HUNTER 



blood-horse, and, as a consequence, fail to be up to the weight 

 which they often are required to carry ; and hence the surprise 

 which so many people feel that the hunter breeders of this 

 country should be contented to keep on indulging in the 

 lottery of breeding half-bred horses, when it is within their 

 power, if they so choose, to establish a breed of hunters which 

 are capable of reproducing their own good points in their 

 stock. It is true that there is a feeling abroad in some 

 quarters in favour of the so-called hunter sire, this being a 

 horse that comes of hunter stock on the dam's side and by 

 a thoroughbred sire, but this class of animal, no matter how 

 good-looking he may happen to be, is not generally favoured 

 by British breeders, though foreigners may display their 

 wisdom by purchasing the best specimens which are not 

 wanted in this country. 



There can, however, be no two opinions expressed as 

 regards the merits of a thoroughbred as a light-weight hunter, 

 and happily for hundreds of hunting men there is not so 

 very much difficulty in supplying themselves with mounts ; 

 but it becomes a totally different matter when a welter 

 weight has to fill his stable. There is no more valuable 

 horse in the world, with the exception, of course, of a high- 

 class race-horse or possibly a harness animal of exceptional 

 action, than a heavy-weight hunter, and he is every bit as 

 hard to find. No doubt it is easy enough to breed a horse 

 up to any weight, but an ability to carry a heavy man is 

 not the limit of what is required of a hunter by any means. 

 In addition to power, he must possess speed and stamina, 

 cleverness to help him and his rider out of a difficulty, and 

 a heart to carry him through a long day ; and the last- 

 mentioned attribute is just what the heavy-weights with cart 

 blood in them are not likely to possess. The fact, however, that 

 some exceptionally good heavy-weight hunters have come 

 out of cart mares by thoroughbred horses encourages farmers 

 to keep on breeding on these lines, in the hopes that they 

 may, by some fortunate accident, succeed in breeding a 

 horse which will be worth several hundred pounds ; but it is 



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