36 



liable to this impediment both in trotting and 

 walking. Too wide a bosom, if you look at 

 a horse in front, will have a semicircular ap- 

 pearance at top. Such a bosom will do well 

 enough for a draught horse, or such a one as 

 is not required to have much speed. The best 

 bosom for a saddle horse is that which is nei- 

 ther too wide nor too narrovv^. We have de- 

 scribed the consequences of the wide bosom 

 above, and the consequences of the too nar- 

 row will be that the animal will scald there, be 

 weak, and if he does not stand very fair on his 

 feet and legs, he will cut severely before 

 at the fetlocks, perhaps trip and come down : 

 the bosom, therefore, ought to be in a medium 

 between the two already described. Above, it 

 ought to have the appearance of a Gothic 

 arch, narrowing gradually towards the top. 

 Provided a horse stands very straight on his 

 limbs, with his toes pointed right forward, the 

 narrowness of the chest is not of so much con- 

 sequence; but if this be not the case, or that 

 he point his toes out, it then becomes a seri- 

 ous detriment to him. 



