THE SIRE. VZo 



stay longer, than the ten-hundred or ten-hundred-and- 

 fifty pound horse. My advice, therefore, is, to breed 

 from a medium-sized stallion ; and, if you wish to enlarge 

 the size of your colts, get the extra size by a cross with 

 large-sized mares. I do not say that this is the indis- 

 pensable way; but it is the better way, as I judge ; and 

 I therefore recommend it. 



This matter of crossing naturally introduces the vexed 

 question, " What shall we cross with ? " The matter of 

 blood — what it symbolizes, and where it can be found 

 — and of in-breeding comes before us naturally at this 

 point for discussion ; and we will here group together 

 what we have to say, choosing for our general caption 

 the word 



THOROUGH-BRED. 



All over the country, from Maine to California, in 

 every State where horses are bred, this word is being 

 spoken in hot debate. It has been the cause of more 

 verbal strife among breeders and horsemen than any 

 other word in the dictionary ; and still the fight goes 

 on, and with varying fortune. The advocates and oppo- 

 nents of breeding trotting-mares to thorough-bred stal- 

 lions, and vice versd^ have their alternate successes. 

 One will say, "Nothing but a thorough-bred mare is 

 fit to breed to a good stallion." Another will deny that 

 a trotter can be got from such a cross. One will 

 declare, "We must warm up our cold-blooded mares 

 by breeding to thorough-bred horses, in order to give 

 game^ and power to stay a distance, to the colts." 



