100 THE HORSE. 



" The fore-limbs," says Mr. Percivall, " perform one 

 office in progression, the hind-limbs another. While the 

 latter are exerting themselves, after the manner of two 

 powerful levers, to propel the animal machine onward, 

 the former have little else to do but, while they are 

 keeping pace with the hind-hmbs, to caiTy the fore 

 parts of the body, together with the head and neck, in 

 their elevated position — support them, lest they fall to 

 the gi-ound." The slightest attention will enable a 

 practical obsei-ver to see that the spring in the leap is 

 always made from the hind-legs, and that too even 

 after the fore-quarters have been raised from the ground. 

 Hence the absolute necessity of power in this locality. 

 Still the fore-legs require to be strong also, for the 

 purpose of receiving the weight of the horse, with his 

 rider, when lighting on the off-side of the fence. A 

 horse whose fore and hind-quarters are both good 

 loses veiy little time by dwelling on his leap. The 

 steeple-chaser of this description has a veiy great ad- 

 vantage. If he comes to a head-and-head contest, at 

 the last fence, with one who is defective in the corres- 

 ponding pomts, he is quite sure to win. He loses so 

 little time at his leap that he will gain nearly a length 

 on his adversary before reaching the winning-post. 

 The horse which requires to dwell on his leap, or in 

 other words, which requu-es a length of time to gather 

 in his hind-legs after he has got over his fence, before 

 starting in the new, allows an advantage to his op- 



