“Leopard” and “Linden”, General Grant’s Arabian Stallions

HISTORY IN BRIEF OF “LEOPARD” AND “LINDEN,”

GENERAL GRANT’S ARABIAN STALLIONS,
PRESENTED TO HIM BY THE SULTAN OF TURKEY IN 1879.

ALSO THEIR SONS “GENERAL BEALE,” “HEGIRA,” AND “ISLAM,”

BRED BY RANDOLPH HUNTINGTON

ALSO REFERENCE TO THE CELEBRATED STALLION “HENRY CLAY”

PRINTED FOR THE AUTHOR BY J.B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY, 1885.

by Randolph Huntington
______________

GENERAL U.S. GRANT’S ARABIAN STALLIONS “Leopard” AND “Linden Tree.”

All my life, or for fifty years I had desired to see and examine genuine Arabian horses, such as I could know to a certainty were strictly thoroughbred Arabians. That they were rare indeed in any country I knew.
Leopard

Writers upon them were very superficial, being mostly tourists or travellers, interested in geographical matters, or in the people, customs, and relics, with traditional associations, seldom if ever being horsemen, capable of judging with just comparison, if I except Sir Wilfrid S. Blunt, of England, who, as an equine investigator of remarkable ability, in company with his wife lived with the Arabs of the desert for that express purpose, and to whom I am indebted for very much valuable information upon the subject.

Different Presidents of the United States, also Secretaries of State, have at various periods received splendid horses as presents from Arabia or Turkey; the last President receiving such a gift previous to General Grant being, I believe, James K. Polk. In 1860 the late William H. Seward, while Secretary of State, had two fine specimens sent to him from Syria; but after the novelty of their arrival wore off, none could tell what had become of them, while those loudest in condemnation or ridicule of Arabian horses could neither say they had ever seen one, nor speak with personal knowledge of the get by any thoroughbred Arabian stallion. In the matter of ex-Secretary Seward’s Arabians, while many were ready to condemn, few could remember having seen them; nor could any one point me to the get of either horse upon which to base credit or discredit.

Persistent inquiry, oral and by letter, after five or six years’ time, gave me the first and last of Seward’s two Arab horses, now dating back twenty-five years; and the information I obtained may soon startle such as are interested in “time standard” breeding rather than blood. Suffice it to say, however, that this information determined me to become personally interested in the two Arabian stallions presented to General Grant.

As General U.S. Grant outranked in the estimation of the people of the world any representative man America had produced, both as General-in-Chief of the victorious American army and as the unanimously re-elected President of our great Republic, it is but natural to suppose the Sultan of Turkey would honor himself and his Empire by presenting to the General the very choicest specimens of their idolized horses, the Arabian.

At the time of their arrival in this country I was compiling a work devoted to Old Henry Clay, to be entitled a “History of Henry Clay;” and for the purpose of having correct sketches of representative sons and daughters of the horse, had engaged Herbert S. Kittredge (since deceased), whom in 1876 I had encouraged to make horse portraiture his profession. Young Kittredge resided with me, as did later Andrew J. Schultz, who was to study under him.

When General Grant’s Arabians were thoroughly recovered from their voyage and acclimated, I sent Kittredge to sketch them, as frontispieces to my “Clay History.” also illustrative of blood influences; Henry Clay being a third remove from the Arabian upon the paternal side, and largely inbred to that blood maternally through imported Messenger, First Consul, and Rockingham, all of which were of Godolphin Arabian blood, and Messenger himself was inbred to it.

Young Kittredge’s success was wonderful. I presented copies of his sketches to General Grant, to General E.F. Beale, to Paymaster-General J. Adams Smith, and to Hon. Erastus Corning, also to one or two other gentlemen friends whom I believed trustworthy.

General Grant pronounced them “perfect to life.”

General E.F. Beale wrote me:

“I return you my thanks for the pictures of Leopard and Linden. They are the best horse pictures I have ever seen, and are the most faithful likenesses, being great credit to the gifted and talented Kittredge.

“Very truly yours,
E.F.Beale.
“Lafayette Square, Washington, D.C.”

As General E.F.Beale received the stallions and kept them at his place, “Ash Hill,” near Washington, for three years, he was a competent critic of Kittredge’s work. In a similar manner wrote Paymaster-General J. Adams Smith, of the United States Navy. General Smith being an expert horseman, and long having Grant’s Arabs in charge, his opinion is of equal value. Then again, Major J.K.Levitt, for fifty years known in Philadelphia as an expert horseman and judge of horses, pronounced the two sketches by H.S.Kittredge as the most perfect likenesses of the two stallions which he had at any time seen of any horses. Mr. Levitt was the man who first received the stallions to exhibit, which he did for three months after their arrival.

I am particular in quoting these criticisms upon my sketches as exhibited in this book, because I have seen numerous prints and photographs purporting to represent General Grant’s Arabian stallions, no one of which has been the least like them. My sketches are the horses to life, upon paper: and the proofs sent me by Messrs. J.B. Lippincott Company, of Philadelphia, were such excellent reproductions that I intrusted the publication of my work to them.

HOW I CAME TO ISSUE THIS BOOK.

Early in May, 1885, I received a letter from a gentleman, introducing himself as a personal friend of General Grant and his family and, as such, requesting that I give him a transcript of my papers pertaining to the General’s Arabian stallions; as to their shipment from Constantinople, date of shipment, name of vessel, commander, port of entry and date of arrival, also consignment; referring me to General Grant or either of his sons as to himself. By the next mail another letter came from the same gentleman asking permission to publish extracts from my private letters to General Grant and his son Ulysses regarding the two stallions, and my stallions by them; also asking pictures of my young horses by Leopard and Linden.

While the refinement and courtesy of this gentleman’s letter was such as to assure me of his good intent, I felt obliged to decline his request. As pirating of my expensive sketches, with plagiarism of my public writings, had been the order of the day for the past three years, I had grown recluse.

Upon reflection, and knowing the condition of General Grant, I felt that it might be some pleasure to him to see in print the information I had obtained; also the result of my experiments in breeding to his two stallions; hence I wrote two articles, which appeared during the months of May and June, 1885, in “Dunton’s Spirit of the Turf,” published at Chicago, and in the “California Breeder and Sportsman.”

[…]

I will now devote my pen to the two horses Leopard and Linden Tree. The two names as I give them are the English translation of the Turkish; but in speaking of them, the word Tree is left off, making the names as given the two stallions, Leopard and Linden.

These two stallions arrived in this country May 30, 1879. They were first heard of in Philadelphia, where they were exhibited in General Grant’s name.

Early in the spring of 1880 I went to Washington, D.C., to see and to examine them, also to learn if I could breed to them.

General E.F.Beale, a lifelong true and warm friend of General Grant, also a great horse-lover, had the two horses upon his beautiful farm “Ash Hill,” just outside the city, and near to the Soldiers’ Home.

Unfortunately, General Beale was in California, looking after his large interests upon the Pacific; but I learned that Paymaster J. Adams Smith, of the Navy Department, had the Arabs in charge, and was also a most thoroughly informed horseman. I called at the naval Pay-Office, found the officer disengaged, and enjoyed a long and interesting conversation with him upon Arabian as well as other horses in the East, and all over the world in fact, for they seemed to have been a special study with him at every port he had visited.

It may surprise some of our so-called horse-breeders that a naval officer, who had spent most of his days at a naval academy or on board ship, should be better informed than some professional breeders upon land; but I have found it to be frequently the case with both naval and army officers. Men are born with the breeder’s gift, and no matter what their calling may be, that gift is there, waiting only the opportunity for development.

Thus, Paymaster Smith was born with this gift, which had been cultivated somewhat in boyhood; then through years of observation, with comparison in the mind, at different ports of the world, he had stored away information far richer than that of men delving a lifetime in “one rut,” with one idea, “upon one side of the fence.”

A breeder should be a liberally-educated man, and by nature a worker, which unfortunately few are. He should be a physical worker, also a mental worker, withal a thinker; and my word for it, there is not one moment for play or recreation, scarce even for social conversation.

Some of my very best correspondents upon the questions of animal life in years gone by have been officers in the army and navy.

The question of blood and breeding in horses, cattle, sheep, and dogs is of importance to all civilized nations, which these men know; and where a naval officer is interested, his opportunities for information are rare indeed. Naval officers, as a rule, are some of our best-educated men. The system of mental training in the navy tends to make strong-minded men with retentive memories. their restriction to confinement, I may say, in connection with study, breeds and encourages deep thought with after-reflection. Graduating from a naval academy, they visit by schooling-ships the different distant ports of the world, cultivating observation and memory. Curiosity prompts comparison, and the most important mental faculty, memory, is constantly worked. Cultivation of the three traits, observation, comparison, and memory, after the young mind and habits have been trained and cultured (refined), enhances the quality of the growing man, all being at any moment successfully applied to development of any special gift possessed, aside from the maybe forced legitimate calling. Thus, the merchant, the doctor, the lawyer, or the mechanic can become a successful breeder if he has the breeder’s gift; and his mental culture, with trained system, will give him a wonderful advantage over the yeoman who hates “book learning.”

Paymaster (later Paymaster-General U.S.N.) Smith was by instinct a breeder and handler of horses; or, as the saying is, “was all horse” when not otherwise engaged. He was a splendid driver, and superior to most landsmen in the saddle; indeed, I considered General Beale fortunate in being able to leave General Grant’s Arabians in charge of so able a gentleman, during his trip to California. Remember, this was the spring of 1880, and the horses had been at “Ash Hill” only since the fall of 1879.

I was impatient to see the Arabs; so after dinner Paymaster Smith ordered his light wagon, and as I write I think of that delightful ride to “Ash Hill.” Arriving there, the smiling, happy-faced little darkies greeted us with “massa” dis and “massa” dat, as in the old days, the happiest of my life.

In front of the stables, upon a beautiful table-land overlooking acres of meadow pasturage, with scattered barns and hay-ricks, was a level spot of close, fine turf, splendid to show horses upon. Upon this the colored groom Addison led out first the Arab Leopard. He was a beautiful dapple-gray, fourteen and three-quarter hands high; his symmetry and perfectness making him appear much taller. As he stood looking loftily over the meadows below, I thought him the most beautiful horse I had ever seen. With nostrils distended and eyes full of fire, I could imagine he longed for a run upon his desert home. Addison gave him a play at the halter, showing movements no horse in the world can equal but the thoroughbred Arabian. He needed no quarter-boots, shin-boots, ankle-boots, scalping-boots, or protections of any kind; and yet the same movements this Arabian went through would have blemished every leg and joint upon an American trotting-horse, even though he had been able to attempt the to him impossible activity.

He was now brought to a stand-still that I might examine him; not cocked on one leg, pointed in another, or straddled, as our horses would be after such violent exercise, but bold and erect on all fours, as when first led out.

I began at his head. The ear was very small and fine, much as Old Henry Clay had. The muzzle was small and fine, the mouth handsome, and lips very thin, as were the nostrils. Between the eyes he was full and broad, while the eyes themselves were large, brilliant, and of the speaking kind. I lifted the lids, and they, too, were thin and delicate, not coarse and heavy, as in our big-mouthed, thick-lipped, long, heavy-eared American horse. The jowls were very deep, but wide between (so much condemned in Henry Clay). The windpipe was large and free, running low into the breast. The neck was beautifully arched, giving the impression of a thin crest, which I expected to find, from numerous writers’ reports. Imagine my surprise when, upon running my hand from between the ears down, I found a big, thick, hard crest, as if a three-or even four-inch new cable-rope were inside. This was exactly such a crest as was in Old Henry Clay, which lopped over like a bag of meal with old age; and I remembered having an old Messenger stallion, years ago, with exactly such a crest, which, falling over in the same way with age, was a great torment to my pride. How I do punish myself in these days, to think of the green sheep-pelt sweats I gave this noble old Messenger stallion to get the crest so it would stay up in place! Verily, boys and young men are fools, but they do not know it.

Well, Leopard and his groom, Addison, remained perfectly still until I had run my hands over every part of the horse’s body, from the tips of his ears to the bottom of his feet, even to examining the texture of his skin or hide, to see if it contained any spots. No more perfect animal ever lived than General Grant’s Arabian stallion Leopard.

Now for his gaits. I had Addison lead him on the walk to and from me, say a distance of two or three hundred feet, that I might see the position of the feet in walking. There was no twisting behind, nor paddle in front, but straight, clean, elastic stepping. I now had him pass me at the side, that I might see his knee, also hock and stifle action. From the walk I had him moved upon the trot, and at either walk or trot every movement was perfect. The knee-action was beautiful: not too much, as in toe-weighted horses, nor stiff and staky, as in the English race-horse, but graceful and elastic, beautifully balanced by movement in the hock and stifle. To make Leopard a very fast trotting-horse nothing was wanting but the training from colthood, as is done with our colts of to-day. One thing we should gain by training such a colt as Leopard was, and that would be in the saving of boots with other mechanical contrivances. I could but say to myself, truly, “God has made all things perfect.”

