84 LESSONS IN HORSE JUDGING. 



ders as seen from the front will vary according 

 to their muscularity, but much more according to 

 their relative position with the trunk. This de- 

 pends upon the chest being cone-shaped. The 

 chest of the horse is somewhat cone-shaped with 

 the apex of the cone pointing forwards, and the 

 base pointing backwards. It is evident that the 

 further the shoulders are from the point of the 

 cone the further will they be apart from each 

 other. The fore legs of the horse are sometimes 

 said to appear ' to come out of one hole. ' They 

 may, as we have seen, be quite as muscular as 

 shoulders set wider apart. Width of shoulders is 

 desirable for collar work, so that the fore legs 

 have need of being placed wider apart. We shall 

 say httle of ' action ' because that is involved in 

 the more general consideration of the limbs; but 

 we must remark that when the foot is lifted in 

 flexion, the lower part of the limb should be also 

 straight with the long axis of the body when 

 viewed either to the front or rear. The foot 

 turned out when lifted and flexed is said ^to 

 dish.' 



The fore limb of the racer does not necessitate 

 close action, or as it is termed, 'daisy cutting' 

 action. Flexion is very limited, not on account 

 of the limb being so formed as to preclude it, but 

 the animal has so seldom occasion to lift his feet, 

 on account of being nearly always on level, un- 

 broken ground, that habit and conservation of 

 energy alike tend to close stilty action. With 

 horses used for speed and power, which, as we 

 have seen, includes most horses having to go over 



