168 NOTES ON FIELDS AND CATTLE. 



small contracted foot, is to be avoided. In the 

 former respect the Flanders horse is notorious, and it 

 was probably owing to some such defect that William 

 lost his life at Mantes. I have seen a flat-soled horse 

 come down upon his knees as if shot, upon ground 

 where a good-hoofed one might have galloped. There 

 are a number of minor points which you can learn 

 only by practice. As, for instance, in the horse the 

 foreleg should have the arm from elbow-point to just 

 below the knee, P, about double the length of the 

 cannon-bone, P Q — bone from knee to fetlock. This 

 enables him to take a longer stride, to cover more 

 ground in his gallop than he could with arm and 

 cannon-bone more nearly equal. A line drawn 

 through his hip-bone perpendicular to the ground, 

 should pass through the toe of the hind foot as he 

 stands at ease with it forward naturally under him. 

 He will then have sufficient power and reach in his 

 stride, provided the thigh, &c, be fairly developed. 

 His head should be put on the neck just beginning 

 to droop, as the stem of ripe corn. This is essential 

 to a good mouth. The more true the plane-triangu- 

 lar formation of his front is, the safer will he be on 

 his feet. When a spherical triangle might better 

 represent his front view, thus, /"\ he is said 

 to be loaded at the shoulder- / \ point, and 

 is usually unsafe on his feet. 



Most horses fail, as regards appearance, in having 

 their quarters too short, their tail too low, or their 

 necks set on badly. To ensure a lovely head, in 

 addition to a small muzzle, small pricked lively ears, 

 broad forehead, and full eye, the frontal bone from 



