COMMON HORSE, 
$35 
The horses of China are as indifferent as those 
of India : they are weak, little, ill-shaped, and 
cowardly. Those of Corea are not above three 
feet high ; almost all the breed there are made 
geldings, and are so timorous, thatthey can be ren- 
dered no way serviceable in war ; so that it may be 
said, that the Tartar horses were properly the con- 
querors of China. These, indeed, are very service^ 
able in war ; and although but of a middling size, 
yet they are surprisingly patient, vigorous, swift, 
and bold ; their hoofs are extremely hard, though 
rather too narrow ; their heads are .fine, but ra- 
ther too little ; the neck is long and stiff ; the 
legs of the longest ; and yet, with all these faults, 
they are found to be an excellent breed. The 
Tartars live with their horses pretty much in the 
same manner as the Arabians do ; they begin to 
back them the age of seven or eight months, 
placing their children upon them, who manage 
them even at that early age. By these means they 
break them by little and little, till at last, about 
the age of six or seven years, they are capable 
of enduring amazing hardships. Thus they have 
been known to march two or three days without 
once stopping ; to continue five or six without 
eating any thing except a handful of grass at every 
eight hours ; and, besides, to remain without drink- 
ing for four and twenty hours. These horses, 
which are so vigorous in their own country, lose 
all their strength when they are brought into 
China or the Indies ; but they thrive pretty well 
in Persia and Turkey. The race of little Tartars, 
towards the north, have also a breed of little horses, 
which they set such a value upon, that it is for- 
bidden to sell them to strangers : these horses have 
the very same qualites with those of the larger 
kind ; which they probably derive from a similar 
treatment. There are also very fine horses in Cir- 
