8 < Breeds of Horses 



of Dunmore Prince Charlie (634), which was wellnigh invincible, 

 and several daughters of the fine old show mare London Maggie 

 (84). Colts out of selected Shire mares, and bred by Mr. Drew at 

 Merryton, were frequently in the first place at the leading shows. 

 These were characterized by great substance, and always carried 

 plenty feather. An outstanding characteristic in all, however, was 

 action. The old horse himself was a specially gay mover, and his 

 stock, as a rule, inherited this property. So successful had Prince 

 of Wales {62 T)) become, that for several years up to 1884 his terms 

 to the public were ^^40 at service. At the Merryton dispersion 

 sale on 17th April, 1884, he passed into the hands of Mr. David 

 Riddell at 900 gs., being then eighteen years old. He lived until 

 the close of 1888, when he died after two most successful seasons' 

 work in the Rhins of Galloway. Much dispute has been waged 

 regarding the breeding of this very remarkable horse. His sire was 

 General (322), and his dam Darling, by Samson a/ias Logan's 

 Twin (741). Both sire and dam were first-prize winners at the 

 Highland and Agricultural Society's show at Inverness in 1865, 

 where they were mated, and the produce was Prince of Wales (673) 

 in 1866. The dams of both General and Darling were grey mares, 

 and came from south of the Border. The opinion of the writer of 

 this article, based on evidence which he has elsewhere detailed, is 

 that the sire of the dam of General (322) was Merry Tom (532), 

 and the sire of the dam of Darling may have been Blyth (79). 

 Others say they were English, that is Shire mares. They certainly 

 were English in respect that they came from south of the Solway 

 to Dumfries market, where they were bought by a West of Scotland 

 dealer. That they were Shires there is no proof. 



Darnley (222) up to his death was the most successful breeding 

 stallion known in Clydesdale history. He was a less showy horse 

 than Prince of Wales (673), and there is no doubt as to the Clydes- 

 dale or old Lanarkshire origin of all the lines in his pedigree but 

 one. His sire Conqueror (199) was a son of Lochfergus Champion 

 (449), and his dam was Keir Peggy (187), a daughter of Samson 

 (741), while her dam was a daughter of Farmer's Fancy (298). 

 The one unknown strain in Darnley 's ancestry is the grand dam of 

 Samson (741). She was a chestnut mare, bought in Falkirk tryst 

 by Mr. Jack, Balcunnock, Campsie, and nothing is known of her 

 breeding. Darnley was bred at Keir, Dunblane, by Sir William 

 Stirling Maxwell, Bart., and from 1875, when he was three years 

 old, until the autumn of 1886, when he died, he was owned by 

 Mr. David Riddell. He won the highest honours both of the 

 Highland and Agricultural Society in 1877, 1878, and 1884, and 



