Horse-breeding in England and India : and army horses

IK#^^"^'^
'ND iNDIA AN!
\BR(
LIBRARY
OF
LEONARD PEARSON
VETERINARIAN
:
SECOND EDITION
Horse-Breeding
N
I
England and India
AND
Army Horses Abroad
BY
SIR
WALTER
GILBEY, BART.
Author of
Horses for the Army The Great or War Horse Small Horses
Horses Past and Present; The Harness Horse;
IN Warfare;
Young Race-Horses Early Carriages and Roads Animal Painters
OF England, &c., &c.
,
;
;
;
ILLUSTRATED
LONDON
Vinton &
Co., 9
New
Bridge Street, E.C.
1906
G313
\JNtV£R6IVY
iSYLVe.,:
1
.
.
-+-
CONTENTS
,
^:
Horse-Brkeding
IX
i8('>4
The Present State of Affairs
Horses Bred in England
Horses Bred for Sport Only
Purchase of English Mares by Foreigners
4
6
.
Horses AVanteu for the Army
Sizeable Harness Horses
Private Enterprise in England
Breeding Without Prejudice
Landlords would do well to give Choice of Stallions
Cause of Failure in English Horse-Breeding
Height of Race-Horses from 1700 to 1900
Character of Race-Horses from 1700 to 1900
The Introduction of Short Races
.
7
9
II
12
13
13
14
16
iS
The Roadster of a Century Ago
19
What
20
Foreign Nations are Doing
Horse-Breeding in France
Horse-Breeding'in Germany (Pruss(a)
Horse-Breeding in Hungary
Hokse-Breeding in Austria
Horse-Breeding in Italy
Horse-Breeding in Russia
Horse-Breeding in Turkey
Horse-Breeding in India
22
30
35
39
42
44
49
Veterinary-Colonel Hallen —
:
Opinions of the Late
Army Remounts
First endeavours to improve Native Breeds.
Difficulties in the way of
Native Mares.
and Horse-Breeding.
English Thoroughbreds.
Purchase of stallions.
improvement.
Thoroughbreds from
Thoroughbred Stallions.
Objections
to
Results of using Thoroughbred,
Hackney Stallions.
Australia.
Thoroughbred and Arab Sires in
Hackney and Arab Stallions.
Bombay Presidency. Relative merits of young stock by various
Commission of Inquiry igoo. Errors in working the Horsestallions.
Breeding Scheme. Demand for horses for sport in India. Stallions
Climate and size of the horse
Small size of the Arab.
overworked.
—
Opinions of Major-General Sir John Watson
Work of old Bengal Studs. Shortcomings of
system.
Hopelessness
e.xisting
Indiscriminate breeding. Character of mares ignored.
of evolving an Anglo-Indian horse
The Horse-Breeding
s2-60
(India) Commission of 1900-1
60-62
63-('5
.
ILLUSTRATIONS
A
Cover Hack,
Hl'ntkr Sirk
the property of the Ninth
— Cognac
Duke
of Hamilton
Frontispiece
..
Height of Race-Horses from
1700 to 1900
14
Shark
17
Orville
18
King George
IV's
Hackney — Monitor..
Anglo-Norman Stallion — Radziwill
Oldenburgh Mares
.
20
27
34
6
PREFACE
Certain chauQ-es kaviucr come over the condition
of onr Jiorse-breeding industry in England during
the last
few
concerning
and
the
years,
the
studs
zuork
a7id
more recent information
of horse-bi'eeding in India
of France,
Germany,
Italy
and
Russia havino- been obtained, this Second Edition
has been made necessary.
Harness Horses'' and on
''The HeighF and ''Character'' of Race- Horses
from lyoo to igoo have been added to the
Chapters on
original
" Sizeable
text.
The particulars of foreign stud establishments
given
in
the
following pages
Continental
nations
encouraging
horse-breeding,
realise
the
and
shozu
hocu fully
importance
the
value
continue to set on English breeding-stock.
Elsenham Hall
joth April,
I go
of
they
Digitized by the Internet Arciiive
in
2009
with funding from
Lyrasis IVIembers
and Sloan Foundation
http://www.archive.org/details/horsebreedingiOOgilb
HORSE-BREEDING
ENGLAND AND INDIA
IN
AND
ARMY HORSES ABROAD
Horse-Breeding
in
1884
More than twenty years since I drew attention" to the
displayed in England in the breeding of Horses.
Stress was then laid upon our increasing dependence on
neglect
foreign countries for supplies of horses of the generally useful
stamp
and upon the mistaken policy of
;
buyers the mares we might with
for breeding
purposes
at
home,
if
selling to Continental
profit
ourselves retain
to
such mares are properly
mated.
The Present State
Much
has happened to alter the general condition of
affairs since those
words were spoken
book appeared
of this
in the
departments of road transport
We
rapid.
many
of Affairs
;
since the
first
edition
year 1901, the change in some
in Britain
has been increasingly
have seen the horse-drawn tramcar replaced
cities
by
the electrically
driven omnibus threatens
now
driven car
to
displace
;
in
and the motorthe
horse-drawn
vehicle.
*
by
A Paper
the
Duke
Mr. Edmund
read in
of
1884 at the Farmers' Club.
Westminster,
Tattcrsall,
and
Earl
others.
Carrington,
With Discussion
Sir
Nigel
thereon
Kingscute,
—
These changes have brought about as a natural consequence a decrease
demand
the
in
which was formerly required
shown
;
and
stamp
the
for
of horse
demand
this decreased
is
by the falling off in our importations of horses during
the last few years.
It will
below those of the years previous
fallen
1
when
901, the period
the South African
of horses for artillery
foreign
before
now
be observed that our imports of horses have
horses in
to
War
1899,
1900 and
drained England
to buy
number than we had ever done
and transport, and obliged us
greater
:—
Imports of Horses for the Twenty Years, 1886 — 1905
1886
11,027
1896
1887
11,649
1897
49,519
1888
11,504
1898
42.921
1889
13,859
1899
43,900
1890
19,404
1900
51,787
1891
21,715
1901
40,856
1892
21,026
1902
32,686
1893
13,719
1903
27,266
1894
22,866
1904
18,491
1895
34,092
1905
13,711
Horses Bred
I
have given the figures
the reader to
compare those
at earlier dates
four years
;
but
it
upon which
with these figures
for
is
I
in
40,677
England
for the last
twenty years
to enable
of recent years with importations
the steady decrease during the last
wish
1902,
to insist
1903,
;
and
in
conjunction
1904 and 1905,
ask the reader's attention to the Government
I
would
Returns of
Agricultural Horses in England during the last few years
1897
1,526,424
1902
1898
1.517,160
1903
1.537,154
1899
1,516,630
1904
1,560,236
1900
1,500,143
1905
1,572,433
1901
1,511,431
1,504,789
:
—
The
influence of the South African
horse-breeding
industry
recovery was rapid
we had done
and, as the figures
for several
include
that breeders are at last
a very considerable
there
as
is
a
and that
for
to the truth of the doctrine
more than twenty years
The
pays to breed them.
" Agricultural "
also
proportion of
and steady demand
constant
it
animals
all
and there can be no doubt
;
waking up
have been striving to teach
horses,
the
plough and heavy draught work of
higher and more valuable class
that
but
show, we bred more
years previously.
fitted for the
They
the farm.
I
by the
felt
others,
horses returned as " Agricultural " are not
stamp
of the
War was
with
work in England in 1903, 1904 and in 1905 than
horses for
The
;
common
in
include,
it
for
i.e.,
carriage
horses returned
cannot be doubted,
a
proportion of animals bred by farmers with the view of sale as
hunters and ponies
which
—
and other work, the demand
for polo
particularly for polo-ponies
— steadily
for
The
increases.
" fancy prices " paid for polo-ponies of proved merit has done
much
to
encourage the production of animals of this
As regards
high-class carriage horses,
is
it
class.
noteworthy
notwithstanding the increased use of motor-cars, the
that,
demand
for carriage horses
continues to be as keen as
The
before these machines were invented.
horses
harness
at
Tattersall's
and
it
was
sales of high-class
other
great
London
among
repositories during 1905 produced keener competition
buyers and higher prices than they have ever done before.
It
would seem,
therefore,
the Horse-Breeding Societies
is
that at last the
work done by
beginning to bear
fruit.
The
twelve Breed Societies have done a great deal to encourage
the impro\ement of horses, by the promotion of shows and
At a rough estimate the amount of money
prizes at shows held throughout England may
donation of prizes.
distributed in
be put
at
between ^"25,000 and ^35,000 per annum.
In addition to these endeavours to
and breeders
to our needs, the
sum
awaken the country
of ^5,000 since the year
1887 has annually been granted by Government to encourage
—
The
horse-breeding.
greater part of this
money
more than
for
a century had been given by the reigning sovereign
in the
shape of Royal Plates.
1887 the Royal Commission on Horse-Breeding was
In
appointed, and one of the
was
sum
that the
first
of ^^3,500
recommendations of
body
this
which had been given by Queen
Victoria in prizes for races should be diverted to the use to
which
now
is
it
thoroughbred
applied
— namely,
in
premiums
giving
to
stallions.
Horses Bred for Sport Only
Since the end of the coaching era
have been breeding, as
for pleasure,
weakness
the
The
meed
and not
— say
for business,
and
since
1850 — we
almost exclusively
at the present day,
this is just
where our
lies.
purposes which receive
only animals for business
of attention their importance deserves are the
heavy
draught-horses — the Shire, Suffolk and Clydesdale.
We
are far
ahead of any other nation as breeders of
race-horses, hunters and polo-ponies
we
aiming
it
— horses
used in sport
money nor pains to breed the best, but in
production of these we either hit the mark or miss
spare neither
at
altogether.
We
prefer a
Thoroughbred
sire,
not because he has bone,
substance and soundness, but because he
of a
and shape
of the stallion
a fashionable
is
a
Thoroughbred.
mare does not inquire concerning
The owner
pedigree
recommendation he
;
is
he asks, "
the
How
strongest
is
the
he bred
— nay,
?
the
make
"
and
only^
will accept.
This was not always the case; between the years 1800
and 1850, broadly speaking. Hunter sires were used to beget
Hunter stock. It is true that breeders of Hunters did not
confine themselves exclusively to the use of such sires, for the
increased
speed of hounds obliged them
4
to
produce
faster
—
horses
;
but such animals as Cognac, whose portrait
given, were
Hunter.
here
is
very hirgely used, to the great benefit of the
Cognac belonged,
words
the
in
of
writer
a
in
the Sporting Magazine of the year 1836, " to a race of Hunters
nearly extinct, and justly celebrated for their high courage,
honesty and "stoutness."
The famous
Tongue, best known as
writer, Mr. Cornelius
"Cecil," writing in the Sporting Magazine of May, 1851, says
"
that
it
within
was
the
a
twenty
last
not calculated
for
hunting men until
prevailing opinion with
years
hunting."
Thoroughbreds
that
would appear,
It
were
therefore, that
during the twenty years i83i-i(S3i mentioned, hunting
changed
came
to consider
them
men
with regard to Thoroughbreds, and
their opinions
suitable for riding across country.
Having discovered that
stout Thoroughbred
the
Hunter mare threw
a
good
foal
some hunting men, at least,
evidently adopted the practice of riding the Thoroughbred
horse as a Hunter instead of using him only as a sire to beget
Hunters.
In this connection we nuist always bear in mind
that the Thoroughbred of the period referred to was still a
to the
stout
able to
horse,
sire,
gallop a
distance
and carry a heavy
weight.
Because the Thoroughbred
was
successfully
sire of a
former generation
used to beget Hunters, we have taken
granted that his greatly altered modern descendant
suitable for the purpose
reason of our
;
work
is
to a great extent lies the
failure.
There must always be
in stud
and herein
for
equally
;
the
a large proportion of disappointments
number
of failures or misfits will
always
exceed the good ones, and the misfit got by a Thoroughbred
from, say, a Hunter mare already
full
of
Thoroughbred blood
is
only too often a misfit in the fullest sense of the word
disappointment to the breeder, too
scarcely
" weed."
fit
for useful
purposes
—
in
liglit
for
Army
work, and
homely language
it
is
a
Purchase of English Mares by Foreigners
In France, Germany, Hungary, and other foreign countries
breeders work on very different
not for pleasure
of useful horse.
aim
their
;
With
is
They breed
lines.
for business,
to produce the highest stamp
have
this definite object they
for sixty
years and more been buying English mares, free from bias in
favour of one strain or another.
scarcely ever purchase from us.
Geldings, the foreign breeders
The
bought by them are those which
blemished
number
larger
have
been
of
mares
accidentally
but in all cases the shape and not the pedigree
mare guides the purchaser. They also buy sound
young mares for work, and with the view of breeding from
of
;
the
them afterwards.
The eagerness with which
mares from us has given
foreign agents
rise to the idea that
seek
to
buy
England and
Ireland have been and are being steadily drained of the best
mares
;
and statements
are sold
to
to the effect that " all our best
abroad
go
"
have been
Nothing could be more misleading.
brood mares
frequently
The owners of good
we have in this
not part with them, and
will
country the foundation-stock from which to produce
future, as
mares
published.
we have done
in
the past, horses of
all
in
the
breeds far
Germany. We
England and Ireland want, not the material, but the
judgment to use it properly.
We have the material, and that
of the best, in abundance
but we do not make the best use of
superior to any that are bred in France and
in
;
it.
Foreign breeders buy what they can, and, by the exercise
of unbiassed
stallions,
judgment
turn the
in
mating the mares with suitable
material obtained
from us
to
far
better
account than we should do.
I
insisted
on
this point in the address
Farmers' Club in March, 1884."
I
said "
I
it
read before the
was an admitted
* Riding anil Driving Horses: Their Breeding and Management.
This
paper gave rise to a most interesting discussion, in which the late Duke of
Westminster, the late Earl of Carrington, the late Mr. Edmund Tattersall,
Sir Nigel Kingscote and other prominent authorities took part.
we were
fact that
which
cannot
statement
is
dams
The
possessed of the true bred sires and
be
equalled
as true
now
as
any
in
other country."
was twenty-two years ago.
it
addition to their annual purchases of English mares,
In
breeders
foreign
have,
Hackney
•customers for
about
since
been
1830,
our
best
Foreign stud masters in
stallions.
now show
the great horse-rearing districts can
us
distinct
and well-marked breeds of useful horses which they have
produced by judiciously mating the mares
gradually
have bought from
England
it
nation
they
;
Had
us.
would have benefited the
not likely that they
is
would,
Thoroughbred
in
all
have been put
probability,
with the results described
stallions,
they
those mares been retained in
to
by Lord
Cathcart."
