it, to our heel. The shank of the fore-leg, then, or the part between the knee and fetlock, corresponds to the hand, and the hoof and pastern to the fingers; while the shank of the hind-leg, or the part between hock and fetlock, corresponds to our foot, the hoof and pastern being the toes. The horse may thus be said to walk upon the tips of his fingers and toes, and it will readily be seen why the leg weakens in proportion as the pastern and shank lengthen. The arm proper of the horse is very short and almost concealed from view, reaching from the forward point of the shoulder to the elbow, which is close against the side.
The more oblique the shoulder, the greater the power of this arm to throw the forearm forward, so as to support the body in the gallop, and in coming down from a leap. A straight shoulder is adapted for pulling loads, but is not fit for the saddle, except upon level roads, becoming positively dangerous in broken ground. The two upper members of the hind-leg, reaching from the hip to the hock, are together commonly called the thigh, as the thigh proper, which stretches from the hip to the stifle-joint, is very short and almost concealed from observation. The stifle-joint, which corresponds to our knee, lies close against the flank. Read the description, to some extent traditional, of the wonderful mare Swallow, in Kingsley's "Hereward the Wake." She was evidently not from Arab stock, with her big ugly head; but horses—like men and women—of extraordinary
