Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-02-05
IT,. A,nerieon 1rotti,,o Horse.

among tne interesting lectures DeIOre
the recent Farmers course at the State
University, was one by Prof. Webber, of
Yale, on "The American Trott1ng Horse"
The speaker said: The trotting horse as we
know him is modern institution. About
1000 years ago the horse was small,
bright, viry beast, bat not fast one. We
can judge in general way Of the speed of
horse by the acutensss of the ''toggls"
joint. The more acute the greater speed.
An obtuse angle and heavy rounded but
tocks indicate strength, and yet
we can not always judgs by the
mere appearance of horse.
The speaker referred to the conventional
picture of Sheridan's ride, whore the ami
NAL is always represented as Of the type
last mentioned, and ventured that had the
general rode such steed as pictured, the
animal would have been 'winded" more
than once before the twenty miles had been
completed. OF all our animals the horse
is the most susceptible to surroundings,
and in domesticatio ion a vast variety of
breeds have arisen. There is no such differ
ence in breeds in cattle, sheep or swine.
Man wants change and fashions change.
The trotting horse is the most striking
example of its evolution now going on.
The trotting horse is not a new breed. It
is just becoming one. It is not natural
for horse to trot FAST but fast trotters
are in the process of evolution. In the
next generation two-minute horses will not
be rare A variety Of gaits was Of the ut
in ha nc tn vub
were put in ancient times. Great move
ments and enterprises of older times
progressed with the aid and improvement
OF the horse. When the Spanish horse
was at its best the Spanish nation was at
its best. Those horses were carried to
England and affected progress there.
They were taken to America and
are the progenitors of the wild
mustangs of the plains. The feeble
tribes OF the plains have become strong
with the aid of the horse. The savage has
become an Arab instead of Tartar. But
only running horses were fit for all these
uses. In later times the horses used in the
armies were required to possess the same
variety of gait. If by eny means a swift
horse was used, he was carried as an orna-
ment. 1t was the war horse that stood as
the representative of his species. AS COM
mon beast of burden, and in agriculture
he performed minor part until the last
hundred years. Afterwards he became
more important as q draught
beast. In ali ages the use
of the horse has been standard Of social
position. Some must worship God with
two instead of one horse. With many ,one
horse will do for week days, but the social
position of many Christians demands that
they shall drive two horses to church.
Probably these social distinctions and
fashions have had much to do in forming
the breed of trotting horses. Few have
conception of the number of gaits horse
is capable of. There is the "dog
trot," the ordinary trot, the fast
trot, the pace or amble, the
rack, the canter or gallop, and the run.
These gaits are taken naturally, but in ad-
dition there are many artificial ones. A
breed is not formed by union of two but
of several kinds, and our American trotters
result from the union of the English thor
oughbred and mongrel class of the early
horses of the eastern states. There is an
instinct in man which loves to see horse
go fast, and in spite of some adverse laws.
racing has gone on develop
ing. The first race for money
was in 1918, when $1,000 was bet that no
horse could go mile in three minutes
The first trot for money was in 1906, when
Yankee made 2:59. In running, the
speaker believed that horses have been
bred to do all that blood, bone and muscle
can accomplish, but IN trotting the limit
had not been reached. In the next gener-
alton two-min%e horses would not be rare.
At the close of the address discussion fol-
lowed on points suggested by the lecture.