Salt Lake evening Democrat. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1885-1887, 1885-06-08
Az INTELLIGENT HORSE.
.auc Horse in Bosfon E:sas
10 u conception of His Oppor-
tunities.

new York Timesl
=, Ahere can no longer be any doubt that
the morse is noble and INTELLIGENT ami
NAL Ills admirers have ALWAYS insisted
upon his nobility and intelligence hnt
very many persons have failed TO agree
with them. They have asked: Glow
can an animal be called intelligent who
nves IN terror of sheet of paper living in
his path, and wherein consists the noh;I-
Ivy OF the beast who Will run away with
out any provocation whatever and smash
a valuable carriage and a more or lass
valuable driver?" The very fact that an
animal as powerful as the horse will CON
sent to be slave seems to show that ha
IS mean-splrited and stupid. A lion or q
uger would utterly refuse to sppnd his
he IN dragging Third avenue car. and
there can be no doubt that in all wild
Deast circles public opinion is very far
rom accepting the theory that a horse is
either noble or intelligent.
II mas remained for Boston horse TO
Vihdicate IN the most thorough manner
ms right to the high estimate placed upon
the horse by all horsey persons. From
ume lmmemorial horses have been intro
duced into dramatic representations. and
hlthefto they have accepted without re-
monstrance any part which a manager
might assign to them. They have walked
meekly on the stage, biinked at the foot
nights, and walked off again at the proper
Tune. Some horses, trained to act in
Mazeppa,' have allowed large and
heavy actresses to be dashed TO their
backs, and have then solemnlv pranced
UP winding pathway OF wooden rocks
and pretended to galop at speed of two
miles an hour. When one reflects upon
the good that might be done by really
intelligent dramatic horse, it seems sad
that our stupid horses should so long
have failed to avail themselves OF the
opportunities afforded by the stage. How
many oppressive stage villains might
have been suddenly kicked into a pros
cenium box, and how many vellow-haired
Mazeppas might have been lifted by their
hair and dropped into the orchestra? But
never until the other night has dramatic
horse risen to true conception OF his
oppor tunities.
The Boston horse in question came on
the stage in a quiet and undemOnstrative
way, but he had evidently made up his
mind what to do. He walked promptly
to the footlights and threw himself
into the orchestra, landing on the bass
drum. The narrowing incidental music
came to an abrupt pause, and the must
clans, who had intended to play Sweet
Violets" at the end of the act, fed in all
directions. The bass drum was gloriously
and irretrievably smashed, and the horse,
having accomplished his noble work, per-
mitted the supernumeraries TO lead him
quietly away.
Here was a noble purpose intelligently
executed. 1t may be said that the failure
of the horse to kill one or two OF the tid-
diers and the man who plays the ccraet
solo was reprehensible, but in view OF the
smashing OF the bass drum it would be
ungrateful to find fault with the horse for
anything He accomplished his par pose
OF silencing the drum and OF frighte ming
the orchestra 50 thoroughly that it did not
venture to play "Sweet Niolets" during
the whole evening. Let us honor this
noble and intelligent animal, and hope
that his example will be followed by
every horse which hereafter appears on
the stage.