The Findlay Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Hancock County, Ohio) 1870-1881, 1874-10-30
agome, gardfn and farm
Purchasing a Horse.

Purchasing Horse.
Although it may not be necessary that
g. nerson should be perfectly acquainted
With the mechanical structure OF the
bo-se's frame. according TO the laws Of
nature. to render him good judge Of a
horse yet, fortunately for such as have
them TO sell, vast numbers Of persons
nurchase horses from a very siight eA-
1erienee Of them, regardless OF tiie
proverb Of 'GHe hath good Juogliiehl
who doth not rely on bis own. 1here
Is also another proverb, prevalent, we
believe in Spain, which well applies here:
ssHe that would buy mule without a
tauIt must not buy one at ALL" and, al
though faultless horses may be as rare
as faultiess drivers Of them, We will Of
fer few hints to a person in the act Of
purchasing one, addressing him in the
eoIloquial style:
First, bear in mind the uses for which
you intend the horse. Secondly, until
you try him, it is hard to say what a
horse will do. However, the following
indices may induce you to try him: If
he appears well bred, with loose, bright
skin, which may be called his complex
ion; observe that his hair does not stand
hollow from his skin, particularly about
the poll Of his neck. If you find him
standing over a good deal of ground, it
is a sure sign that he has got length
where it ought to be; not in the back,
but from the obliquity of his shoulders,
and the arm being set on at the extreme
point of his shoulders, which SO much
contributes to the act of extension of the
fore parts.
Next examine minutely his thighs and
books, being especially careful to OBJ
serve the position of the point of the
hook bone. Above all things, avoid
short or an overstopped horse. This
latter, from being too heavy for his legs,
will seldom last many years. As for the
minor points, common observation
alone is wanting. Have his head placed
in such a situation as Will enable you to
satisfy yourself that he has perfectly Or
ganized eyes, free from ineipient catar-
act, sometimes rather difficult to be de-
tected; and as for his age, there are but
two ways Of satisfying yourself on that
point. By his teeth till about eight
years old: afterwards by the state of his
legs, which are, in fact the best test of
his value, the best proof of what he has
done, and the sure source of speculation
as to what he may hereafter be expected
to do. Observe, also, his joints, that
no material injury has been done to
them by blows, strains, &C., end that
they are strong.
But the purchaser of a horse must not
trust to his eye. Neither must he be
satisfied with him, how well soever he
may go upon a good road. 1t is the pc
culiar excellence of going well through
dirt that renders a horse valuable for
most purposes; and no man can assure
himself that horse has this peculiar
excellence, until he puts him to the test.
The best method of doing it is this: Put
him along at a good pace, with slack
rein, upon a good road, letting him find
himself all at once upon that which is
soft and holding. If, on quitting the
former, he cringes more than might be
expected, and shortens his stroke much.
look for better horse, as this one will
be going in distress, when other horses
are going comparatively at their ease
Horses possess gradations of excellence
IN this qualification, more than in any
other, but in it consists the SuInmuHa 6O-
mum in good horse inasmuch as, what
soever may be his other good qualities,
they are all useless, when the acting
parts are from this cause, deep ground,
easily over-fatigued. With regard to his
wind, he must not judge hastily of that,
in a horse not in work. Should he not
perceive anything like whistling in his
respiration, when he puts him along at
quick pace, and his chest is capacious
and deep, and his head well set on, he
is not to reject him in case he appears
blown by short gallop. Condition and
work viii rectify that; but many good
horse has been rejected on this account,
by persons not taking into consideration
the state of his bodily condition, in
trial of this nature.
The price of the horse varies with the
times, and no doubt, is as much regula-
ted by the price of wheat as the loaf of
T. ,ad is. But first-rate horses, in all
q of the world, have ever produced
good, and even extravagant prices
Prairie Farmer.