40 
Half-bred  Horses  for  Field  or  Road: 
to  buy  a really  clever  one  with  blood,  action,  and  substance,  the 
game  is  more  than  half  plaved  for  him : yet,  good  as  she  is,  he 
may  spoil  her  if  he  wonrt  take  any  trouble,  and  merely  uses  a 
thoroughbred  horse  because  such  happens  to  pass  his  door  ; 
but  if,  on  the  other  hand,  he  can't  afford  to  buy  such  a mare, 
let  him  take  the  best  he  has,  though  she  be  far  from  perfect 
in  shape,  provided  she  have  frame  enough , with  some  action, 
or  my  hint  won’t  hold  water  at  all. 
Before,  however,  coming  to  the  point,  I make  two  observa- 
tions. The  first  is,  that  in  choosing  a sire  the  breeder  must 
place  no  reliance  on  blood  producing  action  or  symmetry  in 
defiance  of  shape  in  the  same.  Consequently  he  is  at  a disad- 
vantage with  the  breeder  of  thoroughbred  stock,  who  has  pure 
blood  to  deal  with  on  both  sides,  and  also  the  aid  of  crosses 
which  have  been  for  the  last  thirty  years  or  more,  and  which 
continue  to  be,  fairly  successful,  and  to  have  done  more  during 
this  period  towards  improving  the  breed  of  the  thoroughbred 
horse  than  at  any  other  of  stud-book  history. 
Mv  second  observation  is,  that  though  what  may  be  called 
the  accidental  part  of  breeding  very  often  serves  the  breeder  of 
thoroughbreds,  it  would  be  simply  suicidal  to  the  tenant-farmer. 
I shall  be  found  to  explain,  as  we  proceed,  my  meaning  in  regard 
to  the  first  observation : and  in  regard  to  tbe  second,  it  is  this. 
Many  breeders  of  thoroughbred  stock,  irrespective  of  shape  either 
in  sire  or  dam,  send  their  best  mares  to  the  most  fashionable 
horses,  trusting  entirelv  to  high-class  blood  on  both  sides  to 
produce  a race-horse.  Xo  doubt  this  plan  frequently  succeeds, 
and  saves  a deal  of  trouble,  at  the  same  time  it  ought  to  be  no 
matter  of  wonder  that  so  many  good  horses  on  the  turf  are  far 
from  perfect  in  shape.  Beeswing  ” had  straight  shoulders,  so 
had  “ Touchstone.”  “Queen  of  Trumps”  could  neither  walk 
nor  trot ; and  to  ride  “ Rataplan  ” on  the  road  was  a caution. 
That  good  horse  “ N ewminster  ” was  the  result,  we  all  know,  of 
sending  “ Beeswing  ” to  “ Touchstone,”  though  the  owner  of  the 
mare  had  not  seen  “Touchstone.”  But  ?ood  as  “ Xewminster” 
“ 
was,  he  was  not  faultless  in  shape.  The  late  Sir  Tatton  Sykes,* 
* The  sale  by  Mr.  Tattersall  of  the  late  Sir  Tatton  Sykes’  blood  stock  at 
Slelmere,  on  the  10th  of  September.  1S63,  which,  extending  over  three  days, 
realised  doable  the  estimate,  viz.  24,171  guineas,  was  a never-to-be-forgotten 
event  in  modem  equine  history.  I was  there  ; the  late  Lord  Gallway.  M.F.H.,  a 
good  judge,  was,  I remember,  of  onr  party.  Several  of  the  mares  6 and  8 years  old 
had  never  been  broken,  and  cut  pretty  capers  in  the  ring.  Many  went  to  Berlin, 
many  to  Australia.  Foreign  interests"  were  largely  represented.  An  analysis  of 
the  three  days'  selling  shows  the  following  surprising  results.  The  brood  mares, 
111  in  number,  averaged  over  81  guineas  each,  the  highest  price  given  being 
450  guineas.  The  stallions  averaged  400  guineas  each ; 31  three-year-old  fillies 
average!  C2  guineas  each,  the  highest  price  being  150  guineas  ; 27  two-year-old 
fillies  averaged  55  guineas  each,  the  highest  price  being  135  guineas;  51  year- 
