THE HORSE. 11 



riety ; for example, the head should be lean, argutum 

 caput, neither long nor short, and set on with some- 

 what of a curve; the thropple loose and open; the 

 neck not reversed (cock-throppled), but rather arched ; 

 the loins wide and substantial, more especially should 

 the back be long; the tail not drooping, but nearly 

 on a level with the spine ; the hinder quarters well 

 spread, as a support to the loins, and as a security 

 against the approach to each other of the pasterns 

 in progression, whence results cutting them with the 

 hoofs ; the hinder legs should descend straight, late- 

 rally from the hocks, as a preventive to the defect 

 styled sickle-houghed or hammed ; at the same time, 

 the curve from the hock should be to the degree, that 

 the feet may be placed sufficiently forward to prop 

 the loins, and that the horse may not be said to leave 

 his legs behind him; the muscles of the thigh and 

 fore arm should be solid and full, thouoh some 

 horses are heavy and overdone by nature in those 

 parts. The horse, of whatever description, should 

 not be leggy, and of the extremes, short legs are 

 surely preferable. The canon or leg-bone, below the 

 knee, should not be long, but of good substance, 

 and the pasterns and feet of a size to accord with 

 the size of the horse ; the hoof dark, feet and frog 1 

 tough, heel wide and open ; the fore feet should stand 

 perfectly level, the toe pointing forward in a right 

 line, else the horse will knock or * cut in the speed,' 

 however wide his chest; in plain terms, he will either 

 strike and wound his pasterns, or his legs imme- 

 diately below the knees, or both ; the feet standing 

 even, the horse being equal to his work, will seldom, 



