Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1877-11-02
The Perfect Saddle. Horse.
Col. Warning, in Scribner for November

Col. Warning, in Scribner for November.
1t is not easy to describe the perfect
high bred saddIe-horse so that he will
be recognized at sight by the uninitiat-
ed, and the initiated need no such des-
cription. His characteristics may be
thus sketched: He should have, first Of
all, large, sound, open-heeled feet, with
the frog we'll defined, the pasterns nei-
Their so long as to be weak, nor so steep
as to give an unyiesdi.ngg. aetionbvgEaathhfsr
little more than the front line of the
hoof; the legs, between the pastern
joints and the knees and hooks, cannot
be too short, and the back tendons
should be so large and full as to give
them the appearance of width and fiat
ness. The knees cannot be too large
and full, nor can the hooks be too large
and bony. The fore arm, from the knee
to the point Of the shoulder and the hind
leg from the hook to the stifle joint,
should be very long and muscular, and
quite free from fat or fabbiness. The
shoulder must be very sloping,
more so the better,-and overlaid with
tense and prominent muscles. The hips
and thighs should be we'll loaded with
muscle, and if there is to be a feshy
condition at any point let it be here:
Owing to the slope of the shoulder, and
the height Of the withers, and to the
prominence of the muscles over the
hips, the back should have the appear
ance of extreme shortness, with slight
but only slight - downward curve
hardly room to carry saddle" is the
form which expresses the horseman's
highest praise. This is the preferable
form of back, but very many thorough
breds are deficient in this respect
Largely as a matter of beauty the spine
should run back nearly level from the
hips, and the tail should be carried high
(the Kentucky blood horse is often very
defective here) the neck should be Ions
and lean, we'll arched, but not beefy al
the crest, and furnished with large
loose-hanging windpipe below, well de
fined even when the horse is at rest
The ears must be quick, small at thei1
setting-on and thin,-there is no objec
ton to their having good length; tht
head may be, but is not necessarily
small, but it should be well shaped, anC
| IL WUot NC do UUliy etiu do IlCS do poSoi
BILE from flesh; it should be so wide anc
clean between the jaws as to give ample
space for the windpipe; the nostril'
must be capable of great distension, tt
allow free breathing during exertion
the skin should be soft, the coat fine
and silky, and the hair of the name an(
tail, although it may be somewhat wavy
should be free from anything like CURL
ness, and rather scanty than superabun
dant. After severe exertion, full veins
should show over the whole body. The
distension of these veins, which are gen
orally invisible in the cold-blooded horse
gives the thoroughbred one of his great
est advantages by affording relief to the
pulsation during the strong action OF
the heart The horse above described il
quite sure to have the deep chest anC
heart place which are so important tC
strenuous exertion; but many of the
best thoroug hbreds are deficient in thai
round. barrel-hooped form Of the RIB:
which is necessary to the roomlest ac
commodation of the lungs and the alb
dominal viscera. A sound horse having
these qualities and whose sides, back Of
the girth, project beyond the line of the
shoulders and hips, may be relied upor
for the most arduous work