100 LESSONS IN HORSE JUDGINa. 



mines the apparent size of the hock. It follows 

 that a bent hock ivhicli appears smaller may he as 

 large as a straight hock which appears larger. 



The lever bone, or ^ calcaneum/ is placed at the 

 top of the hock at the back, and is a lever of the 

 second order. The end of the long arm of this 

 lever is called the point of the hock, and cor- 

 responds with our heel. It has attached to it the 

 tendon (called ' Tendo Achilles ') of the large mus- 

 cle whose belly forms the so-called calf of our 

 leg. All depends upon the length of this lever 

 whether the ^ calves ' are large or small, because 

 the longer this long arm, the less will be the 

 strength required to work it. Negroes have small 

 calves to their legs very often, because their heels 

 are so long. A well-bred European with his short 

 large, muscle to ivork it, and so can boast of 

 'having a good leg.' The ^calf ' of the horse is 

 very much concealed on account of the large 

 muscles of the back of the thigh being inserted 

 into the back and upper third of the tibia sur- 

 rounding the 'calf to some extent. The mus- 

 cles on the outer side of the tibia (Fig. 1-i, 7) 

 called the gaskin muscles, well seen in Fig. 15, 

 are extremely prominent, and measurable with 

 the eye, and, as we have seen, extend the toe and 

 foot. Little notice then need be taken of the 

 long arm of the lever under consideration. Witli 

 a long lever arm, and the same bulk and strength 

 of ' calf ' required for a short lever arm attached 

 to it, the hock would be torn asunder. This, as 

 we have seen, cannot be the case. The weight 

 surface of the lever is applied against the astraga- 



