ENGLISH PONIES. 171 



on account of the tendency sires and dams have of 

 "throwing back"; the fillies frequently being too 

 small for polo ; the colts, too big. For instance, I 

 have known a filly by a Barb out of a well-bred 

 English mare to be 13.2, and her own brother 14.3 ; 

 both parents being 14 hands. 



Another great difficulty our breeders have to contend 

 with, is the tendency to increase in size which all 

 breeds that are placed under favourable conditions of 

 feeding and health in England manifest. Many sports- 

 men, led by Mr. Hill, the originator of the Polo Pony 

 Stud Book, are endeavouring by careful selection to 

 establish a breed of ponies fit for high-class polo. If 

 the attempt be possible, these gentlemen are certainly 

 making it in the right way. 



The following are instances of first-class English 

 polo ponies : — 



Matchbox (Fig. 39), Luna (Fig. 38), Mademoiselle 

 (Fig. 44), Siren (Fig. 42), Nipcat (Fig. 70), Wig (Fig. 

 71), Sunshine (Fig. 41), Charlton (Fig. 43), Dennis 

 (Fig. 72), and Mickey (Fig. J^))^ which are miniature 

 14-stone blood hunters; and Dynamite (Fig. 45), 

 Sailor (Fig. 74), Conceit (Fig, 48), and Little Fairy 

 (Fig. 46), which belong to the miniature steeplechase 

 type. 



We all have our own ideas of what is the type for a 

 perfect polo pony, but the best polo judges in England 

 are agreed that the hunter stamp is the right one ; 

 because experience has shown us that, though there 

 are some ponies of the miniature steeplechase stamp 

 quite as good as those of the miniature hunter type, 

 there are twenty first-class ponies of the latter type 

 for every one of the former. 



