Judging a Horse 61 
Horses intended for speed should stand high behind. 
The withers should be firm and moderately thin, the 
shoulders should be well muscled and preferably slop- 
ing. In horses intended for draft purposes, moderately 
sloping shoulders are preferable. The fore-arm should 
be well muscled, the muscles and tendons of the leg firm 
aud prominent. The bones should be round and fine, 
the joints of good size and the leg moderately wide 
from before back. The skin should be fine and should 
lie close to the bones and sinews of the leg. The chest 
should be broad, deep and strongly muscled. The ribs 
should be “well sprung,” that is, coming well out at 
right angles from the back-bone, thus giving the horse 
a good round barrel, which furnishes room for the lungs 
aud digestive organs. A horse lacking in this capacity 
is said to be “slab-sided” and “washy,” and usually 
lacks stamina. The horse should not be “tucked up” 
in the flanks, and the hips should be strongly muscled, 
because it is here that most of the power is required, 
either for speed or for draft purposes. The legs should 
be well placed and the bones well directed, making the 
proper angles at the various joints. A horse intended 
for draft purposes should be “built close to the ground.” 
In all horses, the coat should be fine and short, the skin 
thin and soft to the touch, showing the large veins 
clearly. In all horses, except Clydesdale and Shires, 
the legs should be comparatively free from long coarse 
hair. The mane and tail should be of moderate 
length and thickness, fine and silky, the tail being 
especially important, because of the character and style 
which it gives to the general appearance of the animal. 
