القرن التاسع عشر ، رقم ١٨٢، أبريل ١٨٩٢ [ظ‎‎٨‎٨] (٢٤٤/١٨١)

'666
THE NINETEENTH
April
with them, the chicos leading them anywhere with their whips round
the horses' necks. All the time I was in the country I only saw one
animal attempt to kick viciously, and she was an old Lippitzaner mare
known to be untrustworthy.
Attached to these long loose houses are stables for the chicos'
riding horses, and saddle and sleeping rooms for the men. Everything
is done with the greatest system; the animals are groomed every morn
ing, tied while eating their corn, and those that eat quickly or
those that eat slowly or require extra feeding are put together; in
fact, the character of each animal is studied and known. With each
lot a donkey is kept to accustom them to donkeys, of which there
are many in the country, and they all have three hours' exercise a
day in the large yards in winter, when the snow renders exercise in
the plains impossible, during one hour of which they are made to
trot.
The young horses were especially good, and I should say that an
improvement in the horses is taking place each year from the im
mense care that is taken with the breeding.
With regard to the mares, I was greatly struck with their apparent
soundness, all having clean hard legs measuring well below the knee,
and good feet, all, of course, unshod; and I cannot recall a mare in
which any unsoundness was visible. The pleasant Hungarian officer
who accompanied me all the time, and whose knowledge of the indi
viduality of each animal was marvellous, told me that they only breed
from perfectly sound mares and stallions ; that a certain number of
old mares are weeded out for sale each year, and some young mares
put in their place, that these are taken in and broken to ride and
drive at three and a half years old, but are not served until four years
old, and that they prefer the mares to foal in November or December.
Both mares and stallions may be called on at any time to do any kind
of work.
The young horses that are not kept for the stud are sold each
year at auctions in Buda-Pesth, in the beginning of October, at four
and a half years old; they are trained to ride and drive, and are
guaranteed sound : if any defect should exist, the full particulars are
given by the auctioneer.
Every animal in the stud is branded with two marks and a
number, which show what horse it was got by and its dam's breed
ing, so that the breeding of every animal that comes from this and
other Government studs can be told at once by the initiated. This
Grovernment mark is a blemish in the eyes of foreign dealers, but is
much valued in Hungary, where the good breeds are well known and
their characteristics so strongly marked that it is generally easy to
recognise the special breed to which any horse belongs. Last year
the horses from Mezohegyes averaged 860 florins, and this year,