18 DETERIORATED CONDITION OF 



race-horses is another cause which makes it 

 now so difficult to breed the first class of 

 saddle-horses, and is one of the results of 

 breeding " in and in," for the purpose of fol- 

 lowing up a blood which has had momentary 

 success in racing. Few people unconnected 

 with the turf can imagine the degree of con- 

 stitutional weakness exhibited by our present 

 race-horses. The growing stock requires as 

 much corn daily as they can eat, and for the 

 first twelve months each has also the whole 

 milk of a cow. It will here be said it is the 

 early running which renders high feeding of 

 the young stock necessary, but it is not so ; 

 on the contrary, many of the foals possess so 

 little vigour, that without unnaturally high 

 feeding they would be mere weeds, as they 

 usually are when bred by persons not intend- 

 ing them for the turf, who in consequence do 

 not feed their young horses so expensively. 

 This high feeding sometimes enables those 

 who breed for the turf to produce very large 

 animals, but wanting that compact form which 

 springs from much constitutional vigour in 

 the parents. Nothing is so different as the 

 form produced by extravagant feeding, and 



