horse-breeding. The greater part of this money for more than 

 a century had been given by the reigning sovereign in the 

 shape of Royal Plates. 



In 1887 the Royal Commission on Horse-Breeding was 

 appointed, and one of the first recommendations of this body 

 was that the sum of /s.soo which had been given by Queen 

 Victoria in prizes for races should be diverted to the use to 

 which it is now applied — namely, in giving premiums to 

 thoroughbred stallions. 



Horses Bred for Sport Only 



Since the end of the coaching era — say since 1850 — we 

 have been breeding, as at the present day, almost exclusively 

 for pleasure, and not for business, and this is just where our 

 weakness lies. 



The only animals for business purposes which receive 

 the meed of attention their importance deserves are the heavy 

 draught-horses— the Shire, Suffolk and Clydesdale. 



We are far ahead of any other nation as breeders of 

 race-horses, hunters and polo-ponies — horses used in sport — 

 we spare neither money nor pains to breed the best, but in 

 aiming at production of these we either hit the mark or miss 

 it altogether. 



We prefer a Thoroughbred sire, not because he has bone, 

 substance and soundness, but because he is a Thoroughbred. 

 The owner of a mare does not inquire concerning the make 

 and shape of the stallion ; he asks, " How is he bred ? " and 

 a fashionable pedigree is the strongest — nay, the only — 

 recommendation he will accept. 



This was not always the case; between the years 1800 

 and 1850, broadly speaking. Hunter sires were used to beget 

 Hunter stock. It is true that breeders of Hunters did not 

 confine themselves exclusively to the use of such sires, for the 

 increased speed of hounds obliged them to produce faster 



