Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1908-11-06
Breeds Fine Horses.

Results, it is explained, are just beginning
to show we'll from the incursion OF the Gov
eminent into the horse. breeding field. The
Department of Agriculture, which has been
at work In this line for the past four years,
now issues q report Of tho work ct the two
government stations. One is in Colorado
and the other in Vermont The first was
established in 1904 and the other, while dis
cussed In 1905, was not actually started I'M
I'll 1905.
European governments have paid great
attention to horse breeding for many years.
Germany spends much money on the ma.
tional stud, and France devotes more than
million dollars annually to animal breed
Ing, most of which goes to the horse sta
tons. France has one great central station
and forty or fifty smaller stations through.
out the country in easy reach of the small
farmers and breeders. The result is an i'm
provement In the national standard In horses
and big export business.
England produces many fine horses, espe-
cially heavy draft animals, but the work Is
almost altogether In the hands of private
breeders, and the government spends little
or nothing on It.
In this country there has never been a
standard breed of American horses. There
have been many fine animals produced and
some exported, but the imported stock has
been generally considered the real thing
However, a few years ago the government
awoke to the fact that many of the prize
winning horses In the great shows were
from American stock, and another thing was
notlced-that the Morgan horse, one Of the
standard strains, was dying out. So the
government started with small appropri.
alton, and, as stated, now has two small sta
lions. The farmers Of the States where the
breeding stations are located show an inter-
est In the work, and the States themselves
contribute for portion Of the EXPENSE
From the interest displayed, 1t is regarded
as likely that the work will spread to other
States, and there is said to be no reason why,
in the course OF time, the government stud
In this country should not be the equal In
Its way Of anything abroad.
In the Colorado experiment station this
year there are thirty.fve mares and their
foals. The stallion is Charmon, formerly
known as Glorious Thundercloud, one of
Tom Lawson's four.in'hand team. The
head of the Vermont stud Is Gen. Gates, a
true.bred Morgan and sire of the second
horse 10 the stud, Red Oak.
The Morgan is not race horse strain,
and for that reason was comparatively neg
lected by the breeders and was being OBJ
scured by constant crosses when rescued
BY the department. Justin Morgan, the
progenitor of the line, was foaled In 1850.
Not much is known about his ancestry, but
1t must have included good horses. Justin
Morgan himself was not large and would
scarcely have been noticed were 1t not that
he proved 30 potent In producing good
horses, the strain being dominant wherever
introduced.
The Morgan line had fifty years the start
of the Hambletonlans and Denmarks, the
foundation sires Of the present standard
breds and the American saddle horse. But
| Hambetonian that he was crossed on the
Morgan line, In the hope of producing great
speed. He transmitted speed, and undesir-
able conformation as well, and In the craze
| for speed tho good points Of the Morgans
were almost obllterated.
The standard carriage horse is being pro-
duced now, however, and the aim Of the
government is to set high standard Ia a
light harness horse OF sufficient speed and
great endurance, together with good con.
formation. The effect OF saddle. horse blood
10 the development OF the American carrl-
age horse has been very marked. Some Of
the undesirable qualities OF the saddle strain
I for carriage work are being bred out, and In
the course OF time 1t Is likely that this coun-
try will possess distinctive type of light
harness horse equal TO any In the markets
of the world.