An essay on the manner of improving the breed of horses in America. — Essai sur la manière d'améliorer l'éducation des chevaux en Amerique. English

An essay on the manner of improving the breed of horses in America. — Essai sur la manière d'améliorer l'éducation des chevaux en Amerique. English

Table of contents

Title page

ADVERTISEMENT.

AN ESSAY ON the manner of mending the breed of Horses in America.

CHAPTER I.

CHAPTER II.

CHAPTER III.

CHAPTER IV.

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AN ESSAY ON THE MANNER OF IMPROVING THE BREED OF HORSES IN AMERICA.

PHILADELPHIA. Printed & sold by MOREAU DE SAINT-MERY, Printer & Bookseller, No 84, Corner of Front & Walnut Streets.

October 1795.

ADVERTISEMENT.

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THE observations contained in the following sheets were hastily thrown together for the use of a few friends, without the least intention of committing them to the press. The partiality of friendship, however, conceived them calculated for public utility, and this opinion, joined to the Author's desire of being useful to the United States of America, has induced him to venture at their publication. He is aware that they will derive but little advantage from the stile of a person unaccustomed to writing, and that their passing through the hands of a translator may not have been more favorable to them; but he knows, at the same time, that it is the matter alone which must determine the merits of a work of this sort, and therefore, should that be found worthy the approbation of [Page] his readers, he flatters himself that his diction will easily meet with indulgence.

As his sole object is public utility, the effect of this essay will point out to him whether he ought to continue the subject or not, and his recompence will ever be in proportion to the service he may render the United States.

PHILADELPHIA, 8. Oct. 1795.

AN ESSAY ON the manner of mending the breed of Horses in America.

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CHAPTER I.

Defects of Horses in America; causes of their degeneration; imperfections in the choice of stallions; reflections on the manner of changing the breed.

I HAVE been astonished after an absence of some years from this continent, on which the fate of war has cast me, to see the finest states of America almost destitute of horses and the best breed totally spoiled.

Some of my old friends with whom I have conversed upon this subject, have appeared, like myself, sensible of the inattention of husbandmen to this valuable kind of animals so necessary to our amusement, and useful to commerce and agriculture: knowing my taste and the researches which I have made on this occasion, they have engaged me to make a tour through Pennsylvania and the Jerseys, with a view of enquiring into the causes which have produced such a degeneration, and the following is the result of my observations.

[Page] It appeared to me at first, that after the peace, the husbandmen led away by ideas of acquiring more rapid gains in the cultivation of their corn fields, found the prospects more alluring than any they could promise themselves in training up horses. This truth will appear very plain, if we take a view of the different kinds of culture of America; the chief part of the lands are improving, even those which nature seemed to have destined for meadows only, such are the banks of rivers and others places situated in the same manner; but I conjecture the period is approaching when interest and necessity will change the system of agriculture; I say necessity, because the lands begin to be worn out by continually bearing corn: and interest because animals, and particularly horses, will soon advance to a price beyond all proportions, considering the many wants that the increase of population by emigration from Europe and other natural causes will necessarily occasion.

That little or no attention is paid to the manner of changing the breed of horses; that stallions are often employed, divested of the necessary qualities of origin or shape, and possessed of many hereditary vices which have imperceptibly produced an imperfect and bad race of cattle: finally that horses, and particularly those fit for the saddle, are too well fed and do not take sufficient regular exercise, a fault, the importance of which, I shall make known in the chapter relative to training them up.

It is then from the bad method of mixing the race [Page] from the choice of stallions, and from training them, that all the evils arise. To render these observations more permanent, I wish that those interested in this work, would carefully examine the young horses they may meet with, even among the citizens who speculate in horse-flesh, in order to discover their pedigree: they will readily perceive that the colts are always inferior to their sires, which demonstrates this essential truth that the breed, when neglected, gradually degenerates: hence it is that the model of the beautiful is every where to be found, and that every country has a portion of it, which always diminishes unless united with a portion of similar beauty brought, perhaps, from some remote quarter; and it is this reunion of stranger pedigrees, renewed at every generation, which gives perfection, and renders nature more exalted in the production of her excellence.

Three successive voyages I made to England, convinced me that it is to these principles, the English owe all their success, and not to climate or chance, as some practitioners have insinuated, relying on hearsay, without taking the pains of investigating the matter; but to the scrupulous attention which they have paid to choice of sires and dams, to the improvement of the race in every generation and to the food and exercise. The experience of ages, that ample volume, has proved that they are in the right, as there is no where to be found such fine horses as amongst them, and that wherever the same method and principles have been adopted, whether in Asia or America, the same success has been the consequence.

[Page] To attain their object, they have began to avoid with more caution, that confusion and those shocking mixtures of breed so contrary to the laws of nature.

For that reason, they have distinguished horses into four different classes, by appropriating to each of them a particular employment and suitable character; all the rest distinct from those are to be considered as a corrupt and defective race without any other value than that which may float in the imagination of ignorance or caprice of fancy.

The first extraction is the race horse, a kind particularly adapted to luxury

The second is the hunter, or horse trained up for the chace, a valuable kind which unites force with swiftness, and vigor with spirit.

The third is the chair or coach-horse, so well calculated to draw a light weight with agility, and figure amidst the pride of cavalry.

The fourth is what they call the cart or draft horse, fit only for drawing heavy loads and moving slowly.

The race-horse is the offspring of a Barbary or Arabian horse and an English mare of the first blood.

The hunter is the offspring of a race horse and a mare three quarters blood, but more strongly-limbed than the former.

