2i6 THE FORE LIMB. 



pulsion to be partly upward and partly forward ; but we 

 cannot tell what these proportions should be. It is evident 

 that the heavy cart-horse which requires the aid of his fore 

 limbs to propel him forward, should not have an upright 

 humerus. It appears probable that the angle which the 

 shoulder-blade makes with the humerus, varies but little in 

 different horses ; in which case, the more oblique the 

 shoulder-blade, the more upright the humerus, and vice 

 versa; and consequently, from observing the slope of the 

 former, we might estimate that of the latter. 



Elbow. — The point of the elbow should be capable 

 of being drawn well away from the side. It will then 

 have plenty of freedom, and will not be tied down to the 

 chest. 



Fore-arm. — This part in all horses should be muscular ; 

 as its muscles have to do all the work of the limb below 

 the elbow. On p. 162, I have alluded to its comparative 

 length. In Pis. 15, 35, 39, 40, 55, and 57, are shown well- 

 shaped fore-arms ; in Pis. 46 and 48, mean ones. Although 

 a race-horse might have a somewhat light fore-arm without 

 much detriment, it is imperative for the jumper to be 

 strong in this part ; for in leaping, great strain falls on the 

 muscles at the back of the fore-arm in straightening the 

 fetlock, by which action the forehand is raised. It goes 

 almost without saying that the heavy cart-horse should 

 have a powerful fore-arm. 



Castors or chesmits. — On the fore-arm, generally, but not 

 always, nearer the knee than the elbow, there is a horny 

 growth, called a castor or chesnut. It is more or less in the 

 form of an oval, the orreater diameter of which is about two 



