Ixxxvi INTRODUCTION. 



frequently erect. He manifests momentary irritation, or ha- 

 bitual ill temper, by retracting them firmly backwards ; but 

 often this is done in play, or when he is tickled in the skin. 

 The ears of certain horses hang habitually down, as if the 

 muscles wanted power to sustain them. Such horses are 

 termed "lob-eared." They are sometimes good and endur- 

 ing ; but, for the most part, the character indicates a slug- 

 gish temperament. 



The eyelids should be thin, and the eyes large, and some- 

 what prominent, as expressive of vigour and spirit. When 

 the eyes are sunk in the sockets, and the surrounding muscles 

 are thick, the horse is said to be " pig-eyed." When the 

 horse is apt to shew much of the white of the eye, his tem- 

 per may be suspected; though, in some cases, the white or 

 sclerotic portion is large in proportion to the coloured or 

 corneous, and then its habitual appearance does not neces- 

 sarily indicate badness of temper. 



The profile of the face should be nearly straight. When 

 it is concave, there is often a defect of temper ; when con- 

 vex, the animal is usually good-tempered, and may possess 

 useful properties. But yet the latter conformation is not of 

 itself to be desired. A horse possessing it is familiarly said 

 to be " Roman-nosed." Many excellent horses possess this 

 character, which is, therefore, to be regarded as trivial, when 

 the other points are good. 



The nostrils should be expansive, and not thick and nar- 

 row. The horse breathes through the nostrils, and the power 

 of expanding these cavities is connected with his power of 

 filling the lungs with air, and, consequently, with the pro- 

 perty of speed. All horses having the power of rapid motion 

 have expanded nostrils ; and there is, perhaps, no example 

 of narrow nostrils in combination with the property of rapid 

 progression. The lips should be thin, and the mouth exter- 

 nally of some depth, characters which render the horse sen- 

 sible to the guidance of the rein ; whereas thick, short, and 