The
point
owing
that,
foreigners'
on which particular stress must be
to the
method
misfits are
necessarily often does
sell
the
in
horse
fail
to
is
is
foreigner
may — he
produce a youngster that will
most remunerative
but the misfit
;
The
unlike ours.
—
laid
of breeding on the Continent, the
market,
not a weed,
it
i.e.,
is
as
a
carriage-
useful for general
purposes.
Horses Wanted for the Army
Since the South African War, the
War
Office authorities
have been bombarded with schemes and suggestions
bad, and impossible
— for
— good,
increasing the home-bred supply of
Remounts.
It is
certain that there will be an
enormous demand
in the
future for horses both large and small for military purposes.
was inade in one arm
the number of horses which
In the year igoo a large increase
which involves a large increase
will
be needed.
raised
;
Fifty-four
new
in
batteries of Artillery have been
on a peace footing each of these requires 58 horses,
* Half-Bred Horses jov Field and
by Earl Cathcart,
England, 1883.
Road
in the Journal of the
:
Their Breeding and Management,
Royal Agricultural Society of
The war
or a total of 3,132.
Royal Field Artillery
establishment of a battery of
horses; 7,074 additional horses
131
is
would therefore be required
new
equip the
to
batteries
for
active service.
Colonel
in
a
letter
De Burgh,
Director of Transport and Remounts,
dated
March,
gth
exclusive of India,
A
29,713.
is
me
informs
1906,
authorised " Peace Establishment "
horses for
of
that
the
arms,
all
large proportion of these are
draught horses of good stamp, powerful but active animals,
suitable for
may
It
work
waggon.
or transport
be suggested that Britain's position as a colonising
while
nation,
gun team
in the
casts
it
upon her
larger
responsibilities
of
preparedness for war, lends her larger opportunities of meeting
those responsibilities.
to
ground
find
would be impossible
demand
enable us to meet a
for warfare
It
breeding-studs on
for
the
for all the horses
on any extensive
in these islands
scale that
would
we might
require
scale.
This question of military horse supplies
The
graver than before.
for horse
power by the great carrying companies
is
cutting
source of supply whose value was sufficiently proved
off a
during the South African War.
large
for
now become
is
substitution of mechanical traction
numbers
and transport
Artillery
Under
the registration scheme,
stamp most suitable
of seasoned horses of the
work
omnibus and kindred companies
;
were obtained from the
if
electricity
and
engines are to replace horses for such city work, the
must look elsewhere
If
may
1
encourage
Africa,
for the
in
more
for its
requirements
in
venture an opinion, our
our
Colonies
— Canada,
— the
Army
time of need.
policy
should
Australia,
especially, as possessing soil
industry
motor
and
be
to
South
and climate suitable
breeding of horses of the useful type
required for military service.
There
is
space to conduct these
operations on a large scale in the Colonies, while the mission
of the
mother country might well be
to continue, as at present,
breeding the best of every strain as a source of supply to
Colonial breeders
who may
seek to improve their local stock.
8
The Government might
report
profitably
send to inspect and
on the great studs of France,
Germany, Hungary,
Russia and other countries.
Such inspections may have been made
Reports have not been made accessible
country.
It
officially,
but the
to the breeders of this
goes witliout saying that the choice of agents to
make such
inspections and reports
must be a matter
difficulty.
The agent must be
man
a
of great
possessed of practical
experience in horse-breeding, and not in breeding only one
class of horse.
The man who has devoted
himself exclusively
one class of horse, whether the race-horse
to the production of
or the hunter, cannot
himself of the prejudices he has
rid
necessarily formed in the course of his experience as a breeder
of race-horses or hunters
— he cannot put aside his bias
Few
of a horse suitable for sport.
to the production of several classes of horse
men among
in
favour
breeders devote themselves
;
and the successful
these few are naturally disinclined to leave their
business for a prolonged
through
tour
the
horse-breeding
Europe.
districts of
Sizeable Harness Horses
It
is
Kingdom
a
impossible to deny
want which,
be able
to
cannot do
I
that
there
is
the United
in
a great want of sizeable harness horses
;
in the interests of national defence,
and
this is
we should
from our own breeding grounds.
satisfy
We
it.
stated, in
my
address twenty-two years ago, that English
— square made, sizeable and
— could then be scarcely obtained
horses suitable for match pairs
having courage and action
and the statement
it
is
was only necessary
and country dealers
matter
match
it
was then
pair from
;
hardly less true to-day.
to visit the yards
to find
15.3
much
also stated that
of our metropolitan
how difficult and costly a
London brougham-horse or a
to discover
to
a
16.2
hands
mission might be undertaken to-day
encountering
I
the
same
difficulty.
in
height.
A
similar
with the certainty of
Hundreds
At recent
origin.
London
in
from
at
^200
purchasers being quite unaware
the
pair,
and coach horses have
of carriage
pairs
of
been sold every year
to
^500
a
foreign
of their
brown and bay upstanding coachsummer out of London
sales
horses from coaches running during the
have
sold at from 100 to 200 guineas
a pair purchased by a
There can be no doubt whatever
friend cost 350 guineas.
where these animals were bred
trace their pedigree
it
;
if
;
anyone took the trouble
would be found that they came
to
either
from the Oldenbourg province of Germany or from the horsebreeding districts of Normandy in France; there can be no
mistaking the breeds.
When
the Royal
was appointed
in
Commission on
the above statement was given
masters
in
horses in
to obtain
stamp
London.
Mr.
Horse-Breeding
them from
by two of the largest job-
Wimbush
Normandy about
stated that he began to
the year
buy
1887, and he continued
that country because they were just the
of animal required for carriage work.
In his
large
Irish
the year 1897, niuch evidence in support of
own words,
— 15.3 or
15.2,
these
Norman
and occasionally up
horses are " not very
to 16
hands
— but they
are horses of beautiful appearance, very handsome and splendid
goers
;
they not only step well, but go most excellently on
their hind legs."
Formerly, the London dealers used to buy carriage horses
in America.
Mr. Henry Withers informed the Commissioners
that for four or hve years his firm maintained one buyer in
Lexington and another
in
New
York.
The
scarcity of good
carriage horses in England and Ireland obliged
though American horses were very dear.
the Lexington and
New
him
to
do
this,
In course of time
York agencies were abandoned, not
because carriage horses of the required stamp could be found
in Great Britain, but because they could be procured
cheaply in France,
States.
Germany and Belgium than
in the
more
United
Withers informed the Commissioners that only a
]\Ir.
fortnight before he appeared to give evidence he
had been on
the Continent to purchase horses, and had bought
in
Paris,
Hanover, Brussels and Ghent.
This
an anomaly, but one
is
for
which
would
it
be
unjust to blame the dealers, for English-bred harness-horses of
the class required have not been bred in any quantity in this
country
for
more than
years.
fifty
enterprising English dealers take measures to meet
The
their customers' requirements
whose
agents
has
business
by maintaining on the Continent
been to purchase the most
and
"English-looking" animals they can find;
without fear
asserted
of
contradiction
be
horses so
the
that
may
it
purchased are bred from English stock.
The
steady progress
made by
the
Hackney Horse Society,
number of animals
as evidenced by the annual increase in the
the
exhibited at
ground
breeding
is
Show
hope that
for the
receiving
each year
held
at last this
more
of the attention
interested in the subject appear
can breed
as, if
Islington,
gives
now
it
deserves.
Those
to be realising that
we
England harness horses of a class quite as good
to, those for which the jobmasters pay high
in
not superior
prices in the
It
to
at
matter of harness horse-
the
French and German markets.
would be strange
fact
excellent
that
the
if
we
could not do
foreign
harness horses very
so,
having regard
breeders have built
largely
— almost
up
their
entirely— on
stock purchased from England.
Private Enterprise
It is not,
should
I
embark
in
England
think, desirable that the British
upon
costly
emulation of foreign powers.
has succeeded
in
horse-breeding
Government
operations
in
Private enterprise in England
producing domestic animals of
all
kinds so
far
superior to those bred in other countries that English stock,
whether Horses, Cattle, Sheep or Swine, are purchased
at
"fancy prices"
to
improve
their kind in every civilised part of
the world, and breeding industries would not benefit were the
independence of the individual undermined by Government
help which relieved him from the necessity to exercise his
own
energies and judgment.
must be
It
howe\er, that pri\ate enterprise
said,
The
always wisely directed.
practice
among
is
not
landed
large
proprietors and others of keeping stallions to serve the mares
and others
of their tenants
at small fees is increasing.
an ungrateful task to take exception to a practice
It is
which proves anxiety both
promote the welfare of the
to
tenants and to encourage the breeding of good horses
must be pointed out that
to serve any or
keep a Thoroughbred
to
the mares that
all
may
;
but
it
stallion
be brought to him,
tends directly to defeat the good objects in view.
Breeding withol't Prejudice
be seen that none of the Continental Governments
It will
wliich devote attention to
horse-breeding pin
their
one single breed and depend upon that to improve
The
plan
'ground
the
at
low
and
(2)
be eliminated
or
in
for
the
stallions,
is
to
by providing
breed
by affording
mares a certain range of choice
may
(i)
to
breeds.
country
each
breed
that
of
stallions
fees,
in
of each
of merit
procurable
best
service
system
the
of
raise the standard
faith
all
public
owners of
defects
that
improvement obtained by judicious
crossing.
Where
opportunity
best
of
the
system
for
choosing
their
kind
has
results in the shape of
type
of
;
for
example,
saddle-horses
horses
— the
;
owners
affording
of
among
been
distinct
in
strains
mares
all
the
vogue we see
the
\'arious
long
of
stallions
which breed true
to
in
Hungary they have
established a breed
in
France a
strain
Anglc-Norman
—
distinct
of
carriage-
has been established on so true
12
and constant a basis that
not only breeds true to type,
it
but can be depended on to assert
otlier
breeds and stamp
its
when
itself
with
crossed
character upon the progeny.
Landlords wol'ld do well to give Choice of Stallions
who
Those
desire
to
can
tenants
their
assist
only
accomplish their end by keeping stallions of several breeds.
Let the owner of a mare choose
whether he
for himself
shall
put her to a Thoroughbred, Hunter-sire, Hackney, Arab, or
Draught breeds.
to a stallion of one of our
We
should
have
then
operation
in
a
which
system
combines the invaluable advantage of choice so wisely provided
by foreign stud-masters with that freedom
to exercise discretion
and judgment from which none would wish
to see
our farmers
relieved.
If
one landowner be unable or unwilling to maintain such
a stud representative of several breeds, there
no great
difficulty
in
maintain a joint stud at one farm
make
is to
all
would be surely
two or three landlords combining to
for the
;
essence of the plan
the stallions equally accessible.
In this connection
I
would add that
horse-breeding by public companies.
I
The
am
no advocate for
business
is
not one
that lends itself to industrial enterprise in that form.
Cause of Failure
If
English Horse-Breeding
evidence be required to explain
supply the
the
in
wants,
nation's
is
it
how we have
failed to
only necessary to refer to
Reports of the various Commissions which have been
appointed to inquire into the subject of horse-breeding, and
more
particularly to
the
Report of Lord Cathcart already
referred to.
Lord
Cathcart
makes
the
cogent
addition and supplementary to blood
from somewhere."
The
truth
is
13
remark
that
" in
we must have substance
we have been working
that
as though blood necessarily gives substance.
a hundred years ago and
but
less,
is
This was the case
divest ourselves of the idea so resolutely held that the
bred
we must
true no longer, and
Thorough-
the only strain which can improve our horses.
is
foreign breeders,
we must
and not where they only used
qualities exist
Like
seek bone and substance where those
to exist.
Height of Race-Horses from 1700 to igoo
About
year
the
Thoroughbred stock
when
1700,
were
The
14 hands or thereabout.
the
our
laid,
foundations of
our
averaged
race-horses
three "foundation sires"
—the
Byerly Turk (imported 16S9), the Darley Arabian (imported
and the Godolphin Arabian (imported 1724)
1706),
— were each
of them horses of about 14 hands; and the race-horses of that
and subsequent generations were no
were smaller
Some, indeed,
larger.
Mixbury, by Curwen's Bay Barb out of an Old
;
Spot Mare, was only 13.2
The weights
small
in height.
horses
were asked to carry were
greatly in excess on those in vogue on the race-course now.
In I7ii,the conditions for a six guinea Plate at
Newmarket
imposed a burden of 10 stone on the horse, mare or gelding of
14 hands, with weight for inches if below or above that
height
— which, clearly,
of the time.
The
was
the average height of the racehorse
weights, prescribed by law, for the Royal
Plates ranged from 10 to 12 stone, according to age.
The
usual length of a race
— run
in heats
be
it
noted
— was
four miles; but six mile races were not unusual in 1700- 1800
until
the
later
then
fell
into
years of
disuse,
that
but
century.
four
These longer races
miles continued
to
be
the
distance for the Royal Plates during the earlier years of the
19th century.
As
the years passed, the race-horse
scale for
"Give and Take"
Plates,
became
framed
higher.
in 1770,
The
gives the
weights to be carried by horses of from 12 to 15 hands; the
HEIGHT
of
EAOE-HORSES
from 1700
to 1900
was obviously the extreme height for which it was
necessary to provide, and it was probably an
latter
considered
uncommon
thing for the limit to be reached.
Admiral Rous
[Baily's Magazine,
i860) showed that the
average height of the Thoroughbred had then increased one
inch in every twenty-five years.
Facts bear out the Admiral's
statement.
We
cannot doubt that the
rate of
increase in height has
been more rapid from 1800 to 1900 than
1800, and for this reason
the
earlier,
practice
— About
was from 1700
two -year -old
racing
of
it
the year 1800, or a
to
little
was
horses
introduced, and, as a natural consequence, breeders began to
"force" their young stock
ready
in order to
make them
the sooner
for racing.
The
results of this policy
an authority writing
in that
We
had become evident
year
says
"•'
:
—
in 1836, for
have seen that the Turf commenced with ponies, and that
under 14 hands were found among the best racers.
The intelhgent reader must perceive that the great size so much
admired by the pubHc in brood mares has been acquired.
The
Enghsh racer, we cannot doubt, acquired his enlarged structure by rich
"
'
'
for a long period horses
.
.
.
.
food."
