CHAPTER IV. 



HOW TO BEEED A HORSE CANADIAN BLOOD. 



THE CANADIAN ORIGINALLY THE FRENCH NORMAN — CHARACTERISTICS— HARDI- 

 HOOD— SPEED— MODE OF IMPROVING THEM— CROSSING WITH THOROUGH- 

 ' BREDS. 



There is one breed or stock of horses to which, thus flxr, 

 we have but casually alluded. We mean the Canadian. 

 It deserves, probably, a more extended notice, as being in 

 itself, in the first place, a perfectly distinct family, where 

 pure ; and in the second, as being very widely extended, 

 both in its mixed and unmixed form, in the Northern 

 and Eastern States; and, moreover, as being itself an 

 exceedingly valuable animal as a working horse, and a 

 progenitor, or progenitrix. The Canadian horse where he 

 is yet to be found in his pure state, — that is to say, un- 

 crossed with either the English thorough -bred, or the 

 English high-bred stallion of the hunter caste, — is origi- 

 nally, beyond doubt, the French ISTorman horse ; and even 

 where the crosses mentioned still exist, the French Norman 

 blood vastly preponderates. The present characteristics 

 of the Canadian are — a head rather large than otherwise, 

 but lean, bony, and well formed, with an unusually broad 

 forehead, with the ears far apart, carried loftily, a small 

 clear eye, and a courageous aspect ; a bold upstanding, but 

 thick crest ; a broad, full chest and a strong shoulder, a 

 little apt to be too straight, as well as to be low and heavy 

 at the withers ; a stout, strongly -framed barrel, the charac- 



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