312 Gait of the American Trotter and Pacer 



the gaits seem to come more easily to them, and the speed, though 

 greater, is not any more exhausting or detrimental to their vitality. 

 This whole investigation, with its method of getting at the locomotion 

 of the horse, is in line with the endeavor to transmit by heredity such 

 an acquired trait as a square gait. Unless we assume it to be true 

 that qualities acquired during the lifetime of an individual are stamped, 

 In a greater or lesser degree, upon the offspring, all breeders would 

 become rather despondent in their efforts. All mankind, in fact, would 

 despair of a better state of affairs in this world years hence. Lately 

 as eminent an investigator as Luther Burbank, our own wizard of plant 

 life, has voiced his opinion on the heredity of acquired qualities, be- 

 lieving with Dr. William Darwin, son of the great scientist and origi- 

 nator of the theory of evolution, that such may be transmitted. It is 

 intended, I believe, to. convey the impression that such qualities will 

 not appear as fully developed ones, but rather in the form of an apti- 

 tude, which under proper direction and training will show a more 

 natural inclination by reason of such transmission. This latent fitness 

 for the trot or the pace may therefore be assumed to be the result of 

 development in both parents. The gait of the trot is even more of an 

 acquired quality than that of the pace. We have had guideless pacers, 

 but not yet a guideless trotter ; and yet, the trotter driven with loose lines 

 seems to indicate that such evolution, even in so short a time, has per- 

 fected the motions of the trot through successive training and by the 

 mating of developed individuals. 



In view of such intelligent and progressive development of our 

 harness horse, one can hardly agree with the opinion of a recent writer 

 who takes the stand that a horse, in general, is an unreasoning coward 

 that should be thoroughly deceived and intimidated in order to make 

 of him a tolerably safe servant of man. It was there argued that we 

 attribute imaginary qualities to the horse, which he does not possess. 

 The only trait that he is credited with is his home instinct. He has 

 no courage, no faithfulness, no willingness to serve, but has only the 

 sense of fear largely developed. We are advised to work on his fear 

 so as to remain masters ; otherwise we shall be bullied or even injured. 

 It seems to me that such a view, if it were true, would widely en- 



