188 HANDBOOK OF THE TURF. 



foot. When the pastern joint of one or both of the fore legs 

 is perpendicular to the rest of the leg, instead of sloping back- 

 ward, if this defect arise from work, the animal is unsound. 

 With the hind legs this does not obtain, for a horse may be 

 quite upright in the joints of the hind legs, and yet be perfectly 

 sound. 



The pastern is tlie most important part of the leg. If the horse is to be 

 used under the saddle the kind witli long oblique pasterns are 

 more elastic and graceful in their movements, than the short, upright 

 sort, which are often unpleasant to the equestrian on account of 

 the concussion produced by the move or less upright columns of 

 bone. Very straight pasterns ai-e not desirable on account of the 

 concussion they are liable to i)roduce, but even the long, oblique 

 kind may be, and often are, overdone; in them the strain ui:)on the 

 parts is liable to produce an irritation that in its turn will cause 

 ringbone. The pasterns of the fore leg are usually a little more 

 upriyht tlian t hose of the hind leg.— E. A. A. Grange, V. S., Michigan 

 State Ct)llege Experiment Station. 



Pastern-bone. Either one of the two proximal pha- 

 langes of a horse's foot ; the first phalanx being the great pas- 

 tern, articulated, (or united), above with the cannon-bone at 

 the pastern joint ; and the second phalanx, the small pastern, 

 united below with the third phalanx, or coffin-bone, inclosed 

 in the hoof. 



Pastern- joint. The joint, or articulation of a horse's 

 foot, between the great pastern-bone and the cannon-bone. 



Patrol Judges. Persons appointed by the judges of a 

 race to inspect the back turns and stretches of a track during 

 a race ; to observe that the heats are trotted honestly, and to 

 report to the judges any foul or improper conduct on the part 

 of riders or drivers, if any has come under their observation. 

 A patrol judge, while an agent of the judges, is, to all intents 

 and pm-poses, a judge. Should there be one patrol judge at 

 each of the four turns, then, if a claim of foul was made, the 

 judges would be in a position to ascertain, from their official 

 aids, the exact truth of the matter in each instance. 



Peat Moss. Used largely in city stables for bedding. 

 It is free from odor, incombustible, lasting, and is never eaten, 

 even by the most inveterate bedding-consuming horse. 



Pedigree. The line of descent; ancestry. A writing, 

 or copy of records, giving the names, dates, etc., concerning 

 the progenitors or ancestors of a certain horse, and establishing 

 his descent from certain famous sires and dams ; an evidence 

 of breeding. 



Pelham. A combination bit of snaffle and curb, or a 

 single bit with two pairs of reins, which acts either as a plain 

 bar or curb — less severe than the true curb bit, and a bit 

 which is much esteemed by jockeys, as it allows them to have 

 complete control over their horses. The best racing bit. 



