J^eifort on the Hoi'sCs Exhibited at Windsor'. 557 
shows classes for young stock has been instrumental in making 
a market for promising youngsters such as never presented 
itself to the breeder of ten or fifteen years ago ; while it is 
notorious that an energetic showman will pay for a yearling, a 
two- or three-year-old, a price far in excess of what would be 
given by any one whose intention it was to throw the youngster 
up, and make him or her into a working horse in due time. Of 
course, these liberal prices do not fall in the way of haphazard 
breeders — men who think any old, worn-out, or undersized mare 
good enough to breed from ; but the fact of money being always 
forthcoming for anything good is a direct inducement to men to 
try and breed something out of the common. 
For these reasons, therefore, it seems to the writer that the 
modern horse show, though in some degree encouraging what is 
artificial, does tend towards improving the breed of horses ; while, 
at the same time, the various societies of which mention has 
already been made also do their share towards achieving this very 
desirable end. In short, the show horse, like the race horse, 
gets a kind of fictitious value by reason of his ability, or supposed 
ability, to prove victorious in contests. 
This year a new and, as the writer ventures to think, a more 
convenient arrangement was adopted in the framing of the 
catalogue. Instead of putting the stallions, mares, young 
stock, and what may be termed working horses together — a 
classification involving the mixing up of all the various breeds, 
and rendering the search for any particular class a work of 
difficulty — all the animals of each breed were catalogued and 
stabled together ; and for the purposes of this report the official 
order may be adhered to, a commencement being made with 
The Thoroughbred Stallions. 
These were now assembled merely for parade purposes, the 
judging having taken place in February last at the Agricultural 
Hall, Islington. The sires which have been serving in the four 
Scottish districts were not called upon to come to Windsor, as 
they were exhibited in July at the Highland Show. " Sir 
Joseph," who travelled the Beverley district, in Yorkshire, died 
on May 7, 1889 ; but, with the exception of those five horses, 
all the winners of the 200Z. premiums were present at Windsor. 
" Baldur " and " Truefit " looked magnificent specimens of the 
thoroughbred horse, and quite dwarfed little " Pearl Diver," 
who is, however, thickening out, and was deservedly admired 
by those who have a leaning to what is colloquially designated 
9, " wire and whipcord " horse. " Blue Grass," too, though 
VOL. XXV. — S. S. 0 0 
