6 GENERAL GRANT'S ARABIAN STALLIONS, 



Persistent inquiry, oral and by letter, after five or six years' time, 

 gave me the first and last of Seward's two Arab horses, now dating 

 back twenty-five years ; and the information I obtained may soon startle 

 such as are interested in "time standard" breeding rather than blood. 

 Suffice it to say, however, that this information determined me to 

 become personally interested in the two Arabian stallions presented to 

 General Grant. 



As General U. S. Grant outranked in the estimation of the people 

 of the world any representative man America had produced, both as 

 General-in-Chief of the victorious American army and as the unani- 

 mously re-elected President of our great Republic, it is but natural to 

 suppose the Sultan of Turkey would honor himself and his Empire by 

 presenting to the general the very choicest specimens of their idolized 

 horses, the Arabian. 



At the time of their arrival in this country I was compiling a work 

 devoted to Old Henry Clay, to be entitled a " History of Henry Clay ;" 

 and for the purpose of having correct sketches of representative sons 

 and daughters of the horse, had engaged Herbert S. Kittredge (since 

 deceased), whom in 1876 I had encouraged to make horse portraiture 

 his profession. Young Kittredge resided with me, as did later Andrew 

 J. Schultz, who was to study under him. 



When General Grant's Arabians were thoroughly recovered from 

 their voyage and acclimated, I sent Kittredge to sketch them, as fron- 

 tispieces to my "Clay History," also illustrative of blood influences; 

 Henry Clay being but a third remove from the Arabian upon the 

 paternal side, and largely inbred to that blood maternally through im- 

 ported Messenger, First Consul, and Rockingham, all of which were 

 of Godolphin Arabian blood, and Messenger himself was inbred to it. 



Young Kittredge's success was wonderful. I presentee copies of 

 his sketches to General Grant, to General E. F. Beale, to Paymaster- 

 General J. Adams Smith, and to Hon. Erastus Corning, also to one or 

 two other gentlemen friends whom I believed trustworthy. 



General Grant pronounced them "perfect to life." 



General E. F. Beale wrote me : 



" I return you my thanks for the pictures of Leopard and Linden. They 

 are the best horse pictures I have ever seen, and are the most faithful likenesses, 

 being great credit to the gifted and talented Kittredge. 



" Very truly yours, 



"E. F. BEALE. 

 " Lafayette Square, Washington, D. C." 



