THE SELECTION OF A HORSE 9 



and a feeling of confidence — trust, as a rule to first 

 impressions — have him examined by a first-class 

 veterinary, and bu}^ him if passed sound. Prefer a 

 horse whose legs darken in colour towards the hoofs. 



To sum up ; the points of a hunter are : sloping 

 shoulders and vertical arm ; slightly sloping croup, 

 a long thigh, forming a well-let-down pear-shaped 

 quarter, joining the leg near the hock ; a leg, with 

 length from hip to hock, and a cannon bone of moderate 

 length. These are also the points of a long-distance 

 flat racer, except that the croup should be horizontal. 

 It is length of thigh that enables a horse to gallop well 

 through dirt. Hunters with horizontal croups should 

 not be heavily weighted, and should be galloped at 

 their fences ; horses with sloping croups are better for 

 carrying weight and for standing leaps, as the muscles 

 which help a horse to rear up are especially well 

 attached in their case, but in both cases the thighs 

 should be long. 



A perfect-shaped hunter is hard to find and an 

 expensive article, and in order to mount himself well 

 and economically, a man must have a knowledge of 

 compensation ; he must know where to look for extra 

 strength, should any one part of a horse be defective 

 and weak ; e.g. weak fore legs do not so much matter 

 if the horse has good sloping shoulders, a well-placed 

 arm, and strong loins and hocks. Again, well-sprung 

 ribs compensate somewhat for short back ribs. To 

 jump height, a horse raises the point of the shoulder 

 and the knees, and the distance he can raise them 

 depends upon the slope of the shoulders ; consequently, 

 for show jumping a well laid back shoulder combined 

 with fore legs placed well forward, a muscular arm and 

 strong elbow, are essential. In a cramped plough 



