DEXTER. 455 



heart, with the curvature of the ribs increasing to the 

 centre of the barrel. The spine rises in front of the 

 coupling, giving him an arched loin, yet not high enough 

 to look unsightly. His back ribs might be a little longer, 

 though they approach the hip very closely; and were it 

 not that the stifles are placed unusually low, this would 

 surely interfere with his great speed. This conformation 

 then adds to his endurance, while the speed is not sac- 

 rificed, owing to the placing of the stifles. His hip is long 

 and sloping, with the tail set on low. The effect of a slop- 

 ing hip has been fully considered in the chapter on form, 

 and it would be useless to rehearse it here. 



With the exception mentioned about the near hock, his 

 hind-legs are first-rate, muscular, with those of the upper 

 thigh and stifle predominating, yet there is a balance kept 

 up and the long firm muscles are appropriately terminated 

 in large tendons. 



The hamstring is very large, and the back cords are of 

 fine size and stand out well from the bone. There is no 

 puffiness about the hocks or pasterns, or any appearance 

 to indicate that the work he has had has been prejudicial 

 to them. In this respect his legs look better than when 

 I saw him last year, as then there was a tendency to 

 cracking in the heels, of which there is no symptom now. 

 Standing squarely behind him, a person is astonished at 

 the power shown from the loin to the gaskin. Though 

 the hips are wide and somewhat ragged, the stifles are still 

 wider, and at the hazard of being thought tedious, I can- 

 not refrain from again calling attention to this develop- 

 ment. The muscles that run from the ileum to the 

 femur are so large that when the horse walks they become 

 apparent to the eye, ridging the skin as if striving to 

 break through the silky covering, while kindred masses 

 so extend the quarters that he fills up a breeching that 

 would be too long for a much larger horse. 



