THE SADDLE TYPE OF HORSE 157 



walk, briskly and with speed equal to four miles an 

 hour; canter reasonably high and gentle, trot steadily, 

 straight and true; action enough to be attractive; well 

 balanced and with speed equal to twelve miles an 

 hour. ' ' 



The American Saddle Horse is a product resulting orig- 

 inally from the use of Thoroughbred stallions on the com- 

 mon mares of Virginia and Kentucky. From this early 

 ancestry, dating back to the importation in 1832 of the 

 Thoroughbred horse Hedgeford, has been evolved the 

 American saddle horse breed. Hedgeford sired a stallion 

 named Denmark, foaled in 1839, that is officially credited 

 with being the foundation sire of this breed. The American 

 saddle horse of standard character stands about 15 V^ hands 

 high, and weighs from 950 to 1,050 pounds. His color is 

 commonly bay, brown or chestnut. This horse has been 

 bred to a degree that exhibits much style and finish. The 

 head is refined in feature and shows much character; the 

 neck is long and supple and beautifully arched; the body 

 moderately long, round, and well turned; the croup long 

 and level; the tail set high and proudly carried. The legs 

 show superior bone and muscling, and the pasterns are 

 long and springy. One finds in this horse at his best, a 

 combination of symmetry and balance of form, and grace- 

 ful, easy action of a very high degree. 



The Thoroughbred horse originated in England. It is 

 not only the oldest of British breeds, but the purest in 

 ancestry. For these reasons the Thoroughbred reproduces 

 with unusual uniformity. The more common colors are 

 bay, brown and chestnut, but black, gray and roan also 

 occur. The height is not remarkably variable, 15% hands 

 meeting with favor. While the weight is variable, between 

 900 and 1,050 pounds is a satisfactory range. In conforma- 

 tion we find the essential features of the light harness horse, 

 but with certain characteristics distinctive of this breed. 

 The head should be lean and fine, and very breedy in char- 

 acter ; the neck is usually long and thin ; the shoulders are 