The "enlarged structure"
which the author
to
a\'erage height
was
so
much.
refers, in
we may doubt whether
his day, did not exceed 15 hands;
the
Individual horses there were,
as the Turf records inform us, which measured over 15 hands
about this period, but these were very exceptional, and we
shall
probably be within the mark
if
of the race-horses of 1800- 1820 at 14
With
hands
the average height
3 inches.
the increase in height attained in our
race-horses have
by
we put
lost, in
own day our
great measure, the qualities possessed
their smaller ancestors.
It
would seem that there
is
a
point in height, beyond which the race-horse, or indeed any
horse, cannot with advantage be
bred.
Mr. Scawen Blunt
* A Comparative View of the Form and Charaeter of the English Racer
and Saddle-Horses during the Past and Present Centuries.
PubHshed by
Thomas Hookham,
15
Old Bond
Street,
15
London.
1836.
discovered this
He
Arabs.
his extensive experience as a
in
found that there was no difficulty
up a couple of inches
;
in
breeder of
grading them
but he found that when this had been
way
done the bigger horses were in no
stouter, stronger or
better than Arabs of normal size.
Day, the famous
Mr. William
advocate
moderate
for the horse of
trainer,
He
size.
was a strong
writes"
—
:
As a rule vou mav get fifty good small horses for one goodlarge
one, and the former will, and do, run well after the latter has been put to
the stud. ... A good big horse may beat a good little one over a short
course but I think at three or four miles a good little one would beat the
best big one I ever saw."
"
;
Mr. Day admits the great merits of some big horses
Fisherman
and
example
— but,
both for
the
race-course and the stud, his unrivalled experience leads
him
Rataplan,
to prefer the small one
work among
;
for
in fact,
when he reviews
forty years'
horses, he can recall but one single good stallion
above or about i6 hands
— namely,
Stockwell.f
Character of Race-Horses from 1700 to 1900
We
have only
to
examine the history
of the race-horse to
discover that the breed has undergone most
in conformation,
and character during the
constitution
two hundred years
;
and
marked changes
last
to realise that while the race-horse of
a former age could be depended on to beget animals sound and
hardy, capable of carrying weight, and that over long distances,
he has undergone such changes that
to do the same thing
in
our
own
absurd to expect him
it is
day.
For generations we have aimed
at the
development of a
horse of great speed, able to travel a short distance under a
light
weight
success,
we
distances
beget,
in
;
and having accomplished
still
under
a
hea\'y
word,
ancestors, from
this with the greatest
expect him to beget horses able to travel long
weights
horses
at
similar
of
reasonable
stamp
wiiom we have made him
to
to
Breed and Rciw Him.
16
— to
remote
utterly dissimilar
* The Race-liovse in Tiaiiiinf;.
t The Horse: Hoiv
speeds
his
!
—
We
may sum up
modern
the
that
aspect of our subject by saying
this
of our breeds of useful horses,
made by
qualities, could
living
is
do what we have made
modern Thoroughbred
do
to
i.e.,
improvement
upon the reputation
who, by reason of
ancestors,
his
a sire for the
race-horse, as
their
form and
impossible for the
it
impart qualities we have
carefully bred out of him.
Such horses as Shark, whose portrait is here given, had
The work they were called upon to
bone and substance.
perform required the highest qualities of the horse
— stamina,
Shark was foaled
staying-power and ability to carry weight.
in
1771,
and was got by Marsk from a mare by
he
was
bred by
Mr.
Robert
appearance on a racecourse
He
Meeting of 1774.
at the
started 29
receiving 6 forfeits and paying 4
any horse up
Shark,
sent to
;
Snap;
made his first
Newmarket First October
times and won ig times,
he Avon more money than
Pigott,
and
to his time.
like
America
of the famous
many
of our celebrated
and
in 1786,
Snap
in \'irginia
Thoroughbreds, was
laid
the foundation
blood.
Hambletonian, another representati\e horse of the old
stamp, was foaled
m
he was got by King Fergus from
1792;
a mare by Highflyer, and was bred by Mr.
of Skipton, near York.
Turner,
and by him
In
following year
the
in
Hutchinson,
J.
1795 he was sold to Sir Charles
to
Sir
Henry
Vane Tempest.
Hambletonian was only once beaten, and
on that occasion (at York August Meeting of 1797) he ran
out
of
the
course
just
starting.
after
His most famous
achievement was his victory over Mr. Cookson's Diamond on
25th March, 1799, at Newmarket.
Such a horse as
Orville,
whose
portrait faces
page
18,
may
be offered as an example of the race-horse of a century ago.
This horse was foaled
of Evelina.
1801,
He was
when he ran
in
i
799,
and was by Beningbrough out
bred by Earl Fitzwilliam, and between
his first race at Doncaster,
17
and the Second
October Meeting'
Newmarket
at
ments, of which he Avon
forfeit once,
1807
in
He was
18.
His successes included
and walked over once.
the St. Leger of 1802, and he
22 engage-
lie fulfilled
second once, received
won
races under
weights
all
(including a King's Plate in 1805 under 12 stone) and at
On
distances.
two
He
one
races,
became,
24th September,
in four-mile heats, the other in
in
is
all
won
two-mile heats.
1804, the property of Prince George of Wales,
and proved a most successful
Orville
1804, at Doncaster, he
described as
sire
when
sent
to
the
stud.
"a good brown."
The Colonel was a good horse of a generation later he
was bred by Mr. Wyvill, of Burton Constable, in 1825. After
winning the St. Leger in 1829, he was sold to King George IV.
;
for ^'4,000,
and won many important races
When
Hampton Court
1837,
the
he was purchased
stud
in
1830 and 1831.
was dispersed
1,600 guineas by
for
in
October,
Mr. Richard
Tattersall.
These were animals which could be depended
three
four-mile
heats in
an afternoon,
to run
and could therefore
be depended on to produce stock with their own valuable
characteristics.
The Introduction
The
grow
of Short Races
old-fashioned race, run in four-mile heats, began to
less
popular during the
last
quarter of the eighteenth
century, and the tendency to reduce the length of races and
also the weights carried
of the nineteenth
remarkable change
may
became marked
century.
in
in
the earlier years
Elsewhere* an example
of the
our Turf system has been given, and
At the Newmarket
Craven Meeting of 1820 there was one race of about three
conveniently
miles, five races of
* Hoi-scs, Past
by Vinton
&
and
be repeated here.
two miles or over, twenty races of about
Present.
Co., Ltd.
igoo.
By Sir Walter Gilbev, Bart. Published
one mile, and two of under one mile.
At the Newmarket
Craven Meeting of 1900 there were three races of about one
mile and a half, six of about one mile, and eleven of five or
six furlongs.
In 1832 a
Royal Plates.
and
light
new schedule of weights was issued for the
From about this time the system of short races
weights began to develop, and as
developed the
it
With every
character of the race-horse underwent a change.
Thoroughbreds possessing power as well as
desire to produce
speed, breeders have found themselves unable to reproduce
the former quality
and successfully compete
prizes of the Turf.
To
be successful
in these
for
the
great
days the race-
horse must possess the utmost speed, but he need not be able
to travel at speed for a greater distance than a mile
at
most, and
if
he can carry g stone he
is
and a half
considered a weight
carrier.
The Roadster
of a
Century Ago
Thoughtful writers foresaw the result of
this
change
in
more than 60 years ago, when Thoroughbreds
stamina and substance were far more plentiful than they are
the English Turf
of
now.
x\n author pre\iously quoted" declared that at that date
" There are powerful reasons for concluding that the single
modern (1836) racer
quality of speed possessed by the
bad substitute
structural
The
for the fine old
is
a
union of speed, stoutness and
power possessed by the old racer."
racer of the thirties
was
lighter than his ancestors,
but he was far stouter and truer
descendant.
"
The
older
made than
race-horses,"
his
modern
wrote this
author,
" were swift enough to enable the general breeder to produce
excellent saddle-horses.
* A Comparative Viciv of
and Saddle-Horses during the
Thomas Hookham,
Our
roadsters were formerly admirable
Form and Character of the English Racer
Past and Present Centuries.
Published by
1836
15 Old Bond Street, London.
the
19
and
plentiful,
while at present a compact and powerful roadster
wdth free action
scarcely to be bought at any price.
is
much
obvious that the horses of our cavalry are
and
that
many
them could
of
not
It
is
deteriorated,
through a single
go
campaign."
A
fine
example
in the frontispiece,
of the old-fashioned saddle-horse is
which
is
shown
reproduced from George Garrard's
picture of " Archibald, ninth
Duke
of
Hamilton and Brandon,
This work was engraved and published
on a cover hack."
in 1797.
Another example of the old-fashioned roadster, whose
disappearance the writer above quoted deplores,
is
Monitor, a
Hackney which belonged to George IV. That
monarch was passionately fond of horses, and Monitor was
evidently a special favourite, as his portrait was painted by
James Ward, R.A., and exhibited at the Royal Academy in
This horse was a son of the famous Phenomenon, who
1825.
The
traces his descent in a direct line to the Darley Arabian.
very
fast
Darley Arabian (foaled 1702) begat Flying Childers (foaled in
1 71 5), who was the speediest race-horse of his time, and was
considered by
many
of Monitor, which
old Norfolk
tion
is
Hackney
and limb,
this
What
here given, shows
;
the best
portrait
stamp
of the
muscular, hardy and sound of constitu-
breed furnished the ideal roadster.
Foreign Nations are Doing
Foreign Governments recognise the
learn something from their neighbours
this
The
a better horse than Eclipse.
by the encouragement they lend
fact
that
they can
they give proof of
;
to
Horse Shows of
an International character, such as those which ha\-e been
held in recent years at Antwerp, Hamburg, Amsterdam,
Vienna, Brussels, and
afford
opportunities
in
1900 at Paris.
which
do
not
These exhibitions
occur
otherwise
of
comparing the results of various systems and methods of
breeding.
20
A
golden opportunity of seeing the stamp of horse each
Government
of
Europe
striving
is
purposes occurred
in
September,
Horse Show held
at
Paris,
upwards
spent
of
^50,000
There were collected horses
from
all
a large number
erecting
suitable
only one week.
lasted
numerous and varied
So
excellent an opportunity for
examples of
of representati\'e
unlikely to recur in our time, and
War
the
that
on
strains
parts of France, from Germany, Hungary, Austria,
Russia and Turkey.
is
of
mihtary
French Government
the
prizes,
show, which
buildings, &c., for the
for
igoo, in the International
when
in
produce
to
competent men
did
authorities
Office
to proht
it
is
not
comparing
different breeds
a thousand pities
send one or two
by the wonderful objectdesson there
provided.
The Army horses 01
Show were shown
various
nations exhibited
mounted.
Paris
at
the
To demonstrate
the
results of the practice of breeding for the various classes of
work horses
stallions
are required to perform, a selection of sizeable
and mares was
into the
ring
produce
of
shown
by a troop
these
stallions
paraded, and these were followed
first
of
stallions
heavy cavalry mounted on the
and
mares.
and mares of medium
detachment of cavalry mounted on
these
came
stallions
size,
their
Then
we
were
and with them a
progeny.
After
and mares more highly bred, followed
again by a troop of light cavalry mounted on their progeny.
Nothing more interesting and more instructive could have
been devised.
It is
worth while glancing
briefly at the
systems prevail-
ing in France, Hungary, Austria, Germany,
Italy,
The reader
each Government being to
the
and Russia.
will
observe that
foster
Turkey
object
of
and encourage the breeding
of horses of classes most useful to the people of the country,
there
is
in
every case considerable variety of breed in the
public studs, and that the
own judgment
owner
of a
in selection of a sire.
mare may exercise
his
Horse-Breeding
At the conclusion
of the
in
France
wars which called forth
all
her
strength in the earlier years of the nineteenth century, the
want
France engaged the serious attention of
of horses in
Commissioners were appointed to travel
through the country and ascertain what horses of certain old
and esteemed breeds could be procured to re-stock the Royal
the Government.
Studs
and measures were adopted
;
encourage
to
private
breeders.
The
Magazine
Sporting
1820
of
contains
translation
minute presented by the Minister of the Interior to
Louis XVIII. recommending a number of gentlemen for gold
of a
and
medals
silver
and were doing
to
would appear that Arabs and Spanish
it
From
the
same
to
1820
prior
Thoroughbreds
only
publication
England
in
of
our
and sent abroad."
we
learn
to
improve
half-bred
The
that
for
had ceased
breeders
foreign
numbers
and "great
collected
stallions
in several private studs.
found place
years
Some
owned by these gentlemen, and
promote the breeding of horses.
details are given of the studs
from these
work they had done
in recognition of the
mares
to
some
buy
their stocks,
have
been
trade then established has
continued ever since, as has been shown on pages 6 and
under
the
heading
"
Purchase
of
English
7,
Mares by
Foreigners."
"Cecil," in an article on ra.c'mg in the Sporting Magazine
of
1
85 1, says horses for general use were then very scarce in
England, whilst the French Government were encouraging
their production, more especially that of powerful animals for
mihtary purposes and
for general utility.
22
Napoleon
pursuing the
III. (1852-1870),
of his
policy
predecessor, Louis Philippe, did his utmost to encourage the
During
breeding of good horses.
Thoroughbred
for their stoutness
staying power, were purchased in England
were offered
the horses had
Thoroughbred
With
were
1
3 stone
were instituted
2 to
1
flat
races and steeplechases
stallions.
same end
the
which
carry fairly heavy weights, and four-mile
to
steeplechases at weights of from
for
of
and
valuable stakes
;
miles 6 furlongs), in
long races (2
for
numbers
his reign large
always selected
stallions,
established
view,
in
horses,
half-bred
for
and the
fields
that
turned out for these have been compared to those that face
Hunter stakes
the starter for
The Turf
work
national
money
Public
France has always been made subservient
in
serious
the
to
England.
in
is
spent
not
breeding
of
useful
weeds
encouraging
in
horses.
only
capable of carrying six or seven stone over a five furlong
course.
Under
law
the
Breeding establishments
was then enacted
at
the
rate
further
of
until
the
a
Horse-
reorganised.
the State should purchase
total
of
It
stallions
2,500
had
was passed, sanctioning
the number of State stallions by
In 1892 another law
increase
in
Finally, in
annual additions of 50 per year.
law
the
1874,
France were
200 per year,
of
been reached.
a
that
March,
29th
of
authorised
the
purchase of
number owned by
50
stallions
1900, a
third
year
until
a
the State should reach a gross total
of 3,450.