I have been accustomed to handling stallions for the past thirty years, hence look first for the disposition. At this time Leopard’s disposition was excellent, or, as ladies would say, “lovely!” and “sweet!” Twice this horse has taken the first premium at the “National Horse Show of America” over his stable companion Linden.

Linden Tree (or Linden, for short) was now led out. This horse has been called a “jet-black” by some papers, which was a mistake never corrected by such journals. At that time, the spring of 1880, Linden was a beautiful, smooth, blue-gray, which this summer of 1885 has changed to a white-gray.
Linden Tree
In height he is the same as Leopard, fourteen and three-quarter hands, which is the usual height of the thoroughbred Arabian.

In build he was more compact than Leopard, being deeper and broader; of more substance, but with just as clean and fine limbs as Leopard had. The limbs, joints, and feet of both horses were perfect. The fetlocks could not be found; there were none. The warts at point of ankle were wanting, and the osselets were very small. Large, coarse osselets show cold, mongrel blood. The crest of the neck in Linden was thick and hard, the same as in Leopard. This fact will astonish some fancy horsemen, who are let to believe that a thin crest is evidence of fine breeding. My experience of late years is that a thin crest belongs to a long-bodied, flat horse, of soft constitution.

When Job said the “neck of the horse was clothed with thunder,” he had reference to the Arabian horse. As the shoulder possesses the greatest strength in a horse, it is reasonable to believe the neck, to which it is joined, should have strength in harmony therewith; and this bold, stout crest of the Arab was just as God wanted it. The mane in both horses was very fine and silky, falling over so as to cause one to believe the crest was a knife-blade, with blade up, for thinness. The head of Linden was the counterpart of Leopard in all ways; as in fine, thin muzzle, lips and nostrils; also small, fine, beautiful ears, thin eyelids; deep, wide jowls, etc.; but the face looked much older, although Linden was a year younger than Leopard.

There were two reasons for this difference in the countenance: First, the depression over the eyes in Linden was greater, which feature is said often to indicate advanced years in sire and dam when the foal was got. This would be evidence that the blood of Linden was very choice, for all breeders wish to get from their choicest-bred animals as long as is possible, even to extreme old age: and some of the finest horses I have ever seen have been produced by dams thirty-six and one thirty-eight years old. If I did not know these to be facts I would not repeat them in this book.

To intensify the effect of depression over the eyes in Linden were large black markings or rings around them, which at a little distance made him look at this time very old; with me, from what I now knew of Arabian horses, these marks intensified his blood value. I quote from Sir Wilfrid S. Blunt, in Lady Anne Blunt’s beautiful work entitled The Bedouin Tribes of the Euphrates:

“These black markings are held by the Arabs of the desert as evidence that the animal is of the thoroughbred Bint El Ahwaj breed, descending from the children of Ishmael, and from which breed came the Godolphin Arabian, and which Godolphin Arabian was in part founder of the French Percheron horse, also of the best strains of the English thoroughbred running-horse; and to which Godolphin Arabian imported Messenger was three times close bred, and very close at that in both sire and dam. Of course Arabian statements are traditionary, but facts in that country go strongly to support their traditions. This breed of which I am speaking, identified by the black markings around the eyes, are also known as the Kehilans, from these markings having the appearance of being painted with kohl, after the fashion of the Arab women; hence the desert name of Kehilans.

“The name of Kochlani is credited to King Solomon’s stud, but they have a breed in Persia by this name, which, although they are Arabian horses are impure.”

From all I have been able to learn from abroad, it is most likely that the two horses represent the two thoroughbred breeds of “Kehilan” and “Kochlani,” the two choicest of the desert.

I have tried to impress the reader with the feeling that I considered Linden the better horse of the two, and will give my reasons.

During the inspection of the Sultan’s choicest horses, General Grant, who had an excellent eye, with judgment, expressed great admiration for the beautiful colt Leopard, and it was presented to him by the Sultan. Of course General Grant did not understand the Turkish or Arabic language, and could not comprehend any breeding given to him. His choice or selection had been entirely governed by superior beauty with wonderful perfection in the colt. After having presented Leopard to the General, the Sultan desired to make a special present of his own selection; and holding General Grant in the highest possible esteem as General-in-Chief of the victorious United States army under him, and also knowing him to have been twice President of this great American people, the Sultan would naturally have an individual as well as a national pride that his special present should be the best possible specimen of blood and breeding to be had through his power; and he knew what General Grant could not understand, that Linden represented blood which time would prove of more excellence than in Leopard. Under the circumstances, does any man suppose the Sultan would insult himself and his power by presenting an inferior selection to General Grant’s necessarily ignorant choice? Every breeder can understand this argument from selections made by gentlemen fanciers from stock he has bred and raised. It is pretty hard work to tell a gentleman who at first sight “knows it all” that he knows very little; but General Grant was not of that class, to assume knowledge. Since arrival in this country, the superior beauty and grace of Leopard has had a tendency to dwarf Linden in public opinion, encouraged through the influence of printer’s ink. He has been credited with being vicious, which the newspapers were very noisy about at one time, in and over a suit brought against General Grant for keeping such a horse.

During the early spring and summer of 1880, also in 1881, I handled the two stallions many times in and out of their boxes at “Ash Hill,” at which time I had my mares there to breed, but never at any moment considered Linden vicious. I knew that he was all horse, and that as a stallion his disposition needed watching and nursing with a kind but firm hand. Petulant words, with habitual scolding, makes many a stallion ugly; and many a groom is more at fault than the brute. Arabian stallions are very sensitive to words, quickly appreciating the kind, cheerful good-morning. The human voice has a wonderful influence over the brute, and cross, ugly words they will in time resent.

As I have remarked, I put these two stallions through their gaits many times, finding Linden the best at walk or at trot, because more even and steady.

At the “National Horse Show” in New York City, I have said Leopard was twice awarded a first premium over Linden, to which by individual comparison he was entitled.

The judge who would pronounce otherwise before four or five thousand people would be called very incompetent: but looks are deceptive.

I bred six mares to these two Arabian stallions in 1880 and 1881, getting three horse colts and one filly. I selected kindred blood as found in Old Henry Clay’s daughters and inbred granddaughters. I handled the foals from the time they were born. Three were by Linden and one by Leopard. Not one of them is ugly or inclined to be vicious. All are broken, and not one has at any time offered to kick or to strike, although the dams of each one were high-strung, high-tempered mares, two of them particularly so. I found these Arab colts, while very small, required different treatment from mongrels, hence haltered and handled them myself up to this present time, in and about the stable, for that is the place the disposition is improved or spoiled. When two years old, my daughter could drive the son of Leopard anywhere, for he was fearless and reliable.

I will now speak particularly of the colors of Arabian horses. I have before said that one of General Grant’s stallions had been reported through a leading daily paper as “jet-black.” Hundreds who read that, will believe it and report it for fifty years to come, until it becomes traditional. It is a bad mistake, as a black Arabian is an unusual color, and denotes inferiority. I will quote again from Sir W.S.Blunt:

“Bay with black points, and with generally a white foot, or two or three white feet, and a snip or blaze down the face, are prominent among the Anazeh or Bint El Ahwaj breed. Grays are also common, then chestnut of different shades. The spotted, or piebald, or parti-colored horses are unknown among the pure Arabs. The pure white is very highly prized.”

At birth, the gray horse is black; and the true black horse is born of a brown shade. In the first moulting, the proper color shows itself to the breeder. the dapple-gray will carry a black coat into the second and third moulting, the black hairs always shedding first, so that the novice is frequently puzzled to tell what colored horse he is to have at maturity. The blue-gray grows to a white gray, but the dapple-gray holds its distinctive color longest, as a rule.

Having bred my mares to General Grant’s Arabs in the spring of 1880, I became quite anxious to know all particulars relating to them, lest in future days some as yet unborn writer should tell his readers that General Grant’s horses were genuine imported Barbs, or maybe Andalusian horses, when any old man knowing to the contrary would be disputed into silence. The pedigrees of our horses credit Arabian blood frequently in some of the fastest and most valued animals; but attempt to unravel such breedings, and one lands among the “said to be’s,” which is not the case in England, or in Russia, or in France. They breed thoroughbreds of various kinds, and tell you how they are bred to a certainty; while with us, the time standard for the present generation settles it all, in which blood is of no value except in the black article known as printers’ ink.

In fifteen years after Seward’s Arabs were imported, any authentic information as to their blood and breeding, their whereabouts, or their get, was a difficult matter to get at. The same was the case with those of James K. Polk, and so it has been in many instances where I have investigated. If Arabian blood was of value to England, to France, and to Russia, so it could be to America, for certainly we have not the self-sustaining types in horses to do credit to any civilized country as have the nations cited. Should we export our present horses?

Having obtained all I could from Paymaster Smith, I awaited General E.F.Beale’s return from California. From him I did not get what I wanted. I then wrote to General Grant himself, and give below his reply.

    “Long Branch, N.J., July 28, 1882.

    “RANDOLPH HUNTINGTON, Rochester, N.Y.

    “DEAR SIR, — About my Arabian horses, I cannot answer all your questions, but what I know I will give you.

    “I was in Constantinople in March, 1878, and visited the Sultan, and with him his stables.

    “All of his horses were of the most approved and purest blood (and there were about seventy horses in the stables I visited). I was told that the pedigrees of all of them ran back from five to seven hundred years (in breed).

    “Two of the horses that I then saw were sent to me as a present from the Sultan by the first steamer directly to the United States from that port. I do not know the name of the steamer, nor the date of its departure or arrival. They (the horses) were consigned to General E.F.Beale, of Washington City, who can probably inform you upon those points. Leopard was five years old when I first saw him, and Linden four, I think. I am certain as to the age of the first, and think I am right about the age of the second. The fact of these horses being from the Sultan’s own private stables, and being a present from him as an appreciation of our country among the nations of the earth, is the best proof of the purity of their blood.

“Very truly yours,

“U. S. GRANT.”

I now knew that neither General Grant, General Beale, nor Paymaster-General Smith could give me the identifying facts I wanted for fifty years hence.

I remembered hearing my cousin, Mrs Dr. Anderson, of New Haven, Connecticut, say to me one day while visiting there, that General Grant had two horses arrive at that port by a foreign vessel, and that they were said to be Arabians. Upon which she went to the Doctor’s desk and took out some nails his blacksmiths had given him when they removed the shoes to re-shoe the stallions.

As these remarks were incidental with other subjects at the time, I paid no special attention to them; but memory often comes to our help, so I addressed a letter to William D. Anderson, M.D., New Haven, Connecticut, and below give his reply:

    “RANDOLPH HUNTINGTON, Rochester, N.Y.

    “DEAR SIR, — I would say in reply that the Arabian stallions for General Grant were shod by my blacksmiths, Messrs. Palmer & Bishop, in this city of New Haven, Connecticut, on May 31 1879; that they (the horses) having arrived the day before direct from Constantinople by the steamer Norman Monarch, Dunscomb, commander. The steamer at that time was chartered to freight cartridges, guns, etc, to Turkey, from the Winchester Arms Company in this city.

    “She (the Norman Monarch) made the trip direct, entering and clearing at this port. My blacksmith went on board and removed the shoes from the horses, then took the stallions to his shop, where they were re-shod and kept in his stables until delivered to Mr. J.K.Levitt, of the Blue Bell, Darby Road, Philadelphia, Pa., and from where he exhibited them until delivered to General E.F. Beale at Washington City, for account of General U.S.Grant.

“Truly yours,

“WILLIAM D. ANDERSON, M.D.

“NEW HAVEN, CONN., August, 1882.”

I next called upon Major J.K.Levitt, of Philadelphia, who told me that in June, 1879, while driving a race at the Belmont Park, Mr. Edwards called upon him with a despatch from General Beale, requesting that he should go with Mr. Edwards to New Haven for two weeks at Suffolk Park, then at their fair, which association paid him for the exhibit. Next the fair at Dover, Delaware, gave him two hundred dollars and expenses to exhibit there. He then exhibited them a week at the Washington, D.C., Agricultural Fair; then at the fair at Alexandria, Virginia. Next at the fair at Cumberland, West Virginia, and lastly at the Doylestown Fair of Pennsylvania.

It now being late in the fall of 1879, Major Levitt ceased to care for the horses, delivering them into the possession of General E.F. Beale at Washington, D.C., to remain.

