out of ten being to put any mare they may have, to any horse they can get, the desideratum in their eyes being cheapness. Little do they care whether the mare is or is not suited to the horse, or the horse to the mare; hence the reason we see so many wiry useless brutes.

In choosing a mare for breeding, we must be careful she has a sound frame, which should be roomy, or her produce will be small. Should she be light in the bone, a horse with substance must be sought for, to rectify in the stock her defects. In my observations throughout this little treatise I do not allude to the racer, which will possibly form a subject for some future number. If these important points are not attended to, horse-breeding will never be a source of gain; and it must be recollected that the useless brute will eat as much, and cost as much to rear, as one that will readily find a market.

Under no circumstances will it pay to keep bad stock, whether it be horses, cattle, pigs, or sheep: neither will it pay to be over-stocked, for if things are not well kept they will not turn out to be worth much. It is always better to be under than over stocked.

It is frequently the case that a defective mare is sent to a stallion, which probably is not very celebrated, and the result is perhaps a weedy filly, which the farmer cannot sell, and therefore he makes a brood mare of her, and it can be well imagined the stock she produces; thus it is accounted for why we see so many shapeless unprofitable animals in possession of the farmers.

If due attention were paid to the selection of the mare, and corresponding care taken with regard to the horse, the breeder would be amply repaid, and a few pounds extra laid out to secure a first-rate stallion would ensure a produce which would be certain to be sought after there is never any lack of purchasers for good horses.

The rule to be adopted in breeding is as follows: If you have a mare that is very short, put her to a stallion that has length, or vice verså; if she is very light, let the horse have substance: if, instead, the mare is too heavy, give her a light horse. Due attention to these points will secure the sort of animal we desire.

Let every one avoid stallions which are blind or whose stock have become so; and also such as have curbs and curby hocks, which I believe are hereditary; but I do not say the same of spavins and splints, though some, I am aware, hold a different opinion. Again, bad feet are to be avoided as being hereditary, as well as ring-bone; and roaring is passed from sire and dam to their produce. To say that evil effects may result from breeding from a mare or horse which has become lame solely from hard work in the absence of any defect is preposterous; but I believe, if I remember correctly, that Nimrod thought as much. It seems to me contrary to all rules of common sense to suppose such could be the case. To breed from a mare or use a stallion with bad eyes, would be most unwise, for no defect is so readily handed down, and I have had so many examples come under my notice that I can hardly bring myself to say there is any exception to this rule. Of course, I more particularly allude to natural disease of the eye, but even where one eye has been injured, and the other declines in consequence, I should in that case avoid breeding from the animal.

I am aware that in some cases persons are so situated that it is out of their power to be so particular as I have endeavoured to show they should

be, or perhaps they may have a mare they cannot sell, and therefore it is not supposed she is to be kept to eat her head off, as the saying goes. In such event, if she belonged to me, I would breed from her, but then I should not expect to sell her stock at a remunerative figure, nor would I in their turn breed from her produce. The course I should adopt under those circumstances, if I was a farmer, would be to make use of them on the farm, and thus make them pay their way, which they may as well do, after such a manner as any other; for in the event of their not having sufficient strength and substance for the team, there are always odd jobs they can be put to do, and for which purpose they would suit as well as any other horse.

Nothing, I am persuaded, can pay better than the breeding of hunters: good horses of this class are always in demand, and are difficult to get; and let the times be good or bad, a clever hunter will always fetch a long price.

Let the farmer, if he has a mare likely to throw foals suitable for hunters, put her to a first-class stallion of the kind, and he will find himself, barring accidents, well repaid.

He should choose a horse with good length of shoulders, which is for a hunter indispensable, for without this qualification he can never be what is termed clever. The use to which he is applied will constantly be placing him in difficult positions; he will be expected to carry his rider safely up hill and down, as well as over grips and unsound ground; and for all this shortness of shoulder is incompatible with safety. A shoulder should be oblique, but I do not care to see it too thin, as that sometimes shows a want of muscle; some are apt to imagine that a thick shoulder must necessarily be a bad one, which is an error; with sufficient obliquity a coarse shoulder may be a very good one. One of the best hunters I ever possessed had very round shoulders, and many persons would have called them bad, but in reality the obliquity of the shoulder-bones prevented them being so. You may see a horse with thick shoulders put his foot well down when he moves, and another with very fine ones do just the reverse, as it all depends upon the manner in which the shoulder-blades are put on; and here I may remark that it does not signify a jot how a horse takes his foot from the ground, so that he puts it down flat and well, without stumping his toes into the earth. To discover a stumbler, get on his back, let the reins be loose on his neck, and allow him to walk quietly away. If he is a stumbler, he will discover himself presently, especially if the road is rather rough. Should you require any further proof, lift up his fore-feet, and see if the toes of his shoes are much worn.

