PURCHASE OF HORSES FOR THE ARMY IN INDIA. 549 
to report upon Cape horses in India, have been so ably explained away by 
both Lieut.-Colonel Bower and Captain Gall, that I shall only record my 
opinion that I feel satisfied when the Cape horses that I have sent on have 
had time to recover, after the sea voyage, and have been fairly tried in the 
ranks, they will be as favorably reported upon as those formerly purchased 
by Colonel Havelock were after eleven years’ service. They arrived in the 
Crimea in better condition than any other horses in the regiment ! A 'com- 
mittee had disapproved of these horses ; and much fault was found at first 
with the horses the 7th Dragoon Guards were mounted upon during the 
Kafir war. After a period, that regiment was reported by Colonel Richardson 
to be as well mounted as the average of cavalry at home, and no privation 
or fatigue could make General Cathcart’s horses succumb, although 
the men in marching order averaged over 19 stone ! In the face of such 
facts, members of remount committees should pause before they condemn 
untried horses, and the professional gentlemen should bear in mind that 
Professor Coleman’s opinion of what constituted a sound horse was ‘a 
horse that could perform the ordinary labours of an ordinary horse,’ beyond 
which he could not pronounce any horse sound. 
“ If the Cape gentlemen will accept my humble advice, I hope they will 
continue to breed from as much good English blood and bone as their 
money will procure, and cross their mares that have Arab blood with the 
best description of Norfolk Trotting or Cleveland stallions procurable. No 
other cross will restore size and substance from that description of mare 
until the Arab blood becomes absorbed in many successive generations. By 
paying a little more attention to the feeding of their horse stock, generally, 
the breeders will find a ready market and remuneration, unsurpassed by any 
other speculation that this colony is capable of.” 
Hereafter we may make further extracts from these impor- 
tant papers. 
The Sydney Morning Herald for July, just received by us, 
contains the following : 
“ Horses for India . — The Admiral Boxer, which left our port on the 8th 
instant, for Bombay, took 149 troop horses on account of the Hon. the 
East India Company, and will be the last ship despatched unless further 
orders are received from the Governor-General of India. Three of the 
Company’s officers — Mr. Surgeon Barton, Captain Whish, R.A., and 
Lieutenant Kennally returned by this vessel, with the remainder of the 
military and native attendants who arrived here by the Wanata transport 
in Eebruary. Colonel Scobie and Major Grant, we believe, will leave by 
one of the early mail steamers. Colonel Robbins has also completed his 
shipments from Melbourne, and may be expected here in a few days to 
remain for a short time prior to his departure for Calcutta. The total 
number of horses shipped from this port has been 547 by Colonel Robbins 
to Calcutta, and 628 by Colonel Scobie to Bombay — including, however, 
the shipments from Melbourne, Hobart Town, and Swan River, about 
2200 will have been shipped in all. We are sorry to hear that the experi- 
ence of these officers has not been such as to lead them to form a favorable 
opinion of the capabilities of the colonies for the supply of cavalry horses, 
the number of suitable stock offered has not met their expectations, whilst 
the prices demanded and the high cost of fodder has rendered the pur- 
chases costly to the Indian Government. The advantages to the colonies 
must be considerable, as over £100,000 has been expended in the payments 
for horses and forage alone.” 
XXXI. 
73 
