130 HANDBOOK OF THE TURF. 



In horsemanship art and science are combined, and so closely con- 

 nected in any critical performance that tliey are inseparable lor 

 success. The tlieory and practice must be united, as well in the 

 horse as in liis rider, for in equestrian feats tliese are the exercise 

 and power of mind over matter, and wiien theory and practice are 

 unitetland in proportion, and tlie material and opportunities good, 

 success follows.— Tlie Bridle Bits, Col. J. C. Battersby. 



Horse Measurement. In taking the measurement of 

 a horse, length is obtained from the point of the buttock to the 

 point of the shoulder, and height both at the croup and the 

 withers. Other measurements are : Length of head from the 

 poll to the muzzle ; length of crest, or arch of neck from the 

 poll to the withers ; length of back from the withers to the 

 croup ; width of chest at the shoulder points ; width of hips ; 

 width of forehead. These are made with a rule having two 

 short arms ; one fixed at one end, the other moveable and slid- 

 ing along the face of the rule to the point of contact. Other 

 lines of measurement are : The girth ; length from dock 

 to stifle ; length from hock to whirlbone ; size around the gas- 

 kin; size around the forearm; size around the shank; size 

 around the front cannon ; size around the coronet. These lat- 

 ter are best made with a common tape measure. 



Horse Motion. That pectiliar jerking, jogging, or up- 

 and-down motion of a sulky, road cart or other two wheeled 

 vehicle whereby it partakes of the motion of the horse in what- 

 ever gait he may be going, is termed " horse motion." 



Horse Racing'. The practice or sport of running or 

 trotting horses ; a race by horses ; a match of horses at trotting 

 or running. 



Horse-sUarp. A term applied to a person who practices 



deception and fraud in the sale of a horse ; a pedigree-swindler ; 



a horse-leech ; one who claims fraudulent records of speed, and 



deceives in regard to the age and soundness of horses 



which he sells. 



The horse-sharp is in general a very versatile rascal. In the village 

 bar-room or around tlie stable doors he talks loud and persistently, 

 and can crowd more lies into a given number of words tlian any 

 other specimen of degraded humanity. In short, whether he mis- 

 represents his own horse's pedigree or slanders his neighbor's 

 horse, he is a wholly dirty individual whom an honest man instinct- 

 ively feels that he soils liis hands by touching, and who is a good 

 fellow to keep wholly clear of.— Wallace's Monthly. 



Horse Tax. [Eng.] The horse tax in England was 

 imposed in 1784, and was then levied on all saddle and coach 

 horses. Its operation was extended, and its amount increased 

 in 179G, and again in 1808. The existing duty is upon 

 " horses for riding " only. 



Horsy. A word used to indicate that a person is fond 

 of, or interested in horses ; especially devoted to, or interested in 



