244 



NEW E^GLAND FAUMEIl, 



Feb. 19, isaoj 



LIBRARY OF USEFLL. KNOWLEDGE. 



[Cmtinutil /nrn fgf S96.] 

 CHAPTER II. 



THE DIFFERENT FOREIGN BREEDS. 



THE FLEMISH AND DLTCH HORSE. 



Tlie Flemish and Untch horses are large, and 

 •trongly ami beautifully Cornicd. We are indebted 

 to them for some of the best blood of our draught- 

 horses, and we still have frequent recourse to them 

 for keeping \t\t and improving the breed. They 

 will be more particularly described when the cart- 

 horse is spoken of. 



TUE FRENCH HORSE. 



France contains, like England, numerous breeds ji,e g^nie origin. 

 of horses, and considerable attention has lately 

 been paid to their improvement ; but they are far 

 inferior to the English in beauty, tleetness, and 

 strengtli. The provinces of Auvergne and Poi- 

 teau produce good ponies and galloways ; but the 

 best French horses are bred in Limousin and Nor- 

 mandy. From the former district come excellent 

 saddle-horses and hunters ; and from the latter a 

 stronger species for the road, the cavalry, or the 

 carriage. The Norman horses arc now much 

 crossed by our hunters, and occasionally by the 

 thorough-bred ; and the English roadster and light 

 draught-horse lias not suflTered by a mixture with 

 the Norman. 



THE SPANISH HORSE. 



Spain was early celebrated for her breed of 

 horses. The Andalusian charger and tlic Spanish 

 jennet are familiar to all readers of romance. 

 The subjugation of so great a portion of the pe- 

 ninsula to the Moorish sway, by introducing so 

 much of the Barbary blood, mainly contributed 

 the undisputed excellenco of the Spanish horse. 

 One breed, long in the limbs, and graceful in all 

 its motions, was the favorite war-horse of the 

 knight ; while another race, carrying the esquire, 

 although inferior in elegance, possessed far more 

 Btrength and endurance. The Spanish horse of 

 the present day is not much unlike the Yorkshire 

 half-bred ; perhaps with flatter legs and better 

 feet, but far inferior figure. 



THE ITAI.IA.N HORSE. 



The Italian horses were once in high repute, 

 particularly tho Neapolitans; but like evcrylliing 

 else in those mismanaged countries, they have 

 sadly degenerated. One circumstance has mainly 

 contributed to this falling off in reputation mid 

 value, viz. that the breed has been kept up by oc- 

 casional intermixture, not of Eastern, but of Eu- 

 ropean blood. A few of the Neapolitan horses, 

 from their superior size and stateliuess, arc well 

 adapted for the carriage. 



THE AMERICAN HORSE. 



Ill the extensive territory nnd varied climate of 

 tho United States, several breeds of horses are 

 foiinil. 



The Canadian is found principally in Canada, 

 and the Northern States. lie is supposed to be 

 of French descent, and many of tho cclebratcil 

 AmericMn trotters are of this breed. Wo will 

 speak of some of them when we ilcscribo the pa- 

 ces of the horse. 



The Cotienloija Iiomc in found in I'linnsylvanin, 

 and the Middle States — long in the leg, anil light 

 in the carcase — sometimes rising seventeen hamls, 



used priiiiipally for iln; carriage ; but when not riage, various presents, doubtless of a natu 

 too hi-l], an.l with buflR-ii^nt substance, useful for would be thought most acceptable to hii 

 hunti.rg and Ihe sa.ldle. '""""S '''••■"> ''«*«'"a' G«^rii.an runni,,- 



The En/rliak lior-e, with a good deal of blood, Hence our breed received another cros.-, 

 prevails in Virginia and Kentucky ; and is found, bably an improvement, 

 to a greater or less degree, in all the Slates. The Aihel.-lan .seems to have seriously de». ■ 



Americans have, at different times, imported some -elf to ibis important object, for he so 



of the best English blood. It has been moatdili- wards decreed (a. d. 930) ihal no horses .should 

 gently and purefy preserved in the Southern States. >ent abroad for .-ale, or uii any account, except 

 The celebrated Shark, the best horse of his day, royal presents. This proves his anxiety top 

 nnd eiiualled by few at any time, was the sire of serve the breed, and likewise renders it prol.« 

 the best Virginian horses ; and Tally-ho, a son of that that breed was beginning to be cstcemca 

 Highllycr, ireoplcd the Jerseys. >"'• neighbors. In a .locument bearing date a, 



In the back settlements, and in the southwest- j 1000, we have an interesinig account of llie n 

 crn Slates, is a horse resembling the wild horse of live value of the horse. If a horse was destroy 

 the Pampas, already described, and evidently of or negligeiiily lost, the compensation to U- . 



ni.-iiiili-d wns ihiriv shillini's : a mareor coll. 



CHAPTER III. 



HI.STORV OF THE ENGLISH HORSE. 



The earliest record of the horse in Great Brit 



manded was thirty shillings; a mareor coll, twi 

 ty shillings; a mule or young ass twelve shilliD . 

 an ox, thirty pence; a cow, iwentvfoiir Jiew ^ 

 a pig, eight pence ; and, it strangely follovr| ^ 

 man, one pound.* ' 



In the laws of Howell the Good, Prince 



The earliest record of the horse in (>rcat lint- ^ In the laws of Howell the Good, Prilic 

 ain is contained in the history given by Julius C«- - ^Vales, and passed a little before this time, t 

 sar of his invasion of our island. The British L^g jj,j,„p (.uri,,,,^ jmriii-nlars respecting the va 

 army was accompanied by numerous war-chariotsj j,,,,] j,„|g ^f horses. The value of a (oal not fo 

 drawn by horses. Short scythes were fastened to I ,jg„ ,|„yg „|,|_ jg fixed at four pence ; at one y 

 the ends of the axletree-, sweeping down every j,j„| „ j^y j, jg estimated at foriyeight pence ; i 

 thing before them, and carrying terror and de- | .,t ,i,rt.e years sixty pel '" ■ 



vnstalion into the ranks of their enemies. Tfie ( i..":.!. 



