Milford chronicle., 1910-01-14
THF LURE OF The ARAB HORSE.

Hence the excited controversy /
which he is always stirring up
Those who have not fallen under
his spell maintain that there IS no
reason in it, while frequently those
who have fall out in attempting to
define what the reason is. That
fact no one denies and Mr.. HOm-
er Davenport, in his interesting book
called MY Quest of the Arabian
Horse" CB. W. Dodge & Co, New
York; presents himself frankly as
one ofthe fascinated. The Obsession
began at the tender age of four, and
his father planted the seed from
which it sprang
Naturally the expedition to Arab
ia was undertaken with enthusiasm
and its hardships endured with for
titude. And the game was royalty
worth the candle. First an Trade
from the Sultan was obtained per
mitting the expectation of six or
eight mares. Then at Aleppo Mr..
Davenport S search for the Anezeh
tribe of Bedouins brought him luck
ilv to the skeikh Akmet Haffez, the
Diplomatic ruler of the desert, from
whom he received as a present the
great war mare Wadduda that no
money could have bought, and by
whom he was introduced to the
Governor of Aleppo. The Cover
nor showed him Haleb, the wonder
full brown stallion known as the
pride of the Desert, a horse that
the Italian government had made
vain efforts to purchase. When
the Governor heard the Akmet
Haffez had given Mr Davenport
Wadduda, he Immediately insisted
on presenting him with the price
less stallion; so thus far getting
Arab horses was found to be as
easy as picking huckleberries Ak
met Huffez conceived such a viO-
lent affection for Mr. Davenport
that the two went through a regu-
lar ceremony that made them, after
the Bedouln usage, brothers; and
this of course simplified the process
of purchasing the best horses at
moderate prices, Akmet going with
them to the desert and personally
supervising the bargaining.
The account Of the expedition is
most entertaining, and the BedOu-
ms vie with their horses for chief
place in the narrative. They are a
most interesting human type, re-
sembling in some respects our own
Indians-warriors and idlers, sip
ping coffee and smoking incessant-
iy, talking of horses and firearms
and priding themselves on being
gentlemen Every motion and
gesture one makes is artistic and he
is well imbued with the innate
sense of politeness which does not
need to be taught He visits all
day long, and until quite late in
the evening; he is liable to get up
at any time in the night and have
coffee, and smoke and talk, and he
is generally in good humor. But
he will not work He has gener-
al air of WEAKNESS. " II he owns
hundred sheep and five camels he
is allowed to maintain a tent and
marry four wives. You may visit
with him for three days with a car
avan of fifty and he will take no
paw; you are his guest. To otte a
tip would be an Insult to the poor
est Bedouin. The women are sell
dom seen, and they tattoo their
faces and paint their lips blue,
which does not enhance their
beauty,
But though they seem to
think little of their women, the Be
douins rate their mares tremendous
ly high. Pedigrees are traced al
most entirely through the maternal
line. All the families are decended
from certain great historic mares.
The expectation of mares has been
forbidden, and Mr.. Davenport had
to get his Trade from the Sultan be-
fore he could ship one to America;
but stations may be sold from the
country at will. The Bedouins
laugh at the way European sell
ects a horse, by looking first at his
feet and ankles. They study the
head, believing that horse shows
even what his legs are made of by
his head, and no horse is ever better
or worse than his head indicates.
But as to the horse himself we shall
let Mr.. Davenport speak:
/ have pressed the Arab horse
into all kinds Of service, and, in
his home on the desert, have seen
him accomplish in the matter Of
weight carrying, tests that would
not have believed he could have