24 THE HORSE. 



as objectionable rather than otherwise. The inexperienced horse- 

 man is apt to consider the existence of high withers as a sure sign 

 that the saddle will be carried well back, but there are some horses 

 whose withers are the greatest annoyance to the rider, for having 

 upright and short shoulder-blades, together with high w^ithers, the 

 saddle rides forward upon the latter, and chafes them in spite of 

 all the padding which can be introduced. In looking at this point, 

 I believe the purchaser should almost entirely disregard it, except- 

 ing to take care that it is not too high for the formation and posi- 

 tion of the shoulder-blades. If these are long, and therefore 

 slanting, and especially if in addition to a proper position of the 

 bones they are furnished with plenty of muscle, the withers may 

 be disregarded, and the action may be expected to be good even if 

 they are so low as to show no rise between the neck and the back. 

 The volume of the chest is the measure not only of the capacity 

 of the lungs, but of that of the large organs of digestion. Hence, 

 unless there is a middlepiece of proper size, the wind is seldom 

 good, and the stamina of the individual will scarcely ever be suffi- 

 cient to bear hard work. But there is a limit to the development 

 of this part in those breeds which are required to move with much 

 velocity, where weight is a great object; and if the body of the 

 racehorse or hunter was as heavy as that of the drayhorse, the 

 speed would be greatly reduced, and the legs would give way 

 during the first severe gallop. So also, a wide chest interferes 

 with the free and rapid action of the shoulders and arms as they 

 glide on the ribs ; and an open bosom is almost always fatal to high 

 speed. In the racehorse and hunter, therefore, capacity of chest 

 must be obtained by depth rather than width ; while in the cart- 

 horse, a wide chest and a frame roomy in all directions is desired, 

 so as to give good wind, and, at the same time, enable the animal 

 to keep up his flesh while working eight or nine hours per day. 

 For light, quick draught, a formation intermediate between the two 

 is the proper one; the large frame of the cart-horse being too heavy 

 for the legs to bear at a fast pace, and leading to their rapid de- 

 struction in trotting over our modern hard roads. The capacity 

 of the lungs is marked by the size of the chest at the girth; but 

 the stamina will depend upon the depth of the back ribs, which 

 should be especially attended to. 



A SHORT BACK, with plenty of ground covered nevertheless, is 

 the desideratum of every practised horseman. Unless the mea- 

 surement from the shoulder point to the back of the quarters is 

 •somewhat greater than the height at the withers, the action is 

 confined, especially in the gallop, for the hind legs cannot be 

 brought sufficiently forward on account of the interference of the 

 fore-quarter; and, indeed, from the want of play in the back, they 

 are generally too much crippled in that respect. A horse " short 

 above and long below " is the perfection of shape in this particular, 



