602 Report on tlie Exhibition of Live-Stock at Taunton. 
exhibited without a foal at foot, a certificate shall be produced 
at the time of entry of her having been sers ed, and the prize 
withheld till a certificate be produced of her having foaled. 
But, even with these restrictions, it is almost a pity that all the 
prizes, and two out of the three commendations, should have 
been given to mares without foals. It would be as well in all 
cases where a brood mare is exhibited without a foal, to compel 
the owner to show whether she had a foal the year before, and 
to state how many times she had been barren since she had 
been at the stud. There were only four Clydesdale mares ; and 
though the Judges withheld the third prize, these mares were a 
good level lot, very much better than the two Suffolk mares shown 
in the next class. The seven 2-year-old agricultural fillies were 
very much liked ; the bay filly belonging to Lord Ellesmere, and 
^Ir. Barber s " Flora, ' being good now, and promising to be 
better hereafter. The 3-year-old agricultural fillies were not an 
easv lot to judge, for the best of them — and there were four or 
five verv nice fillies — had some trifling defect or other. A very 
grand mare was " Lioness, ' and she would have been placed 
first without delay but for a suspicious hock. It turned out, 
on further examination and inquiry, that she had struck herself 
coming into the yard ; and the Judges, satisfied that there was 
nothing organically ■mrong, put her before Lord Ellesmere s 
" Duchess," who was first at Croydon, where Lord Ellesmere 
bought her, and who won three times last year. Altogether the 
agricultural horses were very good at Taunton. 
The following is the Report of two of the Judges of Agri- 
cultural Horses, with some additional remarks by the third : — 
In submitting the following report of agricultural horses at the Taunton 
Meeting, we maj- congratulate the Society on some of the classes being well 
filled, although in some cases the best animals were prevented from taking 
the prizes by the fiat of the veterinary inspector. 
CLiSS 1 — Agricultural {itaUions fooled in 1873 — contained l-t entries. 
We had no difficulty in selecting No. 5, a clean, active, lengthy roan, with 
good back and loins, and flat-boned legs, but rather short of hair. ITie 
remainder of the class were a middling Ipt ; the next winners having Uttle 
contracted feet, and bad weak fore-legs. » 
Class 2. Agricultural Stallions. — We thought these a splendid lot on 
entering the ring, but upon close inspection, after weeding the five best out, 
we were obliged to ask the veterinary to make a general inspection, and his 
report being very unfavourable, we selected No. 15 for first — a bay, 4 years 
old, ydih a good back and great depth of chest, but short in his hind ribs ; 
fine flat-boned legs, and a grand mover. He went tender in his fore-feet, but we 
heard the next day that it was from the efiects of tight shoeing. No. 20 we 
placed second, the same honours that he has taken at the last four Roy«l 
Meetings. He is a horse of great depth, and takes the eye on first look ; but 
he does not improve on inspection, as he is pin-toed ; and he did not lo"jk well 
in his slow paces, being very lame from pulling a shoe oflf in the horse-bor 
in coming. We could not form an opinion of his trottin'j; action. No. 16 
was third ; a bay horse, with great bone, short joints, and middling action. 
