Report on the Exhibition of Live Stock at Plymouth. 3G7 



want of merit was conspicuous, Mr. Parrington writes to me on 

 behalf of himself and the other Judges : — 



" The horse most like a stallion to get hunters was a roarer, and disqualified ; 

 and we were obliged to award tlic prize to a very light airy horse, not a weight- 

 carrier himself, or likelj' to get horses up to weight ; the second prize to an 

 inferior horse ; and ^^'e could not find a third worthy of a prize. The winning 

 hunter brood-mare was a good animal, the rest moderate, and the foals particu- 

 larly light and bad. All the jiouics exhibited were very moderate, with one 

 exception, and that a mare-pony, the prize taken in Class CXXI. In the 

 Four-year-old Hunter Class were nine entries, but only six competitors ; there 

 were three good animals, two horses and one mare, the others weeds. We awarded 

 the prize to the mare (No. 414), the second prize to a brown horse, and highly 

 commended No. 417, a very good horse, but approaching rather too near the 

 stamp of a harness-horse. In the Five-year-old Class only one horse was shown, 

 and that a very good one. Of the roadsters exhibited two were disqualified, 

 being over the height named in the condition. The class was very poor." 



The three prize-taking hunters exhibited by Mr, Battams, and 

 the highly commended 4-year-old, belonging to the Rev. A, C. 

 Thynne, were all by " Kingmaker ;" and I should think the 

 Devonians must regret having allowed so good a stock-getter to 

 go out to Australia ; for there can be no question that the horses 

 got by him were the best worth notice in the Yard. Some diffi- 

 culty arose about the chesnut mare-pony mentioned by the 

 Judges ; she was entered in the Exmoor Class, and being by a 

 thoroughbred horse out of a pony, an Exmoor exhibitor protested 

 against her ; but the Stewards did not feel that they had sufficient 

 evidence to prevent their confirming the decision of the Judges. 



The entries for Agricultural Horses were more numerous, and 

 of greater merit : the Class of Aged Stallions was tolerably well 

 fdled, and there were some fine powerful horses, especially 

 amongst the Clydesdales. The younger class was not remark- 

 able. One or two useful horses were shown amongst the stallions 

 suited to a hilly district, and the prize-horse, which came from 

 the county of Durham, found a new owner in an Australian. 

 There were some good Suffolk horses in an entry numerically 

 poor ; I would suggest that we should allow the Suffolks to com- 

 pete with other horses, except in their own particular districts ; 

 and then offer more prizes, dividing the agricultural stallions into 

 classes for 2, 3, 4-years, and aged horses. The prize cai't-mare 

 exhibited had twin living foals sucking her, an unusual sight in 

 a Show-yard, There were some very fine young mares, though 

 the entries were few. 



Professor Varnell thus reports as to the soundness of the horses 

 shown : — 



To the Steivarth of the Horse Department of the Boyal Agricultural Show, 

 Plymouth, July, 1865. 



Gektlemen, 



I beg to hand you a brief Eeport of the comparative amoimt of disease 

 of an hereditary nature, affecting the horses exhibited at the lloyal Agrictd- 

 VOL. I. — S. S. 2 B 



