HORSE. 
ynent of the legs, often impels a horfe to put forth his ut- 
niolt ftrengtli, and come in winner, when leall exp'efted. 
It is with pleai'ure we remark that the general treat¬ 
ment of race-horfes is now mild and confiderate, and well 
befitting that fuperiority which racing-grooms challenge 
over all others. This profeffional humanity has even 
pervaded the circle of the repofitory, where in the ftall, 
and in the fliow, a bred horfe is treated with diitinguifhed 
mildnefs ; unlefs unfortunately he be worn-down and low- 
priced, in which cafe, according to univerfal analogy, be¬ 
ing poor, he is allowed to poffels no rights. 
It is univerfally known, that, by the cuftom of England, 
all difputes relative to the affairs of racing ma^ be refer¬ 
red to the opinion of the Jockey Club ; a fociety com- 
pofed of men of exalted rank and high character, whofe 
decifions have ever been honourably diftinguifhed for 
their equity, and whofe fcrupulous regard to their repu¬ 
tation, as a public body, has never been impeached. 
Of the HUNTER, and HACK. 
The heft instructions we can offer for the choice of a 
Hunter, whether full-bred, half-bred, or three parts-bred, 
are'thofe given in the recent work of Mr. J. Lawrence. 
The head' fhould be void of flefh, and for length and fize 
appear to hold fair proportion with the fize of his body j 
his eye full, and fomewhat prominent; eye-lids thin and 
dry ; ears thin, narrow, ereft, of middling length, and not 
far distant from each other; forehead flat, not too large or 
fquare, and running nearly in a flraight line to the muz¬ 
zle, which fhould, be Small and fine ; noftrils capacious ; 
lips thin ; mouth of fufheient depth, and tongue not too 
large ; the jaw-bones wide at top, where they join the 
neck ; ■ the head not abruptly affixed to the extremity of 
the neck, but with a moderate curvature, and tapering 
of the latter. 
The neck muft be of moderate, not of too great a 
length, nor too thick and grofs on the upper part, nor 
too large and deep, but rifing from the withers or fore¬ 
hand, and afterwards declining and tapering at the extre¬ 
mity, by which it forms fomewhat of an arch ; underneath, 
the neck fhould be Straight from th§ cheft, and by no 
means convex, or bellying out. 
The shoulders fhould be capacious, and of large ex¬ 
tent, fo as to appear the molt confpicuous part of the 
body, but without being loaded with flefh ; they fhould 
reach fairly to the top of the withers, which muft be well 
railed ; the c'nelt fhould be fufficiently full, but neither 
narrow nor pinched. 
The body muft be deep and fubftantial; back a plane 
of good width, handfomely rounded ; back-bone ftraight, 
or with a trifling inclination, and not too fhort; loins 
■wide, and the mufcles of the reins, or fillets, full, and 
Swelling on each fide the back-bone ; the fpace fufficient 
between the ribs and hip-bone?, yet fo as to be well rib¬ 
bed up, the bones themfelves round, and the buttocks 
deep and oval; the rump level with, or not too much ele¬ 
vated above, the height of the withers ; the croup muft 
have reafonable fpace, and not fink too fuddenly, in 
which cafe the tail would be fet on too low, which ought 
to be nearly on a line with the back. 
- The hind-quarters fhould fpread to a wider extent 
than the fore-parts, and theTind-feet ftand farther af’un- 
der than thofe before; the thighs fhould be ftraight, large, 
mufcular, and of confiderable length ; the hock wide and 
clean, the thank not too long, but flat, and of fufficient 
fubftanee, 'its fmew large and diftinft, the fetlocks long ; 
the hocks fhould form an angle of fuch extent as to 
place the feet immediately under the flanks. The fore¬ 
arms, like the thighs, fhould be large, mufcular, and of 
good length, the elbows not turning outwards; the knees 
large and lean ; the thank, or cannon-bone, flat, ftrong, 
and not too long ; the tendon large ; the fore-arm and 
fnank fhould form nearly a ftraight line; fetlock-joints 
large and clean ; patterns inclining to a certain degree, 
not too long, but large in proportion to their length \ the 
383 
coronary rings not thick, or '{welled, but clean, dry, and 
hairy ; the feet neither too high nor too flat, and of a 
fize to form a fufficient bafe for the weight they have to 
fuftain; hoofs'of colour dark and fhining; without Teams 
or wrinkles, tough and ftrong ; foot internally concave, 
foie hard, but not fhrunk, heels wide, and of middling 
height; frog not too large or flefhy, but tough and found ; 
the feet, of equal fize, fhould ftand exactly parallel, fo that 
the front or toe incline neither inward nor outward ; the 
fore-feet fhould ftand perpendicular to the cheft, not too 
much under it, and they fhould be lefs wide apart than 
the fore-arms; the legs fhould not be loaded with hair. 
