16 THE EXTERIOR CONFORMATION 



Horses are not fully furnished so as to develop to ad- 

 vantage every point until their youth has entirely passed, 

 or until the animal has reached his prime, or eighth year ; 

 then the animal that has been properly nurtured will be 

 ready to render its master a long train of willing service. 

 But most horses die before the attainment of eight years, 

 and all horses which have reached that point are condemned 

 as aged, or put on one side, as having performed their most 

 valuable services. The horse, doubtless, is more full of 

 spirit, grace, and beauty at his fourth year ; but this is no 

 excuse for cruelly torturing the animal, by putting it to the 

 extent of its powers at such an early period of its existence, 

 and thus rendering it a cripple for the remainder of its life. 



To give any determinate figure for the horse would argue 

 folly. He who desires a good, useful, honest horse will do 

 well to buy the best looking of the group out of which he 

 makes his selection ; but he who wishes for an extraordinary 

 creature, and can afford to disregard spirit or temper, may 

 safely buy the ugliest brute he can clap his eyes upon. The 

 above directions, however, supposes the person thus directed 

 to be fully acquainted with that which constitutes beauty and 

 deformity in the horse. 



The head is important. For the light horse some ap- 

 proach to the blood-head is desirable. The forehead high, 

 the eyes wide apart, the nostrils and the mouth large, the 

 muzzle small, and the cheek, or hinder part of the jawbone, 

 deep, and wide apart. But for long slow work, and heavy 

 draught, the very reverse of all this is even to be sought 

 for. The forehead low, the eyes close, the nostrils and 

 mouth small, the muzzle large, and the cheek shallow. Of 

 course these last are only to be judged by comparing them 

 with the more beautiful head of the blood-horse, and neither 

 are to be taken in an absolute sense. 



The setting on, or putting on, of the head is next to be 

 considered ; and the difference between the good and bad 

 in this particular will best be understood by attentively 

 studying the w^ay in which the heads of the gentleman's 

 riding-horse, or, better still, of the thorough-bred racer, and 

 of the ordinary cart-horse, are joined to the neck of the 

 animal. The head of the heavy creature is fixed upon the 

 neck as though it were jobbed upon a stick ; the neck has 



