UNIVERSITY 



CLEVELAND BAYS AND YORKSHIRE COACH HORSES 73 



a good appearance and get over the ground in a creditable 

 fashion. 



It has been said that there is no breed of horses leaving, 

 of course, the racehorse out of the question which a cross 

 with the Cleveland Bay will not improve, and the Cleveland 

 Bay has been likened to the Shorthorn and the Leicester 

 sheep, as the best foundation on which to commence crossing. 

 Indeed, it is the value of the Cleveland Bay brood mare in 

 this direction which is a constant source of danger to the 

 breed. Men buy well-bred mares, cross them with the 

 thoroughbred, or in some instances with the Hackney ; they 

 are satisfied with the result of their enterprise, and keep 

 breeding on the same lines, getting valuable horses such as 

 they require, but running a great risk of " killing the goose 

 that lays the golden egg." A pure-bred foal or two should 

 always be taken from well-bred mares, for it is little short of 

 a national loss when any famous strain of blood, to whatever 

 breed it may belong, becomes extinct. In breeding Cleveland 

 Bays great care should be taken in selecting mares and sires 

 with good shoulders. In this respect there can be little 

 doubt that the breed had to a considerable extent deteriorated 

 before the revival of interest in it which took place about ten 

 years ago. Yet it is a point, the importance of which it is 

 impossible to overrate. There are some people I know who 

 hold that a nicely sloping shoulder is not an essential for a horse 

 whose work has to be done in harness and at the draught, but 

 with this opinion I cannot agree. A well-placed shoulder not 

 only adds greatly to the general symmetry of a horse, but it 

 is a distinct advantage to him in doing his work, whatever 

 that work may be. If a horse's shoulder is improperly placed 

 there must be an undue strain on the forelegs, so by all means 

 be particular about the shoulders of both sire and dam. Then 

 there is a special reason for being particular about the shoulders 

 of Cleveland Bays. Cleveland Bay mares are frequently used 

 to breed weight-carrying hunters from, and good shoulders 

 are an important factor in carrying a heavy man. 



