OPPOSITION TO STAGE COACHES 237 



have averred that this horse is wrongly propor- 

 tioned. Personally I incline to the belief that the 

 animal is in every detail true to life, and not many 

 years ago the late Viscount Powerscourt declared 

 that he himself had seen used in parts of Holland 

 horses that in every respect resembled this animal 

 of King William's statue. 



Is it not likely, therefore, that William III. 

 may have been in the habit of riding a Dutch 

 horse, and that the sculptor copied this horse 

 quite faithfully ? 



Certainly if the pictures of the period are to be 

 trusted for accuracy, soon after the overthrow of 

 James II. by William of Orange there were horses 

 in plenty of almost exactly this type to be seen in 

 England. Also the harness that was worn by 

 many of the Dutch horses shown in the pictures 

 resembled the harness that was in use among 

 followers of William III., more especially the 

 parts we mean to indicate when we speak of a 

 horse's trappings. 



Even the bridles greatly resembled one another 

 in some instances. 



Bearing directly upon the story of the horse 

 in history are the descriptions that have been 

 handed down to us of the almost frantic op- 

 position that met the introduction of the stage 



