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SEES NEED OF ENCOURAGING BREEDING. Quartermaster General of United States Army Discusses Horse Needs of the Country. Washington. D. .. January 24. — There is no more ardent supporter of the doctrine of preparedness in Washington, particularly as it is applied to an adequate supply of the proper type of horses for cavalry and artillery purposes, than Major General .1. R. Aleshire, quartermaster general of the United States army, who has given much thought to the question Of horse breeding and who is familiar with conditions governing that industry, not only in the Inited States, but in foreign countries as weJL In discussing the problem, as it applies to the Halted States, which with ■ " Increased array would need many additional hsrsta, and the part the government might be called upon to play in their prpdactjon, General Aleshire said a few days ago: •T am not prepared at present to say how this work should lie prosecuted, but the department of agriculture, whose efforts in that direction have been noteworthy, though hampered by the size of the appropriation at their disposal, should be competent to formulate a plan, especially as there are many civilian authorities anxious to give the government the benefit of their experience and observation, and who could be called upon to serve in an advisor capacity. The results of the experiments in foreign countries have demonstrated the snper-eatfaent qualifications of the thoroughbred sire for this pnrpose one difficulty i» connection with the problem is the selection of districts in which mares of a proper lype to throw cavalry remounts with some degree of certaintv could be found, and another is the se-curing of ranges where the work could go on at a minimum of expense. "The Indian reservations would seem to be ideal for breeding operations, as there is a variety of range at the disposal of the government free of charge. Some years ago there was a plan to utilise the Standing Rock agency for the purpose, but it fell through, and what work the government has don. in breeding horses has been confined to sections in Virginia. Maryland. West Virginia. Colorado, Vermont and a small area in one or two other states of the union. •There is no doubt that while the United Mates has within its borders many millions of horses ,t the present time." continued the quartermaster gen-eral. "there is a shortage of the type the service demand: — a horse that is quick and sure of foot and which has enough pure blood in bis veins tl make him ■ stranger to fatigue, capable of endurii g li.ng and forced marches on short rations, and it- « seasiaj! that Quality of courage which is a heritage from a btig line of ancestors whose worth has been proven iu hard fought contests. PureigB nations have been busy with our breeding stock, and the time lias couie when we should safeguard our future cavalry remount supply by the retention of good | mares which have, for almost two years, been said at the same figure as our geldings. Statictics show that upward of one million horses and mules hav been liought in the United States by agents of Great Britain, France and Italy since the war began. There should be some way to put a stop to the further shipment of the sort of mares which are needed at home. It will be difficult to cope with this situation, but the benefit accruing to such an important industry should make it worth while determining what steps are to be taken in a matter of such importance 10 the general welfare of the country. Some authorities are in favor of placing an embargo on further shipments of mares and this would assuredly be effective. "It lias been stated that the general purpose horses of twenty years ago were superior to those of today." resinned General Aleshire, "and I can heartily endorse this opinion. I can remember when Kentucky and Missouri produced ideal cavalry remount types. There were Forrests. Denmarks. Black Squirrels and other families with warm blood close up in their pedigrees that were invaluable for our service. Surely there must still be some of that blood in those stafes and ill other portions of the middle west. Colorado lias great possibilities as a breeding nursery and Montana has supplied many good horses for army pnrposee. I have seen at our various stations horses from that region that were unsurpassed. The character of the range seemei to give them great lung power and unusual nerve force. Thoroughbred and standard bred sires of ex- I ceUenee have been used extensively in Montana, some of the former being of FAigiish blood, and they have left their impress in many ways on their descendants, notably in the intelligence displayed in breaking. "I think the work which is being done in New York by the Jockey Club, through its Breeding Bu-reau. and by the Kentucky State Racing Commission in Kentucky." saiil General Aleshire. iu conclusion, "should lie productive of much good, and I look for More and better horses from those states as soon as tic farmers and horse breeders realize what the industry means to the government. An officer has been sent to Kentucky to tell the people of that state something about the type of horse we require. This interest is an evidence of the spirit which is Manifesting itself in many quarters, and is along the same line as was pursued by the Jockey Club in offering a special award for the best army remount at the recent National Horse Show- at Madison Square Garden. That competition helped to establish a type for our farmers and horse breeders t. follow. It is characteristic of the American sportsman to find him in the forefront when his country calls." When asked if he did not think that the governments appropriation for horse hreeding should be greatly inoerased. in view of the expansion of other brandies of the service. Oeneral Aleshire declared that the situation was sufficiently eloquent to speak for itself, and that no doubt the matter would have the careful attention of Congress, along with the other elements of preparedness, but instead of the government interesting itself in the actual breeding of horses, he thought this should he done by the farmers along the lines of the plan of the Department of Agriculture.