I have been particular in following up these two Arabian stallions presented to General Grant. I deemed their blood of important value to us. I would not condemn such breeders as ridicule Arabians, but would ask questions.

If Arabian blood is of no value, why does England go back in her records to so many importations of Arabian horses to create and sustain her national thoroughbred running-horse? Why does Russia take pride in referring to her Orloff trotting-horse as of Arabian origin? Why does France, through government statistics, show that her famous Percheron draught-horse is moulded from the pliable blood of the Arabian?

When men condemn Arabian horses, let them cease to extol Messenger, Diomed, Duroc, American Eclipse, Sir Archy, Boston, or Lexington, each of which owed its greatness to Arabian blood ; Diomed and Messenger being, as the reader knows, close-bred to the Arabian, and Messenger, which name has been the mouth-piece for our breeders and horsemen for seventy-five years, was three times inbred to the Godolphin Arabian.

A digitization of the entire book can be found at: http://hdl.handle.net/2027/nyp.33433000743835

Arabian Blood For Stamina Part I

Articles of History:

ARABIAN BLOOD FOR STAMINA

Keene Richards’ Own Account of His Two Desert Expeditions and His Arabian Importations.

Edited by Thornton Chard

With illustrations and notes collected by him from The Horse Nov/Dec ’35 Part I Part II Since writing the article which appeared in THE HORSE, (1) on Keene Richards’ Arabian importation, I found, unexpectedly, a letter, written in 1906, by the late Homer Davenport to the late Randolph Huntington in which this paragraph appears: “I have been fortunate enough to get hold of A. Keene Richards’ catalogue, – – – . Keene Richards has never received justice; instead of his plant being a failure, the very first colts that he had born in Kentucky, won every time they were shown, against all competitors.” (2)

Here was a clue to additional original information. I hunted high and low for this catalogue, but without result till I finally stumbled across a photostatic copy deep in the archives of the New York Public Library. (3)

It proved to be much more than a catalogue. (4) In fact it is such a unique review of the much discussed problem of the value of the Eastern blood for infusion on the Thoroughbred; the necessity of using only the purest Arabian blood to get an improvement; the great difficulty of securing such blood and the probability that very little of the purest blood was ever permitted to leave the Desert for the use of any country; the fact that Richards was a great stickler for the purest blood and insisted on a very high standard for his own breedings and that he was satisfied with his results, — puts this entire question, — which, heretofor has been surrounded by a mass of prejudice unfavorable to the Arabian, — in a new light.

As Richards himself wrote the “Catalogue”, and as no one had more experience with the best Thoroughbreds than he and as few had more experience with Arabians in their native Desert, I am quoting excerpts, that bear on the breeding problems, as follows:

KENTUCKIANS’ LOVE OF HORSES

“Kentuckians have become as famous for their love of horses as the Arabs; and our breeders of Thoroughbred horses pride themselves in having their stock well known all over the Union. The Arab, however, when he possesses an Arab of purest blood and unrivalled speed, cares only for it to be known in his tribe. He breeds and trains his Thoroughbreds for his own use, and not for the Turk and ‘Frank’ whom, he believes, know nothing of blood. (5)

“Having inherited a love and admiration for the horse, and a desire to possess the highest bred and noblest type of his race, I determined to examine for myself the most authentic history of the horse, and without prejudice, select from the stock I preferred — whether it might be at home or abroad. — from the aristocratic paddocks of England, the mountains of Morocco, the sandy plains of the Sahara, or the rocky deserts of Arabia.”

DETERMINES ON THE THOROUGHBRED ENGLISH HORSE.

“I soon determined that the Thoroughbred English horse was the best horse for all works, and in tracing his history a few generations back, we came to the Arab, Barb and Turk. But the most of the English writers seem to favor the idea that it was the triplet cross, with English skill and English climate, that produced the unrivalled English blood-horse.” (6)

“A closer examination proves that some of the best English horses had not this triplet cross.”

“The true origin of the Byerly Turk, Darley Arab, and Godolphin Barb (the great Shem, Ham, and Japheth, of the English horse aristocracy), has not been discovered by the compilers of the English Stud book.” (7)

“Many have been the theories as to the origin of the English blood-horse; but the definition as given by the Stud Book is generally taken as authority. The Stud Book implies that all Thoroughbred horses should be able to trace their origin to Eastern sires and dams –.”

INFERIOR QUALITY OF ARABIAN IMPORTATIONS

“For years the English have tried the modern Arab cross, but with not much success. After having examined the Arabs imported into England, as well as those on the Continent, the question arose in my mind — has the failure been owing to a degeneracy of the Arab, or has it been because so few pure Arabs have been imported!”

“Investigating the character of modern importations, I found that the most of them had been purchased on the coast of Syria, in Egypt, and some from India — besides, few, if any, of the modern importation have been well tested on account of the strong prejudice existing in England against the Arab. This prejudice is founded upon the fact of the failure of the Arab cross for more than fifty years; (8) and even in the time of the three great progenitors of the English horse, hundreds of so-called Arabs were imported which were worthless. (9) It was with the greatest difficulty that Mr. Darley brought his selection into notice and as for the Godolphin, his merits became known by mere accident. This noble animal had the form of a race horse, as any judge may plainly see from Stubbs’ picture; (10) but at that day English breeders knew very little as to what the form of a race horse should be. They had bred at random, until Flying Childers, and Leth called their attention to the Darley Arabian and the Godolphin. The forms of these horses were a mystery to them; they supposed that it was the Arab blood that gave to Childers and Lath their wonderful powers; (11) and again Arabs, Turks and Barbs were imported into England, with the hope of surpassing the Darley and Godolphin; but in vain, — even to this day they ae unrivalled in the annals of the Stud Book. With these facts before me, I determined to import the best Arabs that could be found in the East, and cross them with our best mares. (12) I made myself acquainted with the modern importations, by going [1851] to England, France and Spain, examining the best Arabs belonging to the governments, visiting Morocco, and going through the interior of Algeria, I went to Tunis — thence to Egypt, and from Egypt through Arabia Petra (13) and the desert east of Damascus as far as Palmyra [see map]. During this tour [1851-1853] I selected Mokhladi, Massoud and a gray mare [Sadah] – – – – ”

FIRST GET OF THESE HORSES SATISFACTORY

“They arrived safely, and I immediately made arrangements to select some of our best mares to breed to them. The result was quite equal to my expectations, (14) and I commenced preparing to make another trip to the East, determined to spare no trouble or expense (15) in procuring the best blood, as well as the finest formed horses in the desert.”

RICHARDS’ CAREFUL STUDY OF THE SUBJECT

“For two years I made this subject my study, consulting the best authors as to where the purest blood was to be found, and comparing their views with my own experience. I found that most authors who have written on the subject differ materially as to facts; and that those who have seen the Arab on his native soil, knew more about the idle legends of the country than about the fine points of the horse.”

“Layard, (16) surely has claims to be the best authority among English writers. Although prejudiced in favor of the English horse, he says: “I doubt whether any Arab of the best blood has ever been brought to England. The difficulty of obtaining them is so great, that they are scarcely ever seen beyond the limits of the desert’.” (17)

RICHARDS’ SECOND EXPEDITION

“After two years spent in close investigation as to the best means of obtaining the purest blood of the desert, I matured my plans and started again [1855] for the East, accompanied by Mr. E. Troye, the artist, my cousin M.H.Keene, and a Syrian who had been with me since my first journey to the East. Soon after our arrrival in Syria, he died very suddenly, and Mr. Keene had to commence the study of the Arabic language, as we could find no one to trust in interpreting, to carry our our plans among the Bedouins. He was in Damascus seven months studying the language and informing himself as to the best way of getting to that tribe of Bedouins in Arabia which had the type of horse we were seeking.” (18)

“- – – – This last importation consisted of the bay Sacklowie; a chestnut Faysal, (19) supposed to be the best young horse in the Anayza tribe; a grey colt, two year old [Hamdan]; a mare [Lulie] and two dromedaries.” (20)

COLTS TAKE PRIZES

“In making both of these importations, I determined not to offer the services of any of the stallions to the public until they had shown some evidence of their merits. The colts of two of them having borne off prizes, last fall [1856], over the best Thoroughbred stock in Kentucky, (21) I was induced by some friends not to wait longer, but to give the breeders in Kentucky an opportunity to try the cross with some of our fine mares. I well knew the injury that has been done our stock by experimenting with such horses as the Winters Arabian, Zilcadi, (21) Stamboul, (23) and a number of black Barbs that have been presented from time to time by Sultans, Bays and Consuls. One who has seen the horses presented to Napoleon [III] by the sultan of Turkey can form an idea of the quality of horses that these orientals are in the habit of giving to ‘Franks’.”

ENGLISH HORSE NEEDS NEW INFUSION OF ARABIAN BLOOD

“That the English horse of the present day [1857] is inferior to what he was in the days of Eclipse, no one will doubt who examines the performances of that day. The present race of horses are fleet and many can carry their weights; but how few remain on the turf; and one hard race of four miles would injure the best horse in England.” (24)

“Some writers contend that a degeneracy is taking place; and that the best Arab blood must be resorted to. In crossing the Arab upon our stock we must not expect the first cross (25) to equal such prodigies as Lexington and Bonnie Lassie; but this cross will not deteriorate, and fine bone with vigorous constitiution, free from hereditary defects (26) will be the result. I have confidence in the result as to the improvement of our fine stock for the turf, for harness and the saddle.” (27)

NIMROD’S OPINION

Mr. Richards then relates at some length “Nimrod’s’ good opinion of the value of the best Arabian blood, after his “German Tour,” and says of him:

“You will remember that “Nimrod,’ in his hunting tour, believed that the English horse was the only horse for the turf, the hunter or the road. Yet after seeing the success of the cross at Newstad, he favors the opinion that the cross of some Arabs would do for the Derby, for hunting and fast coachers.”

ALREADY GOOD RESULTS IN AMERICA

“Some of the Arabs in this country have not failed to produce racers as well as trotters. The grandsire of Pacolet, on the dam’s side, was the Lindsay Arabian. (28) The granddam of Sidi Hamet, the sire of Bethune, was an Arab mare, got by an Arab horse sent to President Jefferson, and out of the Arab mare that came with him. Rhoderic Dhu, a good race horse up to four miles, (29) was out of a Bagdad (30) mare and many others could be cited. In the fall of 1854, on the Lexington course, Mr. Clay’s Raffle, by Yorkshire, granddam of [by] Kochlani, one of the Rhind Arabians, forced Ellen Swigert (31) to the stand in 1.46–1.47 1/2.”

“Recent investigations show that the renowned Flora Temple goes back with a few crosses to the Arabs; (32) while in Pennsylvania, we have that superb race of trotters, the Bashaws, descended from an imported Arabian or Barb of that name — introduced in 1826.” (33)

HARDY LEGS AND SPRINGY ACTION

“The Bagdad stock were in great demand in Tennessee at one time, on account of their legs standing the hard pikes better than any other stock. Massoud, Mokladi and Sacklowie are remarkable in this particular, as their legs did not swell any during their long sea voyage, on different vessels, to America. (34) Massoud goes all the fashionable saddle gaits; and Mokhladi has fine action for a trotter. The Bedouins do not train their horses to these gaits, but some of them are easily broken to pace or rack. The trot of the Arabs is so easy and springy, that no one who mounts them would care for them to go any other gait. Can this be said of our crack Thoroughbreds? Peytona or one of the long striding sons of Melbourne would be about as pleasent over a rough road, as a dromedary or a Brahmin Bull. The early English and American horses were far superior under saddle to the present style of ‘slashing goers.’ ” (35)

___________________________

Footnotes and illustration descriptions

(1) Nov.-Dec., 1934 and Jan. -Feb., 1935, issues.

(2) In the Kentucky show ring for breeding classes. T.C.

(3) Since preparing this article I note that the “Catalogue” is listed in the bibliography of W.R.Brown’s “The Horse of the Desert.” Mr. Harry Worcester Smith has been kind enough to call my attention to an article, in the “Spirit of the Times” of Aug. 8. 1857, p. 366, which appears to be a partial review of the “Catalogue” though it misses much of the essence. T.C.

(4)The Arab horses, Mokhladi, Massoud, Sacklowie. Imported by A. Keene Richards, Georgetown, Ky., 1857.

(5) “The Viceroy of Egypt, Abbas Pasha who about twenty-five to thirty years ago, undertook to breed arabs, thinking Egypt could supply the great and constantly increasing demand from nations in the old world, expended much money — in purchasing — Arab horses and mares through agents, then intrusted the handling, care and breeding to servants; and results were of such great uncertainties in sizes, colors and character, that he gave it up, disposing of his entire plant to such as wanted, because from Abbas Pasha’s stud!” “When gone he said to England’s minister, “that only the Arabs of the Desert could breed and grow Arab horses’.” “I had this from Maj. Gen. W. Tweedie, C.S.I., for many years H.B.M’s. Consul general at baghdad –.” Randolph Huntington to T. C., June 2, 1903.