very

The head of the hunter should be well set on. Length of neck is not of so much importance as may be imagined, nor does it greatly matter if the head be even a little thick: the great thing is to have the neck and head proportioned to each other, and as I have already observed, the latter well set on: the horse being pleasant to ride or not, depends solely on this; and furthermore, it is necessary on account of his respiration. If the head is not properly placed, the rider cannot get him pleasantly over his fences, to say nothing of his being more dangerous to ride.

Though length of neck is not of so much importance as some imagine, sufficiency of muscle is, and in choosing the stallion we must see he possesses it; otherwise, we shall find in his stock a corresponding de

ficiency. I do not believe that the length of neck or heaviness of head will ever cause a horse to bear heavily on hand. I have ridden a shortnecked horse, which has borne heavily on hand, for reason that owing to the shortness of the neck his head could not be properly placed.

The next point to be considered is the form in which the arm is set on, and this is an important point. It should, as we all know, be muscular and long, so that the animal can extend the fore legs. A good and full fore-arm is an essential qualification for a hunter, indeed I may say for every sort of horse requiring speed, for a lightthighed horse is never good for much. Below the knee should be short, but above it long. The knee itself should have width and breadth, a small knee being a defect, especially in the hunter. As we have already observed, that part below the knee ought to be short, and the legs there should be flat; when round they never stand work. The back sinews should be well detached, so that you can feel distinctly, first the shank bone, next the suspensory ligament, and then the flexor tendon; if all these seem to be united, the leg is a bad one.

Horses which dig their toes in the ground will, with much work, knuckle, i.e., stand bending and trembling forward. Crafty dealers will have the shoes replaced a short time before they offer such a horse for sale, that the defect may not be detected; but a judge will discover it when he sees the animal move. A mare (I will not add stallion, for I cannot imagine any one so foolish as to choose a horse with such a defect) assuredly will hand down to her stock the deformity of action I have described, therefore it behoves us to be most careful not to breed from such a one.

The fetlock of the hunter must be strong, the pasterns not too short; neither must they be too long, as that shows weakness. Excess in either way should be avoided; but of the two, I would rather lean, if we must go to extremes, to a long one, as affording more elasticity, the foot consequently not wearing out so soon. A short-pasterned horse never goes well in heavy ground, and he is always uneasy for a rider; there is nothing to relieve the concussion on the foot coming to the ground, and consequently navicular disease is likely to arise, especially if the horse has to carry weight, and is put to regular work.

I will now speak of the foot of the hunter, and if that be not perfect he is no hunter at all. A horse with a bad foot, or indeed a narrow one, is not capable of going across country. Fancy we ourselves with a heavy weight on our backs, and one wooden leg placed in a clay field; we should be very much in the position of a horse with a narrow foot. However, though the hunter's foot must not be narrow, we must not choose it too wide, or it will operate against his speed. A fine round well-open foot, in proper proportion with the horse, is what we should desire. And here I may add that there are many more horses foaled with good feet than bad ones; feet are made bad frequently by unskilful shoers. There is not one in nine village blacksmiths who can shoe properly, and as most young horses find their way to such men, incalculable mischief is done by them. Their common practice is to form the foot to the shoe, instead of the shoe to the foot; they keep a number of different-sized understandings hung up, as we see them in the shop, and on they go, whether suitable or not. They are always free with the knife, and if let alone and allowed to do as they

like, will cut and slash away to their utmost, and to the no small injury of the foot.

