114 HORSES AND ROADS. 



and hunting countries often are — ' which would not 

 have occurred with a barefooted animal.' 



These almost immeasurable, soft, smooth plains, 

 on which the horses perpetually stand, are not inter- 

 sected by hard, rough, stony roads ; neither are the 

 horses, which are grass fed, worked continuously, 

 although it is well known that they are often bar- 

 barously forced to cover long distances, when they 

 are doubly exposed to become footsore from the 

 facts of having to work at intervals only, and then 

 over soft, smooth grass that does not afford what 

 Mayhew calls 'the needful attrition' to keep the 

 horn up to its work. Mr. Miles tells us — what we 

 all ought to know, although even he was unable to 

 grasp it fully — *^it is an invariable law of animal 

 economy not to continue to unemployed structures 

 the same measure of efficient reparation that is 

 extended to parts constantly engaged in performing 

 their allotted tasks.' Herein is explained the reason 

 why these horses do not acquire the hardness of 

 hoof that horses elsewhere, and under different 

 circumstances, with harder work, not only acquire 

 but also maintain. 



In the North, Central, and South American 

 countries which have been formerly mentioned in 

 these chapters, pastures and breeding grounds are 

 not to be found in such large tracts, as in those 

 that have just now been spoken of. Besides, 

 such grounds being widely separated from each 

 other, the consequence is that horses are scarcer 

 and of far higher value. The geological character 



