THE SHIRE 151 



The modern English Black Horse retains the general characteristics of 

 the preexisting race, but greatly modified. His color is usually a sooty 

 black, with frequently a white lozenge-shaped mark on the forehead ; and 

 he has very generally one or more of the feet and part of the legs, and not 

 unfrequently the muzzle, white. His body is massive, compact, and round; 

 his limbs are stout, his chest is enormously broad, and his neck and back 

 are short. His mane is thick and somewhat frizzled, and his legs below 

 the knee and hock are hairy down to the heels. His whole aspect conveys 

 the idea of great physical power without corresponding action. The main 

 defects of this conformation and temperament are his too great bulk of body 

 and want of action and mettle. For a pull with a heavy weight he is admirable. 



Different varieties of the Shire formerly existed in England; 

 some have said ^o, others three. In the first " Shire Studbook" 

 Dr. Reynolds groups the breed into three varieties ; namely : 



(1) Those having the upper lip garnished with a long, thick moustache, con- 

 sidered at one time a distinguishing characteristic of the Lincolnshire horse. 



(2) Horses having the lips, muzzle, and eyelids destitute of the hair. 

 The skin in these places is either entirely bald or covered with exceedingly 

 fine down, is almost invariably flesh colored, and is sometimes marked with 

 small dark spots and blotches. These are termed bald horses or bald faced. 



(3) Those having a long tuft of ' hair growing from the front of each 

 knee, and rarer examples having also a similar growth from the hind part 

 of the hock, just below its point. This is quite different from the ordinary 

 hair on the back of the cannons. 



It is also to be noted that in the past the horses in some 

 counties of England have differed from those of other counties. 

 However, modern effort on the part of breeders has succeeded 

 in producing a more uniform type, in which greater refinement, 

 better bone, more action, and perhaps less hair are found. 



The modern Shire horse is an improvement over the horse of 

 fifty years ago. The features of large size, hairy legs, and draft 

 type have been maintained, but the modern Shire has more 

 action and life, possesses more quality and finish, and has more 

 uniformity of type than had his ancestors. The English breeders 

 recognized the need of improvement of their draft horse and 

 emphasized quality, action, flat bone, and uniformity. In recent 

 times this improvement has been greatly aided by the Shire Horse 

 Society and the comparisons possible through the exhibitions of this 

 society at Islington. The late Sir Walter Gilbey, a constructive 



