THE HORSE. 65 



In 1725 the Godolphin Barb, com- The 



Godolphin 



monly called Arabian, was brought to Arabian - 

 these shores, and from these two horses 

 our most distinguished racers have de- 

 scended. The Godolphin by many 

 authorities is said to have been a Barb ; 

 at any rate he was of uncertain caste. 

 He was purchased out of a water-cart in 

 Paris from a person unacquainted with 

 his pedigree, but whether Barb or Arab 

 matters little. That all these imported 

 horses were of Oriental descent is certain, 

 that they possessed agile forms and racing 

 qualities in their day cannot be denied. 

 Our forefathers imported them to improve 

 the then existing breed of racers, and 

 they were not selected on account of 

 what we inaccurately call blood, but 

 because they exhibited external configu- 



5 



