Horses RAIsine In CotontAL New ENGLAND 923 
of an admixture of Spanish blood, first, ‘‘ because there were no pacers 
in Andalusia or any other part of Spain,’’ and secondly, because ‘‘ the 
Narragansetts were a leading article of export from Rhode Island in 
1680, thirteen years before Governor Robinson was born.’’ Both these 
objections made by Wallace are of doubtful validity, however. There 
is available no such complete information regarding the horses in Spain 
during the period in question as to justify any such sweeping assertion 
as to the entire absence of pacers. And, although it is true that horses 
were reported by Governor Sanford to the Lords of Trade in London in 
1680 as an important article of export from Rhode Island, there is 
nothing to indicate that these horses were of the Narragansett breed. The 
presumption is that they were not, for the Narragansett district proper 
was not really settled until about that date. Furthermore, Captain 
John Hull in 1677 looked on his plan (noted on page 905 for breed- 
ing a race of ‘‘ large and fair horses and mares ’’ as a new venture for 
the region. In short, the horses mentioned by Governor Sanford were 
in all probability raised in the northern and eastern parts of Rhode 
Island, where the country was already in farms before the Narragansett 
district was settled. 
It would seem, therefore, that the tradition concerning the importa- 
tion of Spanish stock by Deputy Governor Robinson deserves some 
eredence. Whether or not there were any pacers in Spain at the time 
is immaterial, for it is shown by the correspondence of Governor Win- 
throp and other writers that pacers were not uncommon in New Eng- 
land as early, at least, as 1684 (164), and the pacing gait of the Nar- 
ragansetts may very easily be accounted for on the basis of selection 
and breeding of this native stock. Such selection may have gone on 
for a greater or less period before the importation of a stallion from 
Spain to still further improve the breed. Such importation, in fact, is 
just what might have been expected to happen as attention was increas- 
inely directed to developing an improved strain. 
The pacing gait was one of the most characteristic points of the 
Narragansetts. It is said that the pure-bloods could not trot at all. 
The gait itself is described as being peculiar in that the backbone of 
the horse moved through the air in a straight line, thus differing from 
