ORDER OE PACHYDERMATA. 
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generally selected for this mode of breaking, as they give less 
trouble than those that are aged, and, from their making a less 
determined resistance, are not so subject to injuries that mature 
into blemishes, or frequently cause unsoundness. 
The Horses running free in the plains of Asia may also be broken 
in. Those which frequent the neighbourhood of the Caucasus are, 
it is said, the descendants of some troopers which were abandoned 
by Peter the Great during the siege of Azov, in consequence of a 
deficiency of forage to maintain them. 
In addition to these races which have regained their primitive 
liberty, there are some which form, so to speak, a link between the 
wild Horse and those which are completely tamed. Among these 
are the Iceland Horses, which are allowed by their masters to feed 
on the mountains in full liberty, and are caught only when they 
are wanted. W e may likewise mention the droves of Horses which 
the Cossacks of the Hon possess, and which graze in deserts of the 
Ukraine ; also the Finland Horses, which pass the summer in 
absolute independence, and in the winter return to their owners’ 
homes ; lastly, those of the Camargue, which live in full liberty, 
among the fens and salt-marshes lying round the mouths of the 
Phone, from Arles to the sea. 
After this digression as to the various races of wild or semi- wild 
Horses, we must now give a portrait of the animal, although it is 
doubtless perfectly well known to our readers, so as to bring more 
clearly to view the beauty of its structure. In a passage which 
is somewhat less known than the one we before quoted, Buffon 
thus expresses himself : — 
“ Among all the animals the Horse is the one which combines 
with a considerable bulk the highest degree of perfection, of pro- 
portion, and elegance in every part of his body ; for if we com- 
pare the animals which come immediately above and below him, 
we find that the Ass is ill made, the head of the Lion is too large, 
the legs of the Ox are too clumsy and short for the size of its body, 
the Camel is certainly deformed, and that the larger animals — such 
as the Phinoceros and the Elephant — are, so to speak, nothing but 
shapeless masses. The regularity in his proportions give the Horse 
an air of graceful lightness which is well maintained by the beauty 
of his head and shoulders. In the carriage of his head he appears 
to desire to rise above his condition of quadruped, and in this 
