THE RURAL EFFICIENCY GUIDE STOCK 



It only pays to breed horses of a definite type and character. Prices paid 

 on the Chicago market for the different classes of horses for the year 1916. 

 show the trend of market values. Horses five to eight years of age, sound, 

 in good condition for hard work and of colors easily matched, sell for the 

 best prices. 



MONTHLY AVERAGE PRICE OF HORSES FOR YEAR 1916. 



* Prices are for pairs. 



Breeds of Horses. 



The best types of horses show a predominance of breed character. Breed 

 and feed are the principal factors that determine type. The table on pages 103 

 and 104 names and furnishes a brief description of the more important breeds 

 of horses bred and maintained in America at the present time. 



Draft vs. Light Breeds on the Farm. Market values and the fact that 

 heavy weight and ability to work are the principal features demanded in the 

 breeds of draft horses, make it appear that, under ordinary conditions, horses 

 of the draft type are best for the farmer to produce. Much of the value of the 

 lighter classes of horses is developed by training, which the farmer is not 

 always in the best position to give. Light horses that have to do heavy work 

 do not have the opportunity to develop gaits, manners and a spirit that makes 

 them attractive and are also rendered unsalable by accidents resulting in 

 blemishes. Furthermore, the automobiles and auto truck have taken the 

 places of the lighter classes of horses to a much larger extent than they have 

 for horses of the draft breeds. 



Breeding the Draft Horse. A weight of 1600 Ibs. or over, feet, limbs and 

 body of sound character, a compact form with strength and quality, and a 

 disposition that is kind and intelligent, are the more essential features of a 

 good draft horse. "Like produces like" and, therefore, the production of 

 desirable draft horses is secured by the selection of mares of grade or draft 

 breeding free from hereditary unsoundnesses, mating them to pure bred draft 

 stallions of the most approved types, and rearing the foals in a manner to 



