nearly to the knee, and of their fetlocks. In height the Canadian rarely exceeds fifteen hands, and in fact seldom attains to that standard; from fourteen to fourteen hands and a half being their usual size. They are not generally speedy, even at ordinary road speed; still less often are they fleet, or what would be called fast; though there are exceptions, as for instance the celebrated trotting stallion St. Lawrence, who has gone fast among fast horses, and has been so long on the trotting turf as to show that he possesses in a high degree the hardy endurance of his race. Their best rate of going, for fair, ordinary travellers,—not select specimens,—does not, perhaps, exceed six or seven miles the hour; but at whatever rate they can go at all, at that rate they can go before or under a heavy load, and for a long, continuous distance. Many Canadians will do fifty miles a day for several successive days; and not a few can be found which will accomplish sixty, seventy, eighty, and even ninety, for one day; and the lesser rates for a proportionate length of time.
It seems remarkable that such should be the case, but we are strongly disposed to believe that, even in these days of horse improvement, horse fairs and agricultural progress, no systematical attempts have ever been made to improve the Canadians themselves in their pure form; although many have been made, with great success, to create improved crosses by the intermixture of them with other races. No race, probably, is more susceptible of direct improvement than this; and, as their excellence is universally acknowledged, both as the small poor farmer's working and draught horse, for which they are adapted above all American breeds, and as brood mares, from which to raise a highly improved and useful general working roadster, by breeding them to thorough-breds,
