“Perhaps you can teach Star to pump his own water, as a gentleman in Leeds found his horse doing. The animal had been kept in a stable for a long time, but was at last turned into a field, where there was a pump, well supplied with water.
“One day, being thirsty, I suppose, a man saw him go to the pump, and, taking the handle in his mouth, work it with his head, in a way exactly similar to that done by the hand of a man, until he had secured a supply.”
“It does seem as if they were guided by reason,” remarked Mrs. Harry Lee, who had entered the room in time to hear the last anecdote.
“Certainly,” returned her sister; “their intelligence and sagacity place them in the highest rank among the brute creation. I have been myself surprised in reading these accounts of their attachment to man, and to each other; their courage, faithfulness, and devotion to the interests of their owner; and I wish every man, woman, and child, who has any thing to do with these noble creatures, would study their history, so as to treat them with the kindness and care they deserve. I have heard my husband say, that even in a wild state, all their movements are so intelligent, that it seems as if it must be the result of reason. When the herds wish to change from one vast plain to another, they choose leaders, and place sentinels along the line of march, thus recognizing the necessity of obedience and order.
“Then, the readiness with which they communicate to each other when they have discovered water or fresh pasturage, the adroitness with which, by their responsive neighings, they express alarm, terror, or pleasure, are equally wonderful.
“When they pass through a swamp, they test it with the fore foot before they trust the weight of their whole bodies upon it; and they often scoop out a hollow place in the sand, expecting it will fill with water. Even the little Shetland pony, in going through the bogs, puts its nose to the ground, then pats it with the fore foot, judging from the feeling of the ground whether it will bear him.”
CHAPTER VII.
THE ARABIAN HORSE.
“Now, father, I’m ready to hear about the Arab and his horse,” cried Minnie, one day, when, after following the gentleman about the grounds for nearly an hour, they at length returned to the library.