THE SITUATION IN BELGIUM. 73 



Belgium now purchases for the remounts of her army about 800 

 horses per year, and while the number is not large the market is 

 within the easy reach of the breeders of the United States if they see 

 fit to take it. 



Chevalier Hendricks, an officer in the Belgian army and an acknowl- 

 edged authority upon horses in his country, has studied the question 

 under consideration with great care for the last few years. In a 

 recent address he advocated the plan of purchasing nothing but 

 American-bred horses for all remounts of their army. To this gen- 

 tleman more than any other one person Belgium is indebted for her 

 present efficient records of her draft horses. 



I have before me a communication from the Chevalier upon the 

 subject of our ability to furnish the cavalry horses Belgium needs, 

 and, coming as it does from such high authority, I quote from it at 

 considerable length. 



The first part of the communication treats of the sizes of horses 

 used for different army purposes in Belgium; but being almost iden- 

 tical with those of England and France, I omit the figures. 



This gentleman says : 



The horses should be 5 years old; the Government accepts only half of the 

 horses 4 yeaTs old; tout prefers huying all horses 5 years old, because these can 

 easily take their places in the ranks in five to six months' time. 



The weight which must be carried by the horses (soldier and equipments) is 

 not over 110 kilos; it varies between 95 and 110. 



The Belgian Government pays for fresh horses from 1,000 to 1,150 francs; for 

 the Irish horses, £40 to £46. 



Every year the Belgian army buys 800 Irish horses for remount of the cavalry 

 and for the artillery. 



The Belgian Government would be pleased to trade with American merchants 

 if the United States would offer horses of a good quality at a little less expense 

 than we get them elsewhere. In this case the Government would not hesitate to 

 buy yearly a more considerable number of horses to increase the effective force 

 of cavalry. 



Belgium does not breed cross-bred horses. "We understand, under the name of 

 cross-bred horses, all horses (chevaux de luxe) designed for the use of the wealth- 

 ier classes— that is, not working horses. Belgium furnishes only draft horses. 

 They are of two kinds; the heavy are what are called Flemish or Brabantine 

 horses, the light are the Ardennes horses. Belgium buys its horses " de luxe" in 

 Great Britain, in Ireland, in France, in the Netherlands, and in Germany. In 

 1897, 4,400 American horses from the United States were sold in Antwerp. It 

 does' not matter to Belgium where she buys her "chevaux de luxe" or fresh 

 horses. The important point is to obtain the best horses at the lowest prices. 



Besides the type of the fresh horse, which is the Irish type, the horses in great 

 demand in Belgium are the hunters and the coach horses. 



In case that the Belgian Government would mobilize its army, it must want m 

 a few days a great number of horses. It should certainly want 3,000 saddle horses 

 immediately. The matter of remounts is the same in Italy as in Belgium, and 

 the United States is situated to secure the monopoly of supplying horses for the 

 Italian army. 



Commenting briefly upon the remarks of the Chevalier, I will say 

 that they show a disposition to use our horses for cavalry purposes in 



