Horse

a well known domestic animal allied to the wild ass, the zebra, and the quagga. The ancestor of our horse is not known, but it was probably a native of Central Asia where two species of swift, alert wild asses still exist. All these species are included in the scientific name equus, from which we have equine and equestrian. The horse, taken in this sense, is the only animal that steps on one toe. Its hoofs correspond to the nails of a person's middle toe and finger. The side toes have disappeared or are reduced to small, sliver-like bones, called splints. The use of one toe is regarded as advantageous on smooth, level land like the plains in which the horse naturally lives.

The petrified bones of prehistoric horses have been found in the more recent geologic formations of every continent except Australia. The evolution of the foot of the horse may be traced in these remains. In the specimens from the earlier rocks the front foot has four toes and the rudiment of a fifth; the hind foot has three toes and the rudiment of a fourth. In later fossils these rudiments disappear, leaving four and three complete toes. The next well-marked stage is that of three toes on each foot, the middle toe being larger and longer than the other two; then follow in regular series feet with the side toes just touching the ground, and side toes not touching the ground; then side toes smaller and smaller until we reach the modern horse with but one toe. In this connection it may be remembered that the foot of the ox has two toes on the ground and two short side toes hanging useless.

Some of these fossil horses were no larger than a rabbit, others were of the size of a gazelle. Both South and North America are rich in fossil horses. They have been found in South Carolina, Florida, Texas, Nebraska, Arizona, Kansas, and in the Bad Lands generally; but for some reason American horses became extinct. Our modern horses are all from the Old World. The wild horses of South America and the West are the descendants of horses brought over by the Spanish explorers and the conquerors of Mexico. On his second voyage Columbus brought horses to the West Indies. In 1527 the first horses in what is now the United States landed in Florida. In 1604 French horses were introduced in Acadia. In 1609 English horses were landed at Jamestown. In 1623 Dutch horses were brought to New Amsterdam, New York. The New England colonists introduced horses in 1629.

Among the European breeds to which America is indebted are the Arabian and the Barb for the agile riding horses of the South. The shaggy, tough French Canadian horse is descended from the French Norman of an ancient type, to which we are also under obligations for the magnificent dapple gray draft horse of the present time. The Clydesdale draft horse, a large bay with shaggy fetlocks, is well known in this country. Local strains well known for their merits are the Kentucky-bred horse and the Morgan of Vermont.

In the earliest stages of settlement America had little use for horses. Settlements were made on the seaboard and travel was accomplished by water. The first fields were so full of stumps, and the early roads were so bad and so slow, that oxen were preferable. As the plantations extended, however, and roads and bridle paths were opened, the horse became more and more desirable and necessary. Without the pack horse the country west of the Alleghanies could not have been opened up. Without horses it would have been impracticable to displace the Indians from the Great Plains. The use of improved agricultural machinery and the enormous expansion of farming would not have been possible with the slowgoing ox.

Steam and electricity, however, have come to the rescue of the draft horse. The locomotive now does our long hauling. The stationary engine has supplanted the horse power. The electric motor has relieved the horse from street-car duty. The automobile bids fair to take the place of the dray horse, and with the bicycle is driving the horse out of the livery stables. It is just possible that the day of the horse, like that of the camel, may at some time be of the past; but the time is yet far distant. At present the farms of the United States alone employ 15,000,000 work horses, a greater motor power than that used in all our factories.

Since the siege of 1870, horseflesh has been a popular article of food in Paris. It fetches about half the price of beef. Horse hide makes an excellent leather, suitable for razor strops, shoe uppers, and gloves. A fermented liquor known as koumiss is made from mare's milk. It is the favorite intoxicating beverage of the nomadic Mongolians of Central Asia. Horsehair is used extensively by the upholsterer.

Some interesting statistics are culled from the United States census report. The large cities use from 4,000 to 5,000 horses per 100,000 inhabitants, being one horse for each twenty to twenty-five persons. The smaller the town, the more horses in proportion to the population. There are a million and a half sucking colts in the country. Iowa, Illinois, and Texas have over a million horses each.

The leading horse markets of the United States named in order of importance are St. Louis, Chicago, Kansas City, and Omaha. Other markets of importance are Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Sioux City, St. Paul, St. Joseph, Denver, and Buffalo. In 1908 we exported 19,000 horses and imported a third as many. The following estimate of the number and value of horses was made by Orange Judd Farmer, January, 1909:

Total. . . 19,952,000 $91.02

Total value. . . . . $1,816,074.000

The above estimate is for farms only, the number of horses in the countries named is approximately:

World. . . . . 95,000,000

See Ass; Mule; Zebra; Horse Racing; Glanders; Botfly