THE STALLION. 25 



often it has been hidden beliind to cover up a 

 degree of ultra refinement which is far more to 

 be shimned than a tendency as nmcli in tlie 

 other direction. Every undersized runty little 

 fine-boned stallion is bragged up for his quality, 

 as though that was some sort of an excuse for 

 him. Now bear this in mind : if a horse has real 

 quality he has it all over him, not merely in his 

 legs. Quality counts for much in a horse that 

 is big enough, but watch out that it is real qual- 

 ity and not weakness masquerading under that 

 high-sounding title. 



Another stock saying, which has been handed 

 down for more than a generation here to the 

 everlasting detriment of the horse, is that his 

 foot should be deeply concave. It is only neces- 

 sary to consult old papers and catalogues to 

 learn how much stress has been laid on this er- 

 roneous teaching. The blacksmith has appar- 

 ently taken advantage of this belief by invaria- 

 bly thinning the sole and cutting away the frog 

 and so assisting in making the foot concave. 

 Mark this fact well : the foot that is deeply con- 

 cave—and naturally it is rare— is a thing^ to be 

 avoided. The blacksmith should never be al- 

 lowed to put his knife on sole or frog except to 

 trim away ragged portions. What we want is 

 a strong, deep heel, a thick frog, a deep, stout 

 wall and as thick a sole as possible. If the sole 

 is concave it must be thin, for there is only so 

 much space in the foot anyway, and we need 



