Sec. 8.] 



HORSES— EUGLISn BREEDS. 



99 



our several State agricultural societies as to how far back and to what stock 

 the pedigree of a horse should go to make hiiu eligible to a prize as a '' thor- 

 ough-bred.*' 



131. English liuntcrSi — This is a term given to a breed of English horses 

 whicli are higii up in thorough-bred blood, with a strain of other blood 

 possessing great powers of endurance. Tlie head of a liunter of perfect lonu 

 is small ; his neck tJiin, jiarticularly below; a firm and arched crest; jaws 

 wide, and very liglit on tlie bit. 



132. All English Coach-Horse. — Tlie type of this variety is the " Cleveland 

 Bay," some of wliicli have been ini[)orted into this country, and have left 

 tlieir mark upon the finest coach-liorses we have iu the United States — such 

 as are to be found more abundantly in Central New York, than in any otiier 

 locality. 



133. English RoadsterSi — Tlie term more common for tliis class in En- 

 gland is '• Hackney"— a term seldom lieard in this country, and if heard, 

 would be more likely to be understood as meaning a " haek-liorse."' The 

 nearest type of a hackney that we have, as a distinct breed, is the Morgan horse. 



Youatt says: " A hackney is a linnter in miniature. His liight should 

 rarely exceed fifteen hands and an inch. He will be sufficiently strong and 

 more pleasant for general work below that standard. He should be of a 

 more compact form than the hunter, of more bulk according to his hight. 

 Tt is of essential consequence that the bones beneatli the knee should be 

 deep and flat, and the tendon not tied in. The pastern should be slK>rt, and 

 less oblicpie or slanting than tliat of the hunter or race-horse. The foot 

 should be of a size corresponding with the bulk of the animal — neither toe 

 hollow nor too flat, and open at the heels. The forelegs should be perfectly 

 straight; for a horse with his knees bent will, from a slight cause, and espe- 

 cially if overweighted, come down. The back should be straight and short, 

 yet siirticicntly long to leave comfortable room for the saddle between the 

 shoulders and the luck without pressing upon either. Some j>eisons prefer 

 a hollow-backed horse. It is generally an easy one to go. It will canter 

 well with a lady, but it will not caiTV a heavy weight, or stand much liard 

 work. The road-horse should be high iu the forehead, round in the barrel, 

 and deep in the chest." 



134. The Eii.!;lish Dray-Horse. — There is a variety of horses known as the 

 druy-horse, or more generally in this country as the English cart-horse; a 

 very licavy, 6trong, slow-gaited horse, originated by a cross of the Flanders 

 or Norman horse witli the Suffolk Punch, a sorrel horse of fifteen or sixteen 

 hands high, with low, rounded shoulders ; thick on tlie top ; low back ; 

 deep, round chest; long back; high croup; large, strong quarters; full 

 flanks ; round legs, and short pasterns. This is a good descri]itIon of a 

 strong work-horse. ^\'e have something like it, though rather increased in 

 size, in the Pennsylvania wagon-horse. 



135. Mor!;an Horses. — Tlie most distinct strain of American horses — in 

 fact, the only one which assumes the character of a race — is that now widely 



