THE HORSE ^ 1085 



to the Barbs, which take their name from their native region, Barbary, it may be 

 premised that the generality of African horses are distinguished from those of Asia 



by their long limbs and small girth at the loins, thus resembling the 

 Barbs and r , 



Arabs other breeds. They display great powers of enduring hun- 



ger and thirst, and are fleet, with a high and graceful action. The 

 Barb comes nearest to this general African type, but displays some variation owing 

 to a crossing with other breeds. L,ow says that ' ' these horses are about fourteen 

 and one-half hands high. They are sufficiently deep at the girth, but tucked up 

 in the belly, giving that peculiar greyhound aspect which is characteristic of this 

 race. Their necks are long and well formed, their heads moderately fine, the chaf- 

 ron tending to the convex; their shoulders are oblique, and the withers thin and 

 well raised. Their limbs, though thin and delicate, are sinewy; their pasterns are 

 oblique, and the feet well formed. They are gentle and full of spirit; they are some- 

 what careless in their paces, but distinguished by their graceful action. As com- 

 pared with the Arabians, they are more swift, but less enduring." 



The Arab horse is strictly a product of the country from which it 

 takes its name; and the breed appears to have been derived from horses 

 introduced into Arabia from the Caucasus or Asia Minor somewhere about the 

 Christian era. They resemble in many respects the horses of these regions, "but," 

 writes L,ow, "inhabiting a very dry and arid region, their characteristics have be- 

 come adapted to these conditions of climate and food. They are more compact than 

 the horses of Barbary, having a rounder body, shorter limbs, with more of sinew, 

 or what is termed bone. Yet they are of the smaller class of horses, very little ex- 

 ceeding, on a medium, fourteen hands, or fifty-six inches in height. As compared 

 with the horses of countries abounding in the grasses, their aspect is lean, their 

 form slender, and their chest narrow. But the slimness of figure of these horses is 

 not inconsistent with muscular force; and their movements are agile, their natural 

 paces swift, and their spirit is unmatched. The power of their delicate limbs is 

 indicated by the well-marked muscles of the fore-arm, and the starting sinews of the 

 leg.* The shoulder is sufficiently oblique; the withers are elevated; the back is mod- 

 erately short; and the quarters are good. The head is well formed; the forehead is 

 broad; the ears are somewhat long, but alert; the eyes full and clear; the veins 

 prominent the whole rather indicating a happy union of gentleness and spirit, 

 than the fiery temper which is commonly associated with the desert horse." 

 Although not remarkable for great speed, the Arab is pre-eminent for its endurance, 

 hardy constitution, and the scanty fare on which it can exist. On a cold morning 

 in Northern India, when the horses have been picketed round the camp during the 

 night, the Arabs will be found with their coats as sleek as if they had just come 

 from a warm stable, while those of other breeds will be all awry. In their native 

 home Arab horses will subsist on the scanty herbage found here and there in the 

 desert, and, in the absence of these, on a little barley, chopped straw, dates, and, in 

 extreme cases, camel's milk. They drink only at long intervals, and then but 

 scantily; while their pow r er of making long marches under a scorching sun is un- 

 rivaled. The affection with which the Arab treats his horse is too well known to 

 need comment. 



