"I OTHER BREEDS 33 
fixing type and obtaining impression, power, and 
resistance to crossing. And it may be said that till 
lately most foreign draught breeds have not been 
long enough fixed or carefully enough watched to 
give them the value of a pure breed. . 
The various draught breeds of France, for in- 
stance, such as the Boulonnais, the Percheron, the 
Franc Comtois, the Race de Trait Bretonne, and the 
Cheval Poitevin, remain types when kept to their own 
soil, trade, and surroundings, but have not sufficient 
purity and inherent uniformity to be reproductive of 
their best qualities in crossing. 
Those who are inclined to despair of persuading 
farmers in those districts of England where horse- 
breeding is little practised to attempt it, may find 
encouragement in the fact that some years ago the 
farmers of Le Perche did not trouble themselves 
about horse-breeding, and devoted their time and 
attention to their flocks and herds; but to-day, 
from small beginnings, they possess, in the greatest 
numbers, perhaps the most renowned and sought-for 
of all foreign breeds of draught horses, the “ Race 
Percheronne.” The well-known Grey or White 
Percheron, whether of the stronger or lighter class, 
has won a decided position as a horse suitable for 
certain classes of draught and harness, and finds its 
way into our omnibuses, trams, and vans. It would 
pay the English farmer to supply this class of horse, 
but, believing as I do that we can produce some- 
thing better and more profitable than the Per- 
cheron, I shall not occupy the time of the reader 
with a description of the breed, its uses, its many 
good qualities, and its decided faults. 
D 
