Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1881-01-27
Shetland Ponies.

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THE ponies are not an agricultural,
bit d9mati& HecAss1E. In Shetland,
az in pa It's Ire Md, every family de-
pfhds f6f is-sapplyjof1ue on peat. and
AZ the peat is seldom found near at hand
but on the hill behind them-thereis,al
ways hill in the rear in Shetland ew
cry island consisting mainly of hill, it'll
a patch or two of "smooth :" land u
few snug hooks by the shore-and .asit
often is at a distance of several Atetp
AID stony miles, each houseSre quir@
several ponies, the number depending
OF the distance and the character of the
road. A family living convenient
to the peat may require only two peat
carriers, and another family may re-
Qtire half dozen. The material, after
itihas been dug and dried in the usual
manner, is carried home on the backs of
the ponies in baskets, called :" cassies."
LII IS obvious. that tho back VIII chyhasstO
perform Thu kind safs service shouh be
broad and strongs The Shetland- pony
issa striking example of Development;
for generations past he has been bred
and reared and trained with uniformi-
tN which could not have been secured in,
ally other part of the Unified KfnHd oms
Hence his physique and general char
aeter, his hereditary instincts and intel
igence. his small size, and his purity
and fxitysof t3pe. Aepony belonging
to a sbxeed which has had to- pick its.
zigzag way down steep declivity dur
ing many generations must be sure
fopted. By the same rule pony whose
grooms and playmates include dozen
juyeniles-the children of the neighbor-
hood, who roll about usaderneathh him or
uponshist ack-ampst hsgentle, nd the
same pony. 1yipgon tue scathoM Oh sir.
sometimes rather than on heritage, must
be hardy. The pony of the Shetland
Isles is, in fact, the offspring of
circumstances. He is the pet of
the family, gentle as the Arabs steed
under similar training. He will follow
his friends in-doorsaike aeaog, and lick
the Ip]atterseog the childreflrs faces. He
has no more Hck inshin1 thana cat, and
no more bite than a puppy. He is
noble example of the complete suppress
sion Of these vicious propensities that
some of his kind exhibit When they are
il!treated, and of the intelligence and
good temper that may be developed in
horses by kindness. THERE'S no prece-
dent for his running away, nor forshis
becoming frightened or tired, even when
hel has carried some stout laird from
Lerwick to his house, many Scotch miles
across the sllills. He moves down the
rugged hill sides with admirable eircum-
spectien, loaded pannier-fashion with
two heavy "cassies - of peat, picking
his way step by step, sometimes side
ways. In crossing DOGGY spots, where
the water is retained, and green car
pet of aquatic grass might, deceive some
steeds and bring them headlong to grief
in the spongy trap, he carefully smells
the surface, and is thus enabled to cir
cuHnvent the danger. In the winter the
Shetland pony wears a coat madeof
felted hair, and specially suited for the
season. His thick winter garment is
well adapted for protecting him against
the fogs and damps of the climate. 1t
is exceedingly warm and comfortable,
fits close to the weaFesss -dapper FORM,
and is not bad-looking when new. But
when the coat grows old toward spring,
at the season when the new one should /
appear, it becomes the shabbiest gar
ment Of the kind that YOU often see. Its
very amplitude and the abundance of
the material render it the more con-
spicuous, when it peels and hangs for
awhile ragged and worn out, and then
falls bit by Bit till the whole Of it disap-
pears. No horse looks at his best when
1osingshis old coat, <antp the more coat
there may be to lose the worse he looks.