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thereof, but also that great and good plenty of the same, were in |)arts 

 beyond the sea, Avhich formerly were wont to be within this land; 

 whereby the price of Horses was greatly enhanced here, to the loss and 

 annoyance of all the king's subjects, within the same. The remedies 

 for this, prescribed by the act, were — that no Horse should be trans- 

 ported out of the kingdom upon pain of forfeiture of the same. Nor 

 any mare of the value of six shillings and eight-pence, without the 

 king's special license, nor any mare under such special license, of the 

 age of three yeai's, without paying of the king's custom of six shillings 

 and eight-})ence: and by another clause it was enacted, that if any 

 person will give for any of the mares so to be transported, seven shillings 

 each, it shall be lawful for him to take away the said mares for his own 

 use, if they had not been taken before by the king's (officer, nor the 

 king's license first obtained; it being lawful, notwithstanding, for any 

 <lenizen to transport Horses abroad for his own use, he making oath at 

 the time of shipping, that such Horses are not intended for sale. 



A curious entry in the Journals of the House of Lords, in the sub- 

 sequent reign, demonstrates how earnestly they were engaged in the 

 project of improving the English breed of Horses to a larger size. 

 *' June 15th, 1540. IJocIie tandem Iccta estbilla educafioni eqiiorum pio- 

 cei'ioris statitrcE, Sj- communi omnium consensu, nemine discreppante, e.vpe- 

 dita." At length the bill is read this day, for encouraging the breed of 

 Horses of a larger stature, and dispatched with unanimous consent, and 

 without a dissentient voice. 



The first law of Henry VIII. on this subject, directed that every 

 brood-mare should be at least fourteen hands iiigh, and the magistrates, 

 to whose care the execution of this law was entrusted, were empowered 

 to scour the wastes and commons at TMicliaelmas tide, and to put to 

 death all stallions below the act of Parliament standard, and all mares 

 of insulTicient size to breed good foals. This invasion of mens' right in 

 the direction of their own pro[)er concerns, which can be defended 

 only on the ground of the mutual ignorance of both the governors and 

 the governed, was followed by others, some of which appear even 

 Judicrous to modern apprehension. 



N 2 Regulations 