France,
for
stud
purposes,
which contain 22 Government
is
divided into six districts,
studs for stallions.
At these
studs, on ist January, 1905, 3,267 stallions of different breeds
were
available
for
distribution
among 689
local
covering
stations for the public service.
The Inspector-General
been kind enough to give
of
Horse-Breeding operations has
me
the following information as to
23
the strength of the studs at the beginning of 1905.
staUions,
it
will
The
be noticed, are divided into three classes
Thoroughbreds
244
...
I
Thoroughbreds
...
j
(
1
I
Not Thoroughbreds...
Arabs
102
Anglo-Arabs*
233
Southern Half-bredsl
200-
Normans and Vendeans
Qualified Trotters]
'
I
'
307
120
English Hackneys
English Hackneys
— Cross-bred
;;
Percherons
Draught
7+
301
Boulonnais
71
Ardennes
98
...
Bretons
66
3,267
Comparing the numbers
in
of
stallions of
1899 with those owned by the
interesting
number
in the
show
and suggestive
:
of
Republic
facts appear.
Thoroughbred
various
in
There
sires, as the
1905,
is
breeds
some
a decrease
following figures
—
1899
Thoroughbreds
...
Arabs
Anglo-Arabs
Now
let
us see
how
other light breeds stand
Normans and Vendean
stallions
Qualified Trotters
English Hackneys
Hackneys
*
— Cross-bred
Cross between English Thoroughbred and Arab.
t Southern (du Midi) horses are bred in the Tarbes district and have
a strong strain of Arab blood.
X Certified to have trotted one kilometre (about 5 furlongs) in
minute 40 seconds. These horses have been graded up from Hackney
sires which were imported from Engtand forty or fifty years ago.
^ Cross between English Hackneys and Hunter mares imported from
England.
I
—
—
The breed
which the French Government has most
of
largely increased
—
its
proportional strength,
number
is
of stallions, having
regard to
the English Hackney.
From the table showing how the stallions are distributed
among these 22 Studs, we may select two important examples
;
the stud at Tarbes, in the Pyrenean region, where light horses
are
chiefly bred,
and Le Pin,
Normandy, where heavier
in
saddle horses, carriage and light draught, and a proportion of
heavy draught horses are produced.
At Tarbes,
among
1905, the horses available for distribution
in
covering stations were
Arabs, 29; Anglo-Arabs, 55
horses, 51
total, 61.
;
;
TJiovoiighhveds
:
Normans and Vendeans,
In
all,
8
;
English,
:
Vendeans, 10 r
17; total, 180.
total, 80.
The
In
17.
Half-Breds
Qualified Trotters, 62
;
English, 39
English Hackneys,
one hundred and eighty-four
At Le Pin, the following were available
Thovoiighbreds
:
;
Half-Breds: Southern
total, 123.
2
;
stallions.
for distribution
Normans
:
:
and
English Hackneys,
;
Dmiight Sires: Percherons, 77; Boulonnais,
two hundred and seventy-seven stallions.
3
;
all,
largest
stud in France
is
that at
St.
Lo,
Nor-
in
mandy, whence 423
stallions
less representative
than the two of which details have been
given, consisting of 317
were distributed
in
Norman and Vendean
1905; but
stallions,
it is
with
74 Qualified Trotters and 32 English Thoroughbreds.
To further illustrate the system, let us take one
small
covering station, to which there are hundreds similar
— that
at
Lesparre, in the Medoc.
three
The
stallions
months during the season 1904
follows
:
at
which stood
for
Lesparre were as
This table of fees brings out another suggestive
1899 the highest fee was
165.
charged
Sd.
In
fact.
for the service of
Thoroughbred mares by the Thoroughbred stalHon Montbran.
In 1905,
or less than half,
8s.,
sire
commands
upon the service
the fee set
is
the only English Thoroughbred
;
but the
of
Half-bred Trotter
1903, whereas in 1899 service
a fee of 165. in
by Half-breds could be had at 5s. and 8s. ^d. These changes
show us very clearly what blood is most in demand among the
shrewd French horse-breeders who seek
that
produce horses
Avill sell.
Lesparre
means
of
France
is
owner
of a
—
is
it
the celebrated vineyard Chateau
;
mare may choose from seven
different strains,
The supply
Lesparre
— yet
the
stallions, representing
paying the small fees specified above.
of stallions
the foregoing
by no
is
one of the chief vine-
miles distant from
only seven
Lafite
which horse-breeding
in a district in
is
prominent industry
a
growing regions
five
to
demand
adjusted to meet the local
is
;
shows us that experience has taught the
list
to make provision for
many mares as are sent
Stud authorities
service
of five times as
to the
by Half-breds
Thoroughbred
or Anglo-Arab.
There
reason
used
is
is
no heavy draught
for cart
and plough
Department
of
shall find the
same
stamp
which the
If
we
there stand stallions
;
during
we
and
or
find
horses for
and which have been graded up
district is noted,
France,
services,
turn to the Finistere
calculated to get the sturdy " blocky "
175,956 mares.
Arab,
the
where post horses are bred, we
principle in operation
sires.
the
year
1904,
stallions belonging to the State in actucil
service,
;
and heavy draught
in this district,
Brittany,
from imported Hackney
In
Lesparre
at
to be found in the fact that oxen are very generally
horses therefore are not bred.
of a
stallion
Looking more
that in the
Anglo-Arab),
there
-ivork
closely
into
Thoroughbred
583
about 44 each;
stallions
the
26
;
were 3,213
these covered
the
returns
class
performed
Half-bred
class,
of
(English,
25,577
109,271
services, or nearly 52 each;
and the Draught
41,108, or
sires,
over 79 each.
The
stalHons at each local covering station are changed
frequently.
An
excellent representative of the
by judicious crossing
through his
when
is
shown
is
in the
was taken
in
1900,
was
of the high-class
Juvigny
carriage
the
at
horse.
International
is
Radziwill,
he
five years old;
and
i,
the
descended
from the Norfolk Phenomenon.
sire
this portrait
produced
This
stallion,
a chestnut standing a shade under 16.
sire
of horse
engraving.
an Anglo-Norman
Radziwill,
portrait of
stamp
the
is
mode
He was shown
with his
Show
and the
Paris,
at
resemblance between father and son was a striking objectlesson in the success with which judicious mating can produce
animals true to type.
Norman mare,
Radziwill's
dam was
a small Anglo-
but coming of a breed normally big, her foal
proved true to his breeding and furnished into a truly grand
harness-horse.
Besides the 3,213 stallions belonging to the State, there
is
a large
number
whose
stallion
the
in
services
hands of
private
available
are
the
to
be licensed by Government as belonging
classes
to
owners.
Any
public
must
one of three
:
"Approved"
(i)
enough
to
divided into two classes
per service form the
the State
;
stallions,
which are considered good
improve the breed of horses.
:
These are sub-
Sires which earn over 100 francs (^4)
first
class
;
these receive no bounty from
the second class consists of sires for
100 francs or less
is
charged by the owner
;
viz.
In 1904 there
:
Thoroughbreds, Arabs and Anglo- Arabs
...
306
Not Thoroughbreds
...
...
...
...
458
Draught
...
...
...
...
713
...
1.479
27
service
these receive an
annual premium of from £-ii to £80 a year.
were 1,479 " Approved" Stallions,
whose
—
"Authorised"
(2)
stallions,
which receive no premium,
but whose progeny are eligible to compete
at
shows subsidised
They were
by the State.
Thoroughbreds, Arabs and Anglo-Arabs
...
23
Not Thoroughbreds
...
...
...
...
28
Draught
...
...
...
...
202
...
253
"Accepted"
(3)
recommend them but
stallions,
and intermittent opthalmia.
by
accepted
the
which
certificate of
a
In
have
nothing
to
freedom from roaring
1904,
committees
charged
year
the
7,629 stallions were
with
duty of
the
examination.
During
performed
1
1,945.
the
75,717
No record
1904
ser\'ices,
is
"Approved"
stallions
and the "Authorised"
stallions
kept of the coverings by the third class,
the " Accepted " stallions.
There
is
only one Go^'ernment stud farm.
Pompadour, where
sixty
This
is
at
mares are kept.
English Thoroughbred, Arab and Anglo-Arab horses only
are bred at
Pompadour, and the farm is only a small factor in
scheme of breeding.
Improvement is sought
the general
principally through the provision of good stallions.
Bounties are also given
as
prizes
for
for
brood-mares,
filly
foals,
horse-breaking at public competitions.
and
These
measures encourage owners to retain possession of the best
breeding-stock
for
the
benefit of the nation,
endeavour among the people
and stimulate
to achieve skill as horse masters.
In every breeding district in France
shows are held
at
which the young stock are exhibited and are awarded
prizes.
The
shown
two-year-olds are led and the three-year-olds are
mounted.
The judges
are officials connected with the neighbouring
studs and one or two
representatives of the head office of
State Haras in Paris.
28
About ^308,000
P'rance
in
maintenance of the
horses,
at
premiums
races, local
money is spent annually in
The expenditure includes the
of public
horse-breeding.
stallion
studs and
depots,
to private stallion owners,
shows, &c.
About
purchase of
and prizes given
;^i 00,000 'of
this total is
derived from the tax or percentage levied on the pariinutiiel,
or betting organisation,
Treasury
which tax
is
"ear-marked" by the
to devote to horse-breeding purposes.
29
—
Horse-Breeding
and farms are situated
The
Germany
among
Prussia stands pre-eminent
the horse-breeding region
in
year
the
in
States as
Government studs
in Prussia.
belonging to the State
stallions for public service
numbered 3,194
German
the
in fact, all the
;
;
1904;
this
shows a marked
increase on the strength of the studs during the last ten or
numbered 2,152
number was about 2,600. These 3,194
In 1884, the State stallions
eleven years.
1896 the total
in
18 " Rural Studs," which, in
among
stallions are distributed
;
their turn, supply 1,045 covering stations, an increase of 146
since 1896-7.
The
stallions in 1904
Class
were classed as follows
:
Light Riding-Horses, 830 (including 100 English
I.
Thoroughbreds, 12 Arabs and Anglo- Arabs).
Class
Heavy Riding
II.
Class
Heavy
III.
Clydesdales
Light Draught-Horses, 1,660.
Draught
and
Belgian
Percherons,
or
Horses,
Ardennes
(including
704
horses
;
Shires
and
French and Norman, and German Farm-horses.
;
Comparing these
1896-7, given in
figures with those of
the former edition of this book,
it
appears that the
German
Stud-masters, like the French, have of recent years learned
to
depend
Class
less
I.
less
upon the English Thoroughbred.
than one-fourth, were Thoroughbreds
me by
furnished
show
In 1896-7,
consisted of 419 light riding-horses, of which 94, or
that
in
the figures kindly
Inspector-General of Studs at Berlin
the
1904
;
Thoroughbred horses formed
less
than
one-eighth of the total.
The
principal object of the Prussian
Department
is
to provide
Remounts supplied
and
in
of these only 600
Remounts
Government Stud
Army. Of the
for the
1904, about 6,000 were for cavalry
were got by Thoroughbred
30
sires.
The
charged
fee
for
use of
the
pubHc stalHon
a
is
generally under £i.
owned
Privately
must be approved by
stallions
local
committees (which also license bulls and boars) before their
may
services
During the
be hired.
2,279 licences were applied for
financial year of 1904,
The
and 1,433 were granted.
majority of these licences were for light riding or light draughthorses
;
the remainder for farm and cart stallions.
Much
done
is
to
promote private enterprise.
There is a
by the Government from which private
special fund provided
horse-breeding associations can obtain loans free of interest.
Such loans must be repaid within
1895,
61
total lent
six years.
At the end of
associations had taken advantage of this fund, the
being £5,275.
Brood-mares may be purchased on very easy conditions
from the Government Supply Depots; the principal stipulation
being that the buyer shall have the mare covered by a good
half-bred
offer the
stallion
produce when three years old to the
Remount.
as a
produce
belonging to an Imperial stud, and shall
If,
stud purposes he
for
Army
buyer
however, the owner wish to employ the
is
not bound to put
it
on the
Remount market.
Pecuniary inducements are also offered to
breeders to retain good brood-mares and rear young stock.
War
Office agents
suitable times and places,
where young
For the convenience
arrange markets
at
of breeders the
animals on sale as Remounts
and bought
for the
Army may
be inspected
no middlemen are employed.
;
Horses are purchased by the military buyers at three
old.
The average price paid is about £^47, but
years
purchasing
to
deal
officers are, or
liberally
Avas the rule not to
a horse
if
it
were a few years
with the breeders.
try
I
am
since,
mstructed
informed that
and beat down the price asked
were reasonable
;
it
for
and giving a small breeder
more than he demanded was not unknown if the animal
appeared more valuable than the owner supposed it. The
young horses thus purchased are kept at the Remount Depots
31
about
for
months and
fifteen
promise to make
any mares that
select
among
then distributed
are
may
Before this distribution takes place, breeders
regiments.
brood-mares, paying a
good
particularly
more than the average price for
Few, however, take advantage of
little
the animals so chosen.
this privilege.
Mr. Frederick Wrench,
December,
There were,
250 horses
these
standing
horse,
to stock
which were
of
into
trace
to
Celle,
ancestry
or sixty
fifty
R. Phillips.
and Yorkshire Half-bred horses
of both Irish
where
any
fill
their
Germany
good
a
limbs,
appear on a few of the pedigree cards fixed
the
harness-
placid-looking
horses
Of
Hanoverian
regular
with great
16.1,
which was imported
The names
at
least
visit,
Hanoverian.
good back, and long enough
years ago by Mr. H.
still
"The
chestnut
or
time of his
fourteen
Half-bred
rest
These Hanoverian
harness."
back
at
a fairly
look-out,
the
brown
dark
a
is
all
Mr. Wrench says:
latter
type
establishment,
this
in
Thoroughbred and
at the
Stud
Rural
stallions in the
the
describes
i8gg,
at Celle, near Hanover.
Badminton Magazine of
the
in
number
stallions
of
in
each
in
1905
stall
had been
increased to 275.
