CAVALRY HORSES FROM ARGENTINA. 23 



(c) Cobs : From 14 hands 1 inch to 15 hands ; these are coarse bred, 

 weight-carrying animals for mounted infantry. 



(a) and (b) are required to be tame enough to handle, i. e., to lead 

 and to examine as to age and soundness; (c) must all be ridden before 

 they will be bought. 



No horses over 7 years old are purchased and but very few under 4 

 years old. 



The prices paid by the commission this year are higher than those 

 paid last year. This is largely due to the "fall in gold," but in some 

 degree to the decreasing number of good desirable animals met with. 

 The latter is especially true, I am told, with regard to the quality of 

 cavalry horses desired. 



This year prices have been for: 



(a) Cavalry horses ___. * $100 to $350. 



(6) Royal artillery horses 100 to 200. 



(e) Cobs 70to 80. 



I think an average charge of $10 (paper) per head can be added to 

 these prices for freight from the "estancia" to this city. 



Some mules have been bought by the commission this year at from 

 $70 to $120 (paper) per head, but they are of an inferior class; indeed 

 good mules do not seem to exist here in any numbers. 



All these horses are shipped to Cape Colony, Natal, and Matabele- 

 land in ships chartered by the British Government. It is impossible 

 to give the freight per head, but it can be stated that it figures out 

 more than $35 gold. 



The fittings on board ship cost about $5 gold per head. The time 

 consumed on the journey between here and the Cape is about twenty- 

 three days. The men who take care of the horses during the voyage 

 are paid £4 ($19.44 gold) for the trip. 



It is claimed by the officers of the commission that it is more advan- 

 tageous to charter a ship entire to carry the horses they purchase- 

 than to make a contract freight rate, since they are thus not only in 

 a position to take better care of their stock, but in addition are able 

 to carry alfalfa as cargo; and as they have to import into Africa 

 almost all the forage they use and can buy alfalfa here at $40 (paper) 

 per Argentine ton, 2,204 pounds, baled and at ship's side, they find 

 it profitable to charter outright steamers of large carrying capacity. 



In response to my inquiry as to the general soundness of Argentine 

 horses, I was told by a member of the commission that fully 70 per 

 cent of the horses offered them were sound, but that they found only 

 5 to 10 per cent of those offered suitable for their use. The diseases 



* The average price paid for the larger number bought would be about 

 These prices are in Argentine paper money. To reduce them to United States 

 currency first divide by an average gold rate of 2.60 and then multiply the result 

 by 0.965, the value of the Argentine gold peso in United States currency. As a 

 result of this calculation the Argentine paper dollar is found to be worth a frac- 

 tion over 37 cents in gold. 



