The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-08-19

Village Cart, Carriage Team, Tan
dem, Four in Hand and Saddle-How
to Buy a Good Horse from His
Points Why the Cob Has Become
So Popular.
(Copyrj9hted)
New YORK, Aug IA perfect horse
is like perfect diamond, f" said Charles La
Fetra, of East Thirteenth street, one of the
keeuest experts in equine values in New
York. ut is just as difficult TO find the one
as the other"
For the last ton years Mr.. La Fetra has
handled more fine horses for private use
than any other man in this city. There
are really only about half dozen men who
are recognized by the large buyers of native
and imported stock as possessing all-round
sound Judgment upon which they can de
pend. The best Of these are Ike Dahlman,
Oakland Smith, Frank Durr, Sol AIehrbach
and Mr. LA Fetra.
Il don't know single perfect team in
New York, resumed the expert. "I 60 to
the park and / see the thousands Of hand
some rigs drive past, and / have yet. |
repeat to see the first perfect horse. Some
are badly colored others are irregular in
action or awkward III style. Sometimes
see a beautiful rig sweep by, and say to
myself; Well, now, that's nice pair :
but if happen to see them at close quarters
their imperfections Immediately appear
and say: No, must look further tor the
perfect horse. They are either over on
their knees or up in the ankles, and some
of the prettiest teams, driven by the best
people in town to-day, are very far from
being sound.
"Your statement is strange one, is it
not, IN view Of the fact chat so much money
is spent by wealthy New Workers in horse
fesh:n
No It's true, though" insisted the expert.
"Of course l have reference to horses kept
for private use and not TO thoroughbreds
trained for the turf. Now, d horse, like
other animals, has so many points that
must appear before he can be ranked as per-
feet. The neck must be Of good length; the
forehead broad, with full eyes, as promi-
nent as those.of a crab; the head must be
well cut under tne jaws. Then the legs
must be fat and broad, aud the body should
be long, from the hips TO the hocK, so as to
give a good action behind. He must ha We
good round foot, not too fiat, and the
knee must be short to the fetlock He
should be short-backed, too, and smooth
hipped, and the tail should be long and full.
The color is important also in choos-
ing your perfect horse 1t is not so mate
rial as to the actual shade, provided the
color be good o1e--a dark chestnut,
good bay, or dark steel gray; these are
the best. Now, if you get an animal that
fulfils all these conditions, you will have
something that approxImates very near to
the perfect horse,
"What style or build of horse is most in
vogue at the present timem Mr. La Fetra
was asked.
"If that question had been put to me a
few years ago | should have found it more
difficult one to answer, as then every We
hicle had its own style of horse, but lust
now everything is COLBY; why, even the
truckmen want cob horses But, Joking
apart, the cob has the call and has fairly
driven the long, rangy, Kentucky bred
horses out, for the latter are no longer fash
ionabe. When you buy a cob, you should
get one that is fancy -colored, cross matched
and about 1872 high. The horse should be
COLBY built at both ends to be true cob.
In choosing team, particular attention
should be given to the knee action, which
should be perfect, and the f1ecks should be
gracefully curved. A good cob would
weigh from $50 to / 200 pounds. A team
would cost all the way from $500 to 81, 500
but a really good, service lble and sty Iish
pair might be bought for 500 or $780, 1t
is when they have the knee action specially
fine that they cost from 81, ,000up.
"High action is inherited in certain
breeds, of course; but it can be developed
by training. When you want to get the
knee action, you use curb Bit and it is a
good plan to put the horse into yard
covered deep with straw, which will compel
him to lift his feet high to shake clear of it..
Pretty soon he gets into the habit of lifting
them, and he never forgets it. Teach a
horse once and it is taught for good Or
you may teach him by putting him in
harness with high action horse.
''The best cobs come from France, and
the finest ever saw was the horse Fashion,
which is now owned in Connecticut. 1t
cost 80, 600 or $4,000, and while here took
some thirty or forty premiums for fine ac-
tion and shape"
"What is the BEST horse for coupe!"
"Well, it's all the same, whether you
want them for a coupe or a four-in-hand
the cob is first choice. Your coupe horse
should be about 16 hands high, chunky and
square built, and the nearer it Is to cob
shaped the better For a good, sound,
young horse of that character, you should
pay all the way from $500 up. You can
get very good one indeed for 5000. For a
Village cart, would select good size, say
14l1 to 1871 hands high. Fifteen is a good
size. 1t ought to be had for about the same
price as good coupe horse. 1t should be
a good goer and there is no build that can
go like the cob.
"For tandem, your wheel horse should
be an inch and half taller than your
leader, because it makes them work be ter
together. The wheeler has the big end of
the draught and needs weight and hight TO
help him; while the leader needs to be very
quick on his mouth and on the rein, other
wise the shafts would go right on to the
leader. and you would TO doubled up. It's
the easiest thing in the world to drive with
a wel-mated wheeler and leader. Each
knows his own share Of the work, and the
leader responds just quickly enough to suit
the wheeler. A good tandem team--all
sound and fiue, and -behaved-shouldn't
cost more than $500 or $3.50. You can buy
for less, but they would not be firsU-class,
by any means.
"There are some good old-fashioned folks
who wouldn't drive cobs in a carriage team
and they stand by the old style still, l6M
hands, long and rangy horses, like Glove
land bays. The younger generation, how
ever, have caught the English idea, which
is the cob. A good carriage team comes all
the way from 81, 200 to 81, 500, and you can go
down the scale if you wish, and probably
even do well at $1,000 Again, if it is
road horse you want for light wagon
there are hundred things to be considered
in making choice. The build, the breed,
the style and the speed are all to be taken
into account. Your animal should be sound,
well-bred, and absolutely free from lmper-
fections, If you mean to have any satisfac-
tion out of It on the road Remember that
fha same description as far as words are