THE MODERN ARAB. 



35 



comes coarse and heavy if he is reared upon the succulent grasses 

 of rich meadows, and therefore it is probable that much of the 

 wiryness of leg and lightness of frame in the Arab is due to the 

 sandy soil in which the grasses of these oases take their roots. 

 Besides this, the dry air may have something to do with the devel- 

 opment of muscle and tendon, while the soft sands of the desert 

 render it unnecessary to protect the feet with iron shoes, and thus 

 they are enabled to grow into the form which nature has designed 

 for them as the most suitable to bear the superincumbent weight. 



'CHABAN, AN ARABIAN STALLION. 



Pure Arabs are considerably smaller than our modern tho- 

 rough-breds, seldom exceeding 14 hands 2 inches in height. The 

 head is remarkable for the width across the forehead, which is also 

 full and square, while the muzzle is finer, the face more hollowed 

 out, and the jaws more fully developed in their proportions than 

 in any other breed with which we are acquainted. The eye is full 

 and soft, yet sparkling with animation on the slightest excitement ; 

 the ear is small ; the neck arched ; the shoulders oblique, but mus- 

 cular ; the withers moderately high and thin; the chest rather 

 light in girth, but the back ribs deep in proportion, and the hips. 



