:.-v 
[SINGLE NO. FOTJl-l CENTS 
[WHOLE NO. 580 
ROCHESTER, N. Y..-F0R THE WEEK ENDING SATURDAY, APRIL 0, 1861 
thorough-bred, is undoubtedly of French Norman 
origin. His characteristics are a head rather large, 
but lean, bony, and well formed; very broad forehead, 
ears well apart, and carried loftily; small, clear eye, 
and courageous aspect; bold, up¬ 
standing,but thick crest; abroad, 
full chest, and a strong shoulder; 
a stout, strongly-framed barrel, 
(somewhat llntsidcd is very apt to 
be a fault in this point); excel¬ 
lent loins; muscular thighs; Hat- 
boned legs; atid foot, for tough¬ 
ness and hardiness, not t*b be 
equaled. Immunity from dis¬ 
ease of the legs and feet, is a 
marked quality in the French 
Canadian,even when ill-groomed, 
ill-shod, and subject to every 
hardship. An intelligent writer, 
well versed in the peculiarities 
of this particular race, states that 
“ there are numbers of horses in 
Canada which, under a mass of 
I shaggy hair, never trimmed, and 
rarely cleaned or dried, possess 
dry, si dewy legs, on which the 
severest service never raise a 
wind-gall. The prevailing color 
of the Canadian is black; next, 
rich dark brown. When true- 
bred, they are remarkable for the 
great volume of their ramies and 
tails, with the wavy texture of 
the hairs composing them; for 
the shaggy coating of their back 
sinews nearly to the knee, and 
of their fetlocks. From fourteen 
to fourteen and a half hands is 
their nsnal size. Their powers 
of endurance are excellent, for 
though not reckoned speedy, 
they win travel fifty miles uaiiy 
for a considerable period.’’ 
Notwithstanding the repute in 
which Canadian horses are held 
by thoso best calculated to judge 
of their merits, it is a remarkable 
fact that, even in these days of 
agricultural progress, no system¬ 
atic attempts have been made 
to Improve this breed in a pure 
form. Quite a number of ex¬ 
periments by crossing have been 
carried through, and with great 
success. The authority we have 
heretofore quoted, gives it as his 
opinion that “ no race probably 
is more susceptible of direct im¬ 
provement than this; and, as 
their excellence is universally 
acknowledged, both as the small, 
poor farmer’s working and 
draught horse, for which they 
are adapted above all American 
breeds, and as brood mares, from 
which to raise a highly improved 
and useful and general working 
roadster, bv breeding them to 
thorough-brads, it is evident that 
this is an end most devoutly to 
The central figure represents 
the Oriental blood of the desert, 
originating, it is thought, in the 
mixture of the various countries 
to which the horse in its purest 
form has, from time immemorial, 
been indigenous. To this breed 
of horses are the English in¬ 
debted for the unrivalled excel¬ 
lence of their racers, which are 
the offspring of a judicious cross 
of the Orientals. The countries 
from which an Oriental strain of 
blood is obtainable, are Arabia, 
liarbary States, Nubia, and Aby- 
siuia. The form of the Arabian 
will not please everyjudge of the 
horse, but none will deny the 
beauty of the head. Broad and 
square forehead, short and line 
muzzle, prominent and brilliant 
eye, small ears, and the beautiful 
W/MMIW course of the veins, always char- 
Itjll'i/ljr'lP actorize the head of the Arabian 
'!•$?•/!/ horse. Tho shoulder, in this 
' breed, is generally unexcelled. 
The withers are high, the should¬ 
er-blade inclined backward, and 
so nicely adjusted that in de¬ 
scending a >till the edge never 
ruffles the skin. The body is 
considered light, and chest nar¬ 
row, but behind the arms the 
barrel swells out, leaving suffi¬ 
cient room for the lungs. The 
Arabian is seldom more than 
fourteen hands two inches in 
height. 
Just below the Arabian we 
have, on the left, the Hunter or 
Trotter, and on the right the 
races, but if we adopt the English standard for 
height, their position is among the horses, the place 
assigned anything over thirteen hands. The Cana¬ 
dian horse, whfere theve is no cross of the English 
more showy action, than their smaller countrymen. 