The chair or coach horse is the offspring of a hunter and a mare still more strongly limbed than that immediately preceding and half a degree less in blood.

The draft or cart horse is the offspring of a coach [Page] horse and one of the strongest mares of York-Shire, Lincoln-Shire, Northampton-Shire, &c. &c. &c.

This distinction of the different classes of horses arises from physical causes and constitution, and we seldom find them employed for any purpose but that for which they are naturally fit, unless they are rendered inadequate by age or accident; as it is well known that a saddle horse requires a different character from that of the draft; and that the same qualities are not adapted to swift or slow motion, or to drawing heavy or light loads.

That big and fleshy-shouldered fit for the draft are unfit for the saddle, for which they should be long and flat to enable them to extend their legs and gain more ground. That short thick hams are not as well designed as long & sinewy, which serve as a spring for hunters or war horses when in surmounting a difficulty they are obliged to lift the rider and their own weight.

We are also convinced from experience that it is not flesh that gives force and vigor, but bones and nerves, for the truth of which the following proof is offered.

A first rate hunter, and one of those large London horses commonly employed to carry coals, were alternately loaden until they dropped under their burthens, the former carried 17 ounces more than the latter, both died by it, when opened, it was perceived that the heart and liver of the hunter were larger and heavier than those of the draft horse. This accounts in [Page] some manner for the mettle and spirit we discover in horses of good pedigree; his shin-bone was more hollow and full of marrow, (which is a vast addition to strength) and his head filled with a greater quantity of brains than those of ordinary horses.

From these observations it is evident that the purchase of a fine horse is not adequate to the purpose of producing a beautiful colt, as it has been proved that it is only by degrees and in process of time, that such perfection is to be attained, and by gradually mending the breed with skill and judgment. The english in this respect have only imitated the Arabians who have for ages preserved that beautiful race of horses which they owe to the attention they have ever observed in succeding generations. An arabian never suffers a mare to be covered but by a stallion of great pedigree, and foreign from that of the mare; on this occasion witnesses are called on who give a subscribed attestation of it, in which the name of both mare and horse is particularly expressed and their genealogy traced to its origin and certified: when the mare foals they call on the same witnesses who make a second attestation in which they give a particular description of the foal: it is this formality which enhances the value of a horse and prevents unequal connections. The result then is that all those who wish for good cattle should pay the utmost attention to the genealogy of both horses and mares, and not from memory or hearsay as is the common practice; but at least by a good certificate from the proprietor [Page] of the stallion, in which even the names of the covered mares should be registered in order to have recourse to it when there is occasion, as it is in England. An individual (for instance) who has a mare to be covered with sufficient qualities and vigour to produce hunters, will look into the pedigree of those horses belonging to the turf (he must endeavour to have the sire one degree, or at least a half above the expected progeny) for one which on account of his strength, figure and shape is likely to combine those qualities in the offspring; after having made his choice he will compare his genealogy with that of the mare, to be certain that there is no alliance between them, if he finds there is, he will not be employed notwithstanding his beauty and popularity; as it is acknowledged that though his offspring may be good as himself, it can never be better, but is likely to be worse; it must therefore be granted that the stallions require foreign mares, and the mares foreign stallions, without attending to which the form is changed the impression defaced and totally spoiled.

By tracing the pedigree, any person concerned will come at a knowledge of the breed, their leading qualities, and defects of shape; for as they inherit the perfections of their sires, they also inherit their imperfections.

Hence, these examples so common in England of individuals undertaking a journey of two or three hundred miles in order to have their mares covered, and to choose proper stallions unconnected in race or origin with their mares.

[Page] It is on this principle that enormous sums are given for suffering rams of good breed and a beautiful kind to pass some nights among the flocks, and that stonehorses are yearly imported from Arabia and Barbary much more at present to preserve the race and prevent them from degenerating, than for the sake of improving their beauty of shape or form.

We must then be convinced that no nation has been more assiduous in her researches on this subject, and in no part of the world has government given it so much encouragement, as in England.

Yet America presents advantages which England cannot boast; it is a rising country, and blest with a soil happily adapted for fine pasture, where fodder is procured at an easier rate than in Europe, and its industrious inhabitants stand in need only of some encouraging examples to exercise those talents and abilities which render them equal, if not superior, to every other people on the face of the globe.

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CHAPTER II.

Of race horses; of horses fit to mix with the breed of mares actually existing in the Northern and middle States; their description; that of the mares; reflections on different errors.

ALTHOUGH it cannot be positively shewn what kind of stallion is fit to be employed in the different States through which I have passed, as that absolutely depends on the kind of mares they have among them, which from the information of a person who has been in the habit of rearing colts daily varies; yet I will venture some general principles.

The first species of horses which I mentioned in the foregoing chapter, called race horses, being adapted neither to the chase nor war and having been often the cause of ruin of the most respectable families in England, cannot, according to good morals be encouraged under a government whose principles are its greatest ornament.

To these observations I will add others not less important, on the vast expence and dangers inseparable from this breed of horses. We cannot without dread conceive what particular care and pains they require: and I expect that many will not be inclined to believe me, when I say that there is not through all England any natural pasture considered good [Page] enough for them; they have carried their extravagance so far as to pave entire pasture grounds, in order to render the grass (forcing, in its growth, a passage through the spaces between the stones) more fine and delicate: that they are particular in the choice of the grass intended for their hay, through a fear say the sportsmen (as they must assign some reason in excuse of their folly) that the common hay, though excellent, should affect their breath; that there is no kind of grain, be it ever so dear, too good for their nourishment: each of these animals has three or four stable grooms to attend them, (at the expence of five or six guineas per month, at least,) who have no other business than to rub, walk and physic them; yet in spite of all these attentions, the least neglect, either in watering them in too warm or too cold a state, in covering them too much or too litlte, or leading them too soon to their stables after excercise, are the cause of fluxions, rheums and other maladies which a man of sense is ashamed to enter into the minutioe of, or describe on account of their puerility.

