182 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



that ninety-nine out of every hundred break down in the back 

 sinews, sometimes in the first training and very often in the 

 first severely contested race. 



That there have been a few stout, substantial, short-limbed 

 Thoroughbred liorses in modern times, both in England and in 

 this country, cannot be denied. Such horses are, however, 

 exceptions to the general type, and are every year diminishing 

 in number. Unless the present foolish system of racing be 

 greatly modified. Thoroughbred horses will soon become mere 

 gamblers' tools, and will be considered utterly worthless for the 

 improvement of any other breed. 



It cannot be denied that some of the crosses of this blood 

 with other breeds have resulted in the production of most val- 

 uable animals, possessing in an extraordinary degree intelli- 

 gence, courage, strength and swiftness. Such for instance are 

 the English Hunters, which are able to carry a rider of two 

 hundred pounds' weight at the speed of the fox and hounds 

 over Avails, fences, hedges and ditches, through swamps, 

 ploughed fields and streams, across every variety of country, 

 for a distance of many miles. 



The inquiry whether the influence of the Thoroughbred 

 horse would be likely to prove beneficial upon the horses of 

 this Commonwealth will be discussed in another part of this 

 report. t 



THE CLYDESDALE HORSE. 



This horse has long been bred with great care and uniformity 

 in that i)ortion of Scotland which also enjoys the enviable repu- 

 tation of producing the best dairy cattle in the world, namely, 

 tUe counties of Ayr, Dumfries, Renfrew and Lanark. They 

 derive their name from the river Clyde, which flows through 

 Lanarkshire, where they are very numerous. This breed, like 

 the Morgan, is the natural result of the peculiar circumstances 

 of its location, and has been developed by a favorable combina- 

 tion of soil and climate witii the necessities of an enterprising 

 people. In this region, celebrated for its extensive coal mines 

 and prosperous manufactures, as well as for its agricultural 

 thrift, large num])ers of })owcrful horses are constantly em- 

 ployed in hauling heavy freight, and the farmers have wisely 



