Rensselaer Union, Volume 7, Number 5, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 October 1874 — Walk Your Horses. [ARTICLE]

Walk Your Horses.

We frequently' see the above, clause painted over the archways to bridges as a caution against fast driving while crossing the bridge. It is not in this light, however, that we use it on this occasion. It has been customary at our State, district and county fairs to give large premiums for the best running and trotting horses. ’Die object of these premiums is to cultivate the two gaits and improve the usefulness of not only the individual animal, but to improve the race of the animal by the transmission of the trotting and running qualities or abilities from sire to son and from dam to progeny. The idea is a good one, and we approve of it. By this custom the racehorse and the trotter of to-day have been made much superior to the race-horse and trotter of twenty, and ten, and even five years ago. The muscle of the sire and dam, as enlarged and strengthened by practice, as well as the ambitious spirit of the animal, is transmitted to the progeny, and the result is a general improvement of the race of horses. Now of all the useful gaits pjfthe horse a good fast walking gait is the most valuable to the farmer. In almost every place in which a farmer uses a horse the walk is the gait used. In the plow, before the harrow or cultivator, before the wagon, and, indeed, in all uses to which the horse is-put on She farm, the wait is the gait in which he is required to travel." For all teaming purposes, also, on the road, the team horse walks nine miles where lie trots one, and in none of the useful occupations to which he is put is required to run. The walk, then, is really the most universally useful gait. The walk is also as capable of improvement in the individual animal and in the race of horses as is the trotting or running gait, and yet a walking race for horses is a thing seldom heard of at our agricul tural fairs. We think this is a great oversight in the management, and one that will be acknowledged by every farmer in the country. Why not change the practice in this respect, and introduce walking races as well'as trotting, pacing and running races, at our fairs? By so doing there is no doubt the value of our farm as well as roadster horses and carriage horses may be very much enhanced. —Sacramento Record.