20 Breeds of Horses 



Suffolks 



By EDWARD C. ASH, M.R.A.C. 



{Plaits, facint: pp. 32, 33) 



Suffolk, although only a small county, has nevertheless four 

 distinct breeds of live stock — Suffolk horses, Red Poll cattle, 

 Suffolk sheep, and large pigs. 



The Suffolk Punch is a breed of cart horses, whose home is the 

 eastern portion of the county — handsome chestnuts, which differ 

 only in the shade of their colouring; some may be light, a golden 

 chestnut, whilst others are of a red or bronze shade, but nevei 

 does any other colour make an appearance. Certain lines of blood 

 show a few silver hairs interspersed amongst the chestnut, and this 

 has been a noticeable character in some of the most famous horses. 

 But as long as the Suffolk is of a true chestnut it matters little 

 what the exact shade may be. At the present day red chestnuts 

 with tails and manes to match seem to be in the greatest demand, 

 and on the whole, as the richer and darker colours are thought to 

 bespeak finer constitutions, they are preferred to the lighter. But 

 with colour, as with everything else, fashion varies. A few Suffolks 

 have lighter-coloured manes and tails, and are considered by some 

 to be the type of the early breed. 



The shape of the Suffolk is so characteristic that, even if it were 

 not for its colour, it could not be easily mistaken for any other 

 British breed of cart horses. It has a thickset body of great depth, 

 measuring some 8 or 9 ft. behind the shoulders, with strong, mus- 

 cular neck and moderately-short legs. It is by no means a large 

 animal — a horse standing 15I to 16 hands is somewhere about 

 the average. 



The Suffolk has none of the " feather " so much prized by Shire 

 and Clydesdale enthusiasts, and the absence of this adornment, 

 coupled with the fine quality of the hair on the Suffolk's legs, 

 somewhat gives the impression that their limbs are hardly strong 

 enough to bear the weight of the body. But " things are not what 

 they seem ", and particularly not always as they look ; and more- 

 over, it is well to remember that the real proof lies in what the 

 result may be. It is perhaps unkind to wonder what some of these 

 Shire horses would be like if their muff and thick hair were moved 

 and fine hair substituted. 



The origin of the Suffolk is shrouded in mystery, and it is 

 through the painstaking and remarkable work of Mr. Herman 

 Biddell that the history of the Suffolk horse from about 1750 has 



