84 THE HORSE. 



and is the first authentic record in es- 

 tablishing the fact of the importation of 

 an exact type of horse. These were 

 Asiatic horses which were purchased by 

 British warriors, or taken in battle, and 

 most likely were selected for their good 

 forms and qualities, and came from the 

 same or similar stock through which the 

 Importation importations of Charles II. descended. 



of Eastern 



horses. They were Eastern horses — were Barbs, 



Turks, Arabs, and Persians, and many of 

 these types in the East have retained their 

 splendid characteristics through a thousand 

 years. They were, as they are now, small, 

 that is, not more than fourteen hands 

 and a half high, but it was due to these 

 animals that the English pony increased 

 in size, and the charger gained quality. 

 On the continent years previously to 



