PONIES AND PONY-BREEDING 163 



upon a pony which may be all he is described as regards looks, but which, 

 on the other hand, may be full of most undesirable blood. In the case of 

 mares it is a different matter. A beginner would be unfortunate indeed 

 if all his investments in foundation stock turned out worthless; but it 

 may be remembered that each mare stands or falls to a certain extent upon 

 her own merits, whereas a sire possessing a bar sinister in his j)edigree 

 is liable to injure the produce of every mare he serves, in fact there is 

 no limit at all to the mischief such a horse may create in a stud. 



Eegarding the native breeds of ponies which have existed — or in some 

 cases still exist in a more or less modified form — in certain parts of the 

 kingdom, it may be said that the efforts that have been made to rescue 

 them from extinction have met with fairly satisfactory success, though 

 unhappily great mischief has been accomplished through injudicious crosses. 

 The best-known varieties of pony will now be briefly dealt with, begin- 

 ning with — 



The Dartmoor. — Almost from time immemorial the Dartmoor ponies 

 have been highly thought of, but, like many other kindred breeds, they 

 have suffered to a certain extent by the apathy of those whose first 

 consideration their welfare should have been. The region of Dartmoor 

 embraces an area of some 20,000 acres, the chief portion of which is 

 included in the Duchy of Cornwall, and consequently belongs to H.R.H. 

 the Prince of AVales. The rights of common are let by the Duchy, and 

 there are also some manorial rights of pasturage. At one time it was laid 

 down that no stallion exceeding 12 hands high should be permitted to 

 run on the famous moor, the duty of supervising the Forest and its 

 occupants being relegated to a family of "moormen", who succeeded to 

 the office from generation to generation. Many owners of the ponies, 

 and to their credit be it said, have attempted from time to time to 

 improve the race, the services of a Thoroughbred sire of as diminutive 

 proportions as could possibly be obtained being usually the animal selected 

 for the purpose. There is very little doubt, too, that Ai-abs have been 

 tried as crosses for the Dartmoors, with questionable results, as there has 

 always existed a disbelief in the minds of breeders as to whether the 

 constitution of these sons of the desert would stand the rigours of 

 a winter on the moor, the climate of which at times is most inclement. 

 At the present time many good ponies come from Princetown, being 

 raised by some of the officials connected with the convict establishment 

 which is situated there. Although the breed has become a good deal mixed 

 here and elsewhere by crosses with Exmoor, Pack-horse, and other blood, 

 there are many excellent ponies to be found in the neighbourhood, and 

 enthusiasts believe that by the enterprise of pony-breeders the improved 



