354 THE ADVENTURES OF A GENTLEMAN 



rience, that what may be called, for lack of a better 

 term, the moral qualities of a horse, are acquired 

 by inheritance, such as spirit, activity, and docility. 

 There appears to be no satisfactory reason why the 

 same principle should not obtain as respects their 

 physical vigor ; especially, when we also find that 

 good action and speed are almost always the gift of 

 birth. 



I have alluded to the case of chest-founder. I 

 find this mentioned in the case of Atterbury v. 

 Fairmaner, 8 Moore, 32 ; and it appears, that in 

 that case it was the only unsoundness upon which 

 the plaintiff relied ; he obtained a verdict, and the 

 defendant moved for a new trial, on the ground 

 that there was no such disease. In support of this 

 motion he produced an aflidavit of a veterinary 

 surgeon, who was stated to be " most experienced," 

 to prove that no such disease was known. I appre- 

 hend, that the "experience" of this gentleman 

 would have been doubted at the Veterinary Col- 

 lege. The case however, deserves attention, because 

 the defendant's complaint that he was taken by sur- 

 prise, was answered by an intimation, that he might 

 have acquired a knowledge of the unsoundness on 



