THE PONIES OF CONNEMARA. 339 



inches ; length from elbow, 34 inches ; and from hock, 22 inches ; girth, 60 

 inches ; and circumference below knee, yyi inches. 



In measurmg 1 1 inches from eye to nostril, and 34 inches from elbow to 

 ground, and in having a girth of only 60 inches, the Cashel type departs 

 decidedly from the pony standard, and in having fairly high withers — a 

 result of a large head, and not of a greater obliquity of the shoulders — they 

 are unlike typical Eastern ponies. At the present moment a considerable 

 proportion of the Connemara ponies are the offspring of the old Cashel 

 stalhon. When at his best he seems to have been noted for his strength, 

 speed, and great staying power, and for his impressiveness as a sire. Of his 

 direct descendants I only heard of two stallions of any note ; but both, like 

 their aged sire, are past their best. 



Were enquiry made it might be found that there are a considerable 

 number of mares belonging to this section of the Connemara ponies. Care- 

 fully selected mares built on the Cashel lines would, I beHeve, produce 

 excellent stock if put to a good Arab. One of the great advantages 

 of the Connemara ponies is that they have not suffered from in-and-m 

 breeding, hence — unless they happen to be naturally prepotent — they 

 readily assimilate the more marked points of other breeds. Mares ouilt on 

 the lines of the yellow-dun would probably produce excellent stock to a not 

 over-potent Arab, or a stout, short-legged, hardy-reared seven-eighths 

 thoroughbred. 



4. — The Clydesdale Type. 



In a run through Connemara one sees at rare intervals stout, cob-lilce 

 ponies that seem to combine the characters of a deer-stalker's pony and of 

 the now all but lost Douglas breed of horses — p'nies capable of carrying 

 heavy loads, and when occasion requires covering great distances at a fair 

 speed. 



One of these ponies is represented in Fig. 11, a second and a better 

 stallion I saw in the Joyce country, and a third in Clifden. They are said 

 to inherit their strong limbs, great girth, and powerful loins from Clydesdale 

 sires introduced thirty or forty years ago. This explanation is supported 

 by the wealth of hair at the fetlocks, by the small head, and by the offspring 

 varying considerably — sometimes presenting gaudy colours — e.g., a white 

 bald face, such as one frequently sees in even fashionably-bred Clydes- 

 dales. 



All the three seen were black, or nearly black, and of about the same size. 

 One of them measures 14 hands, and has a girth of 70 J^ inches. The 

 head is small (20)^ inches), with relatively short ears (6 inches). The 

 length from the elbow to the ground is 35 inches; from the hock to the 

 ground, '22}^ inches ; the circumference below the knee is 8 inches. 



As two of the three cob-like stallions have been at stud for some years 

 (one in the Clifden district, the other in the Joyce country), they have, 

 doubtless, like the old Cashel horse, helped to considerably influence the 

 character of the Connemara ponies. 