Abbas Pasha’s stud was sold at Cairo in 1860 so it was gathered somewhat earlier than stated in the above quotation. T.C.

(6) McKay advances the theory that the cross of the Arabian on the native English mares created a sudden mutation which he is warranted in calling a new “Elementary Species.” W.J.Stewart McKay. “Staying Power of the Race Horse,” p. 71.

(7) McKay states that the Darley Arabian was bred in the Desert of Palmyra. Ibid. p. 59.

(8) “The late General Angerstein spent Lb 10,000, and devoted many years, in trying to improve the English blood-horse by crosses of Arab blood, without ever succeeding in producing either a race-horse or a good hunter.” S. Sidney, “Book of the Horse,” p. 12.

(9) “From 1680 to 1800 England imported for stock and blood purposes, 300 Arab stallions and mares.” Randolph Huntington to John T. Bramhall, 1889.

“But, it is said the late importations of Barbs and Arabians to England and the United States have done no good. Perhaps they were not well selected, and some of them have got one or more good ones; and take as exceptions the same dozen or a score of the nearly 400 imported English horses [to the United States], and what have the rest done?” “Crofts” in “Porters’ Spirit of the Times,” February 20, 1858.

(10) See “Sporting Magazine” (English), November, 1812, pp. 63-6, for verification of the correctness of the Lord Townshend portrait, of the Godolphin, from which Stubbs drew his famous copy. The same article also comments, as does Mr. Richards, that Stubb’s portrait shows the true form of a race horse. T.C.

(11) The mere fact of the Eastern blood regardless of form and quality. T.C.

(12) Thoroughbred mares. T.C.

It is interesting to compare the result of Mr. Richards’ researches with those of a later student and scientific breeder of the horse, the late Randolph Huntington, who wrote to a friend thus: “As – – – all three, Morgan, Clay and Pilot, were the base of all trotting speed, and were all three close to the Arabian, and all three were diluted in blood influence, still able to carry dunghills to the front, I decided to reinforce it with its blood cause, hence began to breed to Arabians in 1880” From Huntington’s letter–press copy in the possession of T.C.

(13)The name Arabia Petraea was derived from Petra, the capitol of the ancient Nabataean kingdom and of the Roman province. International Encyclopaedia.

“In 1812 the Swiss traveller, John Lewis Burckhardt, disguised as a Bedouin sheik, reached it [Petra] and returned to tell of its mysteries. It had become sacred ground to the Arabs, and danger menaced any Infidel who approached it.” National Geographic Magazine. February, 1935, p. 130.

(14) Italics are mine. T.C.

(15) Mrs. John Pack, a daughter of Mr. Richards, wrote me November 28, 1934, “My understanding was — from my mother — that the expense of all trips was borne entirely by my father, who spent a fortune on these importations.” T.C.

(16) Sir Henry Austen Layard (1817-94), traveller, writer, archaeologist, spent some eighteen years in the Near East, where he made a study of the tribes near the Tigris; also he identified Kuyunjik as the site of Nineveh. From the famous Library chamber of the palace of Assurbanipal, Layard and George Smith brought the tablets, now in the British Museum, containing the account of the Deluge. Encyclopaedia Britannica.

(17) “There is blood and stride in the desert which has never been seen out of it.” S. Sidney, “Book of the Horse,” p. 25, quotting a Scotch correspondent of the Sporting Magazine, 1864.

“Indeed, Prof. Charles Du Hays, Master of Horse [for the French Government], wrote me three years ago, ‘that there was not a pure Arab in all France’.” Randolph Huntington to Capt. W.A.Kerr, V.C. April 4, 1890.

(18) Please note the exceptional preparations tht Richards considered requisite to get access to the purest bred Arabians. T.C.

(19) Generally known as Gysaul. T.C.

(20) Although not mentioned here, the Barb mare Zariphe [Zareefa Bruce A.S.B.] is listed in another part of the “Catalogue” as imported from the Sahara [1856]. T.C.

(21) Italics are mine. T.C.

(22) Zilcaadi (usual spelling) may not have been an improving factor in the Thoroughbred running horse, but the fact that he was the sire of the dam of Dorsey’s unbeaten Golddust gives him a secure place in the trotting world. Golddust was not foaled till 1855, so he was but two years old when Richards wrote. T.C.

(23) Stamboul may not have gotten improved speed at the run, but he must have imparted other desirable qualities for Dr. Geo A. Feris who had several of Richards’ Arabians refers to him with pride as the sire of the 2nd dam of a horse by Medoc, that he rode in the Mexican War . Dr. Feris to Randolph Huntington, November 30, 1887.

(24)In 1878 there was a pamphlet published and dedicated to the Earl of Rosebery, “On the Deterioration of the British Horse.” S. Sidney “Book of the Horse,” p. 111.

(25) “—It is in the second remove that the blood [Arabian and Barb ] tells, after which you will do well to double it back upon itself.” Rudolph Huntington to Gen. L.W.Colby (who had Gen. Grant’s horse Linden Tree). June 11, 1888.

(26) Glencoe and Boston went blind; the latter’s best son, Lexington went blind. — The Derby winner, Priam, had intied legs below the knees. T.C.

Another writes [1874]: Out of six thoroughbred stallions in one district [England] (whose sire were, respectively, Kingston, Newcaster, Lord Clifden, Ely, Rataplan and Macaroni) four are unsound two blind, three roarers, one has ring bone, two have spavins and ringbone. S. Sidney, “The Book of the Horse” p. 110.

(27) This confidence was justified in the famous horse. “Limestone.” bred by Mr. Richards, and whose grandsire was Massoud, and in many others. Italics are mine. T.C.

Please note that Mr. Richards had in mind the breeding of stallions and mares that would improve not only race horses but also horses for all light purposes. Many authorities including von Oettingen believe that this point of view has been neglected in the breeding of the modern sprinters. T.C.

(28) Lindsay’s Arabian (called Ranger): a white horse of most perfect form and symmetry, about 15 hands. Presented by Emperor of Morocco to Captain of a British frigate who gave him to the Captain of a United States boat, who landed him in Connecticut, 1766 — then four years old: stock very valuable. Bruce. A.S.B.

The belief has been advanced that some of the Lindsay blood helped to make Justin Morgan. T.C.

(29) Only four miles! T.C.

(30) Bagdad was imported to Tripoli from Aleppo; to New York 1823 by way of England. Sold in 1823 for $8,000 by George Barclay to John Harding, representing a company of Nashville men. J.D.Anderson, “Making the American Thoroughbred,” p. 63. Bagdad died February, 1836 Frank Forester, p. 142.

(31) Ellen Swigert. gr. m. f. –, bred by John L. Howard of Missouri: owned by John Harper, Woodford do., Ky. Sire Bulwer (son of Grey Eagle), 1st dam Cora by trumpator, 4th dam by tippoo Said. Bruce A.S.B.

(32) Although there is no documentary evidence of the breeding of Lora Temple, John Wilder Taylor who bought Flora and her dam — (from the farmer at Clinton, N.Y., who bred and raised her) — for R.A. Alexander, told Randolph Huntington in 1855 “that the mare [the dam, Madam Temple] showed more arab blood than anything else.” Randolph Huntington to John Gilmer Speed. December 20, 1903.

As Flora was the first trotter to beat 2.20; and, from 1853 to 1859, best all the good horse in the country, it is not hard to believe that she was close to the Arabian or Barb. T.C.

In an interview with Major C.A. Benton, November 13, 1934, he said that Tib Hinman was the first mare to beat 2.20; that his father had timed her in St. Lawrence Co., N.Y. Although authentic, it does not appear that this time was an official record. T.C.

(33) Young Bashaw, by imp. Grand Bashaw, was the sire of the unbeaten Andrew Jackson, who got Henry Clay the founder of the famous Clay family. T.C.

Matt Davis, foaled 1856, was one of the best race horses ever run in America. He and his full brother, W.R. Davis, were out of the Mae Rally, who was sired by the imported Arabian, Kochlani, one of the four Oriental Stallions presented to Minister Rhind. From “Spirit of the Times,” November 24, 1883.

(34) “Many of the horses had stood on their feet from the 28th day of August until the 8th day of October. Yet when they were led off the boat onto the docks, they played and pranced. With legs free from any swelling whatever. On reaching the farm one stallion stood up in his box for another twenty-four hours before he lay down.” “My Quest of the Arabian Horse.” Homer Davenport, p. 222.

“—a cubic inch of the tibia of a horse so reared [like the Desert bred] weighs 20 per cent moe than stabled stock.” S. Sidney. “Book of the Horse,” p. 25.

(35) “There is all the difference in riding the Arabian and the ordinary English hunter or half bred, that there is riding in a well hung gig. or a cart without springs.” W.S.Blunt to Randolph Huntington, who quotes this in a M.S. sent to Scientific American, September 6, 1887.

Continued in the next issue)

*****

image: GODOLPHIN BARB

“This noble animal had the form of a race horse, as any judge may plainly see from Stubbs’ picture.” Quoted from Richards’ “Catalogue.”

This horse was foaled in 1724 and died in 1753. His height was 15 hands. He is considered one of the three most important Eastern horses in the creation of the Thoroughbred. While sometimes referred to as an Arabian and sometimes as a Barb it is now generally conceded that his conformation was more Barb than Arabian and Mr. Richards concurred in this belief.

Photographed from an engraaving in Tattersall’s “Pictorial Gallery of English Race Horses,” in the New York Public Library.

__________________________

image: MAP SHOWING APPROXIMATE ROUTE TAKEN BY MR. RICHARDS ON TWO EXPEDITIONS FOR STUDYING AND PURCHASING HORSES

“I made myself acquainted with the modern importations, by going to England, France and Spain, examining the best Arabs belonging to the governments, visiting Morocco, and going through the interior of Algeria. I went to Tunis — thence to Egypt, and from Egypt through Arabia Petra and the Desert east of Damascus as far as Palmyra.” From Richards’ “Catalogue.”

“The trip from Jerusalem to Petra and back once required about a month of ardous caravan travel through country infested with lawless Bedouins.” National Geographic Magazine, Fegruary. 1935, p. 130.

Sheik Midjuel, of the Anazeh, guided Mr. Richards from Damascus to Palmyra. From newspaper obituary of Mr. Richards, 1881.

The direct distance from Damascus to Palmyra is about 150 miles.

Besides visiting all the interesting places in Palestine and Syria he studied the horses in Austria, Prussia and Russia.

The following notes are from a book kept by Troye on the Second Expedition: In September, 1855, they were in Constantinople. In November in Damascus. In Bayrout, “October 13, 1855,: as Troye wrote that date on the back of his portrait of the white mare.

“We pitched our tents on the 6th and commenced painting the ‘Dead Sea,’ March 6th, 1856.”

“We raised our tents on the morning of the 21st to rreach Jerusalem. It took ten days from Damascus to jerusalem [about 159 miles direct]. we had four mules to carry our baggage — a horse apiece — four horsesd — and one for our servant Yuseph.”

“Arrived at Barjyrout, April 3rd, 1856.”

The Troyue notes are used through the courtesy of Mr. Richards’ daughter, Mrs. E.G.Swartz.

The route, from London to Palmyra, of the First Expedition, is over 4,000 miles.

From a National Geographic magazine Map to which Richard’s route is added. Published by permission of National Geographic Society. Copyright 1932.

________________________________

photo: “MOKHLADI” WITH A.KEENE RICHARDS IN ARAB COSTUME

Quoting Richards: ” ‘Mokhladi’ is a gray, 14 hands 1 inch, and was bred by the Tarabine tribe of Bedouins, in Arbia Petra. He is the sire of the colt* that took the prize last fall at Lexington, in the ring of Thoroughbreds under one year old.”

“Faithful portraits of three of my stallions are introduced in this pamphlet, and those who are judges of form, can see for themselves and compare their points with other importations. The portraits are photographed by Elrod of Lexington, Ky., from sketches by that eminent artist, Edward Troye. The proportions are strictly correct, and any one who has the curiousity, may measure the comparative points with any thoroughbred of known merit. The height of each horse is given accurately, and not in the usual way of measuring part of the stallion’s neck for his height.” **

*The dam of the colt was a “chestnut mare, by Gray Eagle, out of a Bertrand mare.” “(This mare is the dam of Mokhladi’s colt which took the prize. She goes back to the same stock which produced Grey Medoc and Minnehaha).”

