waste. His form is one essentially of utility. The space for the seat of the rider 

 is sufficient, and at once fixes his true position; the weight is therefore carried on 

 that part most adapted for it. The rest of his frame is taken up with the powers 

 of progression. Nature, the unerring artist, has not made a mistake, and man 

 with his improvements has not had the opportunity of spoiling him. If he be care- 

 fully examined, it will be found that all the limbs of progression are longer and 

 better placed than in any other horse — the scapulae, haunches, thighs and arms are 

 all longer, which, added to the power of great flexion, give great extension, and 

 will explain how the stride of the Arabian, although under fifteen hands, is, at all 

 events, greater in proporiton to his size than that of any other horse. 



"Whether we look at the Arabian as a whole, or analyze his points one by one, 

 you can arrive at no other conclusion than that he is an animal of perfect form. It 

 has been truly remarked that the longer he is looked at, and the more minutely 

 he is examined, the more enraptured one becomes, and convinced one is looking 

 at something genuine. Can this be said of any other horse? 



"It has been said our thoroughbred horse resembles most the Arabian in the 

 form of his figure, his limbs, his head and his countenance. It would be strange if 

 he did not to a very considerable extent, considering the important part the Arabian 

 has had in his origin ; but our horse certainly bears the marks of a mixed race. Let 

 us look at some of the points in which a difference may be seen between the Arabian 

 and his descendant, the English horse, where a departure from the pure model has 

 taken place. In the Arabian, the head, countenance, ears, eyes, mouth, jaws are 

 inimitable, and are not at all approached in beauty by any other breed; his neck is 

 more beautiful and grander, and far more powerful. The shoulders of the Arabian 

 are stronger than those of the English horse; the scapulae are broader at the base, 

 and have a greater inclination backward — are of a better shape. Englishmen think 

 the Arabian has a heavier shoulder ; it is really, although a more powerful, a lighter 

 shoulder than that of the English horse. 



"English horses are very thin, narrow and undeveloped about the withers — 

 the latter are often high to a fault, but the base of the scapulae almost meet — whereas 

 the Arabian horse shows some thickness there, and can better support weight; 

 but the English horse is heavier at the shoulder points, and is much wider across 

 the breast than the Arabian — a formation similar to the bulldog; it is a weak and 

 very heavy shoulder compared with the Arabian. This broad and heavy breast 

 is a fault I have frequently seen animadverted upon by a warm supporter of our 

 English horse. 



"The Arabian will be seen to barrel and swell out immediately behind the arms ; 

 the English horse is flat there. Here is a direct departure from the advantageous 

 form of the original pure blood. There has also been considerable alteration in the 

 direction and form of the haunch, which, besides being a loss of power, is also a 

 sign of want of breeding. The loins and quarters of the Arabian are more beautiful 

 and far more powerful. They can hardly be called his greatest characteristics, but 

 yet an Arabian might be known by his hind quarters. Another point, the pasterns, 

 which in the Arabian are oblique and yielding, are strong and large in comparison 

 with those of an English thoroughbred horse, as are all other joints. Youatt says : 

 *In the formation of the shoulder, next to that of the head, the Arab is superior to 

 any other breed.' Again, 'The shoulder blade has its proper inclination back- 

 wards. It is thickly clothed with muscle, but without the slightest appearance 

 of heaviness.' The same author says, 'The chest of the Arab may, perhaps, be 

 considered too narrow, that being the opinion of the uninitiated or of those who 

 have studied an imperfect and inferior model, whose judgment has been thereby 

 perverted. But,' says the same writer, 'behind the arms the barrel generally swells 

 out, and leaves sufficient room for the play of the lungs.' Youatt is still more em- 

 phatic when stating the advantages of this formation, which gives a broad, deep 



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