If we still add to their wretched details the cares of shoeing, the saddles, the bridles which must be made in a particular manner, the uneasiness and anxiety, of the proprietor about the horse which might either make his fortune or prove his ruin, the fear that bad nourishment through fraud or cunning be given to him when preparing for the course, and especially that the stable groom be bribed, are sufficient reasons to justify the prudent measures adopted in many States [Page] of this Continent by the introduction of a law which forbids such pursuits.

This being allowed, it is then to the second class of horses to which I would give the preference; this horse destined for the chase, or bunter, has all the qualities that a reasonable speculator and well wisher of his country can desire; his beauty is perfect, the mode of training him simple, and he demands no other attention than that which good sense and reason require, in peace he contributes to the pleasure of his owner, and in war he defends and often preserves the life of his rider by his spirit and swiftness; should he be rendered, from his long services unfit for the saddle, his size and vigour make him a fine coachhorse. In short, under every consideration, he always answers the main purpose which we should propose to ourselves, that of profit and pleasure.

To succeed in propagating this valuable species of horses in America we must first of all be particular in the choice of stallions:

1o. Their breed which should be adapted to the kind of mares actually existing in this continent.

2o. Their make.

3o. Their leading character.

4o. The mares most suitable on this continent.

5o, The mode of training them.

I shall only speak in this chapter on the four first points, the fifth will most naturally be treated of head of pastures and training up horses.

The stallions designed to get hunters ought to be [Page] of good race, well known for the beautiful breed it has produced without having ever degenerated; I would not at first wish for more than half blood, but very pure, for it is not the fineness of the blood which alone is required, but its constant and good quality, which is only to be obtained gradually and in course of time.

I cannot quit this subject without noticing an error which many in this continent fall into. The generality of those who rear horses, reply when you propose any questions relative to the genealogy of their cattle, that they are of the first breed, or full blood if you ask them how they know that, they answer that the sire was imported from England, and therefore conclude that he must be of the first race.

Without relying on the ingenuity of such reasoning I shall only say that even in England, there is but a very small number of horses really full blooded, as they proceed, as we have described in the first Chapter, from the Arabian horse, and consequently the hunter which is only descended from the race-horse is frequently no more than three quarters blood, the breed being always on the decline, and yet I do not mean to speak here of any but the first kind of hunters, which is purchased there, when they carry a great weight, at four, or five hundred guineas, I do not believe that many of that class have been imported here from England since the peace; the most part, which I have seen, being two degrees and more removed from it, and purchased in York-shire at, from a hundred to [Page] hundred and thirty guineas. I do not pretend to insinuate by this that last race is bad, I even believe when it is of good blood and well chosen, that it is preferable with respect to the first degree, if blended with the blood actually existing in Northern States; but it is to make my readers sensible of the abuse of words and the errors which often result from the routine of custom; for it is not a difficult task to prove that in Virginia especially there are some horses of better blood than those sometimes imported from England. When the pedigree of the stallion is ascertained, that he is free from any hereditary defects, such as a short breath, spavin curbs and sore eyes; his figure, proportion, strength and character should be examined, the kind of horses which I would wish to see generally used, is the lofty stout horse, light but not gigantic, a fine figure, with a small square head, short ears, a bold front, a brown full eye with little black spots, very open and large nostrils, a large main docked; a middling broad breast, a long and flat shoulder, occupying a great space from the lower part to the extremity of the withers, which ought to be [...]minent and very high; the forelegs thick and broad from the shoulder to the knees, and from the knees to the joints next to the foot, lean and flat; the sinews especially very detached from the bone which ought to be large to prevent them from occupying the place of the joint of the knees; the joints should be thick and short, which always indicate strength; the feet of a fine make, neither too close behind nor [Page] too open; the hoofs should be greyish, the white being subject to bruises; his hind-legs should keep pace with his fore-legs; the back-bone horizontal to his loins; the hips very broad and almost square; the buttocks large and fleshy; the hams broad and very brawny: It is on this construction that the perfect equilibrium of this fine animal depends; it is to be observed when he walks or trots, that he should carry his fore-feet in a perpendicular direction before him without turning them either in or out, or rising them too high, which makes him lose time and hinders him from gaining ground▪ the hind feet should exactly replace the fore, for if they spread, it makes him over-reach himself, that is to say, it occasions him to strike his hinder hoofs against his fore-heels, which must either hurt him or injure his shoes; when on the contrary he drives his fore-feet backward, his trot becomes short, this fault of a horse who does not extend his limbs, is not however so inconvenient as the former; during the action of trotting, the reins should be immoveable.

The mares should be chosen from among those which have the necessary qualities for breeding, as the small breed without height bone, or bulk are unfit for that porpose, they should be as free as possible from hereditary defects and resemble the stallion having a long body, very large loins, but particularly round ribs are indispensably necessary to give room to the increasing embryo to swell into perfection without [Page] any danger of its parts being pressed, confined, which is always very hurtful.

I know it will be mentioned that small mares have produced large horses, but without entering into a learned discussion on this caprice of nature, I shall ask if it be reasonable to hazard what is sure to be obtained by proceeding on good grounds.

