PERFORMANCE OF MORGAN HORSES UNDER SADDLE 35 
On the cross-country ride, horses that made the fastest time had a 
long stride at the trot, performed the trot well in the opinion of the 
riders, and had relatively short, level backs. 
At the end of the cross-country test, stallions showed the least 
fatigue and mares the most. So few horses showed fatigue that the 
test was not considered adequate as a measure of endurance. 
The easiest horses to handle at the walk, on the average, were those 
with a long stride, a high score on general conformation, and a medium 
score on temperament. Horses that walked fast and had a long stride, 
high scores for head, an intermediate slope of croup, and straight 
snappy action generally had the best scores on performance at the 
walk. In general, horses with a fast walk and a straight snappy action 
at the walk and trot had the easiest walk for the rider. 
At the trot, horses that had low or medium scores for temperament, 
straight snappy action at the walk, and intermediate height at the 
withers were, on the average, the easiest to handle. Horses that were 
active but not vicious or difficult to handle and had straight snappy 
action at the walk and trot as a rule performed best at the trot. Horses 
with a straight snappy walk had the easiest gait at the trot to the 
rider. Riders did not prefer horses with the longest stride. 
At the canter, horses with intermediate scores for temperament 
were the easiest to handle. Horses that were very active but easily 
handled performed the best. 
The significant differences between the progeny of different sires 
give strong indications that factors controlling the following charac- 
ters are inherited: Speed at the walk and on the 11.35-mile course, 
height to floor of chest, length from point of shoulder to point of hip, 
style and beauty, slope of croup and shoulder, and action at the trot. 
Characters that were associated with performance and that differed 
significantly between the sexes were length of stride at the trot and 
general conformation. Canfield’s colts, when compared with colts by 
other stallions from the same dams, made the best showing on per- 
formance of any of the sire progeny. Mansfield’s colts had a higher 
average for style and beauty than those from other stallions. 
Because of the relatively few sires and inequalities of distribution 
of the progeny and sexes, some of the results may be due to coincidence 
of characters being transmitted together. 
The results of this study indicate that some of the existing beliefs 
concerning the relation of physical characters to performance of saddle 
horses are not based on sound assumptions and that more compre- 
hensive studies should be carried out to determine the relationships 
between form and function. Until better information is available, it is 
suggested that breeders select for characters shown in this study to be 
associated with performance and, when possible, use breeding animals 
with proved ability to transmit performance. 
