8 THE HORSE, ASS, AND MULE 



came from the Arab, while the French have set a high value on 

 this horse in producing half-breds and improving coach horses. 



In 1522 the Turks invaded Hungary five hundred thousand 

 strong, which number, so history informs us, included three 

 hundred thousand horsemen. With the defeat of the Moham- 

 medans they were driven from the country, but they left large 

 numbers of Arabian horses behind. From that time Arab horse 

 blood has been in use in the stables of Hungary, and a Bedouin 

 of the desert, thoroughly familiar with the breed, is attached to 

 the Hungarian army as master of horse, his duty being to select 

 the best Arabian horses for the royal studs. These studs were 

 established in 1785 and have since been maintained. In addi- 

 tion to the royal studs, there are some one hundred and fifty 

 private studs in which are to be found five thousand Arab 

 mares of purest blood. Russia and Germany have also used the 

 Arabian in the stud. It is said that no less than two hundred 

 Arab stallions belonging to- the French government were at the 

 free service of owners of mares in Algiers in Africa in 1895, 

 this being a French colony. 



The native home of the Arab horse is Arabia, a vast country 

 some fifteen hundred miles long and from five hundred to one thou- 

 sand miles wide, lying east of the Red Sea, with its northern 

 extremity not far from the east end of the Mediterranean. The 

 Arab horse, however, is found in great numbers in Turkey, Persia, 

 and parts of northern Africa, notably the Sahara region. 



The origin of the pure Arabian has been the cause of much 

 discussion in print. Major Upton and Lady Anne Blunt, how- 

 ever, have given the most definite and satisfactory information 

 on this subject. These persons made special trips to Arabia, 

 where careful studies were made of the horse of the people, 

 concerning which we learn much in their writings. 1 Major Upton 

 lived among the Bedouins for months and spoke their language. 



The best Arabian horses are found in the desert region, 

 among the migratory Bedouin tribes, of which there are several 

 groups. The most powerful of these are the Shammar race of 



1 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia, by Roger D. Upton, London, 1881; 

 The Bedouin Tribes of the Euphrates, by Lady Anne Blunt, 2 vols., London, 

 1879; A Pilgrimage to Nejd, by Lady Anne Blunt, 2 vols., London, 1881. 



