EVOLUTION OF THE THOROUGHBRED.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Issue 1463, 9 May 1918, Page 9

EVOLUTION OF THE THOROUGHBRED.

“I wonder if those people who, through ignorance or prejudice, or perhaps both, are always opposing racing are aware that it has taken centuries of hard work, intelligent thought, and a good deal of scientific application to bring the British thoroughbred, of which we are so justifiably proud, to its present state of perfection” (says “Bayardo,” in “Reynold’s Weekly”). “In light horse breeding Great Britain is supreme, and this is probably the only national industry in which we have no serious rivals. Racing is simply incidental

to horse breeding. It is the crucial test, and the only one by which breeders are able to arrive at a definite conclusion as regards the value of their stock. Without it there would be neither the means nor the inclination to carry on a business which has world-wide ramifications. It is unfortunate that a great many people only look upon racing as an amusement or a ‘bean feast,’ and profess to be shocked because of the gambling elements associated with it. These, however, are merely abstract phases, and what I should like to point out is the way in which the horse breeding interest, so vital to the country, has been built up. The fact that cavalry has already done such admirable work in this war effectually disposes of the theory advanced by Mr. H. G. Wells that horses would be no use in modern or future warfare. I have previously mentioned that this is a dangerous fallacy, and were it acted upon we should possibly find ourselves in a desperate and unenviable position one of these days. If it had not been for hunting and racing there would have been a deplorable shortage of suitable horses on which to mount our cavalry when war broke out. In

the circumstances, it is incredible that anybody can be so foolish as to advocate the destruction of the source from which our splendid breed of horses is obtained. No British Government so far has done much to encourage the breeding of thoroughbred horses, even with a view to ensuring an adequate number of animals suitable for military purposes. This has practically been left to private enterprise. It would be a poor return for what breeders have done if any Government, through lack of foresight, sought to deprive the country of the inestimable benefits of a system which has proved a national asset. That the entire suspension of racing would strike a deadly blow at its existence is a fact that ought to be grasped by anybody of intelligence, and it is to be hoped that the publicity of so many striking facts since the War Cabinet took its ill-advised action will have enlightened thousands of people and brought home to them the necessity in the interests of the United Kingdom, of preserving both breeding and racing, which are almost synonymous terms.”