be cut not later than the end of their two-year-old racing 

 career. The records of hunting amply prove the benefits 

 of the operation. Mr. H. T. Barclay's Freeman, who 

 carried his master most brilliantly for fourteen trying 

 seasons over Leicestershire, is no solitary instance of 

 the ability of the gelding to stand work, especially when 

 it is of a nature, like that of jumping, to severely tax the 

 soundness of the fore legs. The necessity of the hunter to 

 be light in front, is a subject upon which I need not dwell 

 here. Many experienced trainers with whom I have dis- 

 cussed this subject, hold the same opinions as I do on the 

 practical utility of castration. I think that the majority of 

 trainers will agree with me in saying that geldings not alone 

 stand fast work better than entires ; but also recover more 

 quickly from injuries of the fore legs. The lesson to be 

 learned, from a conformation point of view, from the fore- 

 going remarks, is that the racer, chaser, and hunter should 

 be light in the head, neck and shoulders. 



As regards the contour of the neck, I may state that, 

 according to its shape, it is designated high-crested (or 

 convex, Fig. 334), straight (Figs. 322 and 329), or ewe- 

 necked (concave, Fig. 247). The contour varies a good 

 deal according to the manner the animal holds his head, and 

 should be judged by the form it assumes when the horse 

 stands in an ordinary manner at attention (p. 62), with the 

 line of its face at an angle of about 45^ to the ground 

 Some horses, especially coarse bred entires, have a very 

 high and thick crest, from an excessive amount of fat 

 having been deposited above the suspensory ligament of 

 the head and neck. Such a formation, from overloading 

 the fore hand, is a marked defect in any kind of saddle- 

 horse. A slight convexity of crest in a lean though fairly 

 muscular neck, as in Fig. 371, is a beauty. 



The fact of a horse being ewe-necked seems to be of no 

 detriment to his speed. It might, however, affect his 

 handiness, on account of depriving, to some extent, his rider 

 or driver, as the case may be, of command over him , and 



