42 Cross Country with Horse and Hound 



Hitchcock aptly expresses it, " horsemen's horses." Most 

 men who attempt cross-country riding begin with half- 

 breeds, and generally end by riding nothing less than seven- 

 eighths or clean-bred thoroughbreds. 



It is generally believed that in producing half- and three- 

 quarter-bred horses the thoroughbred blood should come 

 from the sire's side. Some of the highest class hunters I 

 have ever known, however, have been bred the other way, 

 the sire's side supplying the cold blood. 



Blue Rock, a famous hunter and steeplechaser, owned 

 by Mr. William Littauer of the Genesee Valley Hunt,* is 

 out of a clean-bred thoroughbred mare by a trotting-bred 

 stallion. Blue Rock is a plain-looking horse, but his dis- 

 position is faultless, and his fencing and speed between the 

 flags and his most perfect performances in jumping contests 

 have won any number of cups and prizes for his owner, who 

 believes he is the best all-round horse that ever lived. The 

 Duke of Beaufort, editor of the Badminton books on sport, 

 says: "I prefer both sire and dam to be well-bred, but a 

 well-bred mare and an underbred horse will produce a faster 

 animal than a thoroughbred horse and an underbred mare." 



In a work of this kind there is room for only a few 

 thoughts on the subject of breeding, and we will content 

 ourselves with noting a few fundamentals not found in the 

 usual works on horse-breeding. After fifteen years of ex- 

 perience with a stud consisting of thoroughbreds, hackneys, 

 English and French coach-horses, and thirty years in breed- 

 ing cattle and sheep, the author may state his belief in a 

 few general rules of breeding. 



* See page 22. 



