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TO ENCOURAGE BREEDING U S Army Much Concerned Over Remount Problems Col Stanley Says Racing Is IsNeeded Needed to Secure Proper ProperType Type of Horse The essential thing to be borne in mind in judg ng a horse is the purpose for which the animal is required There is a marked difference in con brmation between animals of which strength is the thelief lief characteristic sought and those required rather for speed and mobility than for strength As a simple illustration compare the rhinoceros and bull as samples of conformation for strength with the greyhound and the deer samples of ani ¬ mals built primarily for speed and agility agilityThe The most obvious difference between these classes lies in the comparative length of limb Fast ani ¬ mals are short in body and very long in limb strong animals exactly the reverse Fleet animals possess limbs which arc slender as they are long and in most cases the hind limbs which propel propelic ic body in forward movement are slightly longer n proportion than the fore limbs This is to be observed particularly in the hare and in an exag ¬ gerated degree in the kangaroo Furthermore in 10 case of speedy animals the hock is nearer the ground than in strong animals Applying these reneral rules of conformation to the horse gives one a groundwork for judging the ideal conforma conformaon on in all its forms whether it be applied to the race horse br the heavy Shire ShireHIDING HIDING HORSES CONSIDERED CONSIDEREDSo So far as the riding horse is considered we will cave out of consideration any of the draft breeds as they are solely adaptable for pulling at slow aees heavy loads In considering then the light rpe of horse suitable by reason of his agility isposition speed endurance and courage for the uses of man where these qualities are required we must first understand the origin of this type of horse All socalled breeds or classes of light mobile horses whether for riding or driving trace their ancestry back to the thoroughbred which may e considered the foundation stock of all riding nnd driving horses of acknowledged family or train with the exception of course of the Arab ie progenitor of the thoroughbred The first real knowledge we have of the scienti flc development of the thoroughbred strain begins about the time of the reign of Charles I in Eng nnd or something over four centuries ago All we know certainly in regard to blood lines is that every horse registered in the Stud Book descends rom three eastern sires towit the Byerly Turk larley Arabian and the Godolphin Barb or from lieir representatives the founders of the three great thoroughbred families Eclipse Herod and Matchem The thoroughbred lines as well as the rotters saddlers hackneys or other types of mo ile carriage and coach horses all trace back upon these foundation blood strains the essential oil so to speak of the light horse families recognized as desirable for pleasure riding or driving In judging a horse for conformation the point that should be held in mind is that the gen eral aspect of the animal should 12 one of sym metry and therefore beauty Broadly speaking the general outline should be one of continuity and grace of curve with no abrupt angles or breaking of the line which may produce an unfavorable im pression at first sight The head should strike one at first glance as being small and lean looking with fine skin and hair and well developed muscles showing in the vicinity of the jaw The eyes should be large clear and of kindly expression nostrils large denoting great breathing capacity lips long and thin ears small and pointed and above all well and firmly placed It is generally agreed that an animal which moves or pricks its ears in a knowing manner is one of the clever sort which do not make mistakes in traveling over rough ground CONFORMATION POINTS Neck should be long and flexible shoulders long and oblique especially IIL the riding horse back short and withers fairly high The girth or dis tance around the body from a point just back of the withers should be as great as possible con sistent with due proportion to other members Hips and rear hand should be well coupled to the body That is to say the distance from the last rib to point of hip should be as short as possible no more than three and onehalf inches The line from the top of the back over the loins to the tai should be rather more straight than sloping and the dock of the tail should be set high and strongly muscled giving a graceful fall to the tail when the animal is in motion A plumb line droppet from the rearmost point of the quarter to the jround should fall parallel come very close if no in actual contact with the rear line of the hind leg from the hock to the pastern giving in effect wha is known as a straight hind leg This point how ever is open to differences of opinion and while a strong hind leg is unquestionably desirable in the race horse or hunter it is less essential in the five gaited saddle hnrso where a slightly more bent leg probably gives more spring to the riding gaits and permits of more brilliant hock action The gaskins or muscular development above the hocks should be wide and powerful and hocks should be well let down that is to say as clokwi to the ground as possible consistent with general sym ¬ metry of conformation making the line from the point of the hock to the point of the hip cppear to be a long one oneCannon Cannon bones or middle bones of the legs should be comparatively large lean and flat but compara lively short in length while the pasterns