**From Mr. Richards’ own account of his horses, printed in 1857 at Lexington, Ky.

Reproduced here through the courtesy of Mr. Richards’ daughter, Mrs. Edward G. Swartz, who has the painting in her possession.

A small reproduction of this Mokhladi portrait appeared in my article in the Horse, January-February issue, before this present article was contemplated, but it should be included here as it is one of the three illustrations in the “Catalogue.” T.C.

__________________________

photo: “MASSOUD”

Quoting Richards: ” ‘Massoud’ is a rich chestnut, 15 hands, bred by the Anayza Bedouins. He is the sire of the filly that received the first prize last fall [1856], both at Lexington, and at the State Fair at Paris [Ky.], in the Thoroughbred ring for yearling fillies.”*

“Massoud” was the sire of the mare Transylvania who produced the famous steeplechase and flat racer, “Limestone,” by “War Dance.”

All these horses were, at one time, owned by Richards.

*From Mr. Richards’ own account of his horses, printed in 1857 at Lexington, Ky.

Carl Raswan–-Obituary by Alice Payne

Articles of History:

Carl Raswan Dies

by Alice Payne The Arabian Horse News, Nov-Dec 1966              Carl Raswan, born March 7, 1893, at Castle of Reichstedt, near Dresden, Germany, died October 14, 1966, at Santa Barbara, California

           Carl, without a doubt in my opinion, had more influence on Arabian horse breeding than any man, living or dead. The part he played in saving the classic Arabian horse is well known in Europe, Asia, South America and Africa. World politics did not chain him. He was equally known on both sides of the Iron Curtain. His knowledge was sought after all over the world. To the very end he was helping people world-wide in selecting animals, planning breeding and making importations. In the past he had been involved with the Brown, Dickenson and Kellogg importations into this country. In fact, he organized the Kellogg stud.

           He imported horses from the desert for Americans, South Americans and Europeans. Carl wrote many books and articles about the Arabian Horse and the Bedouin, who survived because of the courage and strength, intelligence and endurance of his horse. The greatest contribution was his “Index,” for which he gathered information for 28 years. It required 11 years for him and his wife Esperanza to compile this information. In order to accomplish this, they isolated themselves in Mexico City and worked under the greatest of handicaps. This “Index” is now a living thing. Six volumes are out so far, and a seventh is in the process.

           Carl was a gentle, kindly and humble man, dedicated to truth, especially about the Arabian horses. This later caused him to become the center of a fiery controversy. Even so, I personally never heard him say one unkind thing about anyone, even his bitterest critics.

           During the 30’s and 40’s several stimulating articles appeared by Carl Raswan in the “Western Horseman” and other journals. These contained explanations, figures, photos, charts and descriptions regarding the breeding and pedigrees of Arabian horses. In fact, these articles stimulated me with a desire to know this man whose experiences were so vast and explanations so logical. I went to New Mexico with another Arab enthusiast to meet him. He was the most enthusiastic person I had ever met. His knowledge overwhelmed me. Carl had the ability to transmit this enthusiasm to others. He taught me simple ways to judge an Arabian and categorize him according to family stains. We talked for hours. When it came time to leave I looked up on the hill behind the stable and remarked: “Oh, you also raise Thoroughbreds!” “No, no,” he explained, “those are Mu’niqi. You must see!” He then brought these down and showed me the difference in head, legs and the hock structure, etc. From that time I never deviated from approaching an Arab in the manner which he taught me.

           Carl was a dedicated man. He did not hesitate to tell what he believed to be the truth. I found his advice to be sound. Whenever I used a line of breeding which he had warned me against, sooner or later something undesirable turned up. So I learned to request his advice before making a purchase. I can truthfully say that I owe any success I might have as a breeder to Carl, and I am sure many others feel the same way.

           I have been told that recently in Germany, Russia and Eastern Europe, renaissance among Arab breeders has occurred, and Carl’s teachings have become an accepted method of breeding. In Poland they said Carl was the first to bring from the desert any workable and concrete evidence as to the existence of family strains. He never referred to this as “Raswan’s theory,” but humbly passed it on as knowledge he had gained from the tribes.

           As a horse photographer there was none equal to Carl. His ability as an author is displayed by the numerous editions of “Drinkers of the Wind” and other books. He used the scholarly form of Arabic in his Index. He was very facile in several languages: English, French, Spanish, German, Arabic and others.

           Carl spent years in the desert with the tribesmen. Incidentally, his death was caused by silicosis (coal miner’s disease) which he acquired as a result of having been in sand storms with the Bedouin.

           Carl met the great, the near-great and the lowly, and was the same gentle man with all these people. He gave untiringly of his time and knowledge to each and everyone who sought it. *Raffles, for example had been in this country five years before Carl could persuade American breedes to use him on purebred Arabian mares of the Kehilan family. His first colt was INDRAFF, the horse that became a legend in his own time. there are many, many other examples.

           Carl put in endless hours on pedigrees for others. To offers of payment, his reply would be: “No, God gave me this gift and I cannot sell it.” Needless to say, he died a very poor man as far as material wealth is concerned — but not so, spiritually!

           Carl Schmidt, his name by birth was given up when his horse *RASWAN was killed. At that time he said: “*RASWAN shall not die — I shall write under his name.” He then had his name legally changed to Raswan — in memory of a horse.

           His life was filled with exciting adventures. In addition to his exploits in Arabia, he fought with the Turks at Gallipoli, was captured by the Polish reds in 1918 at Warsaw, imprisoned in 1937 by Hitler’s S.S. and served with the British Intelligence during World War II.

           Carl’s wife Esperanza deserves much praise and credit, as she worked side by side with him on his “Index” and his later works, some of which have not been published — such as his auto-biography and Vol. VII of the “Index.” She is made of the stuff of which angels are made. He also leaves two dear and very young daughters, Chela and Beatriz.

The Descent of Anazeh Table I: The First Four Generations of Descent from *Leopard

This entry is part 6 of 6 in the series Leopard and Linden Tree

by Michael Bowling
Copyright 1979 by MICHAEL BOWLING used by permission of Michael Bowling published in Arabian Horse World July 1979
Photos from the Carol Mulder collection (unless otherwise noted)

TABLE I: The First Four Generations of Descent from *Leopard 233

Name (Mares In Italics) AHR number color sex year foaled breeder
ANAZEH 235 ch c 1890 Randolph Huntington
NEJD 236 ch c 1894 Huntington
NAARAH 256 ch f 1895 Huntington
NAROMI 257 ch f 1902 Herman Hoopes, West Chester, PA
NIMRETTE 128 ch f 1904 Herman Hoopes
NIMNAARAH 129 ch f 1911 Herman Hoopes
Khaled III 117 ch c 1905 Herman Hoopes
NAARAH II 115 ch f 1906 Herman Hoopes
ROALA 323 b c 1895 J.A.P.Ramsdell
NAAMAN 116 ch c 1896 Huntington
NAROMI 257 ch f 1902 Herman Hoopes
NAARAH II 115 ch f 1906 Herman Hoopes
NAAMAN II 131 ch c 1910 Herman Hoopes
NIMNAARAH 129 ch f 1911 Herman Hoopes
BINT NIMNAARAH 452 b f 1918 Hamilton Carhartt, Rock Hill, SC
SIMRI 453 b f 1920 Hamilton Carhartt
HAARANMIN 451 b f 1921 Hamilton Carhartt
NIMHOURA 543 ch f 1922 Hamilton Carhartt
NAZLINA 6 ch f 1897 Huntington
KHALETTA 9 ch f 1903 Huntington
NARKHALEB 114 ch s 1911 Meldrum Gray, Columbus, OH
JAFFA 170 b g 1915 W.R.Brown, Belin, NH
AGATULLAH 221 ch c 1917 W.R.Brown
ABU BEKR 304 ch c 1918 W.R.Brown
ARAB PRINCE 72 ch c 1904 Huntington
METOECIA 51 b f 1908 Hartman Stock Farm, Columbus OH
GEMAR 176 ch c 1916 W.R.Brown
ABBARS 215 ch c 1917 W.R.Brown
KADYAH 342 ch f 1918 W.R.Brown
MAJJAH 406 ch c 1920 W.R.Brown
MAJ 428 b c 1921 W.R.Brown
NARKEESA 7 ch f 1897 Huntington
LEUCOSIA 50 b c 1908 Hartman Stock Farm
NARKHALEB 114 ch c 1911 Meldrum Gray
ARABY 266 b c 1911 J.A.Lawrence, San Francisco,Ca
PACHECO 182 ch f 1914 S.C.Thomson,San Francisco,Ca
EL SAKAB 264 ch c 1915 S.C.Thomson
EL SABOK 264 ch c 1916 S.C.Thomson
OMAN 570 b c 1926 Albert W. Harris
HIRA 571 ch f 1926 Harris
BESRA 572 ch f 1926 Harris
MATAB 574 ch c 1926 Harris
STAMBUL 575 gr c 1926 Harris
EMINEH 576 ch f 1926 Harris
AMBAR 628 ch c 1927 Harris
GIRTHA 630 ch f 1927 Harris
ALIA 641 b f 1927 Harris
AMALEK 642 ch c 1928 Harris
AGA 668 ch c 1928 Harris
SAERA 670 gr f 1928 Harris
NAHA 671 ch f 1928 Harris
SABIGAT 672 b f 1928 Harris
ROKHAL 675 ch f 1928 Harris
LEILA 275 ch f 1917 S.C.Thomson
ALILAT 632 b f 1927 Betty Bassett, San Luis Obispo, CA
LANAD 930 ch c 1932 W.K.Kellogg, Pomona, CA
HANEIL 1222 ch c 1936 W.K.Kellogg
LALET 1380 ch f 1937 W.K.Kellogg Institute
LEIDAAN 1679 ch c 1939 Fred E. Vanderhoof, Covina, CA
EL KUNUT 1856 ch c 1940 S.W.Bramhall, Covelo, CA
NARESSA 252 ch f 1898 Huntington
SABAAH 312 ch c 1900 Huntington

The Descent of Anazeh (Part 2)

This entry is part 5 of 6 in the series Leopard and Linden Tree

by Michael Bowling
Copyright 1979 by MICHAEL BOWLING used by permission of Michael Bowling published in Arabian Horse World July 1979
Photos from the Carol Mulder collection (unless otherwise noted)

Rafissa 1695 (*Raffles x Ydrissa), Gina Manion up, 1950’s.

Arthur Ball, president of Ball Jar Company (home canners in the audience will nod wisely at the name), bought the George horses around 1935, and OURIDA and YDRISSA were in the group. Ball sold this pair of chestnuts to the Manions for $1500 (“We have our canceled check!”) and Manion Canyon came into being.

The Manions first sent their mares to IMAGE and *Raffles; the resulting fillies in 1939 were IMAGIDA 1694 (Image x Ourida) and RAFISSA 1695 (*Raffles x Ydrissa), the latter being only the fourth foal registered to her soon-tremendously-influential sire. RAFISSA was YDRISSA’s only Manion-bred foal, as the mare was sold to New York where she produced three more fillies, all of which have bred on in turn. At Manion Canyon RAFISSA produced 13 foals, of which RIFRAFF, by her sire *Raffles, was much the most influential. OUIDA’s daughter RAYGEENA was probably her most influential for the Manions, but another first foal success, the elegant IMAGIDA, represents her most wide-ranging contribution to the world.

I remember this mare’s *Raffles daughters GIDA 4353 and RAFGIDA 4981 as most elegant and impressive, and of course their brothers IMARAFF 3476 and RAFFI 3781 have been influential, in a great many respected programs.

Mrs. Manion quotes Dr. Munson as saying there must be 5,000 modern descendants of OURIDA. Asked how the Manions came to part with IMAGIDA, source of the OURIDA cross in most of those, she outline “one of those stories” which she said always had been a sore spot with her. William States Jacobs of Texas phoned “every day at 7:00 a.m. for two weeks trying to buy either IMAGIDA or RAFISSA.” IMAGIDA was being most determinedly “green” at the time (well–not to put too fine a point on it–“IMAGIDA had run away with me in the sleigh and kicked it to pieces. I rode the runner and held on to the reins until she headed for a fence, then I bailed out. Another time she lay down on the road with me, saddle and all, and wouldn’t get up“) and Jacobs apparently hit the psychological moment–at any rate he got IMAGIDA for $1000 (“I cringe to think of it!”). According to Mrs. Manion the check to pay for the mare was signed by Roger Selby, and IMAGIDA never left the Selby Stud even though the Studbook lists Jacobs, not Selby, as breeder of IMARAFF, RAFFI, GIDA and RAFGIDA.