The vis a vis of our Scotch friend is a genuine 
Canadian , as his countenance readily indicates. Ill 
this country they are often clashed among the pony 
second step to an F.nglish boy’s education in the art 
of horsemanship, as they often possess a fair turn of 
speed, can leap very cleverly, have all the endur¬ 
ance, with greater strength, greater quickness, and 
Ik these latter days, when the powers abroad 
desire to put in practice a new dogma in the science 
of government, an International 
Congress is called, and the idea 
promulgated; when two or more 
of these same nations, adopting 
the bayonet as their platform of 
principles, have depleted the 
treasury, destroyed the national 
credit, carried sorrow and deso¬ 
lation to the hearts and firesides 
of thousands, and wish for a 
dignified mode of backing out, 
then a Peace Congress is sought 
as the means of exit. “ Brother 
Jonathan,” however, has hither¬ 
to reversed this order of affairs. 
Our doctrines were horn, bred, 
and sent out to the eonliiet of 
thonglit by the “ sovereign 
people,” and when anxious for a 
“wordy war,” the Representa¬ 
tives gathered in the city of A 
“magnificent distances,” and 
sounded the slogan. It has be- 
come fashionable to hold meet- Mi Vi 
inga with this special designs- _ 
tion upon matters, important or xJMIBHB 
unimportant, (the latest applica- Jill Bim w 
tion has a Southern prefix,) and 
as we “may as well he out of jMHW 
the world as out of fashion,” we ma jzjuE &B 
bring before Rvrai. readers one 
worthy of scrutiny and careful jiD&Twg&M 
consideration, — A Horse Con- 
gress, witti Delegates from the - \ 
Four Quarters of tho Globe. 
The central figure, at the upper §£-|f|gj|SE 
true representative of the *S7o><- 
land race, unquestionably the 
most remarkable of all European 
ponies. These are to be found 
in all the northern Scottish isles, 
but the most diminutive, and at 
the same time the most perfect, 
are natives of the extreme north¬ 
ern isles of Yell and Gust. The 
average height of the Shetlander 
is nine or ten hands, and none 
are considered truly bred which 
exceed eleven hands,—three feet 
eight inches. Many are found 
which do not exceed thirty or 
thirty-two inches, and are, con¬ 
sequently, inferior in size to 
some of the largest Newfound¬ 
land dogs. The hardiness of 
these little fellows is remarkable. 
Henry William Herbert says, 
“out of many hundreds which 
we have Been, — sometimes in 
droves of fifty or sixty ut a time, 
traveling down from their native 
moors and mountains, the rag- 
gedcst, rustiest, most comical- 
looking little quadrupeds ever 
eye dwelt upon, driven by a 
gigantic six-foot Highlander, 
perched upon the back, perhaps, 
of the smallest of the number,— 
we never saw a lame Shetlander.” 
In their native isles they run as 
wild as the sheep, never herded, 
sheltered, or fed; picking up a 
livelihood from the tender shoots 
of the heather, and the coarse 
grasses growing among it. Even 
when domesticated they fare but 
little better. Oats are unknown 
to them, and a few bundles of 
meadow-hay, or barley straw, is 
a perfect banquet. Their speed 
is not great, but they will cover 
considerable ground under a load 
of 160 to 200 poupds. With a 
great hulking Highlander on his 
back, — apparently better fitted 
to carry the pony, than the pony 
to cany him,—he will accom¬ 
plish fifty miles between sunrise 
and sunset. The colors of the 
Shetlanders are generally black, 
dark brown, and a sort of rust- 
colored sorrel. Whites and grays 
are exceedingly rare, and blacks 
are considered the best of the 
race. 
The Scotch Pony is first cousin 
to the gentleman we have just 
described, and is his neighbor, 
on the left of our engraving. 
This pony is an enlarged pattern 
of the Shetlander. He preserves 
the general form, the close barrel, 
strong loins, stocky airand build, 
but he has a larger neck, higher 
withers, and finer hair in the 
mane and tail. His ordinary 
height is from eleven to thirteen 
bands. The Scotch pony is the 
SCOTCH PONY. 
THE HUNTER, OR TROTTER. 
FARMER’S BROOD MARE. 
SHETLAND PONY 
c a nadian. 
THOROUGH-BRED. 
DRAUGHT HORSE—CLYDESDALE. 
ARABIAN, 
11 Lansmg 