If the shoes are removed at proper seasons, and the shoe is adapted each time to the sole, there will rarely be much scope, properly speaking, for the knife. The bars and frog should be neatly dressed, but only with a pen-knife. A solid hoof is of the utmost importance, whether for the hunter or road horse, and the ancients were well aware of this, for they make frequent allusions to the hoof. To them it was a great consideration, for shoes were unknown in those days, and a hard hoof was absolutely necessary to make the horse at all useful to them, It is not desirable to have the heels too low, as in the event of their being so the frog may touch the ground, and thus cause a horse to drop. Let the foot be wide at the heel, the frog sound and large, and the bars distinct. I will add, as a concluding remark on the feet, that the old saying " No foot no horse" is worthy of being remembered by every horse buyer or breeder. Whoever buys one with unsound feet will before very long lament his bargain, and whoever breeds from a mare or by a stallion having them will be a loser by the stock they produce. It is the want of attention to such matters that causes people to say that the breeding of horseflesh does not pay them, and I have no hesitation in asserting that with proper regard to certain rules (provided the individual has land suitable to the purpose) it is most remunerative. True it is there is some risk, but upon the whole very few accidents happen to the young horses, and to guard against them, and render himself secure, let the breeder insure his stock, which he can do now for really a very trifling cost, and then his mind will, on this head, be comparatively at ease, for his pocket will be safe, which is, as we all know, a wonderful comfort to an Englishman.

Wind is what we will now proceed to talk about, and it is an important subject, whether in conection with the hunter, racer, or hack; therefore in choosing a stallion, or buying a horse, let us see that it has depth in the fore-quarters, for upon this and the form of the chest depends the speed and staying qualities of the animal; without room for the lungs he cannot endure a long burst, and "bellows to mend" will, if he is pushed, very shortly be the cry. A capacious chest will allow the rapid passage of the blood, as the action of the muscles forces it through the veins. Bulk of lungs will tend to the purification of the blood, and they cannot be large if the chest is not sufficiently capacious to accommodate them. Narrow-chested horses will stand but a small amount of fatigue. Round-chested ones are, as we see in the cart-horse, usually slow, and they are easily blown. A deep chest with plenty of barrel behind the elbow is what we must seek for, if we want speed and endurance; and it is no matter how wide he may be in his forepart, for if he possesses not depth he cannot go along in such a manner as the hunter or racer ought. Without wind the horse is much in the same position as an engine without water, and though treatment has in an advanced period much to do with it, still make is the grand secret. A great many horses are placed under the designation of being shortlegged, which are not in reality particularly so, but great depth of chest,

The Royal Farmers' is a very good office.

and indeed carcass, gives them that appearance; such horses are usually good leapers.

The back of the hunter should be moderately long: when it is short the action is uneasy and confined. What are termed saddle-backed horses, as when the back is sunk, or goose-rumped ones, are to be avoided.

Good loins are indispensably necessary for a hunter; indeed in any horse they cannot be too broad and muscular. If there is an indentation at the junction of the back and loins, it is an imperfection, and shows weakness.

The hinder legs must be well set in, the thighs strong, and gaskins well spread. Straight hind-legs are much against a hunter; indeed a horse having them, especially if they are weak, can never be considered one. A long and muscular thigh, a clean hock, with the leg descending perpendicularly to the ground without an inclination either way, is the form we must seek for the hunter. On the form and position of the hind leg the speed and movement of such a horse depends; therefore, in selecting a hunter, or a stallion to breed one, we must be careful it has such a qualification. The hock is a complex joint, subject to much disease, which, as I have already observed, is hereditary; we should therefore in every case, when we intend to select a horse, subject it to a rigid examination.

The tail should be set nicely on, and not be placed too low, which not only has an ugly appearance, but indicates weakness.

I shall reserve my observations on that most important organ the eye for a future number; and if my readers will have the patience to follow me through these pages and those that will appear in future numbers of this Magazine, I trust they may not be considered quite worthless, but may be found to contain a few hints favourable to the production of that noble animal the horse, in its best form; and though they may not be the fortunate possesor of a King Herod or Eclipse, or be chronicled as the winner of a Derby, Oaks, or Leger, they may have a horse calculated to cause envy in the hunting-field or in Rotten-row.

THE WILDS OF CAITHNESS

BY FRANCIS FRANCIS.

Author of Newton Dogvane," &c.

"It's close upon eight or nine hundred miles." "What, to Thurso?"

"To Thurso," said my friend; "if you go by road. A crow might do it in five or six or seven-but you are not a crow."

I looked at my elbows-they were not pinions; and with due submission to the Honourable Grantley Berkeley, my beak had no feathers at the base, though the defect was not caused by grubbing in the ground or anything else; so I murmured, "That's true," and looked blank. "It's a long way," at length I said, musingly.