98 THE HORSE 



dominion of the Moors, no doubt Bar!) blood has continually 

 flowed into it. The ordinary animal of the country, the 

 common '*jaca" (pronounced " haca," and evidently the 

 ancestor of our word "hack "), is a capital riding animal, 

 never stumbling or making a mistake. The first cross with 

 an Arab at once puts fashion into the produce, which con- 

 tinues for many generations, and if this cross is followed by 

 mating with an English thoroughbred horse the result is a 

 very elegant and excellent riding-horse. Many very fair 

 race-horses have been bred by following these lines. The 

 haca has good knee action, but it also has the length which 

 is wanting in the hackney, and therefore its descendants 

 possess a frame suitable for riding, in contradistinction to 

 the other. 



Polo Ponies. 



With the advent of polo, and the consequent great 

 demand for galloping ponies up to weight, the merits of 

 the various breeds of ponies are eagerly discussed, and their 

 suitability considered for becoming the foundation for 

 building up a type so much desired. It must be kept in 

 mind that the different players in a team do not necessarily 

 require exactly the same sort of animal to do brilliant work, 

 and that it is easier to mount some of the posts than the 

 others. No. 1 is the hardest to find ponies for, since so 

 many good qualities must be combined. The strokes at 

 goal come oftenest to him, and therefore the pony must be 

 easy to ride, or he may miss them. It must be fast or the 

 rider cannot keep his place, and withal be handy or the 

 opposing back will slip him, but so long as it is up to its 

 rider's weight it does not need the l)ulk so essential in a 

 pony for No. 3. 



A very intelligent pony is needed for No. 2, one that will 

 follow the ball and alter its course without losing its stride, 

 changing its legs, or propping. The ball seldom continues 

 quite straight, especially as it loses its momentum, and as it 

 tvv'ists to one side or the other the pony must follow 

 smoothly in its track. Moreover, a fast-galloping pony is 

 needed, and one from whose back a stroke can be made 