Hackney blood
breeding
districts
Holstein,
Mecklenburg,
diff'used
East
and
over
Friesland
;
England and Germany dates back
the best of the
of the
In
page
German
to a
much
in
common
between
earlier period
coach-horses and our
same character
exceed-
It is
ingly probable that the inter-trade in harness-horses
to
German
and dams with the blood of Performer
and Ramsdale's Phenomenon (foaled 1835) were
eagerly bought up to cross with the local stock.
seem
once
for,
his
sires
(foaled iSio)
much
horse-
the
Oldenbourg,
Hanover,
had introduced the Hackney to
Mr. Phillips
customers,
was widely
Germany,
of
that
own ha\e
they
;
so
would
be descended from practically the same stock.
addition
30, there
to
the
are six
18
State
"Rural Studs"
referred
to
breeding-studs with about
32
on
740
——
mares and 30
are the more
Of
stallions.
Graditz and Trakehnen
these
The
important.
bred
stallions
establishments are sent to the Rural Studs
if
these
at
they can
fulfil
the standard of merit required by the committee which
Those that
assembled to examine them.
fail
to
is
the
satisfy
committee are sold by public auction.
The
largest of these studs
When
Prussia.
Mr. Wrench paid
which covers about 10,300
4 Thoroughbred and 12
The Trakehnen
mares.
it
now
16 hands
his visit
to
Half-bred
is
stallions,
as
horse,
it
may
East
in
estate,
this
acres, the breeding-stock
breeds true to type,
horse, about
Trakehnen
that at
is
comprised
with over 400
be
called,
for
generally a long, low black
high, with
the
and a
best of limbs
beautiful head, " a trifle long in the back, according to English
ideas, but a valuable
stamp
purposes."
The extreme
Trakehnen
horses,
of horse, especially for
quietness
young and
old,
and
docility
evoked
harness
of
these
comment from
Mr. Wrench.
By
the distribution of illustrated pamphlets the
German
Government endeavours to instruct breeders in the best
methods of managing stock, and also concerning the stamps
of horse required for the Army.
A typical Artillery and
heavy-weight saddle-horse
guidance of breeders
"
is
described
as
follows,
for
the
:
at 3 years, 15. i to 15.2^
height when full-grown, 15. 2| to
Activity, speed, freedom of action and endurance are required as
in the artillery horse.
The breast need not be so broad as in the artillery
horse.
The fetlock should not be too short; while, on the other hand, if
too long it bends too low and causes the heavy weight carried to produce
fatigue on a long march.
A good back for the saddle is as necessary in
the cavalry horse as a good shoulder for the collar in the artillery
Height
;
16. i|.
horse."
The "general requirements"
Army
are thus detailed
in horses for the
German
:
" (i) Small, blood-like head, neck well set on.
(2) .Strong well-placed
legs with big joints.
(3) Well-arched ribs and good sloping shoulders.
Well-formed, strong back, not too long, well-coupled and high-lying
kidneys.
(5) Strong hocks, free from disease.
(6) Round, sound hoofs
with .healthy frogs. (7) Sound constitution and good digestion and (8)
Free, energetic action."
(4)
;
33
The mares whose portraits are here gi^'en are of the
The province of Oldenbourg has long
been famous for coach-horses.
OHver Cromwell, when
Oldenbourg breed.
Protector, received as
the
is
a
a
gift
Duke of Oldenbourg.
The net cost of Germany's
about ^190,000 a year.
34
team
of
coach-horses
from
horse-breeding establishments
w
<i
CD
o
pq
pq
p
o
i-q
Horse-Breeding
The
Hungary
in
Hungary
stud machinery in
elaborate and exten-
is
There are four State breeding-farms where stalhons are
The stalhons, which in 1896
bred for the pubhc service.
sive.
numbered 2,838, are sent out to 18 central depots, and from
these upwards of 946 local covering stations are annually
The
supplied.
service
Large breeders may
range from
fees
hire stallions
15s.
^d.
from the central depots
for
is.
^d.
to
the season.
methods
Hungarian
are
admirably described by Pro-
John Wrightson in his " Report on the Agriculture
of the x\ustro- Hungarian Empire," published in Vol. H,
fessor
(Second Series) of the Journal
Society
(1874); and by Mr.
Surgeon
to the
Royal Agricultural
the
of
Collins, Principal
J.
Veterinary
Forces in 1880, whose Report on the Studs
and Breeds of Horses
in
Hungary was, by permission
Secretary of State for War, reproduced
in
of the
the Journal of the
Royal Agricultural Society.
Professor Wrightson in 1873 n^ade a tour of ten weeks in
Hungary, and
He
visited the great studs belonging to the
Crown.
observes that the breeding of horses in that country
is
one of the most popular branches of rural economy, and
is
carried on not only
Government but by most of the
by the
great landed proprietors with wonderful results.
Hungarian breeders are
breeders
who
with the
at issue
"
supply of half-bred saddle horses.
distinct race of saddle-horses
quite
practicable
to
their supplies of
we
;
but in
such
raise
necessary fixity of character.
as
many
English
look upon the Thoroughbred as essential to the
a
They
We
have, in fact, no
Hungary they think
race,
still
it
possessed of the
look to England for
Thoroughbreds and Norfolk Trotters"; but,
shall read, they
have
in recent years
object of establishing breeds of their own.
35
succeeded
in their
These Crown studs
very large scale.
latter stud,
Hungary
in
upon a
are conducted
Mezoheyges there were upwards
of 650
Colonel Horvath, the officer in charge of the
broodmares.
interest,
x\t
addressed to Professor Wrightson a
letter of great
which shows how the Hungarians have succeeded
in
establishing fixed breeds of saddle-horses.
We
"The race of horses is throughout half-bred.
have had two
studs of half-blood Arabian mares since the years 1825 and 1827
two
studs of English mares (Furiosa and Abugress) since the years 1841 and
1842 also the family of Nonius, obtained from France in 1815 two studs
of the ancient blood of Lippieza, which is a mixture of Spanish and Arabian
blood, since the year 1807; and lately we have begun to form a stud of
Norfolk blood with stallions of that race and mares of different indigenous
;
;
;
families."
Colonel Horvath proceeds to give the numbers of the
mares
of the several strains he has
At that time
named.
there were at the stud he directed 136 half-blood Arabs, 148
English,
mares of various strains from Lippieza,
113
Nonius or Anglo-Norman
and
mares,
mares as the beginning of a stud of
this breed.
220
the
Norfolk
The
stallions
of
33
used included English Thoroughbred, pure Arabs or half-breds
belonging to the families named.
Colonel Horvath states that the principle kept in view in
breeding suitable stallions
improvement
of a family
is
very simple.
It
the gradual
is
by the introduction
nobler and
of
higher blood, while at the same time the type of the family
Where more
retained.
blood
is
wanted
is
full-blood horses are
used according to the previous breeding of the particular family.
The
produce,
when
strong enough,
is
served once more by a
Thoroughbred, and then the breeder resorts again
the original strain of the family.
from
breeding
half-bred
Thoroughbreds when there
stock,
is
It
is,
bred truly
Nonius,
a sire of
system of
with the occasional use of
a tendency to coarseness.
Colonel Horvath was asked this question, "
to establish fixed or
to
in fact, a
Do you hope
permanent half-bred races which may be
inter se ? "
and the answer was
:
"
Majestosa (Lippieza blood), Gidran
(Arab blood) are already constant.
The
families of
and
Schagya
Furiosa and Abugress
(English Thoroughbred) and Norfolk breeds will require 10 or
12 years
more
of careful breeding."
36.
should explain that the Nonius strain derives
I
from a famous
France
its
name
name which was procured from
The original Nonius was got by an
that
sire of
in the year 1815.
English horse named Orion out of a mare of the Anglo-Norman
breed
which breed was largely
;
To what
blood.
to discover
able
Thoroughbreds
;
built
name does
the
up on Norfolk Trotter
Orion belonged
breed
have not been
I
occur
not
the
in
lists
of
sent abroad which are printed in the General
Stud Book.
There were few more interesting stables
International
Show
Government.
The
in
September
last
at
the
Paris
than that of the Hungarian
horses had been selected to illustrate the
results of the cross-breeding
system described
wisdom which
furnished living proof of the sound, practical
directs stud operations in
Hungary.
and these
;
Among them were horses
the very model of what the fifteen-stone Hunter should be, and
shaped carriage-horses.
perfectly
The
were
best
perhaps
those of Nonius (Norfolk Trotter) and North Star (Thoroughbred) strains.
On
the
estate
of
Archduke Albrecht,
the
in
Lower
but, with this
Hungary, there are imported Clydesdales
exception, no other horses but Thoroughbreds and Norfolk
;
Trotters were to be
had
says,
"
seen
The
result
of
that the best horses in
Reviewing
from Britain.
during his ten weeks tour.
seen
much
was
observation
Hungary
all
he
Professor Wrightson
to
show
me
are descended from English
stock."
A number
of the stallions foaled every year at the
Royal
studs and about 200 yearlings, which are purchased annually at
an average price of 235 fiorins (^23 105.), are set apart and
At the age of
reared with the view of use as public stallions.
three years these are inspected and classified
the
number
are rejected as stallions and cut
;
;
about one-half
the best, to the
proportion of about 20 per cent., are kept for service
Royal studs, and 25 per
stallions "
;
cent,
are
sold
as
"
in
the
Communal
death accounts for the remaining four or five per
cent, of the total.
37
The Communal
agricultural divisions
stallions are
known
^30 to ^50, payable
Commune undertakes to
from
expense and
in a suitable
as
at
stallion
its
at a
in this
stallion
maximum
country
fee of
two
another
in
;
its
Government
Each
own
with the mares, which
is
it
may
is
its
officials.
the limits of the
florins (four shillings).
one part of Hungary the method of service
vogue
at
manner, the proper discharge of
stallion is available for service within
Commune
of the
chiefs
prices varying
annual instalments.
in four
maintain
obligations being the care of one or two
The
the
sold to
Communes
In
similar to that in
usual to turn out the
not
number more than
eighty-eight.
Should the horse not be kept
repeated
after
cautions,
liable
a proper
in
to
be
Commune
at the
forfeits the
instalments of the price paid.
or fails as
a
authorities replace
during the
him by another.
year he becomes the property of the
it
advantageous
him
to
which they can do
makes him then
their
of course depends
The
ment
from
end of the third year, and the
stock-getter
able to dispose of
manner, he
withdrawn
as
it
pleases.
change
in
Commune
the stallion dies
If
first
is,,
the
three
years,
the
At the end of the third
Commune, which is then
Many Communes believe
their stallion every three years,
accordance with the regulation that
own
property.
The wisdom
of this step
upon circumstances.
estimates for the Hungarian Horse-Breeding Depart-
for the year
1897 amounted to £'233,333.
38
Horse-Breeding
in
Austria
In the year 1876 a Committee of Inquiry on HorseBreeding was appointed by the Austrian Government, and the
result of its investigations
was the
division of the whole country
into five districts, with the view of providing stallions suited
to the varying requirements of each.
each of these
among 522
From
Central Dep(')ts in
five districts over 2,000 stallions are distributed
each station accommodating from one to
There are no fewer than thirteen different breeds
stations,
ten stallions.
and care
of horse in use,
is
taken that
each station shall
receive a stallion or stallions suited to local requirements.
In
fulfilment
the
of
scheme suggested by
this
Com-
mittee, good local breeds are retained pure, approved stallions
of each
the
being used
for
have
breed
local
public
service
degenerated
improvement, the
stallions are carefully
general standard.
Thus Thoroughbreds
but bred
in the
Remounts.
districts
stand
in
where
need
of
chosen to raise the
of
English descent
country are used on strong mares to supply
In other districts Roadster, Clydesdale, and Suffolk
stallions are sent to be
heavy
in
;
or
artillery riding
mated with mares
of a class to
throw
and draught horses.
In the mountainous regions, where small, active, and hardy
horses are required for draught and pack work, every endeavour
is
made
to
keep the local breed pure.
The
Pinzauer horses are
highly spoken of for such work in hilly districts
strong and hardy, and have good action
;
quite well enough to perform heavy carriage
ground.
Their colour
is
peculiar
— white
;
they are xery
the lighter class trot
work over bad
or light, " splashed
''
with dark spots.
In 1897 the Austrian State stud included,
stallions,
among
other
94 English Thoroughbreds, 766 English Half-breds,
and 208 Hackneys.
39
inducements are held out to private
Special
to keep brood-mares,
are
freely
owned
vary
may
it
encouraged
licensed
;
The
offered.
stallions
broadly,
and prizes
concerning
privately-
said
that
private
stallions
;
but,
are
only
parts
Such horses are
must be inspected once a
the covering season.
Anyone who uses an un-
suitable for stud purposes.
if
some
the horse in
month during
regulations
various provinces of Austria
in
be
breeders
mares and young stock
for
licensed stallion to cover mares other than his own, whether
for a fee or gratis
by an unlicensed
old or
more
knowingly allows a mare
or
;
stallion
mares
to pasture with
fine equal to
^S
to be covered
or suffers entire colts of one year
;
of
any age,
liable to a
is
6s. 8d.
In addition to the fi\e Central Depots there are two State
These are maintained
breeding-studs.
producing stallions
for public service
at
is
animals, including about 250 brood-mares.
kept as
much
for at least
assisted
young stock
at
Radautz
mounted
three hours daily by
Pains are taken
in condition
as possible in the open air,
;
they are
and are exercised
drovers,
who
are
by dogs.
May
During the summer, from
horses are driven to the
and
of
Radautz and
At Radautz there are over a thousand
the other at Fiber.
to keep all the
purpose
the
for
one
;
own
left to their
young horses
stallions which
taken
are
or on to distant wild ground,,
hills
devices.
At the age of three years the
hand
in
September, the young
to
and
and
broken,
those
are considered suitable for service are got into
condition and distributed
among
the Central Depots in their
fourth year.
There
are,
in
establishments at
horses are bred.
addition
these
to
Kladrub and
The Kladruber
showy animals, with great
two
Lippieza,
action
breeding-studs,
where
;
they are descended from
Spanish and Italian stock, but careful mating
has greatly increased their size,
as 17 hands 2 inches.
which
is
These horses are
Royal carriages on State occasions.
40
carriage-
horses are very large and
now
for
generations
often as
much
chiefly used in the
The Lippizienne horses have marked
character of their
own, having been obtained from Spanish, ItaHan, and Arab
They
stock, carefully crossed.
horses, with good quarters, legs
16 hands.
are long-bodied, short-legged
and
feet,
They make remarkably good
very handsome, hardy, and
The covering
fast.
fees in Austria
for ordinary stallions
;
in
range from
some very poor
covered by the State horses free of charge.
operations cost Austria
and stand from 15 to
carriage-horses, being
/"i
40,000 a year.