ANAZEH’s daughter NAZLINA 6 produced KHALETTA 9 in 1903, and ARAB PRINCE 72 in 1904, both sired by Khaled and bred by Huntington. These four, along with NARKEESA 7 (Anazeh x *Naomi) and several others, went through what appear to have been the final dispersal sale of Huntington’s horses in 1907. This was the auction in which old *NAZLI was sold from her stall as being in too poor condition to lead out, so it appears that hard times had set upon the program with a vengeance. The largest buyer at this sale was the Hartman Stock Farm in Columbus, Ohio, and NAZLINA, KHALETTA and NARKEESA were among the ones they took home.

A new change on Huntington’s “linebred Maneghi” idea was rung in Ohio: KHALETTA and NARKEESA were both bred to Homer Davenport’s desertbred Maneghi Sbeyli stallion *HALEB 25, “the pride of the desert,” in 1907, a year after the Davenport group arrived in this country. It seems quite likely that the Hartman mares were sent straight to *HALEB’s court from the auction, since New Jersey would be on the way home from New York to Ohio. One hopes, at any rate, that Huntington was in on the decision to try the cross, as he would have enjoyed planning this return to a new source of the strain he had tried to preserve.

In any event the idea can’t be called a blazing success. Only these two foals were bred by the Hartman Stock Farm: NARKEESA produced a bay colt, LEUCOSIA 50, and KHALETTA a bay filly, METOECIA 51. It would seem that the nucleus of horses passed to one Meldrum Gray, also of Columbus, for in 1910 he bred KHALETTA to the two-year-old LEUCOSIA, getting for his pains the chestnut colt NARKHALEB 114, another of those “absolutely Maneghi” pedigrees that this group of horses turned out now and then. Again, I will not try to describe this inbreeding–please see NARKHALEB’s pedigree in TABLE III.


NARKHALEB 114
Chestnut stallion 1911
Leucosia 50 *Haleb 25 DB DB
DB
DB DB
DB
Narkeesa 7 Anazeh 235 *Leopard 233
*Naomi 230
*Naomi 230 Yataghan GSB DB
Haidee GSB DB
Khaletta 9 Khaled 5 *Nimr 232 *Kismet 253
*Nazli 231
*Naomi 230 Yataghan GSB DB
Haidee GSB DB
Nazlina 6 Anazeh 235 *Leopard 233
*Naomi 230
*Nazli 231 Maidan GSB DB
*Naomi 230
DB: Desertbred GSB: General Stud Book, England
NARKHALEB’s descendants are all through his outcrossed daughter from KILLAH 103, she by *GOMUSSA 31 DB x *HADBA 43 DB.

NARLAH 916

KHALETTA and METOECIA were among the first Arabians purchased by W.R. Brown when he founded his not-then-famous Maynesboro Stud in 1914. He bred three foals from KHALETTA and five from METOECIA but nothing has come of any of them; Brown came to own KHALETTA’s sire and quite possibly decided he liked his *Naomi breeding less inbred than KHALETTA represented it, and since it was his ambition to have an entirely “double registered” (Jockey Club as well as Arabian Horse Club) herd, METOECIA did not fit his plans too well. The Davenport horses were not registered with the Jockey Club, and so of course neither were their get.

The NAZLINA branch from ANAZEH thus reduces to the single stallion NARKHALEB. He too went to New England, to Hingham Stock Farm, where he sired MIZUEL 388 from SANKIRAH 149; this horse, foaled in 1919, came to be owned by W. K. Kellogg and to sire three foals, all colts, none of which left descent. D. Gordon Hunter bred HAYABEL 791, NARKHALEB’s 1930 daughter, another who dropped out. In 1931 W. K. Kellogg bred NARKHALEB to the unrelated mare KILLAH 103, resulting in the brown 1931 filly NARLAH 916 who managed to propagate this slenderest surviving branch of the ANAZEH family tree.

NARLANI 6261 (Aulani x Narlah) at age 20 (courtesy Susan Brandol).

TEENA 11586 (Yatez x Narzah by Narzigh x Narlah).

This branch spread on quite well after its difficult start; NARLAH produced nine foals of which six have registered offspring, though the foals of her first daughter ARAKI 1677 did not breed on to future generations. Most of NARLAH’s foals were bred by E. E. Hurlbutt, and two fillies of his breeding (NARSEYNA 3347 and NARZAH 4198) produced 11 and 14 foals respectively. NARLAH’s son NARLANI 6261 sired 17 foals (only four of them colts!) though he was not used to get registered purebreds until he was 15 years old. NARSEYNA was dam of the popular sire SUROBED 6675. NARLAH’s last foal COALANI 8419, full sister to NARLANI, had a son (Rabalain 20302) and grandson (Ben Rabba 29921) exported to England, so this *Leopard branch too is international in scope.

The double *Naomi mare NARKEESA did not accompany her relatives to New England; her travels were in the opposite direction, and she ended up in San Francisco, CA, where she produce five outcrossed foals by EL JAFIL 74 for two different owners. Three of these dropped out, but the youngest two more than made up for the disappearing act of their siblings.

The first of these was EL SABOK 276, foaled in 1916. He became a Remount sire and achieved a distinguished record in endurance tests, which brought him to the attention of that proponent of usefulness and hardihood, Albert W. Harris. EL SABOK was used for three seasons at Harris’s Kemah Stud, and sired some of the most influential animals to come out of (or take part in) that program. Of EL SABOK’s 15 registered get–making him far and away the most prolific *Leopard descendant within the first four generations, as is obvious from Table 1–only five left no registered descent, and most of the others have bred on quite extensively.

EL SABOK’s grey son STAMBUL 575 was his most prolific offspring; we are told he sired over 1,000 foals–mostly Remount half-Arabs, of course, and most of them not registered–but he got 20 registered purebreds and had he only sired ALLA AMARWARD 1140 he would have been an influential breeding horse, as Carol Mulder’s article on that prolific sire in this issue makes clear. The *Leopard line has been spread to other countries through this branch as well; I know ALLA AMARWARD’s descendant WITEZAN 8552 went to Australia and left offspring there before his death.

EL SABOK’s daughters SABIGAT 672 and HIRA 571 both produced at Traveler’s Rest in their later year; General Dickinson was a great believer in outcrossing and in combining Arabians from as many sources as possible in his program, and thus introduced a number of Harris horses over the years. Of course, he also admired their proven ability as demonstrated in endurance tests and other performance fields.

The SAERA 670 branch from EL SABOK is a lesser-known but very prolific one, with several long-lived producers to its credit on the female side. The good mare ROKHAL by EL SABOK produced in California, with a string of HANAD foals and another series by A’ZAM, along with some “singles” by other sires. ROKHAL descendants also were exported, this time to Nicaragua, but did not breed on in recorded stock. NAHA 671 also went to California and hers is another *Leopard branch that passed through the hands of E.E. Hurlbutt. Her most influential offspring probably has been NAHADEYN 3114, though she also bears the distinction of having produced NABOR–not the Russianbred NABOR, registered here a *NABORR, but the 1941 foal who bore that name originally and was responsible for the “furriner’s” having to add a letter when he arrived here. The first NABOR has no descent, which is probably just as well from the point of view of future students of pedigrees.

BESRA 572 was exported to Hawaii; doubtless her descendants still exist in the Island, but their registration was not maintained. The very good EL SABOK mare EMINEH 576 bred on successfully in a number of lines, as did GIRTHA 630 though with lesser opportunity (fewer foals). An interesting story must revolve around AGA 668; he was used at stud at three by Harris, and he and both his resulting sons were promptly gelded. Be that as it may, his daughter TERNA 934 produced four foals and two of these bred on, so AGA still has descent.

OMAN 570 sired 12 foals spread over 20 years, and a number of these were used for breeding — indeed, his daughters SURA 781 and especially KAHAWI 782 would have to be accounted among the distinguished matriarchs of their generation.

I hope it is clear from the above that EL SABOK’s is much the most widepread and influential of the ANAZEH branches; only that of IMAGIDA even dreams of rivalling it. The very strength of numbers makes it impossible to go into the detailed accounting of breeder and locations making use of his stock, done for the founders of the other lines. (In fact El Sabok did not do much traveling that we know of–he somehow got from California to Wisconsin, but beyond that–he stood at the Kemah stud and was used by Albert W. Harris, and there is no more to say.)

Leila 575

EL SABOK’s sister LEILA 275 was foaled in 1917. Her only producing daughter was ALILATT 632 who bred on in five separate line, doing rather better than her dam, in the way of daughters at least. ALILATT was a producer for the W. Randolph Hearst interests and thus met a number of different breeding sources in the sires of her offspring. Two of ALILATT’s daughters, KASILA 1266 and ALIDIN 1411, produced ten foals apiece.

KASILA’s included the *RASEYN son KARONEK who sired 40 foals, so spread that *Leopard branch rather widely; another of KASILA’s was ROKILA, by ROKHAL’s son ROKHALAD and so a great- granddaughter of both EL SABOK and LEILA, and a strong source of the *Leopard influence, comparatively speaking. Interestingly, the doubling to *Leopard here was done with the horses (of his sources) least inbred to *Naomi and thus most likely to have given him something to say in the matter.

ALIDIN was a Van Vleet matron and numbered some familiar names in her branch, and several extremely prolific matrons–two of her daughters produced 15 and 18 foals. ESPERANZO is a familiar name picked from this lot, and ALIDIN’s first foal, the mare ALIHAH, had several highly-regarded daughters to represent her. A mystery that someone, somewhere, can probably clarify, has to do with ALILATT’s 1940 production: she had two chestnut fillies listed to her credit for that year, with two different breeders and foaling dates, but the same sire. One of these, RIFLATT, had her registration canceled, and the other, GUEMERA 1807, had no descent, so the matter is largely academic–but it would be interesting to know just what went on here.

EL KUNUT 1856 (El Kumait x Leila)

LEILA’s son LEIDAAN 1679 carried on the tradition of prolific daughters–he did not have many, but several of them produced foals in numbers like 14 and 18. To be fair, several of his get (including the daughter with 18 foals) were crossed back to LEILA through ALIDIN, so this tendency was probably coming from both sides. The last LEILA foal was the very handsome halter champion EL KUNUT 1856, a popular sire in his day (17 foals, two out of an Alla Amarward mare and three more out of El Kunut’s own daughter, so doubled back to Narkeesa), whose descendants are still breeding on.

The descent of ANAZEH” is a vast subject and one which tends to get out of hand, both physically in trying to keep track of the masses of notes and charts of descent involved, and mentally in trying to picture just how many horses are actually involved here, and what we know of them. It would be scientifically unsound, and I would be called out for it from now until 1990, to try to guess the genetic influence today of a horse foaled in 1890. We do have samples of ANAZEH’s genes around today; the problem is that we don’t have the information on all the intermediate links, that would enable us to tell which of today’s circulating genes originated with him.

I will go so far out on a limb as to share my impression (garnered from a study with no controls, shame to admit) that there are so many ANAZEH descendants, because ANAZEH-bred females in the early generations were prolific above the average of the breed. I haven’t approached this systematically, but I would be very much surprised if a random sample of the breed included as many dams of 14, 16, 19 foals, as are listed in my data sheets on the ANAZEH group. This trend does not continue right back to ANAZEH’s daughters, but we have the difficulty of not knowing how many purebred foals went unregistered in those first generations. Certainly some proportion did, and very likely in the crash of the Huntington program many females of this breeding went into production of other type of horses–there was very little call for pure Arab breeding in those days.

*LEOPARD descendant in costume class forty years ago. Photo shows the first Arabian costume class in the state of Indiana–1939. The sixth horse from the left is YDRISSA 927 (Antez x Bint Nimnaraah), with five crosses to *NAOMI, dam of ANAZEH. Sam Miller up. Writes Gina Manion, who sent photo: “Compared to the fanfare today, this is quite a switch. Costumes consisted of bedspreads, bathrobes and turkish towels with head-bands. Quite authentic looking, actually!”

[Photos from the Gina Manion collection appearing with this article included: Ourida and Ydrissa, Rafissa, and the “*Leopard descendant in costume class.”]

The Descent of Anazeh (Part I)

This entry is part 4 of 6 in the series Leopard and Linden Tree

by Michael Bowling
Copyright 1979 by MICHAEL BOWLING
used by permission
published in Arabian Horse World July 1979
Photos from the Carol Mulder collection (unless otherwise noted)

ANAZEH 235 — a painting by George Ford Morris (courtesy Lois M. Berry).

ANAZEH 235 as the camera caught him — a bit of *Naomi’s influence shows in the head, but this is a handsome horse.

