CHAPTER XXXI 

 DRAFT TYPE 



The first question which presents itself is — What is a draft horse? 

 A draft horse is a horse adapted to the work of pulHng heavy loads at 

 a walk. The conditions of street traffic in large cities demand the 

 hauling of the largest possible loads. Distances are great and delays 

 waste much time. At street crossings, bridges, and at railway cross- 

 ings, minutes are lost that in a day count up to hours. At sidings and 

 warehouses, it is a lucky chance if a team can get up to its door or car 

 without waiting for one or more wagons to be loaded or unloaded 

 ahead of it. There is thus a natural tendency for teamsters to haul big 

 loads in order to move the freight, and this makes big horses necessary. 

 Furthermore, big wagons, big loads, and big horses enable merchants 

 to move the goods with less equipment and fewer drivers, and lessen 

 expenditures for shoeing, feed, stabling, harness, and repairs. There 

 is thus a tendency toward big horses and big loads in all cases where 

 quick delivery is not imperative, and where loading and unloading 

 are done at one or a few points. The heavy loading of wagons has 

 gone so far that many cities have placed restrictions upon the size of 

 loads, in order to protect draft animals from abuse. In Chicago, the 

 maximum load for a single horse or mule is 3,500 pounds, and when 

 two or more horses are hitched together, the maximum is 4,000 pounds 

 per animal. 



We must bear in mind that the drafter is not only adapted to 

 pulling heavy loads at a slow gait, but that this work is done on hard 

 pavements in the city. The draft horse not only does the hardest kind 

 of work required of horses, but he works under conditions which put 

 his feet and legs to a severe test. The drafter may be said to be the 

 real business horse, whereas the carriage horse, roadster, and saddle 

 horse are largely used for pleasure purposes. 



In order to do the work required of him, the draft horse must 

 possess the following qualifications: (1) Weight, (2) strength, (3) 

 true, snappy action, (4) endurance and durability, (5) feeding capacity, 

 and (6) good disposition. 



1. Weight is decidedly essential. The heavier the horse, the 

 more adhesion he has to the ground. When a horse is working in har- 

 ness, the traces tend to lift the fore feet off the ground, and for this 

 reason a heavy horse is able to use his weight to good advantage. In 

 stage-coach days it was a common trick for the driver to throw a bag 



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