,__ _ _ It was then to 



tamed with the bridle, anil brought up either i 

 palfrey or a servinfr horse ; when its value beci 

 one hundred and tweiiiy pence ; and that c 

 icild or uiibrnkeii mare, sixty jienre. 



Even in tho.se early days, the frauds of deal '■' 

 were too noiorious, and the following singular f"- 

 uhilions were established. The buyer was 



_ _ ir enctnic 



conqueror gives a most animated description of 

 the dexterity with which the horses were mun- 

 aged. 



What kind of horse the Britons then possessed, 

 it would he useless to inquire ; but, from the cum- 

 brous structure of the car, and the fury with | „|j|m|,,„g ,ypfg y5,m„|gne„. , „,; uiiji-r 

 which it was driven, and fro:n the badness t"' I lowed time to ascertain whether the horse 

 nonexistence of the roads, they must have been ,y,,g f,.,jin three di.seases. He had three nigl 

 both active nnd ]>owerful in an extraordinary de- 1 p^^j^.g j,\„, f„r (|,c titnguers ; three nii>nil ^ 

 gree. Csesar deemed them so valuable, that he ' 

 carried many of them to Rome ; and the Pritish 

 horses were, for a considerable i)erioil after'vards, 

 in great request in various parts of the Roman 

 empire. 



Horses nuist at that time have been eiceedingly 

 miificrous in Britain, for we are told that when 

 the British king, Cassibellaunus, dismissi;d the 



|IIUt17 lini* ••-■ •■■— p.— --- T 



prove the soundness of his lungs; and om 

 to ascertain whether he were infected with j; 

 iters. For every blemish discovered after 

 purchase, one third of the money was to be 

 turned, except it shoiiKl be a blemish of the 

 or tail. I 



The practice of lening horses for hire wns i i 



i,,„ „...,.. o' ■ .known, and then, as now, the services of the I J 



main body of his army, he retained four thousand U^pi^ ,y,,^g ,oo l„.,iiHlly exacte<l. The henevo | 

 of his war-chariots for the i)urpose of harassing j^jj^^.^.n ,|is,lains not to legislate for the protr. 

 the Romans, when they atlempted to forage. Lp ,|,j^ abnsrd and valuable servant.—" Wl" 



The British horse now received its firs'' toss ; L||jj|| ||^|j.,.„^^. ^ i,,,^.,,^ „,|,| rub the hair so :i 

 but whether the breed was thereby improved, I, j,|| ,|,p ,,^,.|jj,||„|| j>„y f„„r pence ; if the >ki i 

 cannot he ascertained. Tho Romans having <s- (.^^|.,.,,,| j,,,,, ,|„, fl,,^|,,.|j,|„ |„.,„.e ; if the flesh I 

 tabl'shed themselves in Britain, found it ueiessary ,^,,.,.^,1 ,„ ,|„, |,one, sixn-eii pence." 



..^ I .^ir.ti. n MMn^iirniic linilv ofcnvah'V tO nuiMt- £\.,.^ ..: ...,.>■./.#. .Ii>.;i.ri-i.w to Im> rrnmrli 



1^ 



to send over a numerous body of cavalry to nuun 

 tain a chain of po.sts, and check the trequent in- 

 surrections of the natives. The Roman horses 

 would breed with those of the country, and, to a 

 greater or less extent, change their character ; and 

 from this time, the English horse would consist ol 

 a compound of tho native and those from Gaul, 

 Italy, Spain, and every (irovince from which the 

 Roman cavalry was supplied. Many ciMituries 

 afterwards passeil by, and we have no record of 

 the char.-'cter or value, improvement or deteriora- 

 tion, of the animal. 



It would appear prohnble, however, that Allicl- 

 stan, the natural son of Alfred the Great, and ihe 

 second in succession to him, paid some altenlioii 

 to ihc improvement of the horse: for having sub- 

 dued all the rebellious portions of the Hepiarrhy, 

 he was congratulated on his success by some ol 

 ihe conlinenlal princes, and received from Hugh 

 Cnpct of France, who solicited his sister in iiiiir- 



One cirruirstaiice deserves to Ik remarl 

 that in none of the earliest hi.stoiical records of 

 Anglo-Saxons i.r the Welsh, is there any "Ihii 

 to the use of lliP hoi-se for the ploiieh. I'lHj-, 

 comparalively recnl period, oxen alolii 

 ii.-icd ill Kiii-land, as in other coimtries, 1 

 purpose; bin id)oiit this lime (the laller piirL 

 the tenth ceiilury)si)'iie iimovalioii on ibis \* f.. 

 wns creeping in, and, therefore, « Welsh law 

 bids the fiirmer to plough wiih horses, mares, 

 cows, but with oxni alone. On one of ihe pie 

 of tapestry woven at Biiyoiin- in ihe lime of \ 

 linin the Conqinror, (a. i>. 1066) there is the fig 

 of a man driving a horse altaibed to a linm 

 This is ihe earliesl notice we hnve of the ii^c 

 ihe horse in field labor. 



• Acronlinn lo the Anclo-Sjxon romputallon. foiUr 

 shillines mmle a po'iml, cqii.«l in silvrr lo »l>,>iil ll 

 iMiiiuU of our pri'senl iiioncy, in value lo filtecn or 

 Icon iKimul-, nml five |>enco niuilo one shilling. 



