98 CO-OPEEATION IN DANISH AGKICULTUKE 



and two studs were made, one for heavy horses and one 

 for light horses, the first to consist of forty stalHons, the 

 latter to have thoroughbreds, stallions of the old Frederiks- 

 borg stud, and some of a white breed. But during the sixties, 

 the theory of improving the native breed by selection without 

 crossing with foreign breeds became more generally accepted. 

 The studs were broken up, the Jutland breed of horses was 

 developed " within the breed " by selection, and the type 

 became gradually more and more uniform. During the last 

 part of the century breeding between selected individuals of 

 the same family or strain was practised, whereby the breed 

 was still more improved, and true breeding made more secure. 

 / Horse breeding has never been neglected in Denmark, as 

 the breeding of cattle was for a considerable time. The 

 interest in good horses was always kept up in Jutland. But 

 it is nevertheless the fact that greater attention has been paid 

 to horse breeding during the last fifty years than ever before. 

 The improvement in agriculture opened the way for a more 

 Hberal rearing of the young horses, sales to foreign countries 

 generally realised good prices, and horse breeding was, there- 

 fore, a well paying business. Already in the sixties some 

 joint-stock companies were formed by farmers for the purchase 

 and use of superior stalHons, such as the individual farmer 

 could not afford ; but later on the example of the bull clubs 

 was followed, and Horse Breeding Societies were formed on 

 similar co-operative lines to the Bull Clubs, materially assisted 

 by the State grants under the above-named Laws on Domestic 

 Animals. By the Law of 1893, £2220 were set aside for these 

 Societies. It was stipulated in the Law that the members' 

 mares should be approved, that the stalHon should be the 

 property of the society, or, if hired, placed at its exclusive 

 service for a number of years. The grant was distributed 

 between the societies according to the value of the stalHons, 

 up to one-sixteenth of the value of the staUion being allowed 

 a society every year, to an amount not exceeding £28. The 

 Law of 1902 increased the amount placed at the disposal of 

 the Horse-Breeding Societies. The grant per stalUon could be 

 up to one-half of the purchase price of the stallion, but was not 

 to exceed £220 ; it was to be paid in five equal instalments 



