43
REVIEW BY THE SURVEY COMMISSIONER AND DIRECTOR, LAND
RECORDS AND AGRICULTURE, BOMBAY.
No. A/2435 OF 1897.
Poona, 10th August 1897.
Submitted to Government.
Superintendent's tour.
Poona, Ahmadnagar, Sho-
lápur,
Belgaum,
Kaira,
Ahmadabad, Surat, Karáchi,
Hyderabad, Shikárpur, Pá-
lanpur, Cutch, Morvi, Vanká-
ner, Songad, Pálitána, Bháv-
nagar.
*Belgaum, Poona, Ahmad-
abad, Nadiád, Surat, Karáchi
Hyderabad, Shikárpur.
2. Veterinary Captain Morgan was in charge of the Department throughout
the year. The actual distance covered by him in the
course of his tour is not so great as in some previous
years. This is partly due to the quarantine, which delayed the Superintendent a
fortnight in Sind. But the fact is, the thoroughness of a tour cannot be gauged
by its mileage. The Superintendent saw nearly all
parts of his charge and did a good year's work, with
plenty of travelling. He visited the marginally noted
districts and States, and Bombay four times. He
inspected eight* out of twelve veterinary dispensaries
and attended all the shows including that at Bhúj.
He visited the State paddocks in Káthiáwár along
with the Remount Agent and assisted him in making
purchases of young stock for the Rearing Depôt. He
purchased remounts for the Thar and Párkar Police
and one stallion each for the Dhrángadra and Rájkot States.
Horse and pony stallions
on the register.
3. There were 69 horse and pony stallions on the register at the commence-
ment of the year. Of these eight were removed from
the register for various causes, five were added—two
Thorough-bred English and three Arab. The number
of stallions standing at the close of the year was thus 66, out of which 16 were
Thorough-bred English, one half-bred English, 43 Arab, 2 Country-bred and
only 4 Hackney and Norfolk Trotter.
4. The number of Norfolk Trotter and Hackney stallions is becoming
smaller year by year, their place being taken by Thorough-breds and Arabs.
This policy is looked on with favour by some authorities and it is not for an
inexpert person like myself to lay down the law about it. At the same time
I venture to think that no case has been made out for the extinction of the
Norfolk Trotter or Hackney class of stallion. The case against him indeed seems
to be not so much that the stamp of the horse was unsuitable, as that the speci-
mens obtained were too coarse. But it is a known fact that the price paid at
home for stallions had recently to be raised, in order to get anything like a
satisfactory Thorough-bred, and there is no reason to suppose that a good Hackney
will be obtained unless a good price is offered for him also. It is said by the
Military authorities that the Norfolk Trotter's produce is soft-boned and deficient
in staying power; but it is not contradicted that in districts of Northern India,
where that class of stallion has been extensively in use, according to the predic-
tion of Veterinary Colonel Hallen, C.I.E., a larger and roomier class of mare
has been obtained, from which eventually produce, conforming to every require-
ment, not only as regards bone and substance, weight and size, but as regards
hardness and quality, would be got by the Thorough-bred and Arab stallion. The
theory was, with small mares the Thorough-bred and Arab sire will not give satis-
faction; before using them, a leaven of large mares must be obtained by means
of the Norfolk Trotter or other similar sire. The following are the remarks
of the Superintendent, Civil Veterinary Department, of the North-Western
Provinces, quoted with approval by the Inspector-General, Civil Veterinary
Department, in paragraph 39 of his last report:—
"In offering an opinion on the class of stallion most likely to produce suitable stock
for the Army, it has to be taken into consideration the class of mare served. In these
provinces, the majority of our mares possess a large amount of Norfolk Trotter blood, a
great number of them being big roomy mares, and these, I consider, when covered with
thorough-bred English, thorough-bred Australian, or good class Arabs, should give us
excellent remounts. The Norfolk Trotter persisted in too far I consider a mistake; their pro-
duce not only become ill-shapen for cavalry purposes, but they have no staying powers. On the