lines should appear on the other hand fairly long ant sloping The forearm should also appear long and muscular Legs should be well set under the l lody ody although when the animal is standing at ease he should appear to cover a lot of ground and the lower line of its body as compared with the line of the back should appear much longer Breast should be plump fairly broad and deep Viewing the animal from the front he should appear com paratively narrow whereas viewing him from the therear rear he should appear Comparatively broad The outline above given of ideal conformation for the light type horse is merely touching the high points and is subject of course to great var ation and compensating allowances in actual prac tice where one fault or imperfection in conforma ¬ tion may be far more than outweighed by excellence or unusual development in some other detail more than offsetting the disadvantages existing PERFORMANCE REAL TEST TESTThe The tendency in this country is perhaps in the direction of overestimating the importance o correct conformation with a disregard for practica tests to determine quality by performance There is an old saying that they run and jump in al alshapes shapes and he who would stake his reputation upon compliance with tho theoretical standards adopted for the show ring would take long chances as a practical judge In the development of a breed of horses the thecrucible crucible through which the raw material shou pass in order to find the gold of the strain to be extracted and preserved with the elimination of the tlross is the eliminating test In other words the ruce course The qualities to be sought in any strain of light horses are endurance early maturit and courage Perfect health correct conformation and hence beauty are indispensable to endurance Early maturity is impossible without a vigorous constitution and steady nerves Courage follows as a sum total of this development These qua ties eliminatingtests can only be determined by practical eliminating tests which may be carried on in wellorganize and correctly regulated racing The show ring with its theoretical standards and requirements will go far astray in the determination of wha is best in determining the practical qualities to be sought for horses to be used for any particular purpose That racing furnishes a recreation for the public while it may be desirable is a sub ¬ ordinate consideration As a crucible for a deter ¬ mination of the best to be sought iu development of the light horse be he runner or trotter it is absorbingly instructive and indispensable indispensableThe The misguided and misinformed member of a community who condemns racing as an institution upon the false theory that the race course is but a scheme for the encouragement of gambling injures our farmers ranchmen and the military establishment establishmentWitli Witli the advent of the automobile trolley car and mechanical traction the commercial uses for the liglit horse are fast disappearing He is be ¬ coming more and more an agency so far as tho great mass of citizens is concerned for pleasure and recreation This is not the case however in regard to the horse as a military asset The ight and mobile animal for military purposes is tint as essential as ho ever was and it would bu dangerous assumption to make that because the world war was one largely of fighting in trenches that all future wars would be of this same char ¬ acter As a matter of fact the world war was only won by the allies when they radically changed Jieir tacical policy from one of trench warfare to that of mobility of movement In operations of mobility that is of action cavalry is absolutely indispensable for quick raids flanking move ¬ ments or taking advantage quickly of weakness in any part of the enemys line lineARMY ARMY ENCOURAGES BREEDING BREEDINGTo To this end the army is keenly alive to the ab ¬ solute necessity in this country of giving en ¬ couragement to the breeding and development of the light type of horses suitable for military purposes and will assist in every way possible and proper to encourage interest in the development of the best in those types of horse production Cross ¬ country riding racing polo and military horse shows are not only given every encouragement in the army but also have the expressed and substan ¬ tial support of Congress The cooperation of communities in the advancement of this industry and encouragement in the use of the horse for pleasure and recreation is not only desired but sought by the AVar Department DepartmentThe The inculcation among our young officers of the qualities of boldness resourcefulness and skill re ¬ quired of a gcod horseman is given encouragement not only in our own but all firstclass military establishments of the world worldThe The words of Lord North in his autobiography dedicated to his grandchildren may aptly be piloted In their relation to the spirit which should imbue every lover of the horse and devotee of the whole ¬ some pleasure and benefit which may come from his proper use He states statesI I now dedicate this book to you my dear grand ¬ children because I want you to grow up good country gentlemen doing your duty to your sov ¬ ereign your country and your neighbors rich and poor and fulfilling all the obligations of your station and versed in all those pursuits and occu ¬ pations which make a country life so pleasant and happy I want you to grow up sportsmen not mind you sporting men for there is a vast dif ¬ ference between a sportsman and a sporting man Col P S Stanley in St Louis GlobeDemocrat