As there are few horses in which every perfection is combined as before mentioned, after having matched the sire and dam in the best possible manner, we should examine their leading qualities, particularly those of the mares; for instance, in the Northern States they are generally cold, heavy, inanimate, and phlegmatic, but kind and tractable; we ought therefore to introduce into their blood more action and animation: consequently the stallion whom we have described, could not have too much sire even an extreme liveliness would be sufficiently tempered by the coldness of the mare. If however in an opposite case (for there is no rule without exception, and I only mean to speak here of mares in general) the mare be already high-mettled, she will require but a moderate stallion, because it is as disagreeable to have a slow heavy horse which the rider must continually goad, as it is troublesome to be possessed of one too lively: for such worry us without any advantage, and there is no remedy for the great fatigue they occasion. It results, then from these principles that we must carefully avoid uniting two fiery and mettlesome constitutions as we thereby run the risk of a violent and unmanageable [Page] breed, which are not only unfit for any sort of business, but even become vicious if treated a little contrary to their stubborn nature. This is not the case in the union of two cold dull tempers which produce a slow heavy race

I have here unfortunately to combat two powerful enemies, custom and opinion, but reflexion and especially experience will evince the truth of these principles; and they who will desist from making such inconsiderate connections, and use particular strictness in the choice of both sires and dams, not only as to figure, strenght and proportions, but even, in a very peculiar manner, to their hereditary vices and marked qualities, will indubitably benefit much more by the consequences, than those who follow no other direction than their old routine, as if they prefered light to darkness, in suffering indiscriminately good and bad stallions to cover all their mares very regularly every year, and often using for this purpose some neighbouring horse or travelling stallion harrassed from his employment and going from place to place, and whose defects or pedigree they are seldom acquainted with: or others who, from ideas of greater skill, cover draft mares with horses of the first breed; or still giving into a greater error, seek in sire and dam the same natural and acquired qualities, through the hope of a superior offspring; though it is proved from keen and frequent observation that the breed of horse and mare nearly equal, has been always degenerate and of less worth than even that of the worst connection.

[Page] It is to such ignorance, that America is indebted for the number of horses every where to be met with, a race altogether deficient in figure, size, strength agility, character or value, because they are neither coach, riding, nor cart horses. Nevertheless, year after year, these animals multiply and consume vast a quantity of fodder, which certainly could be otherwise used to much more advantage. Those then, I again say, who on the contrary will act methodically by gradually introducing into every generation, a wholesome constitution and a new blood, half a degree superior to that of the existing race, will blend contrasting qualities, reject every stallion infected with any hereditary imperfections, whether in figure or character, and become the possessors of a fine race of horses, which will amply compensate for the care and pains they shall have taken.

I cannot conclude this chapter without making mention of another very great abuse relative to the great number of mares which are daily covered by the same stallion: it is to this vicious custom we owe the numerous race of sickly horses, and those mares which either produce abortives, or bring forth nothing; a horse in his most flourishing state of vigour should cover but once a day, if we wish for a strong and well conditioned race of cattle; and above all, we should never make use of compositions, such as cordials and other drugs.

Though horses be in a state of engendering at two years and a half old, we should not permit the draft [Page] horse the use of mares until he is four, nor fine cattle until they are five, because horses of pedigree take a longer time to be formed; the mares, like all other females, being sooner ripe than the males, may be employed to breed a year earlier.

But avarice or impatience, so often acting in opposition to reason, will not easily submit to this rule; therefore, I only address myself to those who conceive their own interest and wish that of their country.

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CHAPTER III.

The period for covering mares. Reflections on that subject. Treatment of mares after they have conceived. Time of their foaling. Remarks. Inconvenience of covering them again as soon as they have brought forth. Impropriety of making them bear every year. Time of weaning the foals.

AFTER having been made acquainted with the necessity and mode of crossing the race for the purpose of giving existence to a fine vigorous breed; I should speak of the manner of treating mares designed for breeders.

The first question which naturally occurs is, to know what time is most proper for covering mares? When they are covered too soon, we run the risque of seeing them bring forth before the grass attains its growth and acquires substance enough to yield them and their foals ample nourishment; this occasions them to be supplied with dry fodder which, as not having qualities sufficiently nutritive, prevents in a great degree the increase, and injures the quality of their milk: for nobody is ignorant that the milk extracts and imparts the good and bad substance of the nutriment they (the breeders) receive. On the other hand, when they are covered too late, the danger is still greater: the foal being brought forth at a time, [Page] when the all reviving sun is beginning to decline, the days to shorten, the nights to lenghten, the grass to decrease and become weak and flaggy, the rains to fall, the fogs to rise, all which are so extremely prejudicial to the tender production, that not having time to acquire sufficient strength before the approach of winter, either perishes or drags on a sickly existence.

Yet as vegetation does not take place every where at the same time; as in the Southern states, it commonly takes the lead of the Northern, by three weeks and even a month, the same period cannot be decided on for both; we must then necessarily consult the climate under which we live; so I only speak of the middle and Northern states.

I think the ten last days of april, and the twenty first days of may would be the most proper season, recommending however those who live in the most Northern parts, a later rather than an earlier period: mares being in foal eleven months and more, they shall bring forth in the course of april which is the desirable time when the sun arrives to a certain degree of heat, and vegetation being already advanced, they will find in the rich pastures a wholesome and plentiful nutriment; not only for their own substance, but even an abundant superfluity for that of their foals whose vigor and growth depend on this early season.

