HORSES. 



52: 



pay no special attention to the breeding of trotters, and 

 the trotters which are met with in that country, are more 

 or less degenerate descendants of the old breed " (de 

 Simonoff and de Moerder). These authors tell us that in 

 Holland and Belgium, neither the State nor wealthy men 

 maintain large studs for horse-breeding, which in these 

 countries is entirely an agricultural industry. In the 

 north of Holland, a good type of heavy carriage horse is 



^ 





-^i^ 



^^ 



-^^ri^v 



I'ho/o by] 



•Fig. 526.— Yellow dun Iceland mare with hogged mane (11.3). 



[M. H. H. 



produced ; and in the south, a horse which closely re- 

 sembles the Belgian heavy cart-horse (Figs. 524 and 525). 

 In early days, many Dutch and Belgian (Flemish) horses 

 were imported into England, and helped to form the Shire 

 breed. In connection with the remarks made on page 401 

 et seq., it is instructive to note that Holland and a large 

 part of Flanders are very low-lying countries. A quarter of 

 a century ago, many Belgian horses were used in England 

 for omnibus and van work, but as most of them proved 



