184 THE HORSE IN AMERICA 



Smetanka out of a Thoroughbred English mare. 

 Now all the Orlofs must descend from Smetanka 

 and Barrs through the three stallions named. 

 This mixture was crossed and recrossed until it 

 became homogeneous, and so the Russian noble 

 had created a type. 



In 1772 he had in his stud the following horses : 



Arab 12 stallions and 10 mares 



Persian 3 " " 2 " 



English 20 " " 32 " 



Dutch 1 " " 8 " 



Mecklenberg 1 " "5 " 



Danish 1 " "3 " 



Miscellaneous 9 " " 17 " 



He developed his type before his death in 1810, 

 and his widow kept up the same method of 

 breeding until 1845, when she sold the horses to 

 the Russian government. These horses have been 

 of vast service in Russia, where even in the 

 eighteenth century the steppes were filled with 

 wild, scrubby but hardy little horses to such an 

 extent that even the poorest peasant could own 

 one or two. The Orlofs have done much to 

 improve these steppe ponies and it is upon them 



