THE HORSE. 



221 



Ukraine, in Walachia, Poland, and Sweden ; 

 but we have no particular accounts of their 

 excellencies or defects. 



, If we consult the ancients on the nature and 

 qualities of the horses of different countries, 

 we learn that the Grecian horses, and parti- 

 cularly those of Thessaly, had the reputation 

 of being excellent for war; that those of Ac- 

 haia were the largest that were known ; that 

 the most beautiful came from Egypt, which 

 bred great numbers ; that the horses of Ethio- 

 pia were not in esteem, from the heat of the 

 country; that Arabiaand Africa furnished very 

 beautiful horses, and very n't for the course ; 

 that those of Italy, and particularly of Apulia, 

 were very good ; that in Sicily, Capadocia, 

 Syria, Armenia, Media, and Persia, there were 

 excellent horses, equally esteemed for their 

 speed and vigour; that those of Sardinia and 

 Corsica, though small, were spirited and cou- 

 rageous ; that those of Spain resembled the 

 Parthian horses, in being very well adapted 

 for war ; that in Walachia and Transylvania, 

 there were horses with bushy tails, and manes 

 hanging down to the ground, which, neverthe- 

 less, were extremely swift and active ; that 

 the Danish horses were good leapers ; those 

 ofScandinavia, though little, were well shaped, 

 and possessed of great agility; that the 

 Flanders' breed was strong ; that the Gaul- 

 ish horses were good for carrying burdens; 

 that the German breeds were so bad, so di- 

 minutive, and ill-shaped, that no use could be 

 made of them; that the Swiss and Hun- 

 garian horses were good; and, lastly, that 

 those of India were very diminutive and 

 feeble. 



Such are the different accounts we have of 

 the various races of horses in different parts 

 of the world. I have hitherto omitted making 

 mention of one particular breed, more excel- 

 lent than any that either the ancients or mo- 

 derns have produced; and that is our own. 

 It is not without great assiduity,and unceasing 

 application, that the English horses are now 

 become superior to those of any other part 

 of the world, for size, strength, swiftness, and 

 beauty. It was not without great attention, 

 and repeated trials of all the best horses in 

 different parts of the world, that we have 

 been thus successful in improving the breed 

 of this animal ; so that the English horses are 



now capable of performing what no others 

 ever could attain to. By a judicious mixture 

 of the several kinds, by the happy difference 

 of our soils, and by our superior skill in ma- 

 nagement, we have brought this animal to its 

 highest perfection. An English horse, there- 

 fore, is now known to excel the Arabian in 

 size and swiftness, to be more durable than 

 the Barb, and more hardy than the Persian. 

 An ordinary racer is known to go at the rate 

 of a mile in two minutes : and we had one 

 instance, in the admirable Childers, of still 

 greater rapidity. He has been frequently 

 known to move above eighty-two feet and a 

 half in a second, or almost a mile in a minute : 

 he has also run round the course of New- 

 market, which is very little less than four miles, 

 in six minutes and forty seconds. But what 

 is surprising, few horses have been since 

 found that ever could equal him: and 

 those of his breed have been remarkably 

 deficient. 



However this be, no horses can any way 

 equal our own, either in point of swiftness or 

 strength ; and these are the qualifications our 

 horsemen seem chiefly to value. For this rea- 

 son, when the French, or other foreigners, de- 

 scribe our breed, they all mention, as a fault, 

 the awkward and ungainly motion of our 

 horses ; they allow them to be very good in- 

 deed, but they will not grant them an easy or 

 an elegant carriage." But these writers do 

 not consider that this seeming want of grace 

 is entirely the result of our manner of break- 

 ing them. We consult only speed and des- 

 patch in this animal's motions ; the French 

 and other nations are more anxious for parade 

 and spirit. For this reason, we always throw 

 our horses forward, while they put them upon 

 their haunches: we give them an easy swift 

 gait of going, that covers a great deal of ground; 

 they, on the contrary, throw them back, giv- 

 ing them a more showy appearance indeed, 

 but one infinitely less useful. The fault of 

 our manner of breaking is, that the horse is 

 sometimes apt to fall forward : the French 

 managed-horse never falls before, but more 

 usually on one side : and for this reason the 

 rider wears stiffboots, to guard his legsagainst 

 such accidents. However, it would be a very 



See Buffon's account of our horses. 

 2 P* 



