THE MUSTANG. 
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by permitting it to become sour, and then stirring the curd and milk violently with a large 
stick until it is forced into a homogeneous mass. From the same substance the Tartars make 
a fermented liquid. These Horses are very strong and hardy, and the breed is preserved in 
good condition by the custom which prevails among the Tartars of killing and eating the 
defective or weak foals, and preserving the strong and healthy for use. Being brought up 
with the family, the Tartar Horse is very gentle and familiar with its owners. When they are 
only a few months of age they are ridden by the children, but never backed by a man until 
they are five or six years old. They are then, however, severely treated, being forced to travel 
for several consecutive days, and to endure great privations of hunger and thirst. 
MUSTANG. 
Ax other well-known example of the Wild Horse is the Mustang of the American 
prairies. 
This animal is congregated into vast herds, which are always under the guardianship of a 
single leader, who is able, in some wonderful manner, to convey his orders to all his subjects 
simultaneously. Although surrounded by various enemies, such as the puma, the wolf, and 
the jaguar, they care little for these ravenous and powerful carnivora, trusting in their united 
strength to save them from harm. There is no animal that will dare to face a troop of Wild 
Horses, which often entice the domesticated animals into their ranks, and carry them exult- 
ingly into the free plains. 
The Mustang is always a strong and a useful animal, and is much sought after as a saddle- 
horse. To capture these wild creatures is a very difficult matter, and is generally managed by 
the help of the lasso, although the rifle is sometimes called into requisition in difficult cases. 
This latter plan, technically called “ creasing,,” is never employed but by very accurate marks- 
men, as the difference of half an inch in the line of fire is sufficient either to miss the animal 
or to kill it on the spot. In “ creasing” a Horse, the hunter aims so as to graze the skull just 
behind the ear, the sudden blow stunning the horse for a few seconds, during which time the 
hunter pounces on the bewildered animal, and secures it before it has fairly recovered its 
senses. 
