NEW ZEALAND HOUSES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVI, Issue 14222, 19 November 1909, Page 6

NEW ZEALAND HOUSES.

A VISITOR'S IMPRESSIONS. IDEAL COUNTRY FOR STUDS. New . Zealand .horses, as ; outsiders view them, are of exceptionally fin© calibre, according to an opinion expressed to the ; Heeald's Waikato show representative yesterday by Mr. E. Pillers, a member of "a leading English stud company, who is visiting the Dominion. "Your hacks," said the visitor, " are as good as one could wish to see—-certainly as fine as I have seen- in England, America, v: and " Canada. 'The draughts here are also good, . '. but your carriage horses are by no means up to the mark. -New Zealanders are too prone* to make a buggy .horse serve the ; : purposes. of a hack ' when, he is not required : between the shafts. We have any '} number of average driving horses in England which would run rings round any „> . that are at this show." Speaking of hacks Mr. Fillers remarked upon their ' sound shoulders as being a feature .of the I composition of the - sound local horses. They also evidenced fewer, blemishes in ' the way : of strained tendons, injured hoofs, etc., than in England. While Mr. Pillers allowed tbjit the draughts were a staunch class, he urged > the enforcement .of rigorous regulations in regard to the **" compulsory • inspection ■ by qualified - : veterinary surgeons of all horses and mares , which are intended for breeding purposes. " Some of the horses which I have seen ■'" - carrying first-class prize tickets at,.-- th« Christchurch and other recent shows," said Mr. Pillers. "would fail miserably if ," they were submitted to such a test. Still, z it is remarkable to find such a fine stamp > of horses out here, when some of their ■"*': progenitors only a* few decades back were . possibly Maori 'weeds.'" A good standard 'of horses,* he said; was not attained in a - year or two. Breeders must carefully grade up generation by generation. * This importation of prime blood stock should "be continued, and in this connection he . thought that -New. Zealand mares need less improvement than: the sires. The natural advantages of "the Dominion for stock '. raising strongly appealed to Mr. Pillers, ", both from a climatic point of view and be- *■ cause good grass is obtainable for about 10 ti months but of the year. In England bad ' weather was experienced ■ for about Z six months in the \ year. The final conclusions of the visiting horseman were that New Zealand is capable of producing horses with more bone, with more hair, with more substance, and of greater height than can be done in England. Were it not for the distance which separates the two coun--1 tries, he thought horse-raising in the Dominion for. the English market would prove more profitable than even the sheep ©r cattle industries.