BRITISH HORSE TRADE.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 17392, 1 March 1922, Page 11

BRITISH HORSE TRADE.

BETTER TIMES AWAITED. Until there is a rovivnl in industry it is not probable that the horse trade will improve (writes ' the agricultural correspondent of, the Loudon "Morning Post"). The contrast between the prices made for horses to-day and those of two years ago is sufficiently vmd to cause many to look for other reasons for the depression than the immediate falling off in the demand. It must be recalled that the Army held enormous horse sales some timo after hostilities ceased, and that there was an extensive distribution, not of breeding stock, but of animals capable of doing hard work. To some extent that took the edge off tho demand for horses, and it required a quiet period to bring back customers for the class of horse suitable for light haulage and not quite good enough for the lorry or dray. The fact that there is less beer being consumed - now than there was two years ago is in itself some evidence that for the dray market at least the demand for horses must be lighter; and one could hardly expect a fresh manifestation of good business with SO •Inany unemployed on tho registers., % I ' To*these two causes, therefore, the saturation of the demand when the Army gave up its studs Jind the bad general ti-arle of the country must bo attributed the slack demand for horses of all kinds. During this period of quietness, however, tho breeder is building up, and although he has little incentive to go in extensively for horse breeding, all shrewd men who have ! previously experienced tho nps and downs of the horse trade recognise that a fitful demand must be expected when the general trade of the country is poor. It is a remarkable fact that recovery is often unexpectedly quick, and it remains for the breeder to build up his reserves so that when that demand does come be shall bo able to meet it. In stock hroeding generally trade comes in a series of waves. The Dray Horse. Perhaps tho most striking feature of the semi-collapse of the horse market has been the heavy fall in the value of dray horses. It is in this section of horse breeding that England has a big pull, for it possesses not only the heaviest breed in the world, but it produces what we regard as the best type of draught animal suited to our needs. In no foreign- country do they pay so much attention to weight in the collar i as in England, and this fact is due to tho need for horses well equipped with weight to start a load. In London, for instance, horses depend not altogether upon their foothold for the power they exert, but upon their weight in tho collar. In provincial towns it is somewhat different, and, with the leverage obtained from tho calkins of the shoe they are able to get more power into.tho collar than when starting from a comparatively smooth surface. Collar weight is the great objective of the English breeder, but it ia not the only characteristic, for nowadays lapidity of delivery must bo taken, into consideration' and is an important feature -when considering the cost of delivery by horse dray as compared with .<, dray propelled by mechanical means. A. hofve.tliat can cover five miles rfn : hour is of most valuo to the purchaser, and those who.have visited the big agricultural shows regularly for the last ijfteen years wiil observe that the sluggish ivpe of draught horse has fallen into disfavour and that -weight is not of much use unless it is allied.to keenness of movement. It is probably correct to say that no. class-of horse is more influenced by tho demands of' the buyer than the draught animal, for some of these geldings are capable of taking three to five ton loads, depending upon circumstances. Tho draught horse breeding industry is built upon the / commercial demand, and when geldings fail to make a high price all classes of cart horses are affected.

Tht» brood made demand has a tendency to fall away, and un less L tb r. r ;„* trade is good it reflects upon the Hiring of stallions, and tin request for «' • lions is keen at this time of the year, for the season of travelling opens m about three months' time. Moderate Foal Trade. Tn the autumn, the stud horse owner naturally senns the auction Mies witn considerable interest, for the t™ d< V°, foals to homo extent regulates the, tees that :,ro paid for stallions. . Only the other day the Montgomeryshire Soc.«y reverted to a horse parade as a means of selecting a to travel the neighbourhood. Tts retaining fee is as high as it used to he for, like < other societies, no doubt it finds that farm ers nnTinclined to pay les* when they cannot make so much for their foals or for their gcldin S s. It is to be hoped however, that rather than hire a horse of an inferior class .to. whn t the?• h*w> been accustomed, socvnies will "sKJ>™«| «rs to take a smaller fee. They aie justified in doing so, for there is not much chance-of-" the foal trade ei« attaining to such heights as it has m the past. The main reason for this » JSt P the foal is a. highly »P«*™ purrhaso, and that it is doubly so nov, Si the case of colt foals because, of the need for a certificate of soundne« before an animal can be *«»> el Cl Consequently, fli<s tendency i? toW mature horses which' have this < ert.f. cafe ratller than take a risk with foate which may develop »VT +™de It v.ilt take some time before t, nd e rcallv Bottles down, but either the, breeder must take a larger risk m keeping the foal until a mature .age, or the buyer will take this risk if he is able to buy the foal at a smaller price. It will he seen that a great deal de pends upon the foal trade, not only for the sums which may be paid for stallions to travel, but even the popularity of • horse-breeding itself, is involved. Tn the old days when there was a freer demand for young colt foals, the small man might almost pay the rent from a good foal, and the altered conditions naturally influence him in his future policy. Horse-hreeding Still Popular. * Hone breeding, however, will always remain popular, for it is an English characteristic to be found of a good horse. In such counties as \orksnire, one sees this perhaps more highly developed than in other parts .of the country, but possibly in the neighbournods of Peterborough, Welshpool, and hoods of Peterborough, Welshpool, and onß observes a keener appreciation of tho need of preserving the stud of mares in a high state of proficiency. The pedigree mare that is capable of doing farm work is a, strong asset, and the Dopularity of tho movement to supplant the non-pedigree work animals by pedigree breeding stock still continues. Oa, many farms tho farmer makes a definite profit by buying in geldings as two-year-olds and turning them out as five-year-olds fit for city work. The work of the farm is done very efficiently, and • the horse is growing into money. As against this, others breed foals ' and take the chance of the soveiafl. markets which are available to them before they reach maturity, but the greatest change within the past ten years has. undoubtedly been in the Bupphuiting of non-pedigree mares by animals which are already in the book. The revival of the gelding trad© would umctieally mean tho revival of heavy horse breeding, and this is one branch of stock-breeding which is badly in need of a tonic. ,