136 TRAINING IN INDIA. 



and, consequently, on hard soil, will, after a few 

 generations, have legs and feet of a much better shape 

 to stand work on hard ground than those of animals 

 that are natives of a damp country. In this respect, 

 the horses of Australia and the Cape can compare 

 very favourably with those bred in England, a large 

 proportion of which possess those upright pasterns that 

 are entirely unsuited to work on Indian soil. 



The majority of Indian race-courses are so hard that 

 they tend to make horses, which are trained on them, 

 go short and "stilty." Even when the track happens 

 to be soft, the "going" is simply heavy without any 

 elasticity, so that the horse is taught to " dwell on his 

 stride." We hardly ever obtain the happy medium 

 afforded by the light springy turf in England. Good 

 legs and feet are the first considerations, and then 

 comes the power of carrying weight and being able to 

 stay. An English horse, or Australian, should be able 

 to race under 10 st. 7 Ibs., one and a half miles. If 

 a sound game horse can do all this, his being a little 

 <( troubled with the slows " will not prevent him from 

 paying his way. A flashy thorough-bred that could 

 stagger home in extraordinary good time over 5 furlongs 

 with 6 st. up, would be out of place in India, except, 

 perhaps, for a coup at Calcutta. 



With the exception of Eeputation and Oberon, 

 neither of whom stood training in India, there have 

 been no English horses imported into this country 

 that were up to good handicap form in the land of 

 their birth. Metal, by his running with Althorp at 

 Goodwood, was a fair second-rater. In India he was 

 the best of his time when fit. Blanchland, who was 



