COMPARATIVE SHAPE OF HORSES. 



ordinary South African horses, fifteen hands ; Arabs, 

 fourteen hands two inches ; East Indians (country bred, 

 without admixture of Enghsh blood) and Basuto ponies, 

 fourteen hands ; Mongohan, Yarkundi, Spiti and Bhootiah 

 ponies, thirteen hands two inches ; Baluchi, Herati and 

 Cabuli horses, fourteen hands two inches ; Burma and 

 Deli (Sumatra) ponies, thirteen hands ; Manipuri ponies, 

 twelve hands. On Indian race-courses it has been 

 proved, times out of number, that an Arab of fourteen 

 hands two inches is as good as any other Son of the 

 Desert, no matter how much he may exceed that height. 

 In fact, there have not been many Arabs which have 

 gone to India, that were better than the gallant little 

 Chieftain, who was only fourteen hands high, and who 

 was the best of his time. The records of the Shanghai 

 and Hongkong races prove that a good Mongolian of 

 thirteen hands two inches, like Teen Kwang (Fig. 281), 

 who was the Eclipse of the Celestial Empire, can hold 

 his own with any of his class, even at level weights. 

 In China an allowance of only three pounds for an .inch 

 in height is given, and yet the best ones are found at 

 about thirteen hands two inches. In India, on the 

 contrary, an allowance of twelve pounds an inch is given ; 

 yet, with very rare exceptions, a thirteen hands one 

 inch or a thirteen hands two inch English, Australian, 

 Arab or " country-bred " has no chance with a fourteen- 

 hander of its own class. These striking differences in 

 the standard of useful heights are no doubt chiefly due 

 to the effects of climate and soil (p. 396 et seq.). 



Careful selection in breeding, good feeding, and 

 healthy conditions of life have a great influence in tending 

 to increase the size, not only of individuals, but also of 

 breeds, in which case the standard of useful height will 

 naturally become raised. Thus, the average English 

 horse is, at the present day, probably six inches taller 

 than he was 200 years ago. From my own observation, 

 I am inclined to think that horses in England have 



