1880 .] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
345 
The Arabian Horse: “ The Panther.” 
The careful investigations of AliBey result in es- 
itablishing the fact that there are six distinct breeds 
■of the Arab horse at the present day. Some of 
these are confined to limited portions of Arabia, 
and are little known to the outside world. An¬ 
other breed, the “Kochlani,” not mentioned by Ali 
Bey among the six, is often found in treatises on 
the horse, and is supposed 
to have descended from 
the stud of Mahomet. 
The tradition of the foun¬ 
dation of the “ Kochlani ’’ 
breed, which “ Stone¬ 
henge ” is inclined to be¬ 
lieve, is but another name 
for a distinct breed in the 
eastern part of the desert, 
is as follows: The Prophet, 
•desiring to select mares 
for his stud, had a number 
of them that had served 
as chargers, kept for 
some time without water. 
When mad with thirst, 
they were set at liberty, 
and at the moment when 
they weie near the desired 
water, the war trumpet 
was sounded for a charge. 
Five of the mares aban¬ 
doned the water, and in 
great excitement gallop¬ 
ed to the spot where 
they expected a charge 
was to be made. These 
five high spirited animals 
were thus chosen as the 
foundation of a stud from 
which a famous race of 
Arab horses has sprung. Whatever of truth there 
may be in this tradition, it is in accordance with the 
accounts of the extreme care with which the Arab 
horse has been bred. It is asserted by travellers in 
the East, that existing pedigrees can be traced back 
for 500 years; and, among the choicest animals, 
a certificate is always made out by the local author¬ 
ities, within seven days after the birth of the foal. 
The characteristics of the high-bred Arab horse 
are well shown in “ The 
Panther,” presented in 
the accompanying en¬ 
graving, made from an 
instantaneous photo¬ 
graph by Schreiber & 
Sons. “ The Panther ” 
was bred by the Turkish 
Sultan, at Constantino¬ 
ple, and presented by 
him to General Ulysses 
S. Grant, while he was 
on his late tour around 
the world. He is a 
dapple gray, 151 hands 
high and eight years 
old. The full, square 
head, and heavy jaws, 
with the fine muzzle, 
are well shown in side 
view, but the remarka¬ 
ble width of forehead 
is not appreciated un¬ 
less seen from the front. 
The eye of the Arab 
horse is “full and soft, 
sparkling with anima¬ 
tion on the slightest ex¬ 
citement ; the ear is 
small; the neck arched; 
the shoulders oblique, 
but muscular; the 
withers moderately high 
and thin; the chest rather light in girth, but 
the back ribs deep in proportion, and the hips, 
though narrow, well united to the back by a round¬ 
ed mass of powerful muscles.”—The large fore¬ 
head and full development of brain, indicate that 
the Arab horse stands high in docility and intelli¬ 
gence. He is possessed of a fine temperament, and 
when kindly treated, is extremely docile; but when 
the treatment is harsh he rebels, and will fight for 
his just rights until he wins or until death ends 
his troubles. We are in this country much in¬ 
debted to the Arabian for the present high po¬ 
sition held by our horses; first, for the prominent 
part it played in elevating the English horse, from 
THE ARABIAN HORSE—“THE PANTHER.”—OWNED BY GEN. U. S. GRANT. 
which our stock was primarily derived, and second¬ 
ly, by the infusion of its blood through direct im¬ 
portations. It is not exaggeration to say that the 
Arab horse, in its native country, is one of the 
family of his owner. The history of its treatment 
at home has not been without its good effect in 
teaching us the value of care in breeding, and of 
kind and familiar treatment of the horse from birth. 
Such are the intelligence and docility of the animals 
the polar hare ( Lepus glacialis). 
when they are allowed to properly develope, that 
it is not to be wondered at that some tribes be¬ 
lieve that the horse, as well as its owner, has a 
future existence, and that both will enjoy the 
“happy hunting grounds” of the hereafter. 
The Polar Hare.— {Lepus glacialis.) 
Naturalists enumerate at least fourteen species 
of Lepus or true hares, as existing in America north 
of the tropic of Cancer. Among the handsomest, 
and perhaps the most interesting members of the 
genus is the Polar Hare (Lepus glacialis ), a single 
specimen of which is represented in the accompa¬ 
nying engraving. It is a native of the far north, 
and according to Audubon 
it is to the cold and in¬ 
hospitable regions of the 
north, the rugged valleys 
of Labrador, and the wild 
mountain sides of that 
desolate land, or to the 
yet wilder or more sterile 
countries that extend 
from thence toward the 
west, that we must resort 
to find the large and beau¬ 
tiful Hare we have now 
to describe ; and if we ad¬ 
vance even to the higheso 
latitude man has ever 
reached, we shall still find 
the Polar Hare, though the 
mercury fall below zero, 
and huge snow drifts im¬ 
pede our progress through 
the trackless waste. Both 
trappers and Indians in 
that cold, thinly inhabit¬ 
ed and sterile region, 
are sometimes saved from 
certain starvation by 
means of this Hare. One 
of the most interesting 
features of the Polar 
Hare, though not restrict¬ 
ed to it, is the change in 
the color of its coat to correspond with the sur¬ 
roundings produced by the change of seasons. 
The color of the Polar Hare, in summer, is of a 
grayish brown, with black ears, bordered with 
white, the breast being of a bluish gray. This col¬ 
or is nearly that of the earth and surrounding rocks, 
and serves to conceal the hare from the keen eyes 
of its greatest destroyers, the Golden Eagle and the 
Snowy Owl. As the brief summer closes, the cov¬ 
ering of the hare be¬ 
comes whiter, and soon 
is pure white, with the 
exception of the tips of 
its ears. The brown 
color of the summer 
garb would make the 
bare conspicuous on the 
snow, and it could be 
easily seen for a great 
distance, but as it is, 
the white mantle be¬ 
comes a cloak of safety. 
In length of body, the 
Polar Hare varies from 
twenty to thirty inches, 
and its weight from sev¬ 
en to fourteen pounds. 
The food in summer 
consists largely of ber¬ 
ries and different kinds 
of small tender herbage, 
while in winter the tops 
of dwarf willows and 
tall grasses are eaten. 
“It seeks the sides of 
the hills, where the wind 
prevents the snow from 
lodging deeply, and 
where even in the win¬ 
ter it can procure the 
berries of the Alpine 
Arbutus, the bark of 
some dwarf willows, or the evergreen leaves of 
the Labrador Tea plant.” The characteristics of 
the Polar Hare are much like those of its more 
Southern cousins — a peculiar and interesting 
combination of timidity and shyness. It is not 
