Virginia gazette. [volume] (Williamsburg, Va.) 1893-192?, 1898-01-01
CHOOSING ARMY HORSES.
a RIGID EXAMINATION PASSED BY
THOSE WHICH JOIN THS CAVALRY.
Uncle sam Never Had Such IN oprcr-
snnity the Present fcr Selecting
Flrs Administered. BLACK and BAY
the Color< Dcsirct-rse Ideal Animal

Flrs Anfmais->Srref. BLACK and BAY
tire ce1or< Dcsirct-rse Ideal Animal
Notwithstanding the decline Of the
horse through the popularity az the
bicycle and elects 10 cars Uncle Sam
must have his full quota Of good cav
airy horses every year, and he rlh
not retire from the business until some
fo-tsie-brasned inventor finds a good
mechanical substitute that viii accom-
plish all that the intelligent br1tes are
credited with. Our cavalry horses
are noted for their achievements on
the plains aid IN battles. and Il would
require some invention possessing an
intelligence little short Of human TO
replace them satisfactorily.
The cavalry service needs about 200
new horses every wear. and prices
varying from S125 20 $3.50 are paid
for these A few years ago these
prices were considered 50 low that the
offers &C fine horses were not very
numerous
But to-day there has been q radical
change inaugursted. and Uncle sam
never had such 81 opportunity for Sc
lectinE fne horses a. his own price.
The price of horse flesh has dropped
TO szch a point that 500 j. now con
sidered a fair sum for some pretty fine
animals. racers IS well as ro8dsters
and work horses. When the quarter
master goes into the field - select his
horses to-day he Is delugei with offers.
and such fne animals. too, There
sre trotters IN whose veins courses the
nobisst blood Of the leading racers Of
. past generation. sleek. well-tcrmed
animals. whose slender. rounded limbs
and intelligent ewes aud gracefully
curved necks betrav their Arabian an
cestrv. aud pedigreed stock vhc-se AXIS
tocratic lineage goes back 70 the days
q tie N0rmaus and Romans.
For the cavalry service certain
type q horse. however. must be selec-
ted. and the claims % others cannot
be listened %, no matter what they
nav be. The animal must be gentle
Ard free from all vicious habits, and a
fair, nimble trot.er. Zach one offered
must pass a rlgid examination before
veterinary experts. y ho test every part
OF the body aud limbs for defects or
biemishes. Even the mouth must be
moderately sensitive. aud not 50 hard
eaed 70 the bit that a rider could not
turn hia without Running into . stone
wall
The color has something 20 do with
the selection White horses have beer
seen In the cavalry service. but as 4
rule they are not allowed there Tbs
objec: il 80 Get a uniform color tha'
viii wear vel, and not require to-
much grooming - make Il look pre-
sentabie. Sorrel. black and bay AZ,
the coiors chiefly desired Every All
nal must be a geiding. and from IF
teen 70 sixteen hands high. and th'
weight ranging somewhere betWesE
$50 and 1880 pounds. Horses unde'
Eve yeas vii not be taken. nor thos'
over eight. The average life % th'
horse III the cavalry service j. hfteei
wears. and % stand the rough an,
fancy riding required q them the,
must be IN the prime Of lie whei
elected and trained.
Next - being perfectly round an,
free from AL defects. the general IL
telligecce aud brizhtness OF the horse
largely decide the officers who choos.
them Tor the service. The ideal cav
airy horse j. q kind. afTectionate AM
nal, bat wIthai 30 intelligent that D,
car al but guess the thoughts al,
wishes Of the rider aud owner. VIE,
the horses are chosen they are sent .
the different forts or . West Point
where rhe soldiers begin q brea'
them IN As one man has full char z
Of each animal the tWo soon bec0m
fast friends. and the horse, II 90 81 IN
telilgent. soon learns - love his mas
ter Sometime the soldiers get choic
animals. and after years Of trainin
ard close association their coIpan
ionship = almost human
There are over 7O0o horses in use i
the United States cavalry, and abou
ten per cent. Of these die or are lis
c2rded each year. To al up this an
ruai gap the quartsr-master and III
assistants make their purchases. se.ec;
ing prOnlscuO1siy al candidates tha
pass the examinations Many Of IA
horses come from the western plain,
and are easily adapted % their ne
life; others come from the large ezs'
ern breeding establishments and fros
the farms; but probably the large'
percentage Of them come from censri
Kentucky. where the strains q bot
thoroughbred and trotting horses hav