28 RACEHORSES IN AUSTRALIA 



is moribund, and it is perfectly evident that before another twenty years have 

 passed, on the male side of the house, at least, it will be Eclipse first and the 

 rest nowhere. Within the last ten years there have been, in the Old Country, 

 symptoms of a revival of the blood of Herod through Roi Herode, and his 

 speedy grey son. The Tetrarch. For the moment, the courses are flooded 

 with them, and every field is flashing with greys. It seemed, for a lustrum, that 

 Herod and Tartar were once more destined to become a vital force, but the 

 zenith was reached ere many days. Even now this Herod star, or comet, 

 which appeared in the heavens and rushed onwards as though determined to 

 carry everything in front of it, has been observed to change its direction, and 

 it IS rapidly speeding away from the sun on its outward course. We in 

 Australia have followed the fashion, and Herod, with Menin, Chrysolaus and 

 Sarchedon, will enjoy popularity and a considerable measure of success, but 

 the march of events here will certainly follow those in the old world, and the 

 grey blood will, in a little time, weaken and fade away. 



Eclipse must eventually reign absolute. Yet these importations of other 

 families are immensely valuable. We must have out crosses for our perpetual 

 blood of Eclipse, and the Barcaldines, the Roi Herodes, and The Tetrarchs 

 are inestimable for such a purpose. And the greater their success in the early 

 days of their stud life here, the better for the ultimate good of our thoroughbred 

 horse. 



Chapter XI. 

 How to Breed an Australian Horse. 



It is a well-known fact all the world over that every country must, 

 perforce, keep on renewing its blood stock supply from the British Isles, but 

 we in Australia have, to quote a modern expressive piece of slang, "gone over 

 the odds" altogether. We are breeding, as we have seen in the previous 

 chapter, scarcely any sires at all. This, somehow seems to be wrong. 

 Australia contains magnificent country, and portions of it are blessed with 

 a climate which is ideal for the purpose of breeding and rearing horseflesh. 

 The conditions which we possess here, and which I designate as ideal are the 

 following: We have still land procurable at not too extravagant a price. We 

 can obtain it in comparatively large areas. The soil is suitable, in many 

 localities, for the purpose. The climate is excellent. With these advantages 

 at our doors, there are three methods of raising racehorses. The first is, whilst 

 using very large areas of country, to leave everything to Nature. Reverse 

 Cato's maxim, "Laudito ingentia rura. Exiguum colito" ("Praise up big areas. 

 Use small ones"). Whilst pursuing this method, the horse owner must make 

 up his mind that he is unlikely to win two-year-old races, and therefore he must 

 have no intention of breeding horses for the annual yearling sales. What he 

 rears must be for his own use, and he must be exceedingly patient. 1 do not 

 know anyone who follows the business on these lines, but the man who could 

 afford to wait, and was willing to wait, would probably find himself, in a few 

 years, the owner of several weight-for-age, sound-limbed, sound-jointed, clear- 

 winded racers. 



The second plan is to have a run of only a limited acreage, and to force 

 the youngsters from the moment they are dropped. 