As there are no persons skill in horses flesh, who are acquainted not with the exterior signs which indicate a mare's desire, I shall not dwell, on this subject: [Page] I will simply say that eight days after the mare has been covered, that is to say the ninth day, the stallion must, with particular attention, be presented to her again. If she refuses him, she is then supposed to have conceived; it is nevertheless, proper to repeat the proof a second time, nine days after the first trial. I will not here omit an opinion which has generally prevailed among those who rear horses; that a mare cannot conceive when she has been covered without having shewn some propensity to it, even against her will, and in spite of the most powerfull and violent opposition on her part. Without presuming to decide on this point, and respecting prejudices, like every other reasonable man, I shall be content in assuring that having been impressed with such ideas, I have not been reclaimed from my error, till after reiterated experience to the contrary, and I could cite as an instance of this assertion, an infinite number of horses who own their existence but to force and violence.

As for me, who have no doubt of this matter, I will never hesitate on such an occasion, if one of my mares to the end of the season, had constantly refused a stallion, in spite of all the precaution used in a similar case, to make her accept him by force, rather than run the hazard of her producing a foal when the season would be too far advanced or of losing a year.

The treatment of mares after having conceived, should be such as they must receive it according to their different classes. A mare of pedigree, designed [Page] to produce a breed for the saddle, after having refused the stallion twice, at different times, as we have before made mention of, and supposed to have conceived (which however is not always the case, though appearances may be very strong) should be sent to grass during the whole season, without any other precaution than that the pasture be good and abundant, observing only, that no gelding horse, or colt, be either near her or with her, during the first week of her conception.

The more common mares, fit for the saddle or agriculture, should be continued at their ordinary labour, with gentleness and moderation, without any apprehension of the least danger, unless from hard work or ill treatment, requiring only some attention in the diminution of their toil, some weeks before they foal. Their labour, far from being hurtful, as some have imagined, is on the contrary very salutary, and it is even remarked on this occasion, that the mares employed at country work very seldom produce abortives, while those which are spared and remain inactive, sometimes experience this accident.

We now come to the crisis when the mare should bring forth; on this occasion, nature appears to act with admirable wisdom and foresight, seemingly sensible of the necessity of doing all that is necessary for preserving the existence of animals incapable of helping themselves; the mare using neither efforts nor violent exertion. It does not happen upon the most certain calculation, that one in a hundred dies in this situation, [Page] and which is more astonishing, when by chance the mare experiences some difficulties, she or the foal (their is scarcely no other alternative) falls a victim, which leaves no doubt, but that it proceeds from a defect in the make; in either case, this accident is very grievous; but if the foal survives, in the course of a few days, it will perish for want of nourishment; experience, in multiplied instances, having proved it almost an impossibility, in spite of all the stratagems which have been used, to make strange mares adopt these orphan foals. This repugnance and cruelty so little known amongst animals, can only be attributed to the rare instance of this species producing two foals at a time.

Many on such occasions, have endeavoured to rear them by the hand, and have even succeeded, but the trouble and expense attending it are only undertaken by those, who make it rather an object of pleasure and amusement than of speculation.

To return to the business of the mares having brought forth without danger or difficulty, which happens nine times out of ten during the night; it becomes necessary to render her situation as secure as possible, from any accident befalling her or the foal; and if we only remark, in the course of a year, how many foals are lost in fens, and drowned in rivers, we must perceive the necessity of this precaution, as these accidents being always the fruits of inadvertence or want of attention. It is necessary to observe that it is proper some days before the mare brings forth, to confine [Page] her to a certain regimen, by administering a certain quantity of food, in order to avoid overloading her intestines and thereby retarding her delivery, which never happens by taking this precaution.

The mare after foaling, having been placed with her foal in the best pasture, (of which we reserve to speak after), the first attention should be, if it is the first time the mare has suckled a foal, to observe the quality of her milk and whether she has plenty of it. Every mare is not equally fit for suckling; some, from a bad constitution are subject to an obstruction of the vessels; others, because the secretions are not well performed, which is easily perceived the first days. The mare being now supposed in a rich meadow, she should have large and full dugs, so as never to leave the foal to want subsistance, for then instead of growing and collecting strength, it will visibly languish and decline. If this inconvenience happens, we should endeavour to encrease the milk by facilitating the secretions, (a) by supplying some other aliments, besides grass, which are more consistent in the stomach, such as the meal of coarse beans, oats, and malt, made into a kind of dough with warm water and given twice a day to the mare, either in the stable [Page] or pasture. This mode of treatment must be continued for seven or eight days, at the end of which, they generally perceive the good effects of it; but under every consideration, when any inconvenience arises, the best mode of proceeding is to wean the foal very early, the mare being first considered as improper for suckling, and such as are, I would advise those who rear horses never to employ in this business.

The adopted custom is to cover mares the fifth day after they have foaled, from a persuasion as some remark, that they will conceive more certainly; others think, that their milk will be thereby increased; on these different opinions very trifling in themselves, I shall only make some observations.

From a supposition that a mare may bring forth in the proper season, that is to say, in the course of April, it is certain you run a risque, in suffering her to be covered immediately, of her foaling in the month of March, in the following year, which will bring on the inconvenience we have above mentioned, of introducing a tender breed in the cold wet season, without pasture, and obliging you to have recourse to dry fodder, so contrary then to the animal system. It is therefore much more reasonable, when it is resolved upon that a mare should perform this duty, to fix (as near as possible) on the time we have pointed out. The greatest part of the mares take the stallion the 5th, 9th, 15th, 21st, and 27th, day after their delivery, so the two last periods appear to me the most eligible, from an idea that the mare should not bring forth too late, [Page] which should be considered; for in this case the first periods would be seasonable; it being well understood, that the mare shewing the desire of conception, we should always present her the stallion of second time, eight days after, as we have explained.

