I 2 GENERAL GRANT'S ARABIAN STALLIONS, 



Linden was a beautiful, smooth, blue-gray, which this summer of 1885 

 has changed to a white-gray. 



In height he is the same as Leopard, fourteen and three-quarter 

 hands, which is the usual height of the thoroughbred Arabian. 



In build he was more compact than Leopard, being deeper and 

 broader; of more substance, but with just as clean and fine limbs as 

 Leopard had. The limbs, joints, and feet of both horses were perfect. 

 The fetlocks could not be found ; there were none. The warts at point 

 of ankle were wanting, and the osselets were very small. Large, coarse 

 osselets show cold, mongrel blood. The crest of the neck in Linden 

 was thick and hard, the same as in Leopard. This fact will astonish 

 some fancy horsemen, who are led to believe that a thin crest is evi- 

 dence of fine breeding. My experience of late years is that a thin 

 crest belongs to a long-bodied, flat horse, of soft constitution. 



When Job said the " neck of the horse was clothed with thunder," 

 he had reference to the Arabian horse. As the shoulder possesses the 

 greatest strength in a horse, it is reasonable to believe the neck, to 

 which it is joined, should have strength in harmony therewith ; and this 

 bold, stout crest of the Arab was just as God wanted it. The mane in 

 both horses was very fine and silky, falling over so as to cause one to 

 believe the crest was a knife-blade, with blade up, for thinness. The 

 head of Linden was the counterpart of Leopard in all ways ; as in fine, 

 thin muzzle, lips, and nostrils ; also small, fine, beautiful ears, thin eye- 

 lids ; deep, wide jowls, etc.; but the face looked much older, although 

 Linden was a year younger than Leopard. 



There were two reasons for this difference in the countenance: 

 First, the depression over the eyes in Linden was greater, which feature 

 is said often to indicate advanced years in sire and dam when the foal 

 was got. This would be evidence that the blood of Linden was very 

 choice, for all breeders wish to get from their choicest-bred animals as 

 long as is possible, even to extreme old age ; and some of the finest 

 horses I have ever seen have been produced by dams thirty-six and 

 one thirty-eight years old. If I did not know these to be facts I would 

 not repeat them in this book. 



To intensify the effect of depression over the eyes in Linden were 

 large black markings or rings around them, which at a little distance 

 made him look at this time very old ; with me, from what I now knew 

 of Arabian horses, these marks intensified his blood value. I quote 

 from Sir Wilfrid S. Blunt, in Lady Anne Blunt's beautiful work entitled 

 "The Bedouin Tribes of the Euphrates": "These black markings are 



