The Arabian Horse. 15 



ever, is inimitable. This is universally acknowledged 

 to be unsurpassed in any other breed. In the formation 

 of his shoulders, next to that of his head, the Arabian 

 is superior to any other breed. The withers are high, 

 and the shoulder-blade inclines backward, and so nearly 

 adjusted, that in descending a hill, the point or edge 

 of the hame never ruffles the skin. 



The muscles of the thigh and fore-arm are strikingly 

 developed, and assure us of his ability to perform many 

 of the feats of strength and endurance related of him. 

 The Arabian is as celebrated for his docility and good 

 temper as for his speed and courage. It is to the 

 Arabian that the English are chiefly indebted for their 

 unrivalled breed of horses for the turf and chase. 



Layard, the explorer of Nineveh, who is as familiar 

 with Arabs as he is with antiquities, gives some curious 

 details respecting the true horse of the desert. Con- 

 trary to the popular notion, the real Arabian is cele- 

 brated less for unrivalled swiftness than for extraordi- 

 nary powers of endurance. Only when pursued, does 

 «, Bedouin put his mare to full sj^eed. It is the distance 

 they will travel, in emergency, the weight they will 

 carry, and the comparative trifle of food they require, 

 which render the Arabian horses so valuable. Layard 

 says that he knew of a celebrated mare, which carried 

 two men in chain armor beyond the reach of some 

 Aneyza pursuers. This mare rarely had more than 

 twelve handsful of barley in twenty-four hours, except 

 during the spring, when the pastures were green, and 

 it is only the mares of the wealthy Bedouins that can 

 get even this allowance. They are never placed imder 

 cover during the summer, nor protected from the biting 