Before I quit this subject, I cannot help saying a few words on the method almost universally adopted of occasioning mares to bear every year without interruption, until they being worn out, become barren, often, even before the time allotted them by nature.

When we consider the portion of nourishment necessary not only for the existence of the embrio, but even for that of the tender foal, just ushered into life; I think that reason and justice avow, that the dam has need of refreshment to repair her debilitated frame, and recall her prestine vigour.

The fear, without doubt, of losing a year, an object ill understood and extremely inimical to prosperity, will still render numbers deaf to the voice of reason, who flatter themselves that their mares will produce foals every year without interruption, equal in force and strength, to those whose dams shall have enjoyed the period of necessary repose. They are then either egregiously mistaken or blind to their errors; general observation having demonstrated that this rapid succession of foals without intermission, degenerates in proportion as the principle of generation diminishes in the mare, an interval of one year, every three or four years, is then absolutely a necessary repose, and sometimes the true source of fecundity in the dam.

[Page] This naturally reads us to examine at what time we should wean the foals.

Three principal objects should on this occasion be first considered before we conclude on this separation.

1st. If the mare has brought forth early in the season?

2d. If she has been covered immediately after, or if she is destined to repose that year?

3d. If the foal in its growth, has made a rapid progress, or on the contrary, remains poor and week?

For instance, when a mare has foaled at an early period, when she has been covered and supposed to have conceived, and that her foal has acquired as much strength as can be expected at his age; he ought to be taken from the dam the instant the grass begins to grow, and the abundance of her milk to decrease; this separation being supported by a truth which cannot be called in question, which is, that the longer the foal is suffered to suck and exhaust the dam, that is considered to have conceived, the more the foetus is deprived of that portion of nutriment, which is designed for it. The milk at this crisis, should take another course, and contribute to assist the new production, for to suckle and create, is to do too much at the same time. This incontestable principle of animal oeconomy, is too evident to demand any further explanation.

On another supposition that a mare should have produced late in the season, or she had not been covered, or the foal brought forth too late in the season, demands a fostering hand to increase and accelerate its [Page] growth by every possible means in order to enable it to endure the rigours of winter; it is then necessary to leave it with its dam, and take the necessary precautions, as the grass diminishes, to supply it with hay of the best quality.

But as all these suppositions depend on variety of infinite circumstances, the result is, that the week and even month of weaning, cannot be invariably fixed; since, from these causes, we are obliged to do it at the commencement of winter, as also to prolong the time till spring, which is absolutely left to the understanding and care of those who rear colts. Moreover let the mode of treatment be as it may, which circumstances oblige you to adopt, this separation, which is sometimes attended with difficulty, is always without danger, if the precautions we have already pointed out respecting the seasons and the condition of the dam and foal, are observed

[Page]

CHAPTER IV.

Essential points which constitute a good mode of rearing horses. Observations on pastures and meadows. The proper mode of improving meadows. Remarks on this subject. What grain is best for the nourishment of foals. Exercise. Recapitulation.

J have endeavoured to follow as much as possible in the preceding chapter, the ever wise and regular path of nature, from the moment of the mares conception until the period of her separation with her foal. As soon as the weaning has taken place, the chief points to be examined for establishing the basis of a proper methode of training up horses, are:

1st. The kind of horses or colts.

2d. Their nutriment.

3d. The soil on which the colts are reared.

4h. The exercise which they should take.

If all those different objects have not been considered, whatever be the first events in the creation of the animal, it is only advancing half-way through the business; therefore the choice of soil and pasture should be first attended to.

The experience of all ages and times has demonstrated, that horses reared in moist and marshy meadows, never thrive; they find the grass thereon sour and by no means, nourishing, and loaden with a heavy dew every morning and evening, which makes it watry; [Page] moreover this damp, thick and often putrid air, which horses incessantely breath, relaxes their muscles, diminishes their activity, and renders them dull and sluggish, subject to various disorders, particularly those which affect the eyes and legs.

Pasturage in forests is not better; the little light which penetrates the recesses, renders the grass less nutritive and its quality at least indifferent; horses, it is true, feed on it, but only for want of better; the first care is to fill the stomach; but if in forests they find, here and there, some open spots exposed to the light of day, they dwell on them with much enjoyment, allured by herbage more nutritious and wholesome, like that growing on the borders, which they are fond of.

This can be equally applied even to meadows; we learn from the latest observations, that in a natural meadow situate in low marshy soil, amongst forty eight or fifty sorts of grass, ten, at most, are good, the rest being useless, hurtful or dangerous; that even among these ten, few arrive to any degree of maturity, which renders the fodder sour and of bad quality. The reason of it is that the seed of these different kinds of herbage is almost drowned from constant wet, and the sun not acting sufficiently on them, they cannot ripen, nor come to any perfection.

Meadows directly exposed to the North, which receive little or no benefit from the all-cheering rays of the sun, yield hay like that of marshy grounds; not that the same kind of meadows produce the same kind of grass, but because their juices have [Page] become sour, not having attained the necessary degree of maturity.

The grass on plains has never the relish nor nutrition of that growing on hillocks, hills and mountains; in proportion to the ascension of height, the grass lessens in growth, but improves both in fragance and fineness, like the air which we find more pure and rarefied, the higher we ascend.

The grass of high grounds is more nourishing, but less productive; which proves this grand principle that light and air is the soul of vegetation, and heat the perfection of it.

The qualities then to be sought in pastures and meadows, are: 1st. Their situation, 2d. Their soil, 3d. The sort of grass they produce.

