34 HORSES: 



weight and appearance. She had become dyspeptic 

 from overfeeding. I have never known an instance 

 where the system, pursued year after year, resulted 

 in failure. I could name a score or more cases as 

 marked as those here given ; while, in many more, 

 the only apparent effect upon good horses, that were 

 already in good health and condition, has been to 

 keep them thus with something less of feed. But 

 the gain in feed and saving of time is trifling com- 

 pared with the saving of horseflesh ; for animals that 

 are habitually fed at noon (even if the " two meals " 

 are divided into three), will sooner or later get se- 

 verely hurt, by reason of the heat and fatigue of the 

 forenoon and the resumption of work again in the 

 afternoon, since this prevents the digestion of the 

 mid-day meal. 



C. H., of Brunswick, Me., " in the grave-stone busi- 

 ness," which he represented as being very hard on 

 horses, " used up," as he expresses it, several horses 

 while feeding them generously three times a day. 

 The last one he owned showed signs of being " over- 

 worked," until after he adopted the two-meal plan. 

 He says he " blundered into the practice " from hav- 

 ing to take the noon meal at irregular hours. It was 

 sometimes early, sometimes very late, when he and 

 his horse dined ; and finally he got into the way of 

 eating only night and morning himself. Finding his 

 own condition improved, he thought he would try 

 the experiment with his horse. After a few weeks 

 the animal began to improve and " gained right up, 

 so that," said he, " a friend remarked one day, ' Well, 



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