THE IMPROVED ART OF FARRIERY. H 



lioofed animals, these are separated from the others by 

 having the quadrupedal phalanges united and sur- 

 rounded with a hoof, which does not admit of its 

 grasping any thing : hence these animals of the tribe 

 imgulata, or hoofed, having but one toe, belong to the 

 family solipeda, or single-footed. 



Man could not have achieved a more useful con- 

 quest than the subjugation of this animal ; and in 

 whatever light we view the horse, from its boldness, 

 its surprising strength, its exceeding beauty, its amaz- 

 ing speed, or its general docility, all unite pre-emi- 

 nently in placing this noble beast at the head of our 

 domesticated animals. 



The original country of the horse cannot now be 

 ascertained, although many naturalists think that he 

 is indigenous to most countries, for he is to be found 

 in every temperature, under the burning zone as well 

 as the more northern climates, and varying in size and 

 utility. 



The precise time when this animal was first domes- 

 ticated is lost in the remoteness of antiquity. The 

 Sacred Writings inform us that when Jacob went into 

 Egypt to procure corn, he sent up oxen, camels, and 

 asses. Chariots and horses, however, appear to have 

 been used by Pharoah when that prince lost his army 

 in the Red Sea. Greece, doubtless, amongst other 

 things, learnt the art of subduing these animals from 

 the Egyptians ; and history informs us that horse and 

 chariot races were highly esteemed at their games, and 

 Homer mentions them as early as the Trojan war. 



Notwithstanding the circumstance of wild horses 

 being found in countless droves in the great plains 

 of Tartary, it does not appear that the Arabians knew 

 the use of this animal till comparatively a late period. 

 Solomon, in his traffic with foreign nations, wou^d 



