196 THE ARAB HORSE. 
HORSES. 
THE Horse has from time immemorial been made the companion and 
servant of man, and its original progenitors are unknown. It is supposed, 
however, that the Horse must have derived its origin from Central Asia, 
and from thence have spread to almost every portion of the globe. 
The elegant, swift, and withal powerful Horses of which England is so 
proud, and which are employed in the chase or the course, owe their best 
qualities to the judicious admixture of the Arabian blood. The ARAB 
Horse has long been celebrated for its swift limbs, exquisite form, and 
affectionate disposition. 
There are several breeds of Arab Horses, only one of which is of very 
great value. This variety, termed the Kochlani, is so highly prized, that a 
mare of the pure breed 
can hardly be procured 
at any cost, and even 
the male animal is not 
easy of attainment. 
The pedigree of these 
Horses is carefully pre- 
served, and written in 
most florid terms upon 
parchment. In some 
cases the genealogy is 
said to extend for 
nearly two thousand 
years. The body of 
the Arab Horse is very 
light, its neck long ard 
arched, its eye full and 
soft, and its limbs deli- 
cate and slender. The 
temper of the ,animal 
==. is remarkably sweet, 
4 for as it has been born 
THE HORSE. and bred among the 
family of its owner, it 
avoids injuring even the little children that roll about among its legs as 
carefully as if they were its own offspring. So attached to its owner is this 
beautiful Horse, that if he should be thrown from its back, the animal will 
stand quietly by its prostrate master, and wait until he gains strength to 
remount. 
The training of the Kochlani is not so severe as is generally imagined, 
for the presence of water and abundant pasturage is absolutely necessary, 
in order to rear the animal in a proper manner. Not until the strength 
and muscles of the animal are developed is a trial permitted, and then it 
is truly a terrible one. When the mare—for the male animal is never 
ridden by the Arabs—has attained her full development, she is mounted for 
the first time, and ridden at full speed for fifty or sixty miles without respite. 
Hot and fainting, she is then forced into deep water, which compels her to 
swim, and if she does not feed freely immediately after this terrific trial, she 
is rejected as unworthy of being reckoned among the true Kochlani. 
For the animals which will stand this terrible test the Arab has almost 
