2 



THE HORSE 



him in his wanderings over almost every part of the 

 surface of the earth, performing duties both in peace 

 and war which no other animal could have done, and 

 giving Man facilities for the exercise of dominion over 

 nature which otherwise would have been impossible to 

 him. The role of the ass, the ox, the camel, and the 

 llama in performing similar duties has been of a 

 limited and subsidiary nature compared to that of the 

 horse. 



It is only in very recent times that the progress of 

 mechanical invention has begun to supersede some of 

 the uses for which the strength and the speed of the 

 horse for many thousands of years have alone been 

 available. How far this commencing disestablishment 

 of the horse from its unique position as the main agent 

 by which man and his possessions have been carried 

 and drawn all over the face of the earth will go, it is 

 difficult to say at present. 



To the eye of the naturalist, the horse presents 

 other and still higher sources of interest. No better 

 example can be found in the whole range of the animal 

 kingdom to illustrate certain great principles found 

 acting universally in the construction of the bodies of 

 all living beings, whether animals or plants. The 

 structure of the horse in relation to that of allied 

 animals and to the actions which it has to perform in 

 the economy of nature may be most advantageously 