The best meadows are those which are situate on a gently sloping declivity, whose soil is good, and lying open on every side to receive moisture: the best meadows, as to an exposed situation, are those that enjoy the first rays of the rising sun, and a little of his noon-tide beams: next, are those under the ripening influence of his meridian splendor,

The best as to pasture, yield but one kind of grass, and are consequently artificial meadows.

One great inconvenience in natural meadows for rearing horses, is, not only to be generally situated in low grounds, but even to produce many sorts of grass.

Here follows on this subject what the celebrated ABBOT ROZIER remarks in his treatise on agriculture; [Page] we have copied it word for word; let us hear what he says:

‘It is proved that no two kinds of grass whatsoever, strictly speaking, florish, advance to maturity, or acquire the same power of equal vegetation, in the same period, whence it necessarily happens in the first and second case, that one part of grass is ripe, and the other not, which obliges us to retard the mowing. We may conclude from this mixture, that one kind is profitable by being just ripe, the other unprofitable by being too much so; hence we shall only benefit by that crop which is saved in time. As to the inequality of the force of vegetation, this is where the evil is still the greatest. It is according to the order of nature that the strongest should destroy the veakest. One plant for example has a power of vegetation superior to a neighbouring plant in the same degree of progression as 10 is above 4. It follows that the seeds of those plants sown at the same times, will vegetate a little more equally, in point of time, during the first year, because they will find all their roots to extend, but by little and little the most active will surpass the most feeble, both will suffer by it, until in the end the most vigorous flourishes, and succeeds in destroying the other.’

What can we conclude from these great truths? (I beg to observe that I speak here in general); That this continent who wish to succed in rearing horses, should proq the custom of using bad pastures situate in an unwholesome soil and low grounds.

[Page] It is an error to think that such meadows are a saving in agriculture, when it is proved that artificial meadows sown with Thymoty, Clover, or Luzerne produce four times as much as the natural uncultivated, besides the advantage of having fodder of good quality.

We cannot then suppose that a spontaneous growth of grass springing up in valleys indifferently cleared, can be considered as a proper pasture.

The ease with which we abandon a soil as soon as it ceases to produce naturally, the repugnance we feel to be at, any expence, in restoring it by the assistance of art, proceed from a mistaken notion of greater advantage by going back into the country to make new purchases; I think this in every respect a wrong consideration. Though we think well of crying up the fine soil in the back territories, offered for sale at a low price. &c. all that cannot change the nature of things; sea ports, opulent Cities already established, rivers on which different commodities are transported thither, will always continue the same.

Thus well cultivated grounds situate near great markets will be ever of much value. Speculation on back lands is unquestionably proper, but I conceive that many are mistaken about the period of their being occupied.

This is enough on the subject, perhaps, too much; for can these observations prevail upon the empire of custom, which tyrannizes in such a manner over the understanding of men, that they often deny even [Page] the force of evidence, if required to assign their motives for this obstinacy? Habit gives rise to it, the want of penetration fosters it, and suspicion, which plans and systems superficially considered have inspired, perpetuates it.

But to return to my subject after being assured that we have pastures well situated, which will produce good grass during the summer, and meadows which will supply hay of good quality for the winter, and that both are wholesome and well moistered with springs, it becomes necessary to examine the kinds of grain which agree best with foals in the different periods of rearing them. Opinions are often divided between Oats, Barley, and Wheat.

It has been frequently said, that Oats though acknowledged to be the best grain for horses, would be dangerous, particularly at the time of their being weaned, when their optic nerves are so extremely weak, that the efforts used in [...] frequently occasion sore eyes and sometimes ever the [...] of this organ. As nothing therein has yet been proved, which, to the present moment, is more than conjecture; as the pretended accidents occasioned by oats, might as well have proceeded from hereditary defects in the sire or dam, or rather from unwholesome pasture; permitting every one to enjoy his own opinion, we only recommend the simple use of oat-meal until the colt is three years old.

Bran may be used, mixed with more substantial grain, not having in itself sufficient nutriment, like straw which is more proper to fill than to nourish.

[Page] Barley and wheat reduced to meal, surpass all other grain, as the most restorative either for man or beast.

As we perceive the different kinds of grain to bear different prices; the species of horses to be reared, as mentioned at the head of this chapter, should be known previous to their treatment, since it would be absurd to feed cattle, whose provender and rearing, would be more than double of their value.

To these different sorts of grain, should be added certain plants the most proper to be recommended, and which it is to be lamented, are not made sufficient use of; such as large beans, radishes, and carrots. These last, particularly merit a preference to all the rest, for their excellent properties, uniting the advantages of delighting in a light sandy soil, (unlike those deeplyrooted plants which exhaust the surface of the earth), and consequently do not injure the corn which is sown after them.

Carrots yield a wholesome and juicy nourishment; the horses which make use of them, are always sat, have sleek sides, and are able to undergo the greatest fatigue. They improve the quality and encrease the quantity of the milk of mares, who suckle during the winter. The foals when used to carrots become extremely fond of them; they are excellent for horses harrassed by hard running, facilitate the perspiration and restore, by removing every obstruction, the circulation of the blood, being extremely diuretic and opening.

Mr. Billing, an English farmer, of the county of [Page] Norfolk (see his memoirs) to whom England is totally indebted for the extensive culture of this plant, observes that two loads of carrots are equal to a cart load of hay; that the frequent use of them among his cattle has tended very much to improve them in beauty and health, and recommends them to all those who rear horses. I should also add in this respect, that all the skillfull husbandmen I have met with in England, have extolled to the skies the cultivation of this plant.

