Vol XLI. No. 1685. 
NEW YORK, MAY 13, 1882. 
PHIGE FIVE CENTS, 
$2,00 PEH YEAR, 
[Entered according to Act of Congress, In the year 1882, by the Rural New-Yorker, In the office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington^ 
£(je J^crrsnttau. 
OUR NORMANS. 
MAJOR HENRY E. ALVORD. 
The county of Orange, New York, is noted 
for producing fine roadsters and horses famous 
in the annals of the turf, but is sadly deficient 
in good farm horses. After unsatisfactory 
experience with neighborhood purchases, it 
was determined that Houghton Farm should 
be supplied with the best of horses for draft 
and general farm uses, and do something in 
the way of providing such animals for others. 
The Percheron-Norman, or, as we prefer to 
call it, simply the Norman, was the breed de¬ 
cided upon as best for this purpose, combining 
the excellent qualities of hardiness, great 
much daylight under him,” to be a strictly 
typical Norman. He was foaled March 4th, 
1878, is a light gray, stands 17% hands high, 
and weighs over 1600 pounds; yet he is light 
upon his feet, active and graceful in the ex. 
treme, whether in harness or in the paddock, 
and can be handled with ease. He weighed less 
than 1400 pounds when imported, fell off below 
1300 during the Autumn fairs at which he was 
successfully shown, but gained steadily during 
the Winter, and reached 1600 pounds before 
he was four years old. It is too early to say 
anything of his colt3. “Bayard” was sired 
by “Nogent,”No. 738 imported by Mr. Dil¬ 
lon, and was out of “ Bijou,” by “Vidocq,” 
No. 4S3, a horse approved by the Government 
breeding establishment and imported by Mr. 
Dunham. He is an own brother of “ Bon- 
coeur,” imported by Mr. Dunham, and also 
has the blood of the famous “ Success,” No. 
452. “ Bayard” was purchased for Houghton 
is a light gray, of fine form, 15% hands in 
hight, and is now weighing about 1425 pounds; 
when she arrived in August, her weight was 
1260 pounds. With her mate, “ Favorite,” a 
dark iron-gray, Bhe was bred by and bought 
from M. Laurent Legay, of Radray, Commune 
Nogent, Department Eure et Loire. They 
make a superb team for all farm uses and 
heavy draft on the road. 
“ Mauvette ” is like a colt in the paddock, 
and shows a good gait when moving free from 
all harness. As soon as a hand is laid upon 
her, she is docile as the gentlest house pet. 
At work, she has never hesitated to undertake 
promptly any assigned task, and although 
carefully handled, has at times performed the 
work of two ordinary horses. Never excited, 
but always under perfect self-control, ready 
to move at the word, and equally quick to 
change action or halt, this mare proves a most 
Animal to handle. 
now they have learned enough of our lan 
guage to be quite at home, and show great in¬ 
telligence. 
Houghton Farm, Orange Co., N. Y. 
How the Clydesdale Horse has been 
Improved. 
W. T. Dykes, editor of the Scotch Clydes¬ 
dale Stud Bock, says that the English Shire 
horse has been repeatedly used for this pur¬ 
pose. At first the cross was from the Clydes¬ 
dale horse on the Shire mare, then the progeny 
was bred back to the former. But he would 
go still farther than this, and afterwards use 
the crossed stallion. He says all the best 
prizes of Ayr have been won by animals 
which have had a full half of English blood 
in their veins, drawn from the dam. As to 
the other prize winners, they were mostly got 
by horses which possessed a quarter ofJShire 
blood. He then gives the names of several of 
^WNWvv 
NORMAN MARE “ MAUVETTE. From a Photograph.—Fig. 137. 
these prizehorses—Lord Harry, Lord Douglas, 
etc. Topsman was eligible to entry, but is not 
yet in the Stud Book. His stock, Queen Mary 
and Mary Grey, won first prizes at Glasgow 
and Ayr shows. Champion was winner of 
last year’s prize at Glasgow. He then adds, 
“I dare say I could find a hundred other in¬ 
stances.” This shows that the Clydesdale 
horse is a composite breed, made up from the 
best selections of England and Scotland, thus 
In this pair of mares we have realized all 
that has ever been said in favor of the Nor¬ 
mans. The most serious objection to them is 
that, while steadily used at hard work, they 
will remain almost too fat upon a ration of 
grain that seems really insufficient to main¬ 
tain animals of such size. W hen they first 
arrived at the Farm, they evidently did not 
understand the English tongue, but responded 
readily to commands given them in French; 
Farm from his breeder, M. Fardonay, Nogent 
le Rotron, Department of Eure et Loire 
France. 
Of the mares, two are half-sisters four years 
old this Spring, and work together; and the 
third, “Josephine,” is older, a grand cart¬ 
horse and dam of two fine colts. The accom¬ 
panying engraving Fig. 137) is a good likeness 
of “ Mauvette,” foaled February 2, 1878, and 
out of “Mauvette,” by “Vidocq 2nd.” She 
strength, activity and docility. Accordingly, 
an agent was sent to France a year ago, who 
made careful selections and brought over the 
little stud in August, by way of Havre and 
New York, The passage was favorable; they 
came in good condition, and have done well 
from the day they reached the Farm. We 
have a stallion and three mares. 
“Bayard” is a magnificent specimen of a 
French horse, although he has “ a little too 
