SHOEING OE THE HOESE. 81 



farrier, by leading liim to the more efficient performance of 

 bis responsible duties. To enable tbe reader the better to 

 understand their full importance, I will, in the first place, 

 describe the structure of the hoof of the horse, the mode of its 

 development, and the rate of its growth. 



The organization of tlie equine foot is one of the most 

 perfect examples of creative wisdom which can be studied by 

 the himian mind. Its beauty of structure, — its completeness 

 of parts, — and their adaptibility to the intended uses and 

 purposes of the organ, alike testify to the truth of this conclusion. 

 It is surely one of the most wonderful combinations of living 

 mechanism in the world : volumes might be written in illustra- 

 tion of this without in any way exhausting the interest of the 

 subject. 



In commencing our examination, we find that the bones which 

 give support to the softer tissues constituting the limbs, are 

 so placed as to afibrd the greatest amount of resistance to those 

 violent shocks and concussions, to which every limb is neces- 

 sarily subject. They are placed in mediate contact with each 

 other, and are retained at varying angles by means of ligaments 

 and tendons of the greatest tenacity and strength; while the 

 more delicate and sensitive structures of the foot are enclosed 

 and protected by a mass of horn, to which the cunning hand 

 of a skilful shoeing smith should fix a properly formed piece 

 of iron, thereby further protecting the tissues within, and more 

 fully adapting the animal to its various uses and requirements. 

 The present description will not extend beyond the horny 

 covering of the foot, as any further observations would be 

 unnecessary for our present purpose. The annexed engravings 

 will illustrate the various parts of the hoof, their positions and 

 importance, far more clearly than such ideas could be conveyed 

 in words to the mind of the reader. Tigure 8 represents a 



