Hackneys 41 



limelight ". Perhaps there never was such an opportune time for 

 the successful floating of such an important enterprise. Never in 

 the history of the breed had there been so many good horses astir, 

 and their whereabouts were made known to the general public by 

 means of the large classes seen at the important shows which were 

 springing up all over the country. In a word, the time was ripe. 



The popularity of the Hackney did not all tend to his benefit. 

 It was perhaps a good thing that the Yorkshire and Norfolk 

 types should be merged in one, which to a considerable extent 

 followed on the issue of the Stud Book, though whether it was 

 altogether due to it is matter of controversy. One notable in- 

 stance of this combination of blood occurs to the memory — Mr. 

 Henry Moore's Rufus, a horse of great style and character, that 

 was champion in 1889 and 1890, and that died all too soon. 



There is no doubt that one thing which made the Hackney 

 popular with the public was his stylish action — his high stepping; 

 and the result of this is not altogether satisfactory. It came to 

 pass that if not everything, at any rate many very important things, 

 were sacrificed to the snap of the knee. It mattered not whether 

 a horse used his shoulders and hocks sufficiently so long as his 

 knee action appealed to shouting crowds. It became a fashion, 

 too, to regard the Hackney as the fashionable harness horse, and to 

 make him fill this role properly his height must be increased — he 

 must be bred up to 16 hands i in. or 16 hands 2 in. This was 

 attempted and to a certain extent it succeeded, but at what a price! 

 The old type was to a considerable extent lost; horses began to 

 throw their legs about and " weave ", and upright joints and other 

 faults began to multiply. The council of the Hackney Horse 

 Society, wisely realizing that many of the evils which were appear- 

 ing were due to heavy shoeing, restricted the weight of the shoes, 

 and further restriction in this direction would be beneficial. 



The council has also restored to its London show the riding 

 classes, and though these were the subject of much hostile criticism, 

 it is to be hoped they will not be dropped, for it is as the dual- 

 purpose horse that the Hackney seems to have a bright future. 

 The coming of the motor car has done much to weaken the position 

 of the "fashionable" harness horse. 



It should be mentioned that the showing of harness horses is 

 increasing, and may perhaps develop into a sport if the enthusiasm 

 which is manifested at Olympia is to last, so that here is a way for 

 the high-class harness horse. But the breeder of Hackneys who is 

 strange to the details of Hackney breeding will have to find a 

 market for those horses which do not come up to the first-class 