A true high-bred horfe, of the racing kind, when very 
ftrong, and full of bone, is by far the beft calculated for 
making a capital hunter. The only difadvantage of blood- 
horfes for the field, is often their too great delicacy, ren¬ 
dering them fufceptible of injury from wet and cold. 
But ftill there muft be a fufficient portion of blood, or no 
horfe will make a hunter. 
Which then is the moft proper breed for a hunter ? or 
rather, fince blood is abfolutely neceflary, how much ought 
he to have ? Many able breeders are of opinion, that he 
ought either to be three-parts bred, as much as to fa)', 
one got by a racer out of a half-bred mare, or vice verfd ; 
or one which is produced from a good-fhapedhunting- 
ftock on both Tides, both fire and dam having a due fhare 
of blood. In thefe mediums we may fecure fufficient de¬ 
licacy, Symmetry, fpeed, and continuance ; without any 
of the difadvantages attendant upon full-blood. The 
produce of three-parts bred mares and race-horfes, which 
might be called feven-eighths bred, have too generally the 
difadvantages of the latter, without the benefit of their 
peculiar qualifications. 
Mettlefome horfes are generally fpeedy and fafe goers, 
pleafant to ride, the beft flying-leapers, and their legs 
ltand clean in the liable. With judicious management 
they will endure to the very laft hour of the chafe, and in 
careful hands will beat all other horfes in the field. But 
fuch hunters are ever to be treated in a kind and encou¬ 
raging manner, and never fuffered to exhauft themfelves 
by being put early in the day to the extent of their fpeed 
or fpirit. They fhould be reftrained with temper, and 
encouraged with kindnefs. It is inconceiveable to thofe 
who have not made the trial, to what a degree of perfec¬ 
tion the faculties of fuch a horfe may be brought, by ra¬ 
tional and conciliating ufage. In a very fliort time, the 
found of his matter’s voice is at once loved, feared, and 
obeyed. Inltead of a reluftant flave, you have an humble 
and faithful friend, a willing fnarer in your toils, and in 
your pleafures ; 'even an agreeable companion, who, al¬ 
though he cannot converfe, underftands you well ; who 
takes every hint, every indication, from your hand or 
voice, in an inftant; and plainly Shows a pride and plea-, 
lure in obedience, whether it be to conltrain himfelf for 
your qale, or exert the whole of his powers, even till ha 
drops under you! While fuch advantages are practicable 
by the eafy and pleafing offices of humanity, who would 
take the pains to be a tyrant ? 
As for the fize of a hunter, perhaps fixteen hands 
ought to be the extreme for the heavieft weight. Fifteen 
hands, to fifteen hands and a half, are the favourite flzes. 
It is obvious, that in the field low horfes-can never clear 
their leaps fo well, or carry a man fo gallantly over the 
country, as thofe of a commanding fize. 
The beft recommendation of a Hack, is the valuable 
gift of trotting with fpeed and fafety ; a qualification which 
is extended but to few horfes of any description. An 
idea, however, prevails, that trotting-horfes are naturally 
ftumblers, or are at leaft dangerous to ride. It is totally 
unfounded. They are, perhaps, from their mode of going, 
among the fafeft; nor is there any peculiar danger in the 
moft rapid trot, provided your hack be well put together, 
and found. The notion has arifen front the miferably 
battered ftate of too many horfes of this defeription. 
The favourite lize for a hack, is from fourteen hands 
and 