41
is. Sd.
to 165. 8d.
districts
mares are
Her
horse-breeding
Horse-Breeding
Italy
in
For stud purposes the country
districts,
which include 402 covering
dating one or more stallions.
more
receive four or
sires,
Only eight
seven
into
each accommo-
of these
stations
the large majority receiving one or
In 1903 there were 586
two.
among
divided
is
stations,
the covering stations
;
Government
stallions distributed
comprised 71 English
this total
Thoroughbreds, 55 Arabs, 13 Anglo-Arabs, 404 Hackney and
and 43 heavy draught-horses. These figures show
half-breds,
strength of the Italian
that the
1895.
The number
studs
was the same
as in
Arabs had been reduced, while the
draught-horses had been increased.
number of
With
the
of
object
of
ensuring
uniformity,
same
sidered advisable to keep the
stallions at
con-
is
it
one covering
station as long as possible.
With
the exception of one or two Thoroughbreds, whose
services are only requisitioned by wealthy owners of racing-
though higher than
stock, the service fees are low,
Continental countries.
Government horses
50 at £\
at a fee of 95.
£^
']d.
each
39 at
660
;
29 at £\^.
;
75 at
5s.
;
years old, paying, on the average, ^^24
The horses
Remount Depots, and are
4s.
;
^i each
at
21 at
^3
The War Department buys Remounts
125.
most
in
In 1903, 24,337 mares were served by
£4
at 3
;
;
and
and 4
and
for three-year-olds,
;;^32 for four-year-olds.
so purchased are sent to
one
issued to regiments
of the
when
4I years old perfectly unbroken. About 4,000 young horses
are annually purchased by the Remount Committees.
owned by private persons may be licensed for
The task of examining horses and granting
public service.
Stallions
licences
it
is
entrusted to local committees
;
from time to time
has been found necessary to remind these committees that
greater care must be taken in passing stallions;
in
1893 ^
Royal decree was issued directing that vice or defects of
42
conformation should disqualify any stallion from receiving a
licence to serve.
The
greater stringency exercised as a result of this decree
brought about
"
decrease
considerable
a
" stallions;
Approved
in
the
number
of
but of late years, owing, no doubt, to
the improvement in the stock obtained, the total has increased.
In 1895, 645 private stallions were approved for licence;
The
1903 the number was 740.
are
"native
without
horses
indicazione)
seiis'alti'a
;
next
English " quarter- breds"
^'
in
number
other
description"
;
in
of these (246)
{indigeni
number (136) come
and then American horses
point
{himeticci)
without special description"
number.
largest
of
80
in
English Thoroughbreds and Hackney stallions
in
[senza indicazioni speciali),
numbered 41 each.
Colonel Needham, in a report written some years
states that the great defect of the Italian horse is want of
private hands in 1903
and substance
size
but he admits that the cavalry horses show
when carrying heavy weight and performing
;
great endurance
long marches.
ago,
I
have dealt with the superior endurance of
the small horse over the large one elsewhere.*
Italy
spends
annually
about
^80,000 net on
horse-
breeding.
* Small
Vinton
&
Horses
Co.
in
Wuyfurc.
By
1900.
43
Sir
Walter
Gilbev,
l^art.
Horse-Breeding
In no European country
more
is
attention devoted to the
The
breeding of horses than in Russia.
now
in
but,
without reviewing the history
existence
breeding department,
it
may
oldest Imperial stud
Derkulski, established in 1750
that at
is
Russia
in
be said that
it
has been an object
of solicitude to successive sovereigns for the last
Ivan
III.,
who
which there
during the
reigned
established
fifteenth century,
forty
last
400 years.
years of the
Government stud of
first
Moscow, and compelled
record near
is
the
;
Russian horse-
the
of
all
great
landed proprietors to establish breeding-studs.
The Government maintains about
studs and depots
among covering
the
stations
all
among
number of
stallions
number from two
in
15
over the country, wherever horsethe local industries.
at
varies in accordance with the needs
vary
at
from these depots the horses are distributed
;
breeding has place
countries,
1,100 stallions
to
nine,
As
in
other
each covering station
of
the
but
They
district.
four
the
is
usual
complement.
and
are
29
other breeding establishments, particulars of which are
not
In
addition
studs
these
to
depots there
at present obtainable.
The
fees
charged
35. 2d. to
^2
75.
selected
not more
1
;
8th June.
and
6d.,
each mare
;
for service
in ratio
is
range from the equivalent of
with the merits of the stallion
allowed three leaps,
if
necessary, but
the covering season lasts from the 3rd February to
The
in their first
stallions are put to service at five years old,
season are restricted to 40 mares
;
when
six
years old they are permitted to cover 60 mares, and in very
exceptional cases as
still
many
as 90.
Stallions
which are
old,
but
capable of service, are given away on condition that the
recipient uses
them
for stud
work.
44
—
—
—
Since the year 1S62, shows for
have been held annually
horses bred in Russia
all
about ^22,500
;
is
given annually
The 26
and honorary awards are also distributed.
in prizes,
Turf Societies
Horse
to be given in stakes.
460 of these
in
among them ;^i4,ooo
Russia receive
in
encouraged
fairs are
a year,
there are
;
various parts of the country, at which
some
300,000 horses change hands annually.
A memorandum
me
supplied
February, 1905, by the
in
Military Attache at St. Petersburg contains the most recent
Russian studs.
The
The Government "studs" in
information accessible concerning the
figures refer to the year 1889.
Russia,
They
it
must be understood, are
are as follows
(i)
The Khrenovoi
Government,
115 head;
of four
Krenovsky
or
divisions
(a)
:
Trotters, 338 head;
(/;)
breeding farms.
really
:
stud,
in
the \'eronig
English Thoroughbreds,
Hunters and Trotters,
{c)
Draught horses, 38 head. This stud was
purchased in 1845 from the daughter of Count Alexis Orloff,
the descendant of the noble who founded the famous breed of
60 head
;
and
{d)
known by
trotting-horses
his
the Rostophschine breed
name.
It
Count Rostophschine, a contemporary
Khrenovoi
Orloff breed.
is
a
also celebrated for
is
which was founded by
of Trotters
of the founder of the
depot as well as a
stallion
breeding stud.
(2)
The Bielovodsk
(3)
The Novo Alexandrovsk
are produced
(4)
The
two divisions
which
Arab.
differs
The
Streletz
:
{a)
or
where half-bred horses
was 445 head.
Streletzki
stud,
which consists of
Riding-horses, 408 head
Streletz
only in
The Streletz
among the
1900, were
stud,
the head of stock here in 18S9
;
The
81 head.
Kharkov Government.
stud in the
its
stud has given
its
;
and
name
Arabs,
{b)
to
a
breed
superior size from the Eastern-bred
horses,
shown
at
Paris in September,
exhibits that attracted most attention.
object of this establishment
is
the proLJuction
of light
riding-horses of average height with an Eastern strain, chiefly
45
for
improving the steppe horses and the breeds of South
Western Russia.
The Derkulski
(5)
oldest
Russia,
in
stud, referred to on
devoted to the
is
page 41
breeding
as
horses (23 head in 1S89), steppe and heavy cart-horses.
was formerly given up
to the
The Limarveo
(6)
riding-horses
;
stud,
half-bred
for
and
The Jarrow or Yanovski
(7)
It
breeding of carriage-horses.
Limarevski
or
the
Draught
of
stud,
where English Thorough-
breds (187 head) and half-bred riding-horses are bred.
The
total
number
mares and
of stallions,
these
foals at
seven studs in 1889 was 2,510.
For more than a century the Russian Gov^ernment and
private owners have imported Thoroughbreds from England.
The English Thoroughbred
stallion
mares formed the foundation stock
1794.
in
Grey Diomed and four
Golowkovva stud in
of the
Traveller and Orelius, son of Eclipse, were imported
Doncaster
1799,
winner of the
a special
stallions
1810,
in
Cerberus
in
181
Memnon,
2,
Leger of 1825, a few years later. In 1833
mission was sent to England to buy stock
the
St.
;
Birmingham, Middleton and Admiral were purchased,
and numerous mares, among them Lalla Rookh, Executrice,
Tweedlewings (by Touchstone),
Marchioness.
his business with the Russians in
repeated his visits
him
Metal (by
till
1791,
and
Glaucus),
"The
Mr. Kirby of York, says
Druid," began
when he was
21,
and
he reached the age of 60, taking with
" the choicest blood of Yorkshire."
The
highest prices
Mr. Kirby ever received from the Czar Nicholas (1825-1855)
were 2,000 guineas
for
Van Tromp, and
2,250 for
General
Chasse.
The Imperial
utmost care
is
studs are directed with great judgment
exercised in the choice of forage
•exercised regularly every day,
and breeding.
until she is five years old
is fully
46
the
2,^
years
staying-power according to
No mare
and
;
horses are
and young horses when
old are tested for strength and
their class
;
all
is
given up to breeding
developed.
Attached to each Government stud farm
where
horsemanship,
breeders
a school of
is
in
taught.
the
At
a special school where trainers, jockeys, hunts-
is
men and coachmen
young
is
instruction
and where riding
principles of the industry,
Khrenovoi
receive
methods of training
are taught the best
horses.
Private enterprise
is
encouraged
every way, and very
in
many
of the Russian nobility maintain large breeding-studs on
their
estates.
a
stud
At Slawuta, Prince Sanguszko has, or had,
Eastern
of pure-bred
observes,
show
what a pitch
to
may be brought when
of an
spirit
preserving
all
Irish
its
Many
stronger."
horse,
Eastern
private
Salvi
mated, well nourished,
;
"
and yet
owners
Arab
and
has the height, bone,
it
the Bedouin horse,
is
but
characteristics,
At
entirely to the Anglo-Arab.
Mons.
of perfection the typical
wisely
reared under favourable conditions
and
which,
horses,
devote
least one,
bigger
their
and
attention
however, makes a
which he has succeeded in bringing
Mecklenburg stallions upon Eastern
speciality of carriage-horses,
to a high standard, using
mares.
The twelve regiments
of
Horse Guards and 8th (Reserve)
Cavalry Brigade, are horsed from the Imperial studs, as the
steppe-bred animals are not powerful enough to carry the men.
About 7,200 horses are required annually for the Russian
line, and for information concerning these we
cannot do better than turn to Captain H. Hayes' excellent
There are seven "brigade stations" to which the
book.''
cavalry of the
Remount
officers
the breeders
;
send the young horses which they buy from
these horses have run wild, or half wild, on the
steppes until caught for sale, and their entire education
out by the regimental breakers.
about £!},
in the
55.,
*
Among
Co.,
but by the time they are
fit
ranks have cost about ^37 each.
must not be
&
They
less
Horses
than
14.2!^ in height,
in Russia.
47
carried
to take their places
Dragoon Remounts
and are bought from the
By Captain M. H. Hayes.
London, 1900.
is
cost on the average
R. A. Everett
age of 3
Capi.ain
off to rising 5.
Remounts which had been
before
:
light
;
—
Remounts average about 15.15-, they are somewhat
English eyes would probably appear at first sight rather
but closer inspection shows that they have capital bone, are
"As
small,
Hayes says of a batch of 800
by the buyers a few days
sent in
these dragoon
and
to
They are,
built, and have no superfluous lumber to carry.
with very few exceptions, entirely free from cart blood, and consequently,
compactly
their fore-legs in some cases seem a bit deficient below the knee, the
back tendons run more or less parallel to the cannon bone, and we find
no coarseness about the fetlocks, which is evidence of inability to stand
work under the saddle. These Russian Remounts ha\e, as a rule, short
backs, muscular loins, good feet, fairly small heads, and are well ribbed
up.
They are particularly good across the loins, which is a point that
Formerly the horses of
receives much attention from Russian breeders.
the Don, from which country the best Remounts are obtained, were
"
"
"calf-kneed
but this defect has been
generally "back at the knees
almost entirely eliminated by careful crossing. The members of the
selection committees, which pass or reject the animals brought up by the
buyers of Remounts, are specially critical as regards the quality of the
pasterns.
On the whole, they have very good fore-legs. Their shoulders
are inclined to be short but their worst point is undoubtedly their hocks,
which in many instances are weak, too much bent (sickle-hooked) or
These Remounts, especially those which come from the
inclined to curb.
country of the Don, have a strong infusion of Arab blood, with a dash of
the Thoroughbred. They are essentially saddle-horses bred for cavalry
purposes the Russian horses are reared under conditions of pri\-ation
and hard work to get their living, and are consequently more useful as
slaves and campaigners than they appear to be."
if
—
—
;
;
With regard
to
Captain Hayes' reference to Arab and
Thoroughbred blood,
fifteen
*
must be observed that four
Imperial stallion depots are situated
breedintr regions of the
and
it
in
'''
the
of the
horse-
Don.
Khrenovoi (distributing
.Saratov (50).
100 stallions)
48
;
Tambov
(60)
;
Kharkov
(60)
;
Horse-Breeding
The Ottoman Government
all
Turkey
possesses four important studs,
of which are situated in Asia
lines similar to the great
in
Minor and are organised on
Hungarian establishments, INIezoheyges,
Babolna, lVc, and which are under the control of the Minister
for
War.
The
Tchifteler stud, situated in the province of Brousse,
on the sea of Marmora, was established
in
the year 1832
lands, covering over 29,600 acres, consist of
pasture and of vast prairies watered by three streaius.
the Crimean
War
a thousand
;
the
somewhat varied
mares were received
from the English and French armies, and these,
After
at Tchifteler
like the
animals
already at the farm, were allowed to range at liberty until the
year
1886,
when
nearly
whole stock perished through
the
drought.
In 1886 three hundred Hungarian mares of inferior and
unsuitable strains were sent to this stud
;
these were kept under
cover, but the native mares and their produce continued to
at large.
latter
As
stable
accommodation was
were housed, as well as
been purchased
fifty
built,
roam
however, the
brood mares which
liad
in Russia.
Since 1892 Arab blood has been introduced, and only since
this step
was taken the Tchifteler stud has been able
annually over a hundred good and
to furnish
The
made has, however, been continuous, and this year the
total number available for the Army will be three hundred.
The Arab stud consists of 55 stallions of pure blood and
efficient
Remounts.
progress
eleven half-bred stallions got by Arabs out of native mares
there are ten pure
Arab mares, and 188 half-bred mares.
In addition to these, there are 91 native stallions and six
Normans, which were bought
49
in
igoo,
13
Hungarian, and
Russian
1 1
and
There were
stallions.
whicli
of
fillies,
year 660 brood mares
last
Russian, 93 Hungarian and
were
35
the remainder native-bred.
