QENEBAL RULES. ' S9 



difficult question in breeding, and, before it can be an- 

 swered, it will be necessary to know of what blood is the 

 impure portion constituted, and in what proportion does it 

 exist. If it be distinctly of cold blood, as of Cleveland 

 bay, Suffolk Punch, Conestoga, or common cart-horse, and 

 if the proportion of thorough blood mixed with it be in- 

 considerable, it may, at once, be pronounced useless to 

 take any pains about it, as the results will not repay the 

 trouble or expense. If the proportion of pure blood be 

 considerable, but remote, and the stock have been long in 

 bred — as^ for example, is the case with the Mcigans — the 

 only possible way to breed them up is to stint the mares 

 to the very best and most powerfully made, short-coupled, 

 broad-chested, strong-loined, short-legged, thorough-bred 

 stallions that can be found, of a totally distinct recent 

 strain of blood, if the blood of the mares can be ascertained ; 

 although it will not be the worse if, some ten or more gen- 

 erations back, they both run into the same line. In this 

 case, the stallion, in the first cross, should not be taller or 

 larger than the mare, but may exceed her in strength, size 

 of bone, and muscular development. The fillies in the 

 second generation will be larger in all ways than their 

 dams — since improvement of strength, health, symmetry, 

 and development implies improvement in size. These 

 fillies may be again put to horses of exactly the same 

 stamp as that last described, but just so much larger than 

 the filly as the filly is larger than her dam. This will, in 

 all probability, achieve the desired end. This is, m fact, 

 what is known among breeders as breeding up, in the true 

 sense of the word. If, on the other hand, the mares, de- 

 generated, have been crossed with pure English blood, but 

 remotely and not recently, on Canadian or imported Nor- 

 man stock, there will be no objection to crossing them 

 back once to Canadian or Norman stallions ; since in Can- 



