MEANING OF THE TERM " BLOOD,'''' 13 



tinuance, will depend upon vigour of muscle, capa- 

 city of chest, and strength of the constrained lungs. 

 The result, then, of this argument is, that when we 

 speak of some of the celebrated stallions of former 

 days having transmitted the good properties of their 

 blood, or high eastern descent, to the race-horses of 

 the present time, we can only imply, that they have 

 imparted that true formation of parts, that firmness 

 of bone and sinew, and that general superior orga- 

 nisation, competent to give facility of action ; toge- 

 ther with great powers of respiration, which will 

 enable horses to last under the severest trials of 

 their powers. In fact, their excellence is in a great 

 manner mechanical. Were it not so, indeed, did 

 they not excel each other according to the degrees 

 of difference in their form and shape, and all the 

 constituent parts, full brothers and sisters would 

 prove of equal goodness on the race-course, health 

 and condition being on a par. But this is very far 

 from being the case ; and, again, if it depended on 

 blood, the same horse would run alike on every 

 description of ground, which we know rarely hap- 

 pens ; but of this we may be assured, that it is a 

 superiority of muscular substance, united with justly 

 proportioned shape, and not innate blood, which 

 enables a horse to bear to be pressed, on any descrip- 

 tion of ground, still more so upon such as is severe, 

 as several of our race-courses are. 



Yet, if there must be this elegance of form, these 

 nice proportions in the limbs, or moving levers of 

 the race-horse, how is it that so many of those 

 called " cross-made," i. e. plain, and apparently dis- 



