the Orient. The Persian horse was so highly thought of, that Alexander 

 considered oi\q of their breed as the best gifts, and when the Parthian 

 Kings wanted to propitiate their Gods through a valuable offering, they 

 sacrificed a Persian horse. Vegetius says, that they were superior to 

 all other breeds, for their proud and comfortable gait, which made rid- 

 ing a recreation and not a fatigue, and that the extensive breeding of 

 these horses was highly profitable to their owners. Horses as -well as 

 riders were often covered with armor from head to foot, and the tactics 

 of the Parthians to cover their pursuers with arrows in sham-flight, was 

 adopted by the Persians. Arrian describes their method of riding: 

 '■They had no bridle like the Greeks, but guided their horses with asim- 

 ple sling or strap made of cowhide, which they fastened around the 

 horse's nose. The inward side of this nose band was set with small 

 pieces of iron, copper or ivory; in its mouth the horse carried a small 

 iron bar, which was attached to the nose band and served to give the 

 rein a hold as well. When this rein was pulled the points of the nose 

 band pained the horse and made it manageable ! ! ! (?) The "Cavezon,"' 

 an instrument of to-day, seems to originate from that device. We shall 

 now enter upon the history of the horse in Europe. 



The Egyptians established many colonies in Greece and brought 

 their well-bred horses with them; it appears, that the first landing took 

 place about the time of the birth of Closes, and in Thessaly in northern 

 Greece. The natives of this region were so frightened at the sight of 

 mounted -warriors, that they fled in all directions in the opinion, that 

 these creatures, seemingly half human and half horso, were monsters; 

 they were given the name of Centaurs, and were frequently represent- 

 ed on monuments. According to the old Greek mythology, Bucephal- 

 us, the saddle horse of Alexander the Great, was of this breed; it would 

 not be mounted by any one but its master, and kneeled down when he 

 wanted to get on its back. Alexander rode Bucephalus in the battle of 

 Hydaspes, where he finally was deadly wounded; here, for the first time 

 it disobeyed its master: It carried him quickly out of the heat of battle 

 then knelt down to let him dismount, broke down and expired. Sixty 

 years later the Egyptians founded another colony in Southern Greece 

 and thus introduced the knowledge of the horse in the neighborhood of 

 Athens; their leader was Erichton, who, the same as the first Centaur, in 

 the shape of a marksman, was entered among the Constellation of Stars 

 as Auriga, (that is driver) The Thessalians always maintained first 

 rank in the Greek cavalry, in fact, Thessaly -was the only part of the 

 country, which, on account of its spendid pastures was well adapted 

 for the breeding of horses; while the remaining parts of Greece were 

 more or less dry and sterile. After the importance of horse breeding for 

 the army had been recognized, the necessary number of equestrians 

 Were obtained in Athens and Sparta by giving to a number of such cit- 

 izens the second rank in the Republic, as well as certain honors and 

 privileges. The Equites or Chevaliers of the Roman Republic were cre- 

 ated in the same manner. It is on the Greek monuments that we first 



