186 
ON ARABIAN HORS ICS. 
tained in the food we give to a horse, so many indulgencies do 
we daily gain by giving it.’ Mahomet said, moreover, to his. 
disciples, ‘ 1 particularly recommend to your attention the 
brood-mares, because their back is a seat of honour, and their 
belly an inexhaustible treasure.’ The following is the same le¬ 
gislator’s account of the formation of the horse:—‘ When God 
wished to create it he called the south wind, and said, I desire 
to draw from out of thee a new being; condense thyself, by 
parting with fluidityand he was obeyed. He then took a 
handful of this element, now become tangible, blew upon it, and 
the horse was produced. “ Thou shalt be for man,” said the 
Lord, ‘‘a source of happiness and wealth; he will render him¬ 
self illustrious by ascending thee.’” 
** History has commemorated the names of celebrated horses 
of antiquity, both Arabian and Persian. Amongst the latter, 
Raksh was the steed of Rostam, one of the heroes of the S/iak Na- 
meh; Shebdeez was that of Khosroo Parvez, the Sassanide king 
of Persia, and Gulgoon that of Sheereen, wife of that prince; 
Dahes was a famous Arabian horse, and Ghabra a mare of the 
same race, not less renowned. The master of the former wasKays 
ebn Zohayr, of the tribe of Dobian ; the latter belonged to Ham- 
mal ebn Bedr. These two warlike animals, contending in a race 
during the sports and amusements of a national festival, occasioned 
a disastrous war between the two tribes by whom they were re¬ 
spectively possessed, and which lasted forty years. D’Herbelot 
speaks* of the Kamel-el-Sanatei/rif a work which treats of 
the keeping and physicking horses. Another work, still more 
curious, has the title of ‘ Summary of all that can be desired to 
be learned respecting the different Races of Horses.’ According 
to this author, these races sprung from a stallion and a mare 
named Zad-al-rakeb and Serdet Shekban, which belonged to 
Muthayer ebn Oshaym, one of the most ancient chiefs of the 
tribe of Yemen. It is in the same book that mention is made 
of the Safenat, horses of the same species with those that were 
offered as a present to Solomon by the Queen of Sheba. The 
author gives a table, according to which, there exist one hundred 
and thirty-six races of Arabian horses, three Persian, nine 
Turkoman, and seven Kurd. 
‘‘ Arabian horses are, in general, of a delicate constitution, but 
accustomed to the fatigues of long marches ; light, active, and of 
surprising swiftness. They have little belly, small ears, and a 
full, flowing tail. These are the distinctive marks by which 
they may be recognized at first sight. It may be added, that 
they are almost invariably exempt from apparent deformities ; 
* Bihlioth. Orient, art. Faras. 
