Food. 313 



amount of the Saccharine matter they contain, and this circumstance 

 might be turned to good account in the choice of the artificial grasseg. 



I deem it unnecessary to give any directions respecting the choice 

 of li&y, or to say any thing on the subject of the quantity necessary 

 to4>e ^ven to a Horse daily, as this must depend upon a variety of dr- 

 cumstances, such as the age, size, nature of the employment^ and 

 strength of the digestive organs of the individual, as well as of the 

 kind and quantity of other food, which the animal gets. 



During summer, it is a good practice to sprinkle hay with water, 

 before it be given to Horses. Every one knows however, that hay 

 alone, however good in quality, will not enable a Horse to sustain 

 hard labour, and experience has taught people that some other sub- 

 stancCj containing nutriment in a smaller compass than hay or grasir 

 does, must be given to working Horses. 



The article commonly employed for this purpose is that kind of 

 s^ed called oats, which contain a very large proportion of starch, 

 and, are found to answer admirably for enabling Horses to endure 

 the severest labour, and to preserve their condition and vigour. 

 But, I think it admits almost of demonstration, that a saving of at 

 least one fourth, (perhaps I should be safe in saying a third) of the 

 quantity of oats given to Horses, might be effected by submitting 

 them to the action of a machine, called an oat-bruiser, as a consider- 

 able quantity of corn is swallowed by eveiy Horse, which escapes 

 the action of the teeth and, on this account, passes through the 

 animal, without contributing in the smallest degree, to the animal's 

 nourishment. And if this rule holds good in every instance, even 

 where the teeth are perfect, and with such middle-aged Horses as can- 

 not be considered greedy feeders, how much more must it be the ca«c 



4H 



