294 THE FORE LIMB. 



" level " style of galloping. This will also occur to a 

 horse whose pasterns have become abnormally oblique on 

 account of sprain of the suspensory ligament, in which 

 case the defect will lie in the inability to straighten the 

 joint freely when weight is thrown on the limb. Also, 

 the longer the pastern, the greater will be the play of 

 the fetlock joint. Hence, length, as well as obliquity, of 

 pastern is an indication of speed. 



Polo has done much to teach men in England the 

 necessity of sloping pasterns for work on hard ground. 



Lecoq remarks that : " The direction of the pastern is 

 almost ahvays influenced by its length. The shorter the 

 pastern, the more upright is it ; and the longer it is, the 

 more is it sloped.^^" This rule may hold good in horses of 

 the same class ;-^but not, at least to the same extent, 

 among animals of different breeds. This French writer 

 also adds with justice that : " There are, however, horses 

 — and especially mules and asses — in which the pastern, 

 although very short, is well sloped." As the evil effects 

 of concussion fall much more severely on the fore limb 

 than on the hind leg, its pastern is, normally, more 

 sloping. 



Referring to Clydesdales, Mr. Dykes writes : " No 

 doubt the upright pastern suits well the upright shoulder 

 and slow action of the English draught-horse, a conforma- 

 tion which can scarcely be called the best for any purpose ; 

 but it will not do in the Clydesdale, which requires a 

 pastern to suit the formation of the shoulder, and to 

 confer the necessary elasticity to counteract the concussion 

 caused by his quick, firm step. Short upright pasterns 

 always get worse with age and feeding, and the action 

 in due course of time becomes impeded. A horse with 

 an upright pastern has little or no command of his foot, 

 and literally walks as on a crutch ; and if he has no power 

 of his foot, he cannot have much in his shoulder. The 

 streets of Glasgow are very trying to horses which have 

 to scramble for a footing in the furrows between the hard. 