If the quality of the aliments, the pureness of the air, the situation of the soil are necessary helps towards rearing horses, exercise is, by no means, less so.

Exercise promotes the perspiration, regulates the humours, strengthens and supples the nerves, prevents any obstruction of the vessels, sharpens the appetite, and excites the free circulation of the blood.

Inaction, on the contrary, stiffens the muscles, deprives them of action, thickens the mass of humours, corrupts them, and causes a stagnation of the blood.

The necessity of motion in the animal mechanism is too well known to require my dwelling on it.

The horse by nature and make appears to have been formed for action; if we minutely examine him, at his quitting the stable, where he appeared the moment before dull and heavy, soon after we perceive that a sudden change takes place in him; his eyes become lively, his neck stretches, his tail rises, his nostrils open, he snorts, he neighs, and by every motion, endeavours to express his joy and satisfaction.

The repose and too long continuance of horses in [Page] stables, is in my opinion, one of the greatest errors which I have generally remarked among those who rear horses; the stallions, in particular, as soon as the season of covering is over, are unmercifully shut up in dark confined stables, which are often infected; there they commonly remain till the following spring, during which time they scarcely water them, or clean their gloomy abodes; and what is still more unlucky, it is there they are fed, at discretion, without any regard to their inactive state, so that they become so unwieldy and stiff, that it is with difficulty they can move, and it is a chance if their legs be not swelled, their feet chapped, and sinking under every infirmity.

Exercise should be proportioned to the age, condition, and nourishment of the horse; it ought to be regular, proper, and moderate. All stallions, saddle horses, and others kept in stables (we do not mean to speak of common waggon or country horses) should be rode every day for two or three miles; hunters, four or five; a pace for the first half hour is best, then a trot, and afterwards a gallop, according to the horse's quality; this gradation is necessary to give the horse time to evacuate before he gets into a rapid course; nothing being more unsafe than to ride him hard, as ignorant and ill-inclined grooms do, just after he leaves the stable, when the stomach and intestines are overloaded with aliments.

During the winter it is proper to keep the cattle covered, in order, that the transition from heat to cold, should not prevent the perspiration, which is the common cause of the generality of diseases.

[Page] Exercise (which cannot be too often repeated) is our first care after food, it is the source whence spring the strength, health, vigour, and excellence of a horse.

To recapitulate what has been said in the course of this little work, which is already too prolix for the proposed plan; I shall conclude by exhorting all those who rear horses, never to depart from these principles; they should constantly have it in view to encrease the size of the bones, the strength of the nerves, and renew the blood. The bones are the basis, the stay, the prop which support the animal frame; the nerves are the springs of it; the blood is the agent which moves it with force, regenerates and revives it. But the reverse of all this, must absolutely be the general practice of those, whose main scope is to diminish the bones and increase the flesh, in rearing flocks and herds.

I also recommend a more particular attention to the quality than the quantity of food; it is to the juices, succulent and nutritive parts of the former, that the colt is indebted for its growing vigour, and the free display of its strengthening limbs, and afterwards, healthful exercise will improve and perfect the animal.

I repeat that one must be convinced, that twentyfive pounds of good hay gives more nourishment than forty pounds of indifferent, by reason that all the horse eats of it is beneficial, none of it being useless or prejudicial.

I will add, that water, that great deluter, so necessary to existence, which facilitates all the functions of the [Page] body, ought to be principally chosen, as much for its good qualities as for its temperance. That of springs and wells it is in general too raw and cold; the preference should be given to river or pond water.

Never exhaust nature, she brings on an immature old age; it is repose that renews her, and by continually studying and observing her laws, she will, in the end, discover her secrets.

In short, it is only step by step, by degrees, and succession of time, by adding some of the best improvements to what is already in our possession, that we succeed in meliorating plants and animals; and that we augment and embellish nature.—Patience and perseverance are the most infallible means of insuring success.

THE END.

Notes

(a)

Willing to avoid in this work all abstract dissertations, I refer such of my readers who would enter into the secrets of nature, to the sublime digressions of the celebrated authors of the age, who have treated on animal oeconomy.

↵

Information about this book

Title statement

An essay on the manner of improving the breed of horses in America.Essai sur la manière d'améliorer l'éducation des chevaux en Amerique. English

Moreau de Saint-Méry, M. L. E. (Médéric Louis Elie), 1750-1819.

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Text Creation Partnership,

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Ann Arbor, MI :

Date

2005-12.

ID [DLPS]

N22080

ID [TCP]

N22080

ID [STC]

Evans 29109

ID [NOTIS]

APY4073

ID [IMAGE-SET]

29109

ID [EVANS-CITATION]

99031201

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Early American Imprints, 1639-1800 ; no. 29109.

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(Evans-TCP ; no. N22080)

Transcribed from: (Readex Archive of Americana ; Early American Imprints, series I ; image set 29109)

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— An essay on the manner of improving the breed of horses in America., Essai sur la manière d'améliorer l'éducation des chevaux en Amerique. English, Moreau de Saint-Méry, M. L. E. (Médéric Louis Elie), 1750-1819., Collot, Georges-Henri-Victor, 1750-1805..

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iv, 39, [1] p. ; (8vo)

Printed & sold by Moreau de Saint-Mery, printer & bookseller, no. 84, corner of Front & Walnut Streets.,. Philadelphia. :: October 1795.. (Translation of M. L. E. Moreau de Saint-Méry's Essai sur la manière d'améliorer l'éducation des chevaux en Améerique, which is also sometimes attributed to Georges-Henri-Victor Collot.)

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