CHAPTER XIII 



PRINCIPLES OF BREEDING 



THE breeding of horses is usually carried ou, first, 

 in order to procure directly or indirectly the necessaries 

 of life, and, second, to secure a profit. Occasionally 

 they are bred simply for pleasure or pastime. 



It would be out of place to discuss here what 

 amount of surplus or reserve it is best to accumulate, 

 or how fully the so-called necessaries of life should 

 be supplied, in order that man may arrive at his best 

 estate. We enter at once, therefore, upon the discussion 

 of the laws and forces which underlie animal life and 

 reproduction, growth, development and change, with 

 the paramount object of increasing the quality and 

 quantity of the necessaries of life, of diminishing labor, 

 of increasing knowledge, and of adding to the world's 

 surplus and pleasure. 



If we attempt to investigate the laws and forces 

 which govern animal growth and reproduction, we are 

 necessarily brought face to face with the sciences and 

 their application to reproduction, life and growth. 

 The ancient authors enumerated seven of them, and 

 Pope adds one more : 



"Good sense, which only is the gift of Heaven, 

 And, though not science, fairly worth the seven." 



(174) 



