THE TYPES AND CLASSES OF HORSES 97 



. HO. '"The hair of the tail should be reasonably fine, and the brush 

 should be thick and long." 



The tail of the horse has its greatest use as a medium 

 for brushing off flies. Consequently it should have good 

 length to serve its purpose. Docking, which is more es- 

 pecially practiced in Europe, is the cutting off of a portion 

 of the fleshy part or the dock. This is a cruel practice, and 

 is prohibited by law in the United States. "Without a well 

 developed dock and brush, the horse has no means of pro- 

 tection from the bites of countless flies. The dock should 

 be comparatively short and muscular, and attached fairly 

 high, such an attachment usually being related to a long, 

 well carried croup. A high setting of the tail indicates a 

 comparatively level sacrum, a position associated with the 

 freest locomotion. A high carriage of tail also shows the 

 muscles of the dock to be active and strong. The hair of the 

 tail should be reasonably fine, and the brush should be thick 



