THE EXTERNAL CONFORMATION OF THE HORSE. 
419 
can be performed with the greatest facility, the broad loins giving 
plenty of room for the attachment and development of one of the 
largest muscles in the body, which extends, one on each side of 
the spine, through the regions of loins, back and withers, and is 
concer ned in neaily all movements of the body. We can scarcely 
conceive an animal doing a good day’s work in the saddle, at the 
plough, or on the road, if this muscle is not well developed. 
For harness purposes the back may be somewhat longer. 
The moderately long horse has a more or less rangv appearance 
in harness that is often admired. If an animal is intended for 
fast, 01 even moderately fast road work, the back should then be 
of about the same conformation as that of the saddle horse. 
For draft purposes the back which has most admirers is the 
one which is rather short but broad and straight. 
The croup (Plate I, 10 and Plate II, Fig. 14-14) is that part 
of the upper surface of the body extending from the highest point 
of the hind quarters to the dock, and embraced between two 
imaginary lines drawn from the quarter to the point of the hip, 
one on each side. When the croup is long it shows that the bones 
forming the foundation of it are long, thus giving plenty of room 
tor the development of these powerful muscles which are often 
spoken of as the propelling powers of the animal. We give the 
preference to the horse with the long croup. The slope of the 
croup is another point which should engage our attention when 
studying the external conformation of the animal 5 many persons 
believe that the drooping quarters are indicative of speed, and 
while it must be admitted that many fast horses are so formed, 
yet so many record-breakers are built on the more horizontal 
plan, that we are forced to believe that the slope of the the croup 
has little to do with the animal’s merits, but it certainly has with 
the beauty of the creature, for when it approaches the horizontal, 
that is just slopes a little, the tail comes from the body in a 
manner that admits of its more graceful and elegant carriage, 
which gives a finish to the contour of the whole animal that is a 
striking contrast to the indifferently carried tail of the drooping 
croup, with its low set dock. 
