WORK ONLY CAN FIT FOR WORK. 61 



him for perhaps less than one hour's work during his whole 

 life ; whilst the hunter's work is usually too trying to be continuous 

 without intervals of rest, long enough to require a good deal of 

 renovating and invigorating exercise. Long periods of inaction 

 are injurious to any horse ; regular work only can qualify him for 

 work, so that unless the work reijiiired of him is of a regular 

 daily character, the stabled horse must get regular exercise, 

 either to put him or to keep him in condition for hard work. 



117, — There are many degrees of efficiency demanded from 

 the horse, and consequently a great difference in the amount of 

 pulling down and building up that must be done (56), and of the 

 amount of exercise that he must take, and of the character of 

 the food he must eat. The exceedingly high and hard condition of 

 the race horse is one that can only be maintained for a short 

 time, and is not desirable in any other. With him the rule is, 

 all the corn that he can be got to digest, and all the exercise he 

 can be got to stand, for some months Ijefore he is required for 

 racing. Opinions still differ a little as to what that exei'cise should 

 be, but the tendency of modern practice has been to rely more on 

 slow and less on fast work for his preparation. Walking five or 

 six hours a day in the open air is known to be the means by which 

 all his muscles and sinews can be hardened without danger of 

 straining. All his motor nerves, air pipes, and blood vessels 

 are enlarged to their utmost capacity, by the circulation and 

 breathing being so long quickened by gentle exercise in the 

 pure air, enriching the blood Avith such a long and increased 

 supply of oxygen, and cultivating to the utmost that large per 

 centage of blood corpuscles (110) ready to carry life and 

 vigour to every part of the system, and to meet with ease the 

 emergency of the most exacting pace. A short steady gallop, 

 of a few hundred yards, on soft ground and up hill, may be given 

 daily, just to bring the lungs into their full play, and the distance 

 may be increased to a mile or two as the race draws near. But 

 long-continued quickening of the l»reath is more to be relied on, 

 and is far less liable to break a horse down than any violent 

 exertion. 



118. — If as good a feeder as he should be, and not excessively 