To begin by clarifying one point–this is being put together under the heading of “the descent of ANAZEH” rather than “the genetic influence of *Leopard” because we know ANAZEH has descent (within the limits of reliability of studbook records, anyway, but that’s another whole story). At this late date and considering some of the pedigree contortions the *Leopard descendants went through in the early generations, I am not at all sure whether poor old *Leopard has any genetic influence at all. I do know that I have no idea how to go about computing it. (More of this later, when the subject of early redoubling of the *Leopard line comes along.)

Randolph Huntington’s pure Arab breeding program came about as a secondary project, in connection with his attempts to produce an American trotting breed–this story is gone into in the *Leopard and *Linden Tree historical review in this issue, in some detail. *Leopard was the origin and the inspiration for the purebred section of the Huntington stud–if he had not come along, Huntington would never have gotten a start in Arabs, and so *Leopard is essential to the story in that light. From a breeding standpoint Huntington did not make as much use of *Leopard, however, as he might have. Huntington was the first American Arabian breeder, which I suppose makes it inevitable that he was the first American Arabian breeder to be a proponent of intense inbreeding; this notion has been part of the breed’s history here from its beginnings.

What made things awkward from *Leopard’s point of view was that Huntington became captivated by the notion of the “Maneghi racing strain” and the desirability of inbreeding this type. *Leopard was a Seglawi Jedran–so he became a distraction from the Huntington program almost as soon as he inspired it; thus apparently, the fact that *Leopard was bred to “his” mare *Naomi 230 just once, leaving just one offspring in the program, his son ANAZEH, the object of this narrative. Ironically, *Naomi herself was of mixed strains, not inbred (brother x sister) Maneghi as was thought at that time, since she was sired by a Kehilan stallion. Further, *KISMET and MAIDAN, two supposed Maneghis which played important pedigree role in the Vidal program which Huntington bought out, turn out to have had no recorded strains at all–thus making it difficult if not impossible to make much sense out of the claims of the *Naomi family to represent “inbred Maneghi type” at least until Huntington got through with it. He did inbreed it to startling degrees.


Even though not inbred, *Naomi was a very prepotent broodmare; her outcrossed offspring *NAZLI and ANAZEH resembled each other rather strongly, and ANAZEH looked even more like *NAZLI’s son *NIMR (because both stallions were better looking than the mare). Bred to her grandson *NIMR, *Naomi produced Khaled, another good-looking horse, though less attractive about the head than his sire.

Naaman 116 ch. st. foaled 1896 by Anazeh and out of *Nazli, bred by Huntington.


NAAMAN (Anazeh x *Nazli) is downright beautiful in the one photo of him which survives, but with further inbreeding things got rather less pleasing — there are not many photos available from which to judge the intensely-bred results of this line, but they do seem to have gotten rather coarse and angular, with a high frequency of lopped ears, as things went on. Some of these inbreds outcrossed very satisfactorily indeed, with a number of quite distinguished early representatives, but I can’t help speculating as to what might have happened had a) Huntington kept on with his program a little longer (the most extreme inbreds were produced by programs founded on his stock) or b) *Leopard (or somebody else not closely related to *Naomi) been used more freely in the early days, giving a broader genetic base to continue operations on.

Since we are dealing not with what could have happened, but with the story as it actually took place, we must refer to the Studbook rather than to my imagination. ANAZEH is credited with just seven get in Volume V, but of course there is no way of knowing how many of his offspring went unregistered; his youngest listed foal was a 1900 model, eight years before the Registry was founded, and no great deal of industry was devoted to tracking down “lost” pre-Registry purebreds. The first point to note is that neither of his outcross sons left descent; thus all *Leopard’s immediate descendants were inbred back to the prepotent *Naomi, a fact which had to militate against his visible influence. ANAZEH’s first listed foal, out of his dam *Naomi, was also lost to the breed. The other four get of ANAZEH all bred on to one degree or another.

It would appear that the Pennsylvanian Herman Hoopes bought the full siblings, NAARAH 256 and the handsome NAAMAN 116, around 1900, and presumably from Huntington. His breeding program, based on this pair and cooperating with Huntington’s Maneghi project (since he bred to *Nimr in 1903 and Khaled in 1904), continued at least until 1911 and the production of NIMNAARAH 129, the only animal of this branch to leave descent and a “sure enough” inbred Maneghi; rather than try to explain the interactions here I refer the reader to her pedigree.

NIMNAARAH 129
Chestnut mare 1911
Naaman 116 Anazeh 235 *Leopard 233 DB
DB
*Naomi 230 Yataghan GSB DB
Haidee GSB DB
*Nazli 231 Maidan GSB DB
DB
*Naomi 230 Yataghan GSB DB
Haidee GSB DB
Nimrette 128 *Nimr 232 *Kismet 23 DB
DB
*Nazli 231 Maidan GSB
*Naomi 230
Naarah 256 Anazeh 235 *Leopard 233
*Naomi 230
*Nazli 231 Maidan GSB
*Naomi 230
DB: Desertbred
GSB: General Stud Book, England
NIMNAARAH’s descendants are all through her outcrossed daughter by *HOURAN 26 DB.

NIMNAARAH, fortunately for the sanity of pedigree readers, passed into the hands of Hamilton Carhartt of South Carolina, who bred four outcross foals (at least that many–note that only fillies are registered, suggesting the possibility of colts which may have dropped out of sight) from her by the desertbred *HOURAN, a Kehilan Tamri imported by Davenport. The next step is uncertain, but it appear that two NIMNAARAH daughters, HAARANMIN 451 and BINT NIMNAARAH 452, went to Traveler’s Rest with General J. M. Dickinson for a brief stay, during which BINT NIMNAARAH was bred to Dickinson’s ANTEZ. At any rate in 1932 both foaled fillies for John A. George of Indiana–BINT NIMNAARAH produced the ANTEZ daughter YDRISSA 947, and HARAANMIN produced the RIBAL daughter OURIDA 946, RIBAL being the George herd sire at that time.

The George program does not seem to have existed very long; the last foals for which he is listed as breeder came in 1935. HAARANMIN produced two more fillies and a colt for the program before leaving for Texas, where she produced in the Walter Gillis breeding group. This program got off to a good start and went along for several generations but seems to have left descent among modern registered stock in only a few collateral lines.

The George-bred HAARANMINs were luckier, and indeed count some of the breed’s most influential horses among their number. Her son YOHANAH 1174 is quickly dismissed as he has no registered get; daughter MINA 1097 went to New York and produced three sons, two of which were used for breeding. HAARANMIN’s second daughter BERLE 1021 by RIBAL, and thus full sister to OURIDA, produced a total of 14 foals in Indiana, Maryland and Pennsylvania by a variety of sires. Donald Shutz of North Manchester, In, recalls BERLE as “one of the taller mares” of her time and of good type, comparable to her sister OURIDA.

I am most familiar with the members of this family which entered the “Double R” program, including my favorite of the lot, the splendid mare AMYR DOREEN 26232. This branch carried the *Leopard descent to England and Australia, for BAZZA 7306 (Zab x Berris) was exported to England’s Briery Close Arabian Stud by Major and Mrs. T. W. I. Hedley, where she produced the filly BAZZAMA by AL-MARAH RADAMES. BAZZAMA is a highly-regarded matron for the Hedleys, and BAZZA’s son SNOW KING by the former head sire at Briery Close, named GENERAL GRANT oddly enough, is in Australia.

After YDRISSA, BINT NIMNAARAH produced IRMA 1022, blood sister to OURIDA and BERLE but rather less lucky in the stud; she produced three foals, including BAREK 1482 whose name one used to hear once in a while, but this line did not breed on any further. BINT NIMNAARAH’s last registered foal, BINT NARMA 1094, did a bit better; her first foal was SHARIK 1784, the noted “high school” horse exhibited by Ward Wells of Oregon. BINT NARMA also produced three redoubled-*Leopard-line foals by ALLA AMARWARD 1140; two of these bred on, one being dam of, among others, the superb Abu Farwa daughter ALLA FARWA 13333 and the “ultimate show gelding” RIBAL DEYR 14400. The gelding is not doing much to carry on the *Leopard descent genetically (except of course to promote his collateral relatives), but he is quite a horse.

[Photos from the Gina Manion collection appearing with this article included: Ourida and Ydrissa, Rafissa, and the “*Leopard descendant in costume class.”]

That sums up the NIMNAARAH branch of descent from ANAZEH–except for most of it. OURIDA and YDRISSA were the foundation mare of the Manions’ program, which celebrated its 40th year of Arabian breeding in 1976, and this group of *Leopard-descended Arabians has been very influential indeed.

Excerpted from The Horse & His Master

Articles of History:

Cover Story

Excerpted from THE HORSE & HIS MASTER

by Vere D. Hunt, Esq.., London, 1859The Khamsat Vol 8, Num 1, Feb. 1991  

…the good points which on the other hand are to be looked for, are those considered desirable in all horses that are subject to shocks, i.e. ‘concussion of the gallop.’ Calf knees are generally bad in the race-horse, and are very apt to be transmitted, whilst the opposite form is also perpetuated, but is not nearly so disadvantageous. Such are the general considerations bearing on the soundness limb. That of the ‘wind’ is no less important. ‘Broken-winded’ mares seldom breed, and they are therefore out of the question, if for no other reason; but no one would risk the recurrence of this disease, even if he could get such a mare stinted. ‘Roaring’ is a much vexed question, which is by no means theoretically settled among our chief veterinary authorities, nor practically by our breeders; every year however it becomes more and more frequent and important a marked evidence of degeneracy in our horses, and the risk of reproduction is too great to run by breeding from a ‘roarer.'”

Lastly, the temper is of the utmost importance, by which must be understood not that gentleness at grass, which may lead the breeder’s family to pet the mare, but such a temper as will serve for the purposes of her rider, and will answer to the stimulus of the voice, whip, or spur. A craven or rogue is not to be thought of as the “mother of a family.”

Blood is so much a matter of taste, that I say nothing of its choice, nor will I quote the able opinions of others in reference to it in brood mares; but if the breeders of general horses agree with the indisputable theory that teaches purity of blood in a parent has a preponderating influence in transmitting the qualities of the parent to progency, and that the male exercises a greater influence than the female in a similar capacity, then I say nothing short of an ignorant bigotry can condemn the introduction of Arab sires.

I extract the following letter from the “Field,” January 8th, 1859:

HORSE BREEDING – THE ARAB

    “Sir, Those of your correspondents who despise Arabs cannot know much about the animal they condemn. One says the Arab is ‘devoid of excellence for the turf, being neither swift nor enduring.‘ Another complains of ‘having to shoot two Arabs for broken wind, the brutes in question having been bred, the one in France and the other in Germany!” Another writer pictures the misery of a luckless wight doomed to ride an ‘Arab ten miles to cover, hunt him all day, and conclude with a trot home twenty-five miles,’ — a weary pilgrimage, in which the pretty Arab would break his own knees and his master’s heart;’ whilst’ the English hunter in a like predicment would trot and walk along with his head in the air and gay to the stable door.’ In such a plight, rather than encounter such a heartrending amount of knee-smashing, I would suggest a deviation from her Majesty’s highway, and finish off with the larking process of arrival at the stable door and see next morning which horse showed the cleanest manger and the coolest legs, the English hunter or the Arab jade!

    “It would take up too much time to answer the anti-Arabites in detail but perhaps you will accept my humble effort to disabuse the minds of the uninitiated as to what is meant by the term Arab, where the genuine article is to be found, and how to be procured.

    “Ali Bey, describes six different breeds of Arabians. The first, named the ‘Dgelfe,’ is found in Arabia Felix. They are rare at Damascus, but pretty common in the neighbourhood of Anaze. They are remarkable for speed and fire, yet mild as lambs; they support hunger and thirst for a long time; are of lofty stature, narrow in the chest, but deep in the girth, and long ears. A colt of this breed, at two years old, will cost in its own country 2000 turkish piastres.

    “The second breed, called ‘Seclaoni,‘ comes from the eastern part of the desert, resembles the ‘Anaze‘ in appearance, but is not quite so highly valued.

    “Next comes the ‘Mefki,’ handsome, though not so swift as the two former breeds, and more resembling the Andalusian in figure. they are very common about Damascus.

    “Then the ‘Savi‘ resembles the Mefki; and the fifth breed, called Fridi, is very common, but it is necessary to try them well, for they are often vicious, and do not possess the excellent qualities of the other breeds.

    “Sixth comes the ‘Nejdi,’ from the neighbourhood of Bussorah, and if they do not surpass, they at least equal the ‘Dgelfe, or Anaze, and Seclaoni.‘ Horses of this breed are little known at Damascus, and connoisseurs assert that they are incomparable; thus their value is arbitrary, and always exceeds 2000 piastres.

