Jones: Decadence of Horse Breeding 



127 



writer yields to no man in appreciation 

 of the forces of heredity, for in early 

 youth, when scarcely able to understand 

 biological problems, "Origin of Species" 

 was a nightly study, and from then to 

 the present day the best authorities are 

 constantly on hand. With information 

 thus gained, and thirty-five years of 

 practical experience in breeding, we do 

 not feel the need of legislation to protect 

 us, nor would we change the selection of 

 blood lines for future mating under any 

 conditions. 



RECOGNITION OF R.\CING DEMANDED 



As for protection from congenital 

 unsoundness, the experienced breeders 

 judgment is a greater safeguard than 

 any legislation, and as protection against 

 false blood lines the register has long 

 since eliminated the chance of fraud and 

 no breeder of either standard or thor- 

 oughbred horses could be induced to 

 patronize a stallion that was not regis- 

 tered. (However, there are many inex- 

 perienced breeders who are not sure of 

 their ground. The greatest breeding is 

 that of draft horses, as may be seen by 

 the records of the states having laws. — 

 The Editor.) The protection breeders 

 need is the recognition of racing by the 

 Government as a legitimate business, for 

 racing is now the only incentive to breed. 

 But, with only one state having legalized 

 racing and existing by sufferance in all 

 others, the breeding industry is on a most 

 unstable foundation. Each new legis- 

 lature has some members who for gain, 

 politically or financially, attempt to 

 introduce adverse legislation. The 

 report now comes from Maryland that 

 the lower house of the 1918 legislature 

 will be solidly against racing in any form 

 in that state. The Detroit Driving 

 Club, which for many years has been one 

 of the leading associations of the Grand 

 Circuit and has made two stakes classics, 

 which has given to the winner a high 

 value either for breeding or racing, has 

 had to quit on account of adverse legis- 

 lation. When the Hart-Agnew law was 

 passed in New York it cost the State 

 of Kentucky alone $5,000,000. The 

 great breeding establishments were com- 

 pelled to ship mares to South America, 

 Australia, France and other foreign 



countries to find sale for them at any 

 price. After Kentucky placed racing 

 under a State Commission, some few 

 have continued breeding, but to-day 

 the production is not one-third of what 

 it was formerly. 



The breeders of the trotting horse are 

 facing conditions that are unique in a 

 way and have been brotight about by 

 the force of two factors, one of which 

 could not be controlled ; the other could. 

 Prior to the advent of the motor, horses 

 unsuitable for racing found a ready 

 market for the road. Those of excep- 

 tional conformation were educated for 

 roadster classes in the show ring or for 

 the three gaited saddle class. But the 

 motor has practicaU}^ eliminated road 

 driving and no other outlet has been 

 found for this class of horses. In fact, 

 the trotter now occupies the same posi- 

 tion as the thoroughbred, distinctly a 

 racing tool, but races under the worst 

 system that could be devised. If not a 

 stake horse his value is less than the cost 

 of production, as he has little, if any, 

 earning capacity. If of stake caliber, he 

 acquires a fast record, then he is worth- 

 less for racing purposes as the associa- 

 tions do not offer purses of sufficient 

 value for him to win more than expenses. 

 Quite anomalous situation, the greatest 

 merit the less value. 



END THOUGHT DRAWING NEAR 



This class of horse formerly found a 

 market in Austria, Russia, Italy and 

 other foreign countries, but the war 

 has closed this outlet. The breeders, 

 besieged on one side by the ever increas- 

 ing use of the motor which cannot be 

 controlled, and on the other by racing 

 conditions that give value only to the 

 exceptional horse, find no means of 

 escape but to quit breeding. Only a 

 few years ago any road that led from 

 Lexington would reach the stock farms 

 of several breeders, each equipped with a 

 track and complete training plant; to- 

 day there are four breeding farms in 

 Kentucky and the farmers, who former^ 

 kept six to ten good brood mares, have in 

 the majority of cases sold them. A very 

 few have kept one or two through senti- 

 ment, but fann them or breed on shares, 

 and in every instance sell the foal to the 



