720 THE AMERICAN FARMER. 



From the foregoing, the superiority of American trotters for speed is clearly seen. Be 

 tween 700 and 800 of our trotters have beaten the best one-mile time made in Russia, and 

 though two-mile races are somewhat rare in this country, yet the fast Russian time for two 

 miles (5:01 ), made by their famous trotter, Poitieshnoy, has been beaten by nearly all our 

 great trotters ; and to-day there are probably fifty horses in America that can beat that time 

 by several seconds. 



The Orloff is a spirited, well-formed animal, of fine action and elegant carriage. But 

 few of this breed have thus far been imported into the United States. The horse &quot; Sobol,&quot; 

 of which we give an imperfect illustration, was bred by Count Nicholas Sollogub, of Tambou, 

 Russia, and imported by his present owner, Mr. Robbins Battell, of Norfolk, Conn., in 1876. 

 He is black in color, and 15| hands high. He was foaled in 1870, sired by Dehrody, 4th ; 

 dam, Pobeida, by Krelika, tracing back directly to Belley Smetanka, who was brought from 

 Arabia by Count Orloff Tchesmenkoi in 1775. 



The Canadian Horse. This race of horses is of the Norman descent, introduced 

 from France by the early settlers of Canada. For many generations they were bred pure, 

 and possessed the general characteristics of the Norman, except that they gradually became 

 somewhat smaller than their progenitors. This is supposed to be owing to the cold climate, 

 and the more scanty fare on which they have subsisted. 



They are annually imported in large numbers into the New England and some of the 

 other northern states, where they have proved valuable for farm use, and as a general-purpose 

 horse. 



They are from fourteen and a half to fifteen hands high, have strong, compact muscles, 

 large bones, in proportion to their size, and great power of endurance. They are also active, 

 docile, easy to keep, and will perform a vast amount of hard labor, without any appearance 

 of breaking down. They perpetuate their strong points, and are withal a very valuable 

 animal for the purposes to which they are best adapted. There are many varieties of these, 

 some having been crossed with the English thoroughbred. They are regarded as very valu 

 able for producing crosses with other breeds. 



Shetland Ponies. These are the smallest of the pony breeds, many of them not 

 being more than seven or eight hands high, and, in fact, the average height is not more than 

 nine or ten hands, or from thirty-six to forty inches. It is claimed that no true Shetland 

 ever reached eleven hands in height. They have round bodies, closely ribbed, with heads 

 well shaped, and often with the dish-face of the true Arab. The ears are small and erect, 

 eyes large and intelligent in expression, neck short and strong, shoulders thick and sloping; 

 withers low; back slightly hollowed, loin strong and wide; tail and mane very heavy and 

 long. The legs and hoofs are well- formed and strong, while as a breed, these little creatures 

 possess a wonderful amount of endurance and strength. They are said to perform journeys 

 of forty miles a day, upon the rocky and hilly pathways in their native country. They are 

 generally in color dark sorrel, brown, and black; although sometimes spotted with consider 

 able white. &quot;When bred in a half wild state, they often suffer for want of food, even subsist 

 ing on the coarsest that can be found; such as kelp and sea- weed that are found along the 

 shore. The most perfectly-formed animals of this breed are found in the extreme northern 

 islands of Unst and Tell. 



Though they will sometimes resent injuries by the use of the heels, like the mule, yet 

 when kindly treated and petted, they become very docile, being strongly attached to their 

 masters, and make admirable playmates for children, as will be seen by the following respect 

 ing them from the London Field : 



&quot; The ponies are not an agricultural, but a domestic necessity. In Shetland, as in parts 

 of Ireland, every family depends for its supply of fuel on peat; and as the peat is seldom 