The
charge of the stud
officer in
under him a military
The second
who has
Colonel,
a
is
staff.
stud
between 18 and 16
that of Sultan Sou,
is
miles from the town of Malatia, in the province of Harpout, in
the interior.
part of this area
an area about 600 miles square,
controls
It
which includes 32
is
having some 5,000 inhabitants
villages,
given up to agriculture and the remainder
;
is
devoted to horse-breeding.
The Sultan Sou
was founded
stud
reorganised in 1889; attached to
Osman Dide — where there
the
are
enormous
droves of horses are sent
in
in
1861
hill
pure Arab mares, 21
breed of horses
:
the
running
is
number
year be increased to 200
i
situated in the province of
of the
;
The
Kurdish
will this
of this strain are
unknown.
stud owes
is
at
Hungarian
Kurdish brood mares
at large in the district is
breed of horses which
improvement
the
of
how many mares
;
The Tehoukourova
which
There are
Kurdish and 12 Hungarians.
object of this establishment
w^as
— that of
pastures, to
summer.
Sultan Sou 12 pure Arab stallions, 6 Kurdish and
7
and
another farm
is
it
name to a once famous
now nearly extinct. It is
its
said to be
Adana, which
is
bounded on the south
by the Mediterranean, and consists of two vast
estates,
one
covering 197,680 acres, or about 20,000 acres more than the
county of Middlesex, and the other covering about 74,160
acres.
The
larger estate consists of prairie land comparable to
the
pampas
lies
on the shores of the Mediterranean, and along the mouth
of South
of the river Djihan
America
which flows
This stud was established
pure Arab
stallions, three
" Anatoliotes,"
obviously
Western Asia Minor.
the
the second, and less extensive,
;
into
There are now eight
Kurdish, and five horses described as
after
There are
Tehoukourova breed.
it.
in 1892.
the province of Anatolia in
21 pure
Many native
50
Arab mares and 62 of
horses also run at large
on the two
The
estates.
special object
re-estabhsh the Tehoukourova breed.
stud
of this
Army, who, besides a
of a Colonel of the Turkish
is
to
under the direction
It is
civil
staff,
has a troop of cavalry under him.
The
Vezirie stud farm covers about 131,780 acres, and lies
Bagdad, between the rivers Tigris and
close to the city of
Diala.
This stud, which
is
under the direction of a General of
Brigade, was founded in the year 1896, and the progress
made
The
stock
so far does not appear to have been very great.
last
year consisted of 10 stallions and 57 mares,
all
pure Arabs,
the object of the Vezirie establishment being the production
of
Arabs
of the
Endeavours are made every
best strains.
year to buy the best young horses from the wandering tribes-
of the highest
able to
igoo
it
foals
and one
filly
that the director of the stud
was
stamp were
all
;
buy from the tribesmen.
Local covering stations are established
Government studs
to village
;
stallions
from the four large
stallions are often lent
communities
for the sole
in various districts,
and pure bred Arab
and these are supplied with
far distant
from the stud headquarters
purpose of improving the breed of horses.
Whether
free
was hoped
in
would be secured, but three
men, but good ones are rarely obtainable
that one hundred
service fees are charged or service
rendered
is
does not appear from the information which has been
kindly placed at the writer's disposal by the French Minister
of Agriculture.
Each stud has
a stud-book, which contains the guarantees
and proofs given by the sheiks
from the tribesmen.
Inspectors
who
in respect of the horses
These warranties are
travel in the interior
the tribes in question.
51
verified
and pay regular
obtained
by the
visits to
Horse-Breeding
in India
H ALLEN
OPINIONS OF THE LATE VETERINARY COLONEL
The
first
endeavours
to
improve the native breeds of horses
were begun by the East India Company
the year 1794,
in
and the " Stud Department " then estabHshed continued in
This institution
existence until 1876, when it was aboHshed.
had accomplished a certain measure of success some excellent
;
horses were bred there, and were drafted into the stables of
our cavalry regiments
but experience showed that the results
;
achieved were not commensurate with the cost of maintaining
the studs, and
in
was abolished and
named (1876) the Department
Army Remount and Horse-Breeding
year
the
the
Departments were created.
Tlie "
selection
Department
Army Remounts " had
of
local markets,
duty the
The Department
of
Operations was organised with the object
productions of suitable country-bred horses
Department that we
Horse-Breeding
Veterinary Colonel
J.
encouraging
of
and
;
to
is
it
direct our attention.
In a remarkably able and instructive paper
'•
by the
late
H. B. Hallen, the then General Super-
we
intendent of Horse-Breeding Operations in India,
plan of the
in the
and also of as many suitable country-breds as
might be procurable.
this
for its
and purchase of Australian and Persian horses
new scheme
clearly laid
down.
It
find the
was, broadly
speaking, to establish a native breed of horses, which should in
course of time render the
markets.
stallions of the classes
breeds
service
*
at a
;
Army
in India
The Goxernment was
to
most suitable
for
independent of foreign
maintain a supply of
improving the native
only selected native mares were to be eligible for
(always gratis)
by the Government
Goveynment Horsi'-Byecdiu^
in
India
:
stallions,
these
Past, Present, and Future.
(Read
meeting of the United Service Institution of India,
52
Otli
May,
1887.)
—
mares being branded
to
prove their right to service, and also
by native cavalry or
to prevent their purchase
A
buyers.
some
system of prize-giving
advantages to
slight
police horse
and shows, with
the produce of branded mares, was
at
fairs
some assistance was
to be given in teaching and
encouraging the practice of castration among native breeders
and all horses fit for Army service were to be purchased at
instituted
;
;
remunerative prices by Government.
The number
artillery, British
of Remounts required for horse and field
and native cavalry, amount, on the average,
to 4,630, including a reserve of 1,000 horses, each year.
For
all
reasons, both political
and economical,
it
has
always been held most desirable that India should produce the
horses necessary to mount both British and native cavalry, and
to horse the artillery.
Colonel Hallen gave a
of thirteen
list
breeds of Indian horses (excluding the Arab and Persian),
all
of which he described as " possessing good powers of endurance, and showing thereby blood, but generally wanting in size,
and many too small
tuted as
found
it
fit
now
for
is
;
for the
work
native cavalry."
Army,
consti-
local breeds
can be
of the Indian
though some of purely
In
another paper" Colonel
Hallen described these breeds with more exactness
:
" The majority of country-bred mares may be said to range in height
from 13 hands 2 inches to 14 hands 2 inches, and some few are found as
high as 15 hands, and in weight from 6 to 8 cwts. They are, as a rule,
remarkably well-bred, rather light in barrel, not evenly put together, often
of an angular and ragged appearance, with small but steel-like boneofjoints
and limbs, and measuring from 6\ to 7J inches under the knee at the top
of the shank bone.
They have wonderful powers of endurance under
either tropical sun heat or intense cold, with a light weight, say from 10
to 12 stones in saddle or light draught, and after the hardest day's work
are never off their feed, but always ready for it
moreover, they will
continue doing work on the scantiest of food."
;
Colonel Hallen observed that these mares offer a grand
structure on which
indeed, a
It
more
may
to engraft
suitable basis to
—
more power and size that,
work on could not be desired.
be observed that the officers
in
charge of the Indian
* Horses vcijuiycd for the Indian Army:
(Read at a meeting of the
United Service Institution of India, 25th August, 1S88.)
53
horse-breeding operations have peculiar difficukies to contend
against.
The
native disinchnation to castrate had to be over-
come to prevent the excessive use of weedy sires in a country
whose fields are unfenced, and where horse-stealing is (in
some regions) common, the natives could not give their young
;
stock the degree of liberty necessary for their
The
practice
padlocking
the
hobbling,
or
fore-legs
together,
was
was deformity
natural result
of limb,
development.
full
chaining and
even
closely
of
and the
universal,
narrowness of chest,
In recent years, however, castration has
and ruined action.
been more favourably regarded, and the beneficial
effects of
allowing larger liberty to young stock has been increasingly
recognised.
To
in
gain greater size and power the
1876 the purchase of 300
Government sanctioned
stallions, and,
with an eye to the
lack of substance displayed by native mares, roadster blood
was
These 300
largely introduced.
merely as a beginning
new scheme
was
developed.
composed
2
Turkoman
pony
stallions
stallions
were sanctioned
the year
following
horses,
— go
stallions:
and
i
Australian
6
Persian.
were provided
in
as
the
1886 the Indian stud
Hackneys and Norfolk
159
stud-bred
10
In
stallions
number was increased
the
the
of
Thoroughbreds,
Arabs,
;
English
Trotters,
146
Thoroughbreds,
In addition to these,
suitable districts, under the
control of District Committees, to cover small and unbranded
mares.
Some
19,588 branded
were on the registers
of stallions
in
was returned
For some few years
{i.e.,
officially
approved) mares
In the year 1900 the
1886.
after the
new system was inaugurated
endeavours were made to buy full-grown horses
use as Remounts,
but
therefore made, and in
number
at 384.
with
1881
little
the
success.
for
A
immediate
change was
purchase annually of 150
was sanctioned. This plan
gave satisfactory results, and it was extended, young horses
being purchased in larger numbers and distributed among the
rearing depots, Hapur, Kurnal and Ahmednuggur, to be kept
horses aged 2^ years and upwards
54
—
—
and trained for ultimate issue as Remounts. From 1889 one
thousand young horses have been purchased every year, but
when the number was thus increased it was found necessary
to take the animals at a much earlier age, and the minimum
was, in the year mentioned, fixed at six months.
must be added,
It
of
in this connection, that the question
mounting the native cavalry had
i88g reached an acute
in
stage.'''
Colonel
Hallen's description
It will
the
be borne
in
mind
made on
stock
got
by the
exceedingly instructive.
is
that his observations
new system had been twelve
had been,
the
of
several imported breeds of stallion
were made
after
years in operation, and there
therefore, time to see
what impression had been
the native stock.
The animal
got by the English Thoroughbred
"is, as a rule, handsome in top and outlines of back, hind quarters, and
carriage of head and tail, but is often shallow in girth and back rib, light
in barrel, and from 70 to So per cent, are leggy and deficient in bone of
limb. Diseases of legs are more common among Thoroughbred stock
e.g., curb, bone spavin, bog spavin and ring-bone are not infrequently
shown. Few of this stock prove fit for British cavalry, and hardly one
for horse or field artillery, but some are purchased for native cavalry.
Many native breeders are distrustful of this class of sire, as they find their
stock do not realise a good price in the market."
Of
the stock got by Australian sires, which are English
Thoroughbreds foaled and reared
"
in the
Colony
The young
stock often prove better-boned in limb than the stock of
imported Thoroughbreds from England, but in other points are similar
to the stock of the English Thoroughbreds."
Turning
to the
Report of Colonel Queripel, the Inspector-
General, ten years after the foregoing remarks were written,
we
find
the
complaint that English
stamp required
to get
Remounts grow
obtain each recurring year.
animals,"
striding
require
;
"
Thoroughbreds
of the
scarcer and harder to
Breeders aim
at
long-legged,
which are exactly what India does not
and, though treated with the most jealous care, the
English Thoroughbred
is
liable
to
develop unsoundness in
* Opinions un the Supply of Remounts to British and Native Cavalry, ami on
Horse-breeding in India ; expressed at an Informal Meeting held at Simla on
20th August, 1889.
55
——
so hot
and dry a climate.
which "appear
feet,
year."
and rock
soil
Department conducts
combine
Queripel says, " break
On
the
to
away
ruin
their
made
to their
other hand,
imported during the
and 15.3^
official
in height, girthed
less
its
feet,
work, the dryness
which,
Colonel
until there is absolutely nothing
a
stamp
better
Thoroughbred had been obtainable
one had
is
and weaker every
In Beluchistan, which has the driest climate of any
region in which the
left."
Specific objection
to be getting smaller
of
Australian
small numbers
in
;
from 68
to
72^ inches, and only
than eight inches of bone below the knee.
Reverting to Colonel Hallen's paper of 1888, that
said of the
seven
year 1897-8 were between 15.2
Hackneys and Trotters
officer
:
" These hav'e, with country-bred mares, produced stock of good bone
and power, proxing suitable and sufficiently well-bred for Army work in
India.
I may mention that, as a rule, most of the best-boned stock in the
late Stud Department had half-bred blocd in them.
The Special Stud
Commissioners bore this fact in mind, and ad\ised the employing of more
half-bred sires, these to be of pure breeds and showing quality.* Some of
the half-bred sires that had been imported from England were, in the
opinion of the Ccmmissioners, of not sufficient quality, but they found
their produce proving excellent for artillery purposes.
I, of course, do not
wish to imply that every stallion has proved a success but I do most
distinctly affirm that at least 9c per cent, of the half-bred sires have fully
realised the expectations formed of them."
;
i\fter referring to
were
first
regarded by
the prejudice with
men accustomed
bred and Arab, Colonel Hallen said
which these horses
only to the Thorough-
:
The practical results of horse-breeding that ha\e obtained and are
obtaining in India, indicate that such horses (horses capable of doing good
work by having blocd, bone, and power to enable them to carry and
draw the heavy weights of British cavalry and artillery) cannot be produced
from the present country-bred mares by mating them with Thoroughbred
or Arab stock that very few per cent, of Remounts so bred prove fit for
those branches of the service but we are having, day by day, more proof
that the produce of these mares by half-bred English horses (or, as they
are now called in England, Hackneys) of pure breed, is well adapted for
general army work in India, thus indicating that the more this class of sire
the -urU-bred half-bred is employed, a greater chance will be afforded of
securing larger- framed country-bred brood stock, which in turn will yield
The mares of this improved and
still larger framed and boned produce.
developed stock may in time become large enough in bulk to allow of their
being mated to Arab sires, should it be deemed desirable to add more
quality and compactness in bone with powers of endurance, which are the
well-known characteristics of the true Arab."
"
;
;
—
—
* In writing of pure breeds, Colonel Hallen means those breeds which
have Stud Books in England.
56
Colonel Hallen added that
work began
he believed
the
in
Bombay
right to use
it
when
his
employment
stud
in
Presidency, 26 years previously,
Thoroughbred and Arab
stallions
on
the country -bred mares.
