The horse : its origin and development combined with stable practice

Preface

THE scheme of this work is to trace the history of the horse from the earHest Ages ; to continue its evolution to modern times, when the various breeds in Great Britain have been brought to a high state of perfection by the careful supervision and skill of enthusiastic breeders ; and also to give in detail the methods of stable practice and training in vogae at present, as practised in my own stable.

There are many races of horses, admirable in their way, that have therefore not been touched upon, since they have had no part in the development of British horses. How hardy and useful some of these native breeds are may be gathered from a letter, October 23, 1910, from Mr. J. Tagg, F.E.C.V.S., who had a very prolonged experience in managing an immense Stud in the Tirhoot district of Bengal.

Referring to the Khirgiz, and the Manchurian ponies, and others of that breed, which are common from the Volga to China, he remarks : " What ripping ponies the Khirgisen are ! When I was at Simbirsh, on the Volga — the town is between Kasan and Samara — I used to drive a Troika. The middle pony, about 13'3, was a dun Khirgis stallion, and the two outspanners were geldings, with a dash of Arab in them. The outspanners, or ' outriggers,' used to gallop as hard as they could pelt on the frozen snow, but the Kirgis would never break. The hardiness of the little brutes was marvellous ! On one occasion night overtook me, and I stayed in a village called Astradam, on the Kama Eiver, and I gave my Ivooschick an extra rouble.

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My mau, a Kalmuck Tartar, and a blackguard personified but faithful to me, went and got drunk promptly. In the night I went out into the yard — there were then about 50 degrees Fahrenheit of frost — and there stood my three ponies, one icicle from the tips of their ears to their heel sockets, comfortably eating rough hay from a crib of sorts."

Stories of hardiness that may even vie with the above have been often told from time to time of Indian ponies, Argentine, Norwegian, Basuto, and those of many other countries, showing the innate toughness of various national breeds, and that England has no monopoly of hard-working ponies. They take no part, however, in the composition of British horses or their descendants, and reference to them is unnecessary for the present purpose.

My best thanks are gratefully offered to the kind friends who have given me much valuable assistance in compiling this work, and bringing it to a successful conclusion : to Mr. James E. Piatt, the former eminent breeder of thoroughbred yearlings, and owner of the great Kendal in his days at the English Stud, who has given me most welcome help in preparing the chapters on Thoroughbreds, and on American Trotters ; to Mr. Walter Winans, famous in many different spheres, but especially in the art of breeding and successfully showing horses, who has kindly revised the mention of American Trotters ; to Lady Anne Blunt, who has unstintedly given me the great advantage of her unique knowledge of the Arabian horse, in preparing the description of her favourite breed ; to Miss Daphne Darley for obtaining the most valuable letter concerning the purchase of the Darley Arabian ; to Mr. Alfred Withers, the world-famous manager of the great establishments in Oxford Street and Edgware Koad, for his hints with regard to carriage-horses; to Kaid Sir Harry Maclean, whose prolonged period of captivity by Kaisuli thrilled the whole of Europe, and whose long service in the Councils of the late Sultan of Morocco, dating from 1876 till 1908, was the theme of wonder and admiration in all the Foreign Otiices of Europe, who has now kindly

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revised the chapter on Barbs ; to Mr. Hermon Biddell, whose intimate knowledge of the Suffolk Punch enabled him to write that most interesting account of them in the first volume of their Stud Book, and whose aid has been invaluable to me in writing about the merits of the breed ; and to Mr. Kobert Thornton, so well known in connection with Lord Middleton's Stud Farm at Birdsall, who has supervised the remarks on Breeding. To all these kind friends, and also to those who have granted permission to embellish the work with the likenesses of their favourites, some even personally unknown to me, and to every one who has assisted in bringing this book to a happy conclusion, I now tend my hearty and grateful thanks,

November, 1911.