CONFORMATION OF IIORSES. 
551 
run on high grounds, and others with heavy fore quarters, 
inclined to low heels, flat soles, and oblique hoofs, should not 
be put into marshes, or wet straw-yards. This is not at- 
tended to: the breeders rear horses as cheap as they can, to 
make money, they care nothing about the feet. The most 
talented veterinarians or most intelligent farriers, can merely 
palliate the evils thus produced, by learning their business, 
to make the horse go ; the ultimate consequences, his being 
used-up is nothing to them, any more than the breeders : this 
is the true state of the case. It is true, physiology is the basis 
of shoeing ; but money, often a good, and too often a bane, 
knocks physiology out of the heads of veterinary surgeons ; 
neither they nor farriers, who can read, would buy a penny 
number on shoeing horses, let the practical directions be ever 
so plain and illustrated, because it is unfortunately considered 
only handicraft . As long as a man can fit a shoe easily to 
the horse, anything else is considered by them as pure moon- 
shine, not tending to get money, but so much time wasted. 
All parties concerned with horses are to blame, and to whose 
cupidity horses are victimised. It is only in mid-Europe 
this happens. The late Professor Coleman was so well aware 
of this, that he laid it down as “ a principle , that the crust 
only should bear on the shoe;” that is, he taught his students 
how they w T ere to get their daily bread, in making horses go 
for the time. You understand, gentlemen, cut you must, 
“ The definition of a principle is, that it admits of no devia- 
tion.” What he meant was, to impress on them the neces- 
sity of making horses go that would daily be brought into the 
forge with thin fiat soles , low heels , and oblique crusts , or they 
would lose custom ; for often would he, in the course of his 
lectures, upset this principle ; he said, “ the shoe may bear 
on the sole at the toe with advantage , for it is not opposite the 
sensible foot, when there is plenty of hoof.” Again , “ for the 
recovery of fiat soles , he recommended support all over the sole;” 
again, when there was danger to be apprehended from con- 
cussion against the crust at the heels, the very part, the crust, 
that he had said, as a principle , should only take bearing on the 
shoe, he recommended to be sprung , by his method of apply- 
ing the bar shoe, and if any shoe he said would do for all 
horses, it was the application of this ; but as it was only used 
in these cases, the public would not allow its general use : 
besides, it was not commercially profitable to the farrier , the 
ruling principle with them. Now they might have taken the 
advice to always spring the heels , instead of which, they only 
do it with horses that go tender ; or for dealers, who take 
care that horses shall not go so, till safely out of their posses- 
