THE PONIES OF CONNEMARA. 345 



plain, which occupies about two-thirds of the total area. The central plain 

 might be described as a huge, shallow, irregular basin, floored with carboni- 

 ferous limestone, and surrounded by an irregular, highly-embossed, moun- 

 tainous rim, wide at some parts, narrow at others, or altogether absent (as 

 at Gal way and between Dundalk and Dublin). 



Connemara forms part of the rim of the great central plain. Reference to 

 a map shows that the outer edge of the Galway section of the rim or fringe 

 is indented by numerous bays and channels, many of them studded with 

 rocks and islands. In the north a long narrow channel (Killary Harbour) 

 separates Galway from Mayo, while on the east two rock-basins (Lough 

 Corrib and Lough Mask) separate the great plain from the most western 

 part of its rim. 



A survey of the interior of Connemara shows, in the north, a remarkable 

 plateau — the table-land of Slieve Partry or " Joyce's Country " — and ledges 

 and terraces, extending from Lough Mask towards Muilrea (2,688 feet high) 

 on the Mayo side of Killary Harbour. Between the Partry table-land and 

 Clifden lie the dome-shaped Twelve Bens or " Pins," which in Benbaun 

 reach an elevation of 2,395 feet. East of the Pins are the Maumturk 

 Mountains. 



Between CHfden and Galway Bay in the south, hills and mountains occur 

 in every direction. Between the mountains are numerous valleys, which 

 sometimes expand into wide moors, often divided into irregular patches by 

 small lakes and streams. Numerous lakelets form the meshes of an intri- 

 cate network to the south of Clifden, and they are also abundant in the 

 vicinity of the deep indentations of the south-western shore. It thus 

 .appears that, in having numerous hills and uplands, well-watered valleys, 

 and wide moors often but little above the sea-level, Connemara provides 

 sufficient space and variety for many wandering herds of horses. 



It is, however, not so much the configuration of the country as the climate 

 that claims consideration. The average w-inter temperature is said to be 

 about the same as that of the south of Europe (44° Fahr.). This high 

 average it owes to the Gulf Stream, which extends into the many bays and 

 channels, and from the warm surface of which, throughout a considerable 

 part of the year, soft moisture-laden breezes penetrate far inland, not only 

 in the direction of Lough Mask and Lough Corrib, but also beyond the 

 " Pins," towards the Partry table-land. The high temperature, together 

 with the moisture, implies that grasses, heaths, and other plants begin to 

 grow early in the Spring, remain fresh and green throughout the Summer, 

 and retain their nutritive properties almost undiminished during the Winter. 

 It is largely for this reason that Connemara has the advantages over the 

 New Forest, Wales, and other pony districts in England, and also over 

 Sardinia, Sumatra, and other Southern Islands, in which, notwithstanding 

 the high average temperature, the naturally-reared horses are little larger 

 than the dwarf ponies of Shetland. 



The Soil and Underlying Rocks. 



In selecting a district for breeding ponies under natural conditions, it is 

 7.S necessary to consider the underlying rocks and the soil covering, and in 

 most cases derived from them, as it is to direct attention to the climate and 

 physical features. 



