Horse Breeding.

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume III, Issue 339, 17 August 1889, Page 3

Horse Breeding.

[TO TUB BDITOB. [ Bia,—Moat ot your readers are altogether tired ot the fanatical, dogmatical, theological, and generally unpleasant discussions which hare inundated your columns lately about our harbor, etc., and we shall be glad of anything of a more lively and entertaining nature; and as I know a great many worthy men who will be pleased with a change of subject, I will venture to start one. “ Ooming events oast their shadows before them,” and horses for stud puipoaes will soon be before ns, I beg a little of your space to make a few remarks upon thia interesting and, to breeders, very important matter. We want no more weedy thoroughbreds, or weeds of any kind for that matter. We have bad enough, and too much, of that class of animal. Our mares are not racers, and will not foal racers, and as race horses are no nse for any other purpose than racing, it is very desirable to get some other kind of stock which will be better adapted to our wants. The kind of entire that would be most likely to attain the object will be found in a crossbred horse, out of a three-parts blood mare by an Arab sire. His height should be 15 bands 3 inches, or thereabouts ; light, well-made head, well set on the neck; large eyes and nostrils; good wither and shoulders; long rein, strong loins and quarters, muscular thighs and forearms; well ribbed up, plenty of barrel, short canons, strong but flexible pastern, well-formed, sound feet; and he may be of any color but a cream or a mixture—the less white about him the better, unless be bo all white or grey. Here, then, you have the picture of the right sort of horse to get really useful, smart, weight-carrying nags, and active, powerful, light barnees horses, fast trotters, and the like; and the man who brings such a horse into this district will confer a great benefit on the breeders of hones, and upon the riding public generally. The brood mares in Poverty Bty at thia

time are of no particular breed, but are _•efficiently good, for the most part" at any Mu*, to produce excellent horses, if only we put them to a suitable stallion, such as I have endeavored to describe. We hare no good young stock coming on to speak of. Almoet all the rising generation are got by Undersized, weedy blood entires, and they will grow up weedy ponies, and nothing else, no use in this world whatever. The young New Zealanders, born and bred in the Country, will certainly be heavy weights, and unless we look out now, to start a good Stout kind of horse to carry them, those interesting young gentlemen will have to Walk, az a good many of their fathers have had to do, which will no doubt ba very distressing. A good breed of horses costs no more to gear than a bad one, perhaps less; for they are generally of sound constitution, and will — most surely fetch a good price and ready sale. Mr Allen's trotting stallion Merry Legs was a far better sort of horse for our every-day use than any other that I have seen hereabouts. True he was no great beauty, but he had plenty of stuff in him— Size, action, and weight-carrying qualities—the very things we want to take the weedinezs out of our breed; and, for my part. I Would rather have him to sire my mares’ foals than any horse that has ever been in these parts, except old Orlando of famous memory. No doubt I shall shock the senAbilities of many worthy owners of horses, by thus advocating crossbred, but I can’t help that. I have been a breeder of horses for twenty years, and all I want is something to look at, and a good one to go; and I don't care a glass of Crawford's XXX whether he, she, or it is thoroughbred, or any other breed at all, as long as I get a good hack,—l am, Ac., A BEEBnmr.