130 THE BREEDS OF LIVE-STOCK 



are identical, and the old name of " single-foot " was an 

 aptly descriptive term. The feet hit the ground in suc- 

 cession, one at a time. It is the flashiest and most attrac- 

 tive gait a horse can go, and while tiring to the horse, there 

 is no gait more delightful to the rider. 



146. Use as a cavalry horse. In both the Civil and 

 Spanish- American wars the American Saddle horse has 

 been put to the test, and in both cases the testimony has 

 been to his unsurpassed excellence as a cavalry horse. His 

 endurance, combined with his smooth, fast walk, enable 

 him to stand the hard strains with the minimum of fatigue 

 to himself and his rider. He is reliable on the field and 

 quick to adapt himself to the maneuvers. 



147. Use as a commercial horse. The same qualities 

 that adapt the American Saddle horse for cavalry pur- 

 poses make him valuable commercially wherever horses 

 are kept under the saddle. His winnings in the show-ring 

 attest his popularity. In the ten years, 1896-1905, at the 

 national horse-show in Madison Square Garden, New York 

 City, the American Saddle horse won twelve out of a total 

 of eighteen championships open to all breeds of horses that 

 wear the saddle. His show-ring winnings add to his com- 

 mercial value. Within a recent year, the following sales 

 were made : The Moor, a three-year-old stallion, was sold 

 for $7500; Tattersall and Mate, a pair of geldings, sold 

 for $6000 ; Eugenia and Magna, a pair of mares, brought 

 $5000; American Girl, a four-year-old mare, sold for 

 $5000. Prices up to $1000 for a single horse are not 

 uncommon. 



148. Use as a gaited horse. The demand for gaited 

 horses is met by members of this breed. Saddle horses of 

 other breeds do the three natural gaits, the walk-trot and 

 canter. The American Saddle horse is distinctive in that 