"
I have now to confess that on visiting, three years ago, one of the
breeding districts in the Bombay Presidency, and attending an
annual horse show held there, I found the stock resulting from the use of
these sires, though very handsome in top and prettv in carriage of head
and tail, lamentably deficient in bone and sinew of limb. The Director
of the Army Remount Department was present, with the hope of finding
Remounts, but he did not succeed in seeing one fit for the British services;
I believe that not one country-bred Remount for the British services has
been secured in the Bombay Presidency. May I, therefore, ask you to
remember that Thoroughbred and Arab stallions have brought about this
We should, I believe, rely on the pure half-bred* of England
result.
as a sire to give more bone and substance to our stock."
best
.
.
Colonel Hallen ceased to direct the horse-breeding opera-
some fourteen years
tions of India
which
ago, and the opinions to
had brouglit him not having been
his long e.xperience
shared by his successors the Thoroughbred policy has been
resumed.
The Report
for
1897-8 says that some 60 horses
got by English Thoroughbreds (or about one for each stallion
were issued as Remounts
A
curious
commentary on the
produce got by the
!)
to British cavalry.
relative
merits
the
of
use
is
furnished by the officials of the Department themselves.
I
am
indebted to
of Merit "
different
Colonel Biddulph
for a
stallion
figures cover the
Number
si.x
of
official years,
the stock by " Half-Bred English " or
I
am
1886- 1892, and
Hackney
may
"^
show
sires easily
place,
and the
informed, show the Thoroughbreds imported from
Australia in the
It
by Each
Employed.
Figures relating to subsequent
English Throughbreds third.
years,
Won
Stallions
the Australian stallions taking second
first,
in
copy of the " Figures
showing " The Percentage of Prizes
Class According to the
These
breeds of
first
place.
be observed
that
the
original
scheme,
opinion of some good authorities, never had a
fair
in
the
chance.
Apart from the absence of continuity of method, which alone
would most seriously retard progress
*
Known
in
in the
desired direction,
England as the Hackney breed.
57
it
was considered
main purpose
that the
of the
scheme was
subverted at the outset.
The
more
infinitely
important
Breeding Department, with
to
Remount
the
whose
Department,
immediate provision of horses
branch,
Horse-
the
was subordinated
purpose was the
larger aims,
its
Army
for the
;
and as a natural
The
Remount agents and committees made it their business to buy
as cheaply as they could it was their duty to do so but this
policy of cheapening a commodity it was particularly desired
the
result,
become paramount.
objects of the latter
;
;
to improve was, on the face of
it,
a fatal mistake
;
discouraged
it
native breeders instead of encouraging them.
At the meeting held
Simla on August
at
which reference has been made on page
Land Records
for the
Punjaub
Director of
55, the
said that the
i88g, to
30,
method
of pur-
chasing horses pursued by the Indian Government had a bad
effect
that native
;
owners
of
good large mares
fit
to
produce
Remounts had begun to sell these animals, and were purchasing
pony mares to produce ponies and mules. We have seen on
what very different lines the German Government goes to
work.
Our
it
national love of sport
makes
does in England, and the effect
its effect felt in
India as
There
not a good one.
is
is
always a ready market and a high price awaiting the
in India
animal suitable
ambition
is to
for racing or for polo
;
and thus the breeder's
produce such a horse or pony, and to ignore the
animal suitable
for military use.
Opinions are divided con-
cerning the effect the temptation to produce a racing or polo
pony has upon horse-breeding as an industry
India
;
Luck regard
it
as a factor
which must be reckoned with.
In this connection, one great difficulty that
failure of the
The
Government
mind.
in
Northern
in
but such authorities as Colonel Hallen and General
makes
most wisely directed endeavour must be borne
three hundred stallions
for
in
employed by the Indian
are scattered over thinly populated regions, and
charge of natives
;
and
it
seems
58
to be generally
admitted
that the natives in charge of these stallions cannot be depended
on to refuse service to unbranded mares
by the owners of such mares.
offered
two
if
a trifling present be
Further,
stallions at a local covering station
when
there are
usually happens that
it
the native owners of mares give their preference to one to the
•exclusion of the other
;
whereby the favourite does all the work,
Hence
in the same day.
are liable to be overworked, and serve
even being brought out several times
the popular stallions
many mares which
good
are of a
stamp not
at all likely to
Owing
these
to
difficulties
and
errors
establishment of a native breed, the work of
most
the
favourable conditions,
been made
use has
has
and the production of
attempted,
Department.
It
the
objective
was impossible
never
had those
in control
been able
suggested,
is
been seriously
immediate
for
work under these
its
it
would have done
to ignore the question of
an
may
be
supply of Remounts.
immediate
the
years under
Horse-Breeding
the
of
that
policy
of
many
Remounts
circumstances should have succeeded as
Horse-breeding,
it
essentially an agricultural business, and therefore
one to be undertaken by a
civil
department
;
the business of
procuring Remounts for troops, on the other hand,
a
throw
foals.
The
soldier's task.
error lay in the attempt to
is
essentially
combine the
two.
Of
is the
hope
the
Arab
sire
Colonel Hallen considered his small size
only point in his disfavour.
had been Colonel Hallen's
up with the Hackney and Trotter cross
and he looked to these to throw
animals of the right stamp for the Remount
to gradually grade
large-boned and sizeable mares
to
It
Arab
sires
;
Department.
It
must not be forgotten that climate and the prevailing
life are paramount in determining what
normal conditions of
the size and character of the horse of any given country shall
be.
In temperate climes, with good feed, horses of great size
can be produced and depended on to maintain their
very hot, dry countries, which
offer
59
size.
In
comparatively poor feed,
such as Arabia, Persia, and Northern India, as described by
Colonel Hallen,
we
find the native races small, wiry
we
and, again, in cold regions
and active
;
smallest and most
the
find
stunted horses.
Only within certain
limits, to
be ascertained by years of
we hope by
costly experiment, can
cross-breeding to override
the natural laws which determine the size of the horse of any
country without materially impairing
we can succeed
Department,
for
in
doing so at
its
valuable qualities,
if
In India, the old Stud
all.
various reasons, failed to establish an improved
breed of horses in the eighty years of
its
existence
;
it
would be
unreasonable to expect that the reorganised Horse-Breeding
Department should have accomplished the task during the
twenty and odd years
it
has been at work.
OPIXIONS OF MAJOR-GENERAL SIR JOHN WATSON,
K.C.B.
who has been good enough to
me with his views on the
India.
As the outcome of long
General Sir John Watson,
read the foregoing pages, favours
subject of Horse-Breeding in
experience in that country. Sir John's remarks carry great
weight.
He
points out that the old Bengal
studs,
which were
abolished in 1876, supplied both cavalry and artillery with a
remarkably
fine class of stud-bred
Remount
for
many
years.
Deterioration and infertility followed upon the continued use of
English
sires of different classes.
The
" Diffused
System
described in the preceding
"
was
then
introduced.
pages, the gist of this
As
scheme was
the distribution over the horse breeding areas of Northern India
of a large
Stallions,
Sir
number of English Thoroughbred, Hackney and Arab
which give gratuitous service
John Watson
who adopted
is
to
approved mares.
entirely at variance with the authorities
this " Diffused
System."
The
operations of the
Horse-Breeding Department as now constituted
60
are, he points
;
out,
supervised
by
General
Inspector
the
the
of
Civil
Veterinary Department, assisted by about a dozen veterinary
surgeons
who have
measures
for
various other duties to perform, in taking
prevention of cattle disease, in directing veterinary
edvication, including colleges for natives
who
are being trained
in bacteriological research, &c., &c.
The
multiplicity of their duties permits the officers of the
Department
to
to
work
the
devote only a very limited degree of supervision
of the
stallions
and,
;
further,
veterinary
the
surgeons employed have never studied breeding as a science.
There
is
few years' service
also the fact that after a
the
in
Department they revert to their duties with the Army
whereby no continuous system of supervision is possible.
The
gravest
however,
objection,
opinion, to the " Diffused
System
Sir
in
" is that
John Watson's
treats the thirteen
it
mares being classed
different Indian breeds of horse as one, all
provides no means nor machinery
as "country-bred mares;"
it
whereby the
any given stallion on any given
There does not now exist in India
mare can he
result of using
ascertained.
which the
even an experimental stud
in
crosses can
The Returns,
be observed.
account only of the
results of different
word,
a
in
take
and pay no attention whatever
stallions,
to
the mares.
No
attempt has been made to preserve these breeds in
their purity
by English
;
mares of each and
are covered indiscriminately
sires of different classes
circumstances
it
and by Arabs of greater
John observes that under these
not wonderful that wide divergence of
or less purity of blood.
opinion
all
is
concerning
the
Sir
relative
of
luerits
Thoroughbred,
" If nothing
Hackney and Arab should
exist.
the breeding or quality of a
Remount dam, how
to ascribe
good or
evil to the sire alone
?
"
is
is
known
it
of
possible
This being the
case, he dismisses the " Figures of Merit " (juoted on
page 57
as valueless.
John ^^'atson says he is not aware that the main
purpose of the scheme was subverted at the outset, as stated,
Sir
61
—
upon the authority
of another expert, on page 58
or that the
;
Horse-Breeding Department was subordinate to the
Army
Remount Department this, he says, has certainly not been
the case for many years.
Neither does he understand that any
attempt has been made to combine the two, as stated on
page 59. "The Army Remount Department purchase what
:
they find at the market
the Civil
;
endeavours to supply that market
do
it
;
Veterinary
but
Department
has a free hand to
it
own way."
in its
In Sir John's opinion our endeavour to create an Anglo-
Indian type of horse capable of reproducing
succeed
has
can never
itself
the endeavour has been persevered in for a century,
;
failed,
and
and nature
" for
will fail;
we
are fighting against nature,
will beat us in the long run."
more pointed way
of saying
principle on page 59
normal conditions of
i.e.,
life
what
I
This
is
simply a
have asserted as a general
that "climate and the prevailing
are
paramount
in
determining what
the size and character of the horse of any given country shall
be."
Sir
opposed
John Watson,
if
to the importation of
asserts that " English
I
understand
him
rightly,
is
English stock altogether, as he
and Asiatic blood
will
never mingle with
advantage."
Holding these views, he
is
firm in
present system of Indian horse-breeding
doomed
to failure.
62
is
the belief that
radically
the
wrong and
The Horse-Breedixg Commission
In
October,
Commission met
a
1900,
enquire into the question
members
farm
at
the
visited at
and
Hessar,
breeding districts
Umballa
at
Remount Depots,
toured through
the
the
to-
The
Horse-Breeding.
Indian
of
of 1900- i
Government
horse-
principal
they inspected over 10,000 horses, mules
;
and donkeys, including nearly all the State stallions and many
branded mares, and they took evidence from numerous civil
and military officers, native chiefs and European and native
breeders and dealers.
In their exceedingly interesting and instructive report, the
pointed out all the shortcomings of the
" Diffused System " to which reference has been made in the
Commissioners
foregoing pages,
They
and indicated others not
method
stated that the
to objection, inasmuch as horses were kept standing
where there
is little
important.
less
was open
of distributing stallions
in districts
horse-breeding or none, while in districts
where horses are bred there was grave lack of stallions that
imported stallions were practically forced upon the native
breeders in regions where strong and, as the Commissioners
;
admit, well-founded objections existed to their use
Thoroughbred
stallions,
and
English
;
Australian,
that the
are
used
without care being used to ascertain whether they nick well
with the mares of any given
Diffused System
was
district
;
and
that, in a
word, the
a costly failure.
The Commissioners,
after
considerable length, arrive
reviewing the whole matter
at
want
of
at
the
conclusion
that
supervision and method chiefly accounts for this failure, and
offer
recommendations
for
the
reorganisation of the whole
system, with a view to establishing " a breed of Indian horses
duly registered and branded."
It must be confessed that the recommendations of the
Commissioners were not what the evidence they collected
63
the
leads
altogether
reader
They
expect.
to
to
refer
the
increasing difficulty of procuring suitable Thoroughbred horses,
and
to the defects
Thoroughbreds
and the great expense
recommend
but they
;
by
of the stock got
the use of
Thoroughbred
stallions to be continued in the proportion of six in ten, the
remaining four to be Arabs,
The most important
is
this
:
which
and
point that invites attention, however,
India there exists breeds of horses
in certain States of
are pure,
are, in
which the natives
strive to maintain pure,
the judgment of the Commissioners, well worth
preserving in
their
They say
purity.
:
"The
Kathiawari,
may be
Marwari, Baluchi and Unmool breeds are pure, and
used as safely and hopefully as Arabs."
The Commissioners,
peoples
the
in the
body
of their report, urge that
Marwar, Baluchistan, and the
Kathiawar,
of
Northern Punjaub should be encouraged
that the Indian
And
here, as
policy
which
of these breeds for stud purposes.
they
think,
to breed horses,
Government should purchase the
indicate
the
line
of
and
best stallions
I
venture to
Indian
the
—
—
Government should adopt. The mistake one mistake has
been, as Sir John Watson points out, the system of treating
all
the different Indian breeds of horse as one, ignoring the
fact
which the Commissioners now emphasise, that there
excellent material to our
if
only
we
use
it
hand
in the right
in certain parts of the
is
country,
way.
These Kathiawari, Marwari, Baluchi and Unmool breeds
offer
sources of supply which,
all
the
best
authorities
are
mounted arms in India with horses
of the kind required, and that as Nature designed them,
without the admixture of Thoroughbred blood, which has
agreed, would furnish the
proved, during recent years at
all
events, of very doubtful
advantage.
The suggested purchase
of
young
stock
from
native
breeders and their maintenance on large tracts of Government
land until of an age to be issued as
recommend
it.
64
Remounts has much
to
The
point
I
would make,
Commissioners' Report,
after this brief
summary
of the
that the facts set out as to native
is
breeds furnish sound reasons against the recommendation to
reorganise the
Government Studs. Economy and efficiency
wisdom of turning over a new leaf altogether,
alike point to the
and discarding the use of
breed.
best
"
The
than Arabs of the
alien sires other
price
of
every
remount
purchased
is
Rs. 1,945 [or £i2)5] ^^^ stallion power alone" (paragraph 366),
and the number of animals proving
fit
for issue as
Remounts
being so small by comparison with the numbers bred.
It is difficult to
we
find
ourselves
escape the conviction that in this Report
faced
once
again
prejudice in favour of the Thoroughbred.
impossible to explain
Thoroughbred
exist,
the
by
the unreasoning
Otherwise
it
seems
recommendation that the use
of
stallions should be persevered with, while there
over large areas in India, breeds of horses
fitted for military
purposes.
65
in
every
way
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