The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1889-03-23
STREET CAR HORSES.
Where They Arc Bought and How They
: Are Patched Up and Worn tJac

Where They Arc Bought and How They
Are Patched Up and Worn uae.
Il should not have thought it wo::l1
have paid to work cripples, " remarked
to the driver of Third avenue car on
which Irode down town few evenings
since. I referred to tho near horses
hind legs, one Of which was ornamented
with huge flannel bandage, while the
other foot seemed in the dim light
SWOLLEN to an abnormal size, and to be
parting from the leg at the hook.
'He's not lame, " returned the driver
atfably. That's boot he's got on his
near foot. He's had quarter crack
and the thrush, too, but he came out Of
the hospital week ago, and it don't
seem to trouble him much. This road
! don't work no lame horses. Jest as soon
as they show any signs of weakness
they are sent to the hospital and the
best veterinary surgeons in the country
patches 'em up"
81 suppose the hospital is nearly al
ways well filed I suggested.
"Why, of course it is,'' said the
driver: This works terrible hard on
horse, mainly because of these cursed
stones. Our teams don't have very
long trips, and they're not pushed hard
either, but the stones wear 'em out in q
few years"
"How long does q horse last at this
werk?" [ inquired. ,.i.. s.sL.
''Three years, about" twas the reply.
''Some of 'em go on for five years with
patching up, but that's the extreme
length of time that they will pull cars.
When they have been about two years
at the work their feet get so sore that
they have to be turned out. The COM
pany has a stock farm in the country
| where they are taken, their hoofs are
! pared, and after running around awhile
on the soft ground they get hard and fit
tc come back to the stones again for
time"
Where do railroad horses come
from?" asked.
"Mostly from the West" said the
driver, "But they buy horses all over"
''No, there are not many really sound
horses coming into car stables. The
buyer IN the West takes q carload of
horses, and, after picking out a few
! good, sound, business horses, selects
lot of good horses with just some trifle
wrong with them, which he calls
"streeters," and sends them on to the
city for the car companies. Then lot
OF horses are picked up cheap because
they have some small ailment or blem-
ish which the veterinaries succeed in
curing. They build EN- up, as you
might say, as good as sound 'uns.''
''How are the green young Western
| horses broken into car worl?' was the
next query, and the driver half sighed
as he replied: 'Why, right here in the
cars Haven't you ever noticed team
working with pole in addition to the
tracesP We always work a green horse
with an old one, and the pole keeps
him straight and prevents him kicking
over very bad. But it's tough job
sometimes. Green horses are awful
scared of the elevated road. They'll
keep looking up and staring all around
| W AL1SA OllU W4SIS Gl1o lOlSC COulCS from,
and sometimes they'll just stand still
and shiver with fright" - - ,....
GLOW long does it take to get them
used to it?"
"Oh, about two weeks. A car horse
ought to be pretty handy at the end OF
that time. It'll take 'em six weeks or
two months to know the bell, but after
that they'll obey the bell quicker than
a green driver. You'll see new man
fail to put the brake on quick enough
sometimes when the bell rings, but his
horses will stop and the car will run
right up on 'em. Horses are quick
enough to learn, but guess their days
are nearly over. Electricity is bound
to do away with them."-N. T. Tele-