142 SHETLAND PONIES. 



means more suffering from cold and exposure than we can 

 realize — it is said — from the interior of our country with the 

 thermometer at 50 degrees below zero, as sometimes witnessed 

 in northern Montana and Manitoba. 



While the temperature of these islands may be all that can 

 be desired for summer residence, and the coast scenery and sea 

 yiews therefrom most singularly picturesque, yet we would 

 never think of selecting these hilly, rocky, rough, and almost 

 barren islands, located as they are, for a horse-breeding section 

 of our great world ; and yet horse-breeding on many of these 

 islands, with the cold North Sea on the one side and the stern 

 Atlantic on the other, is quite extensively (compared with all 

 the other business of these isles except fishing) carried on, and 

 the exportation of horses produced here is of considerable con- 

 sideration. 



While the origin of the Shetland Ponies may be unknown, 

 they having been there as far back as we have any knowledge 

 of the country, yet it is said that sometime in the 16th century 

 some ships of the Spanish Armada went ashore there, having 

 had on board some fine horses belonging to the admiral's stud. 

 This cross, it is claimed, imparted much of the beauty and 

 fleetness to the Shetlands ; and to-day it is not much of a trick 

 for the practiced horse-man, well versed in breeds of horses, to 

 detect in the little Shetland of forty inches in height the colors 

 and general characteristics of the Spanish horse, whose blood is 

 so profusely diffused through our native wild horses of 

 America, whose origin was derived from the same source. 



Mr. Elliott of West Liberty, Iowa, an extensive importer of 

 the Shetland Pony to America, tells us that a titled lady of 

 Scotland, by the name of Nicholson, "has for years crossed 

 small Arabian stallions on Shetland mares, the produce being 

 a pony 46 to 48 inches high, and some of which are extremely 

 fine. These are known to the trade as Fetlar, or Nicholson 

 ponies." 



These ponies are mostly confined to the Isle of Fetlar. 

 Iceland ponies have also been put on the island of Bressay, on 



