114 HANDBOOK OF NATURE STUDY 



Columbus. Where do the wild horses in South America 

 come from ? 



Value of the horse to civilization. A number of qualities 

 combined have made the horse the most valuable of all our 

 domestic animals. 



1. It is of just the right size. If it were as large as the 

 elephant, it could not be properly controlled ; if it were very 

 much smaller than it is, it would be too weak. 



2. Its body has just the right shape for the rider. Compare 

 the horse and the ox as saddle animals. 



3. Although it is a big animal, it can nevertheless travel 

 fast. Can you tell why most farmers prefer horses to 

 oxen? 



4. Its foot, covered by one strong hoof, is the best foot in the 

 whole animal world for travelling far over hard ground. 



5. The horn of the hoof is thick enough to admit of an 

 iron shoe being nailed under it, and this fact adds greatly to 

 the value of the horse. If unshod, its feet would soon become 

 sore on our hard, artificial roads and our paved city streets ; 

 but with his iron shoes on, a horse can walk all day on the 

 hardest paved street. Horses that run free in the pasture 

 do not need to be shod. Can you tell why not ? 



It is a curious fact that the ancient Greeks and Romans 

 did not know the horseshoe. It came into use about 

 300 A.D. ; but the inventor is not known. 



6. The peculiar arrangement of the horse's teeth enables its 

 master to control it by means of a bit. 



7. Although it thrives best in moderately warm and moist 

 regions, it has shown great power of acclimatization and has 

 spread far north and south. It breeds as well in the domes- 

 ticated as in the wild state ; and its body is so elastic that 

 by a careful selection of breeders, man has produced many 

 varieties (or breeds) suitable for different purposes. 



The elephant, although much more intelligent than the 



