LIVE STOCK. 565 



111 my journey from Antwerp to Rotterdam by diligence, it is 

 hardly possible to praise the horses too much for their beauty, 

 speed, and equipments. 



The French work horses are admirable, and surprised me by 

 their excellence. I refer particularly to a breed called the 

 Picheron, bred in the interior of Prance, and used in the dili 

 gences and the omnibuses in Paris. The horses generally 

 employed in these cases are unaltered, which clearly does not 

 improve their temper or manners ; they are rather under than 

 over size ; they are not groomed with much nicety, nor har 

 nessed with any show ; they are, however, kept in good condi 

 tion, and almost exclusively for work ; they are small-boned, 

 well filled out, and extremely compact ; their usual travelling 

 gait, according to my experience, with immense loads, is from 

 six to seven miles an hour ; in the mail coaches in France, the 

 rate of travelling is ten to twelve miles an hour ; and nowhere 

 are there more punctuality and despatch. The Flemish cart 

 horse, and the breed of French horses to which I have referred, 

 would, in my opinion, prove a most valuable acquisition to the 

 United States. The Flemish horse is slow in his movements ; 

 the French horse extremely active and vigorous : their ordinary 

 height is fifteen and a half hands. 



The mode of keeping horses differs much in different places. 

 They are almost universally soiled in summer upon green food, 

 either clover, vetches, or lucern. I have already mentioned 

 the case of a large contractor for conveying the mails, who was 

 accustomed, besides straw and hay, to give rye bread in certain 

 quantities, whenever the price of oats or other forage or proven 

 der made it upon a fair calculation expedient. For the health 

 of the horses he much approved this food. His stock exceeded 

 four hundred horses ; oats are almost always deemed an expen 

 sive article ; but the best farmers recommend to give them in 

 the straw cut up. Carrots are much valued in Flanders for 

 horses; and considerable quantities of beans are grown in France 

 for horses, and given in a bruised or half-ground form. The 

 Flemish give their horses what is called a white drink, that is, 

 water mixed with some portion of rye or buckwheat meal : and 

 sometimes oil-cake is dissolved in it. 



In some parts of Flanders, the allowance for a horse is in 

 winter fifteen pounds of hay, ten pounds of straw, and seven 

 VOL. ii. 48 



