256 AGRICULTURE 



distinct breed, but is better known than most pure breeds. The 

 saddle horses of Kentucky and Virginia are well known. Among 

 the best carriage or coach horses are the Cleveland Bay, the French 

 Coach, and the English Hackney. Hackneys are large, active, and 

 stylish, adapted to both road and farm work. Small horses are not 

 adapted to the deep plowing, hard pulling, and heavy hauling of 

 the farm. 



Pure-bred sires imprpve common stock. It is profitable to breed 

 and use good grades. 



Ponies. Ponies are breeds of small horses. The gentle, shaggy, 

 little Shetland ponies from the Shetland Islands off the west coast 

 of Scotland are favorites with children. The Indian ponies and 

 mustangs of the West, North, and South are descended from the 

 horses brought to this country from Spain and France. They are 

 active, hardy, and much prized as saddle horses. 



Mules. Mules, a cross between the horse and the ass, are noted 

 for strength, endurance, and hardiness. They are valuable for 

 farm purposes and for heavy hauling. 



Food. Grass is the natural food of the horse, but an entire 

 diet of it makes a horse 'soft' and unfit for hard work. The best 

 foods are good hay, oats, and corn. A horse needs about twenty 

 pounds of dry matter daily; half of the food should be a concen- 

 trated feed, such as corn, and half a bulky food, such as hay. 



A horse needs about eight gallons of water a day and should be 

 watered three times a day, before meals. At work in warm 

 weather, horses, like people, need water oftener, but are apt to be 

 injured by drinking much cold water when they are very warm. 



Care. The horse should be given clean, comfortable quar- 

 ters, gentle, firm management, and good feed. Good treatment 

 will do much to give horses a good disposition. They are nervous 

 animals, and rough, harsh treatment makes them vicious and 



