THE HORSE. 
47 
£< Hast thou given (he Horse strength 1 Hast thou 
clothed his neck with thunder'? Canst thou make him 
afraid as a grasshopper? The glory of his nostrils is 
terrible. He paweth in the valley and rejoiceth in his ' 
strength : he goeth out to meet the armed men : he 
mocketh at fear, and is not affrighted ; neither turneth 
he back from the sword. The quiver rattleth against 
him, the glittering spear and the shield. He swallow- ( 
eth the ground with fierceness and rage ; neither believ- 
eth he that it is the sound of the trumpet. He saifh 
among the trumpets, ha, ha ; and he smelleth the battle 
afar off, the thunder of the captains and the shouting.” 
To have a good idea of this noble animal, at the pres- 
ent day, we must not go to the pastures, or stables, where 
they are kept as the servants of man, or where their > 
beauty is destroyed by cruelty, and their swiftness and 
courage by servitude. But we must go to those coun- \ 
tries where he has never been subjected to the dominion 
of man, and where he riots at liberty and without con- j 
trol, on the sweet and luxuriant herbage of the mountain, ; 
or the plain, just as he is led by choice. In South Amer- 
ica, in Africa, and in some parts of Asia, where there is \ 
no winter, and where the earth is constantly covered 
with the richest grass, the wild Horse arrives to full ma¬ 
turity, and is then® seen in all his native swiftness and ) 
beauty. ) 
In those countries, horses are often seen feeding in 
droves of five or six hundred. They frolic and play 
with each other in the most cheerful and diverting man- ) 
ner. Their long, flowing manes and tails, give them a 
wild, romantic, and beautiful appearance. They hold \ 
their heads high, and seem to take pride, on the approach 
of a man, in showing him, by their swiftness in escape, 
that they neither are, nor intend to be his servants. 
These proud and independent animals are perfectly 
contented with their situation, and hence they never 
attack other animals, except in their own defense. But 
for fear of being attacked themselves, they never, it is 
said, sleep, or feed, without setting a guard, or watch, to 
give notice to the herd, on the approach of an)r danger. 
If a man goes near them, in the day time, the Horse on 
guard marches boldly towards him, as if to observe his 
actions, and to see if he cannot, by a show of ferocity, 
drive him away. If the man proceeds, the watch then 
alarms the herd, by a loud snort, which they all under- { 
stand, and on hearing which, they fly off, with the great- I 
est swiftness, and in a moment are all out of sight. 
But the common Horse, even as we see him in other ) 
countries, and in a state of servitude, is still one. of the 
most noble and generous of animals. His great power, > 
strength, and swiftness, he is?always ready to exert to 
his utmost, in the service, and at the command of his ) 
. . . * . ) 
master. Active, kind, and obedient, he performs his ) 
work with the greatest diligence, and seems only intent 
on doing his duty. His attachments are strong and sin¬ 
cere. When sold and carried away, he has been known 
to pine at the loss of his old master, and to break fences, 
pass forests, and swim rivers, to find him again. The 
whole life of this faithful animal is too often nothing but 
around of hard labor, and hard fare, and yet he remains 
patient and obedient, and seems thankful for the small 
pittance he receives, of his own earnings. 
Who can behold without pity and indignation so noble 
and generous a creature, made the mere drudge and 
slave of a brutal master? His strength and courage 
gone, his flesh wasted, and his fine form reduced to a 
disgusting skeleton, by starvation and daily abuse. It 
is not enough that the obedient animal offers all his 
strength to the service of his master, and strains every 
nerve to perform his commands. He must do more. 
He must earn without being fed,and perform what is for 
him impossible. He becomes weakened by hunger, and 
wearied by perpetual over-doing. Still the poor creature 
tries to do all that his master requires; but finding his 
task greater than his power, he becomes at last discour¬ 
aged, and refuses to make another trial. It is then that 
his cruel master, ten times more a brute than his Horse, 
beats the poor animal for not performing what is impos¬ 
sible. 
We too often meet with scenes of this sort, at which 
humanity shudders, and at which a generous mind can¬ 
not avoid feeling emotions of pity and indignation. Go 
to the man who is guilty of offering such brutal treatment 
to his Horse, and attempt to reason with him. He will 
tell you at once, that the Horse is his own, and that he 
shall not ask you how much he may beat him. Then 
tell him that there is a law, which inflicts a fine on any 
man who abuses his beast, and that an officer of justice 
shall decide this case. This appeal is effectual. The 
man does not strike another blow. You have threatened 
his purse. Humanity he could not feel ; he could not 
pity the sufferings of his poor innocent Horse, but when 
you talk of the law, and of a fine, he becomes reasona¬ 
ble, and desists from his cruelty. 
How disgraceful, and how wicked is such conduct! 
The Horse was made for the use, comfort and pleasure 
of man. He was made by the same Almighty Creator 
that made man himself. He was given us, to be treated 
with kindness and humanity. The Horse himself, is 
patient, docile, and obedient. Every power that has 
been given him, he exerts at our command. The Maker 
of the Horse knows how he is treated, and by whom. 
He has said, “ The righteous man regardeth the life of 
his beast.” 
Is not, then, the character of the man who abuses his 
Horse, marked with wickedness, as well as cruelty ? Is 
