328 THE AEAB HORSE OF AFRICA. 



When this membrane is slightly inflamed, and thus 

 more prominent than usual, most country farriers cut it 

 off as a diseased excrescence. And so wide is the de- 

 lusion that in the Encyclopaedia of Kees, under the 

 article haw, this important membrane is described as a 

 diseased tumour in the eye, and instructions are given 

 for removing it ! 



We beseech all farriers and horse-fanciers to remem- 

 ber that it is shameful to be ignorant of the physical 

 formation of the most prized of domestic animals. " Sidi 

 Aomar, the companion of the Prophet, hath said, ' Love 

 horses ; tend them well, for they are worthy of your 

 tenderness. Treat them like your own children ; nour- 

 ish them like friends of the family ; clothe them with 

 care. For the love of Allah, do not neglect to do this, 

 or you will repent of it in this house and in the next! " 



The races of the horse most esteemed by the Saha- 

 renes are three ; of these that of the Haymour, the foal 

 of the onager or wild ass so called because a cele- 

 brated mare, abandoned as being seriously hurt, is be- 

 lieved to have been covered by a wild ass (hamar el 

 oudhhch) is the most remarkable. " Whoever," says 

 the Emir, " has seen the horses of that breed will not 

 for a moment question the truth of the tale, for their 

 resemblance to the zebra strikes every eye." This is 

 a curious illustration of the value of the French expe- 

 riments in hybridising, explained in our article on the 

 acclimatisation of animals. 



The Arabs affirm that the best age for reproduction 

 is from four to twelve years as regards the mare, and 

 from six to fourteen as regards the horse. They agree 

 with British breeders in believing that the foal receives 

 more of its characteristic qualities from the horse than 

 from the mare ; hence their proverb, "The foal follows 

 the stallion," who also is believed to transmit his 

 moral qualities. " The noble horse," said the Arabs of 

 old, " has no vice." 



Stallions, however, are rare in the desert, and belong 



