192 THE STUD. 



where it is not a professional case, not to reject a 

 horse with defects, or fancied defects, without the 

 opinion of a good judge of such matters, where 

 such is to be got. Therefore, when I say, " buy 

 such a horse," I mean do not reject him, he is 

 worth an opinion; when I say unequivocally 

 reject him, it is only when I know better judges 

 than myself would say "reject him" also. 



There is one strong feature in small feet, that 

 may guide the reader as to whether the animal is 

 worth taking an opinion upon. This is, if the 

 fore feet are small, look at the hind ones, if they 

 are small also, I should infer the size was natural 

 formation; if not, I should be suspicious; for, with- 

 out pretending to say what others may have seen, 

 and known, I do not remember ever to have met 

 with a horse with small fore feet and large hind 

 ones, where the size of the fore ones was natural : 

 nor is the absolute size of the foot, though it be 

 on the whole large, a guarantee against contrac- 

 tion. This merely shows that the whole hoof is 

 not contracted ; for it may be, as a whole, as big 

 as a platter, yet may the most material and sen- 

 sible part of it be under severe contraction. Con- 

 traction may be partial or general : a horse's foot 

 may be generally narrow, like a canal barge, yet 

 be no more contracted than the barge itself. 

 Mules' and asses' feet are thus shaped, yet they 

 keep perfectly sound. The general shape of these 



