57 



a horse, when closely observed, guides to his de- 

 fective points, and tells us where the scrutiny- 

 should be severe. 



It is very difficult, however, to judge of a horse's 

 action. I once took a valuable mare to the college 

 for examination : I knew she was lame, but where, 

 I was utterly unable to discover ; and my per- 

 plexity was by no means singular. Not only was 

 I unable to penetrate the cause, but I could not 

 even guess which leg was in fault. Mr. Sewell 

 himself was obliged to examine her closely. 

 About ten or twelve of his pupils were present, 

 and several of them were asked their opinions : 

 each had his own, but none were exactly right, 

 though there were but four legs between which to 

 decide. The fact was that she was lame on every 

 leg, and in consequence her action was pretty 

 uniform. 



To a certain extent, this is not uncommon. 

 Where both the fore feet are equally tender, the 

 action is destroyed, but it is not uneven, and the 

 limp is consequently not perceptible. 



In some horses, defective action is of course far 

 more difficult to discover than the limp occasioned 

 by disease; but still there are general rules by 

 which the judgment may be guided. I have 

 already noticed the usual difference in high-bred 



