300 



PARMER'S CYCLOPEDIA OF LIVE STOCK 



registered Percherons in the United 

 States. (For secretary, see appendix.) 



The French Draft, also known as the 

 Boulounaise horse, had the same ances- 

 try as the Percheron and was once in- 

 cluded with the latter. In fact, the breed 

 is now in process of differentiation from 

 the Percheron and can scarcely be dis- 

 tinguished from it. The prevailing colors 

 are gray, bay and black. The French 

 Draft is . slightly heavier than the 

 Percheron and useful for fewer pur- 

 poses, being purely a heavy draft horse. 

 (For secretary, see appendix.) 



preferred colors are brown, bay and 

 black with an occasional roan or chest- 

 nut. They are closer to the ground than 

 the Percheron and less trim in appear- 

 ance. The head is large, ears sometimes 

 lopped, neck thick, shoulders straight, 

 back short and board, chest deep, legs 

 short and flat, feet large, heel low. The 

 defects of the Belgian are clumsy gait, 

 coarse neck, sloping croup and too erect 

 pasterns. Attention is being given to 

 the correction of these points. Belgians 

 are slowly gaining in favor among 

 American breeders on account of their 



Fig. 213 — SUFFOLK STALLION, CHAMPION AT LONDON ROYAL SHOW, 1905 

 (Courtesy Suffolk Horse Society) 



The Belgian Draft horse, r Flemish 

 horse, stands nearer than any other breed 

 to the old black horse of Flanders. His 

 ancestors were first used as war chargers 

 and later for draft purposes. Until re- 

 cently the Belgian Draft horses imported 

 into the United States have lacked qual- 

 ity. The Percheron and Clydesdale pos- 

 sess more style and better action than the 

 Belgian, and are therefore more in fa- 

 for in this country. The Belgian has 

 less feather on the legs than the Clydes- 

 dale, shorter neck, wider breast and 

 larger body. 



The Belgian Draft is the largest of all 

 horses, weighing 1,700 to 2,500 pounds, 

 and standing 15.3 to 17 hands high. The 



great power and easy keeping qualities. 

 There are about 2,000 registered Bel- 

 gians in the United States. (For secre- 

 tary, see appendix.) 



In southern Belgium there is a light 

 race of Belgian drafters, known as the 

 Ardennes horse. Having described the 

 various breeds of light and draft horses, 

 we may now turn our attention to the 

 recognized market classes of the hors.\ 



MARKET CLASSES 



The following paragraphs on market 

 classes are based largely on the accounts 

 of Davenport, Alexander and Rommel. 

 According to the estimates of dealers, 

 only about 60 per cent of the horses 



