igO ON RUNNING HORSES 



tame animals in general. The race-horfe is 

 much ftrona;er than the cart or common horfe, 

 weight for weight, his fubftance being of a 

 much finer, clofer, and more folid contexture. 

 The bones of the two fpecies have been very 

 aptly compared to fteel and iron ; the finews of 

 the racer are flronger and more capable of ex- 

 tenfion than thofe of the other, in proportion as 

 a rope of filk is endowed with more Itrength 

 and elafticity, than a hempen one of the fame 

 bulk or weight. Since it hath been fhewn that 

 a horfe does not race from the excellence of 

 his external form merely, the grand principle 

 of blood may -be faid -rather to fubfift in the 

 flexibility of his finews, and we may compare 

 the (kin of the racer to fvik, his bone to fteel, 

 and his fibrous fyftem to the folid but du6lile 

 gold. I have enlarged on this particular, for 

 the ufe of thofe gentlemen chiefly, who may be 

 ambitious of ftill farther improving our racing 

 breed, by an import of real and thorough-fliaped 

 Arabian ftock ; and muft farther add, that to 

 make the experiment complete, it would be ab- 

 folutely neceflary to provide Arabian mares, as 

 well as ftallions ; the produce of thefe nourifhed, 

 enlarged, and invigorated by the fruitful foil of 

 England, muft indubitably, at one or other 

 period, attain the higheft degree of excellence. 

 Curious comparative experiments might alfo be 

 made, by crofFing the new with the Englifh 



blood. 



