74 PONIES — THEIR DIFFERENT BREEDS. 



It is claimed that ibej are descended from horses casi 

 on the shores of the two districts from the ship-wrecked 

 galleons of the Spanish Armada. In both districts it is a 

 matter of historical notoriety that Spanish war-ships were 

 wrecked at the period in question ; and as they doubtless 

 had cavalry on board, there is no cause for disputing the 

 tradition, the rather that the Galloways of both districts 

 have many of the peculiarities of the Andalusian jennets, 

 and show a large tincture of Moorish blood. 



"The pure Galloway," says Youatt, "was said to be 

 nearly fourteen hands high and sometimes more, of a 

 bright bay or brown, with black legs, and small head and 

 neck, and peculiarly deep, clean legs. Its qualities were 

 speed, stoutness and sure-footedness over a very rugged 

 and mountainous country." Prom other authorities, better 

 acquainted, perhaps, than Mr. Youatt, with the race in 

 question, we find that they more often exceeded fourteen 

 hands by half a hand than fell short of that height ; that 

 they were quite as often or oftener of a rich, deep, glossy 

 chestnut — a peculiarly Andalusian color — as either brown 

 or bay ; that they were conspicuous for their breadth be- 

 tween the eyes, for their basin faces, for their thin, silky 

 manes and tails, and for the total absence of hair on their 

 fetlocks. They were, also, many of them, natural pacers, 

 or amblers, as that pace is called in England, and were all 

 of them easily trained to take and hold it for many hours 

 together. A distinguished Scottish divine thus describes 

 the animal in question : " There was once a breed of small, 

 elegant horses in Scotland, similar to those of Iceland and 

 Sweden, which were known by the name of Galloways, 

 the best of which sometimes reached the height of fourteen 

 hands and a half. One of this description I possessed, il 

 having been bought for my use when I was a boy. In 

 D'nnt of elegance of shape it was a perfect picture, and in 



