The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1896-12-31
BEAUTY OF THE HORSE.
Some Admiring Remarks on Mans Inn
memorial Friend.

Some Admiring Remarks on Mans Inn
memorial Friend.
If we would get at the secret OF the
fascinating personality of the well-bred
horse we must recall the axiom that
''the curved line is the line of beauty"
and then consider the anatomy of the
horse in detail. All his leading bones
are set obliquely, not at right angles.
His head is set on with a subtle curve OF
the last few vertebrae of the neck, which
at the shoulders takes another subtle
curve before they become the dorsaI
vertebrate, or backbone, which end, in
their turn, with another curve, forming
the tail. His shoulders slope back
more than those of other quadrupeds,
the scapula, or shoulder blade, being
oblique to the humerour, which in its
turn is oblique to the radius, or upper
part of the foreleg. Again, in the hind
quarters the haunch is set obliquely to
the true thigh; the thigh, at the stiff
Joint, to the upper bone of the hind leg,
which at the hook makes another angie.
The fore and hind quarters form such
large portion of the entire length that a
horse, though lengthy animal from
the front of the chest to the back OF the
haunch, is comparatively very short IN
the actual back, or SADDLE place." Then
his hooks are much bent, and his pas
tern joints are rather long, and again
are set at an angle, succeeded by a
slightly different angle in the firm put
expanding hoof, thus completing the
beautiful mechanism which preserves
the limbs from jar and insures elastic.
ity in every part of the animal destined
to carry weight and undergo rapid and
continue exertion-a combination not
existing in any other quadruped to any
thing like the same degree, and fitting
him precisely for the purpose for which
he was given to man.
The well-shaped, delicate ears OF the
horse are capable of being moved sep
arately in every direction, and every
movement is full of meaning and in
sympathy with the eye. The eye is
prominent, full and large, and it is
placed laterally, so that he can see be-
hind him without turning his head, his
heels being his principal weapon OF de-
tense. His nostrils are large, open and
flexible, and his lips fleshy. though
thin and exquisitely mobile and sensi-
tive. The large, open nostril is essen-
tial to him, as horse breathes solely
and entirely through it, being phys
ically incapable of breathing through
his mouth because a valve in the throat
actually precludes him from doing so.
Hence the mouth of horse without a
bride in it is opened only for purposes
Of eating or biting, but never from ex-
element or exhaus ton, like that OF
most other quadreupeds, except the
Geer species. The lips are, perhaps,
even more characteristic of the horse.
They are his hands as we'll as part of
his mouth, and the horse and others of
his family use them in this way. Every
horseman who has observed his pet
horse picking up small particles Of
food from the palm of his hand must
have noticed the extreme mobility and
1elicacy of touch with which the lips
are endowed.
Truly, the horse is a graceful animal
by nature, and the breeders and train
ers' arts are steadily making him a
more lovely creature to look upon. We
are hearing it said that the advent of
electric power and it's application to all
the purposes of travel are going to abol-
:sh the horse by destroying its utility.
Perhaps 50, as a mere beast of burden.
But as luxury to the eye and means
of locomotion gratifying to all the
senses, the horse will surely survive
and become steadily more beautiful
baltimore Sun.