2i8 THE ARMY HORSE. 



three years old. His growth is incomplete, his body slender, 

 he is soft, and he ought not to be worked. He approaches 

 his full height, puts on muscle, and becomes capable of 

 moderate work only when he is rising four, or is four off ; and 

 we then find him in the hands of the dealer, fat, glossy, and 

 ready for the purchaser who is in no hurry and who does not 

 want much from him. The same remarks may be made about 

 the commercial horse, who differs from the fashionable one 

 only as regards price. 



The three-year-old remount is of no value. He is generally 

 fat, at from three to four years old, when he is shown to the 

 purchasing officer. A few feeds of oats at the last moment, 

 the whip, and ginger, give him an appearance of strength \ 

 but in reality his muscles are weak, and he has neither good 

 paces nor staying power. Left to himself he gives v/ay, goes 

 on his shoulders, and is not fit for any kind of work. 



Such are the horses which are nearly of the same breed. 

 Some are fully furnished at three years of age, and can stand 

 training and racing, which are the hardest kind of work. 

 Others at four-and-a-half years old are hardly ready for even 

 very moderate work. It is therefore necessary to take great 

 care of them, to let them acquire strength, and to give them 

 the muscular development of which they are deficient. 



Whence comes this difference ? Does Nature make some 

 more precocious than others, all being of the same origin ? Is 

 a horse's muscular development in inverse proportion to his 

 good looks and speed ? In no way ! This great difference 

 results solely from the method employed in feeding and 

 educating different classes of horses. If a uniform system 

 were used, all would have similar precocity, development, and 

 power. Horses differ in shape, action, and usefulness, but if 

 they were all treated properly up to the age of three years, 

 they would all be sufficiently hardy for any kind of work. 

 The half-bred trotter which is trained and run at three vears 



