12 THE STUD. 



undeniable proofs, It would be found that there 

 is scarcely a sound horse among them, though they, 

 the owners, do not know it or think so. They 

 may, perhaps, say that their horses are never lame : 

 perhaps not; that is, not lame in their estima- 

 tion, or to their eye ; but I daily see horses that 

 go to a certain degree indubitably lame, while 

 their owners conceive them to be as indubitably 

 sound. These horses, perhaps, all do their work 

 perfectly well, are held as sound by owners, ser- 

 vants, acquaintance, and casual observers ; but a 

 practised eye would detect an inequality in their 

 going, as a watchmaker would do the same in 

 the movement of a watch, though I might look 

 for a week, or listen for the same length of time, 

 without being able to either see or hear the va- 

 riation. The watch might, however, on the aver- 

 age keep fair time, but it would not be a per- 

 fect one : and what matters, if it answers all 

 the purposes for which we want it ? A really 

 bad watch that cannot keep time is a different 

 affair. It is pretty much the same with a horse. 

 If the unsoundness is such as to render him un- 

 able to do his work, or even to do it unpleasantly 

 to himself or owner, or if it is likely to bring him 

 to this, have nothing to do with him : if, how- 

 ever, this is not the case, or likely to be so, if 

 you like him, buy him. I would ask persons so 

 desirous of a quite sound horse, w^hether they 



