The Dolores star. [volume] (Dolores, Montezuma County, Colo.) 1901-current, 1919-03-07

many OF them gold stripe
6y horses, are being given the
only kind OF honorable dis
charge a horse can receive: sold to
English and other civilians to I'LL the
pressing need in this country's trans
bort system.
We thought, i'm America where thou
nnds of these horses cams from, that
he British army horse led as pre-
eRHous an existence as the machine
Runners in the first line of trenches.
During those irst months of war, when
British army agents were buying
horses In the United States. there were
many who honestly believed the Amer
lean steeds would last about one week
in that inferno OF shell fire.
You should see the American horses
now heing brought to England from
France If you ever believed the life Of
Il horse Mt the front was hundred-to-
one shot that death would come in the
form of Hun shell. BY the hundred
thousand these sleek. well kept. well
fed qUadrupedS are being auctioned
or to eager buyers.
Many We're in France four years;
many were wounded in action, but
We're carefully cared for by the army
veterinuries and bear today the honest
scars of battle rs the memento of the
days when they helped win civlliza-
tons war
one of>the first lots sold went I'M
der the hammer mt Wares Edgewarc
road repository, about the middle of
December.
Here's n horse that deserves the
Victoria Cross the auctioneer shouted
when the first horse. black gelding,
was trotted out. Hes got two wounds
TO his credit and is still going strong"
The gelding vas sold for about $50
american money.
Equine Losses Announced.
Major General Sir w. II. Birkbeck,
director of remounts in the British
nrmy, has Just announced the losses
among the British war horses during
The entire period of the war
During the last four months of
1914" General Eirkheck declared, "the
armies In France lost II per cent of
their horses, or about 3 per cent n
month. That period included the re-
treat from Mons, the first battle of the
Marine. and the first battle of Ypres.
in the following year the losses were
fourteen and half per cent for the
whole twelve months. In 1917 the
losses rose to d per cent. 10 per cent
of which took place during the last
three months of the year. the balance
of the losses being chiefly owing to
the heavy lighting at Viny Ridge,
PasschendaIe. and the beginning of
night bombing"
During the last year of war COM
parativcly few horses We're lost: two
and half per cent being the official
estimate. Among the British CONNER
cal firms something like 20 per cent
Of the horses are always either sick or
resting. as m annual average. while
ihe official Hriash army reports re-
veal the fact that in France, due to
the curefuI attention of the veterin-
aries. the usual average was bit
more than twelve per cent.
Whether Auerica can probably fol-
low the accepted British system of
demobilizin. army horses is grave
question. With the present shortage in
ships md thr pressing needs of Eu-
ropean peoples for fOodstuffs, together
with the mighty job of transporting
General Pershing's army home, 1t is
possible that some horses must needs
be either left behind or sacrificed, to
add somewhat TO the already stagger.
ing debt SE'ra-.
The British people have been told
that in all probability some thousands
of horses and mules in far-away Egypt
will have to he disposed. of In one OF
three ways: repatriation, destruction
or sale.
Oppose Shooting OF Animals.
There is strong sentiment against
shooting the faithful animals. And
there are aumber of practical OBJ
stacles to such n plan. The carcasses
If s25,00O,0OO worth or horsefesh can
not be disposed Of simply by signing an
1rmy order even though Egypt does
afford wide wastes of uninhabitet