at Newcastle-upon- Tyiie. 
121 
known them to be unsound, they would scarcely have en- 
countered the cost of sending them to a competition for which 
soundness was a sine qua non. The unsoundness may have 
been slight, or it may have been great ; nevertheless the fact 
remains that certain unsound horses have been used. The only 
other alternative is that the veterinary officials were wrong ; 
but this, as far as I know, has never been hinted at, and their 
judgment remains unimpugned. After setting out the numbers 
of the winning and reserved horses, as given above, the Judges, 
in their report, wrote as follows : — 
" We are sovry to find that some of the horses we had admired failed to 
pass the veterinary inspection ; at the same time we fully recognise the great 
importance of soundness, and we are glad to be able to testify to the care and 
ability with which the examinations were conducted. 
" The general arrangements were exctUcnt ; and the boxes in which the 
stallions were located were planned so well, that the public were enabled to 
see the horses to every advantage. 
" We would suggest that, on futm-e occasions, it might be desirable to have 
the horses shown on a harder surface. In the ring, to-day, the horses did not 
always show their action to advantage, being afraid to move on the boarded 
floor. 
" We cannot conclude without thanking the Stewards for their courtesy 
and attention. 
(Signed) " Coventry. 
W. Dunne. 
Edward Paddisox. 
" January 25th, 1887." 
At all horse shows competent judging is indispensable, but in 
no class is it more so than in those for entire horses. Stallions 
are a class by themselves ; and to decide on the merits of those 
exhibited, a greater degree of knowledge and experience is 
needed than any other description of horse. At the recent 
Newcastle show the Society were fortunate in the extreme in 
being able to secure three gentlemen so well qualified to act. 
They all possessed great experience in horse-breeding ; and 
though around the ring were many critics, there was no 
quarrelling with the decisions arrived at, a state of things which 
cannot be otherwise than satisfactory to the Society, and one 
of which the Judges may well be proud. 
It was a condition of the show that the districts in which the 
prize winners were to stand or travel should be decided by lot. 
The draw took place at the close of the day with the following 
result: "Gumbo" goes to Alnwick; "Knight Templar" to 
Durham ; " Moss Hawk " to Westmoreland ; " Prescription " 
to Cumberland ; and " Storm Signal " to the Tynedale district. 
Little more remains to be said. The Newcastle show was 
the first step in what may prove to be a great undertaking. 
In the event of those, who wish well to horse-breeding, supporting 
