14 CHAPTER 1. 



22. Walls and foundations. 



The material used in building will of course depend on the cost in the 

 particular locality. If the maintenance of an even temperature be an 

 object, the walls ought to be thick, and they may also be plastered on 

 the inside. But, except for such special purpose, nothing answers so 

 well for the inside of the stable as glazed bricks of any neutral tint. If 

 they cannot be procured, the inside walls should be well pointed and 

 neutral-tint washed. 



A stable such as that shown in plan G, where the horses stand in 

 double line with a broad passage down the centre, will need walls of 

 fourteen inches thick, if built in brick, on account of the rather wide 

 span and consequent weight of the roof. But single line stables on a 

 similar plan will not require more than a nine-inch wall. 



The foundations should be laid on slates, or on two courses of hard 

 bricks set in cement, or in asphalte in order to prevent the damp from 

 rising by capillary attraction. New stables should be well and thoroughly 

 aired and dried before they are inhabited. 



23. Light. 



Ventilation, paving, drainage and sufficient cubical space, such as 

 recommended above, will render it possible to obtain almost perfect 

 purity of air both by day and night. But light and the supervision of 

 the owner are likewise necessary in order to ensure cleanliness, and the 

 best stable management. 



Windows, such as those described, will undoubtedly give more light 

 than is found in most stables, and probably sufficient for the mainten- 

 ance of the health of the eyes. But the best light for the purpose of 

 supervision is that introduced vertically from the roof. It shows the 

 sides and corners of the stable, and enables the cleanliness or otherwise 

 of every part to be seen at once. In unceiled stables, a row of glass 

 " slates " can be introduced without expense in the original construction 

 of the roof ; and if placed on the north side will not cause an undue 

 glare. Skylights in other aspects are open to the objection, that during 

 certain hours of the day, especially during summer, they cause an undue 

 glare, and the rays of the sun fall directly on the bodies of the horses. 

 This may be rectified by white-washing the glass. Details as regards 

 various sorts of windows will be given under the head of Stable Fittings, 

 Chapter III. 



24. Open fireplaces. 



The horse in a state of nature attains his highest physical development 

 in a warm dry climate, as in Arabia. In cold climates, in Shetland for 

 instance, the breed dwindles down to a pony. In wet and moderately 