      “It is from the Anaze and the Nejdi, that the turf in India is chiefly supplied; and I doubt if ‘______’ has ever seen a specimen of either of those breeds, although his Turkish experience may have met with some of the inferior sorts, which of course are not of a stamp to find favor in a breeder’s eye.

    “If it be true that some English stallions have gone into Arabia, I cannot conceive a greater misfortune to befall the desert. Judging from the fruits of English crossing in the goverment studs in India, I should expect nothing but mischief to follow any similar attempts in Arabia.

    “I have elsewhere asserted my belief that ‘Arabs’ are, in proportion, naturally the largest limbed blood horses in creation; and looking at the ‘tobacco-pipe’ sort of legs now cultivated in England, I wonder what desert blood would gain by English contamination!

    “I have seen Arabs of such stature as to raise suspicions of their purity. I once possessed a colt myself that stood fifteen hands and an inch at three years old. He had the sterotyped assortment of eastern breeding; could stick his nose in a tumbler, and looked the gentleman all over; remarkably muscular, and as stately in his bearing as an autocrat; but his clean, flat, wiry legs, measuring eight inches round the shank below the knee, had nothing English in their composition. This was a pure Anaze Arab. His career of usefulness as a hunter or racer was cut short by his casting himself in his stall and dislocating his hip; but the Government gave me 150 Lb. for him on his three legs for stud purposes.”

The End

Rancho San Ignacio: A Look Back

Rancho San Ignacio: A Look Back

Copyright R.J.CADRANELL from Arabian Visions May-June 1997 Used by permission of RJ Cadranell    

        In reviewing Richard Pritzlaff’s life with Arabian horses and reading what he has written about them, several themes come out again and again. This simplifies things for a writer: include most of them and the story of the Arabians at Rancho San Ignacio will have been told.

        Richard Pritzlaff knew horses all his life. Born in May of 1902 and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, he grew up when horses were still a daily sight for most Americans. At about age 12 he studied riding under a German instructor who schooled him in a balanced seat; for the next 70 years this philosophy influenced his riding. Richard graduated from the University of Wisconsin in 1924, and later lived in Hawaii and California, enjoying riding whenever he could.

        Richard made his first trip to New Mexico in 1922. He lived alone in a cabin high in the mountains, riding most days with the cowboys to check cattle. He enjoyed the country and the wildlife. Those halcyon days must have made a deep impression on him, for early in 1935 he jumped at the chance to return to New Mexico. A friend had a ranch for sale, elevation 7,600 feet, near Sapello. He was showing it to some prospective buyers from Texas, so Richard went along for the ride. After a few days there, Richard decided to buy it himself. He named it Rancho San Ignacio, after a village nearby.

        The original purchase was about 2,000 acres. Later, 19 smaller tracts were acquired, bringing the total holding to four square miles. The ranch was left pristine and rustic as much as possible. The house, barns, and sheds were built of adobe and native lumber. Hermit’s Peak made a dramatic background for many views across the ranch. The ranch remained a refuge from the noise and crowds of modern civilized life. If a man’s house is his castle, then Rancho San Ignacio was Richard Pritzlaff’s kingdom.

        In 1947 Richard’s paint gelding collided with a steer. He had to be carried back to the house, and decided it was time for a more agile mount. He had seen Arabians before, and through friends in Santa Fe had been introduced to writer and traveler Carl Raswan, then living on a ranch in Cedar Crest, New Mexico. Richard bought Muntez (Sartez x Munia) from Raswan, and asked his advice about finding a filly. *RASHAD IBN NAZEER     TIBOR THE GENERAL 1959 (Rabanna)         SIR WHITE MOON 1963 (*Bint Moniet el Nefous)             KUMONIET RSI 1974 (Kualoha)     GRETE 1960 (*Bint El Bataa)     SHIKO IBN SHEIKH 1961 (*Bint El Bataa)         UMI 1965 (*Bint Dahma)             NASZUMI RSI 1969 (Naszra)             KUUUMI RSI 1970 (Kualoha)             NASZEERA 1971 (Naszra)             TOMONIET RSI 1972 (Monieta RSI)                 RASMON NEFOUS RSI 1976 (Tatutwo RSI)             ALMONIET RSI 1975 (Monieta RSI)                 SONIETASSOLAR RSI 1978 (Sonieta)                 ALSONIA RSI 1979 (Sonieta)                 GHAMONARSI 1981 (Kumoniet RSI)                 TATUCENTA RSI 1983 (Tatu)                 MONIET HARMONY 1985 (Golondrina RSI)                 GOLMONIET RSI 1986 (Golondrina RSI)                 ALPERFO RSI 1988 (Perfecta RSI)     NASZRA 1962 (Rabanna)     HANNELE 1962 (*Bint El Bataa)     BINT EL SARIE 1962(*Bint Dahma)     RSI SARA 1964 (*Bint Dahma)     RSI RARA DELSOL 1964 ( *Bint Moniet el Nefous)     ALCIBIADES 1965 (*Bint Moniet el Nefous)         ALFISA RSI 1970 (*Bint Nefisa)         KUVAL 1971 (Kualoha)             GHAZIET RSI 1977 (Tatu)             TATUS TRIUMPH RSI 1981 (Tatutwo RSI)             ROBIN RSI 1982 (Naszumi RSI)             MONICENT RSI 1983 (Monieta RSI)             SARACENTA RSI 1983 (Sara Moniel)             SARACENCE RSI 1984 (Sara Moniel)         MNAHI RSI 1972 (Kualoha)             PINNACLE RSI 1982 (Naszare RSI)         NASZARE RSI 1972 (Naszra)         BLUE BOY 1973 (Tatu)             BLUEWHITE RSI 1987 (Naszare RSI)             EXCEED RSI 1987 (Sara Moniel)             BLUSARA RSI 1988 (Sara Moniel)     SOJA RSI 1966 (*Bint Dahma)     MONIETA RSI 1967 (*Bint Moniet el Nefous)     ORIN RSI 1967 (Naszra)         ORFISA RSI 1972 (*Bint Nefisa)     MONIETOR-RSI 1968 (*Bint Moniet el Nefous)         NASZRIETA 1973 (Naszra)         BALMONIET RSI 1974 (*Bint Nefisa)         DAHMONIET RSI 1974 (*Bint Dahma)         DINARA RSI 1975 (Kualoha)         PERFECTA RSI 1978 (Alfisa RSI)         KUALASHA RSI 1979 (Kualoha)     TATUTWO RSI 1968 (Tatu)     SONIETA 1973 (*Bint Moniet el Nefous)     DYMONIET RSI 1975 (*Bint Moniet el Nefous)         DYSZARA RSI 1979 (Naszare RSI)         DYTATU RSI 1982 (Tatutwo RSI)         MONIET UNITY 1985 (Naszare RSI)     RAJ RSI 1975 (Alfisa RSI)         MONIETSMELODY RSI 1980 (Monieta RSI)         RAJEER RSI 1982 (Monieta RSI)     GOLONDRINA RSI 1977 (Alfisa RSI)


*BINT NEFISA     ALFISA RSI 1970 (Alcibiades)         RAJ RSI 1975 (*Rashad ibn Nazeer)         GOLONDRINA RSI 1977 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)             MONIET HARMONY 1985 (Almoniet RSI)             GOLMONIET RSI 1986 (Almoniet RSI)         PERFECTA RSI 1978 (Monietor-RSI)             ALPERFO RSI 1988 (Almoniet RSI)     ORFISA RSI 1972 (Orin RSI)     BALMONIET RSI 1974 (Monietor-RSI)


RABANNA     KUALOHA 1955 (Ghadaf)         KUUUMI RSI 1970 (Umi)             KUALICE RSI 1976 (Ansata El Salim)         KUMONIET RSI 1974 (Sir White Moon)             GHAMONARSI 1981 (Almoniet RSI)         KUVAL 1971 (Alcibiades)         MNAHI RSI 1972 (Alcibiades)         DINARA RSI 1975 (Monietor-RSI)         KUALASHA RSI 1979 (Monietor-RSI)     JOHN DOYLE 1957 (Ghadaf)     TIBOR THE GENERAL 1959 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)     NASZRA 1962 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)         ORIN RSI 1967 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)         NASZUMI RSI 1969 (Umi)             ROBIN RSI 1982 (Kuval)         NASZEERA 1971 (Umi)             SARA MONIEL 1977 (*Fakher el Din)                 SARACENTA RSI 1983 (Kuval)                 SARACENCE RSI 1984 (Kuval)                 EXCEED RSI 1987 (Blue Boy)                 BLUSARA RSI 1988 (Blue Boy)         NASZARE RSI 1972 (Alcibiades)             DYSZARA RSI 1979 (Dymoniet RSI)             PINNACLE RSI 1982 (Mnahi RSI)             MONIET UNITY 1985 (Dymoniet RSI)             BLUEWHITE RSI 1987 (Blue Boy)         NASZRIETA 1973 (Monietor-RSI)


*BINT MONIET EL NEFOUS     TATU 1962 (John Doyle)         TATUTWO RSI 1968 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)             RASMON NEFOUS RSI 1976 (Tomoniet RSI)             TATUS TRIUMPH RSI 1981 (Kuval)             DYTATU RSI 1982 (Dymoniet RSI)         BLUE BOY 1973 (Alcibiades)         GHAZIET RSI 1977 (Kuval)         TATUCENTA RSI 1983 (Almoniet RSI)     SIR WHITE MOON 1963 (Tibor the General)     RSI RARA DELSOL 1964 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)     ALCIBIADES 1965 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)     MONIETA RSI 1967 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)         TOMONIET RSI 1972 (Umi)         ALMONIET RSI 1975 (Umi)         MONIETSMELODY RSI 1980 (Raj RSI)         RAJEER RSI 1982 (Raj RSI)         MONICENT RSI 1983 (Kuval)     MONIETOR-RSI 1968 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)     SONIETA 1973 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)         SONIETASSOLAR RSI 1978 (Almoniet RSI)         ALSONIA RSI 1979 (Almoniet RSI)     DYMONIET RSI 1975 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)


*BINT DAHMA     BINT EL SARIE 1962 ( *Rashad Ibn Nazeer)     RSI SARA 1964 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)         DAHSARA RSI 1976 (Ansata El Salim)     UMI 1965 (Shiko Ibn Sheikh)     SOJA RSI 1966 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)         CIBOLA RSI 1970 (Ansata El Salim)     DAHMONIET RSI 1974 (Monietor-RSI)


*BINT EL BATAA     GRETE 1960 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)         CHEV-RSI 1968 (John Doyle)     SHIKO IBN SHEIKH 1961 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)     HANNELE 1962 (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer)     NASZALA 1968 (Bel Gordas)     SABATAA RSI 1973 (Ansata El Salim)         Raswan recommended that Richard buy Rabanna, bred by Delma Gallaher in California. The Gallahers had purchased her sire, Rasik (*Nasik x *Rasima), from the Kellogg Ranch. Rabanna’s dam was Banna (*Nasr x Baribeh), bred by J.M. Dickinson. Richard bought Rabanna at age six months in 1947, without even having seen a photograph of her.

        In the early 1950s, Carl Raswan lived at Rancho San Ignacio. This was before the breeding program got started, but he visited later and continued to correspond. Over the years Richard also served as a patron to Raswan, helping to make it possible for him to complete and publish The Arab and His Horse and later the Raswan Index.

        When it came time to breed Rabanna, Richard turned again to Raswan for advice. Raswan was in regular correspondence with Dr. Joseph L. Doyle of Sigourney, Iowa, concerning the establishment of a breeding program which would preserve a high pedigree relationship to the horses bred in the late nineteenth century by Ali Pasha Sherif of Egypt. As it unfolded, the Pritzlaff program would also seek to maintain this high pedigree relationship.

        Raswan wrote to Dr. Doyle (letter from Rancho San Ignacio dated “Friday”):

            ”Rabanna is a true Saqlawiyah with muscle ‘thrown-over her’ from the Kuhaylan.

In another letter to Dr. Doyle from Rancho San Ignacio, dated September 28, 1953, Raswan wrote:

            Richard bought a son of Sartez and Munia…. I also helped him to get …”RABBANA”…and I have just made out her pedigree 8 and 9 generations complete to the Abbas Pasha – Ali Pasha Sharif and Desert origins.

            I wanted her myself…but Richard needed a start and he is looking for a match to her (she is six years old now and Richard did not breed her yet, waiting that I show up and help him find a stallion)….If Richard breeds this rare Saqlawiyah mare to a perfectly matched stallion you might trade later some horses with him. …

            Rabanna is small (ideal), fine boned, a 3 circle horse, well balanced, a lovely head (not extreme but all the details) with large eyes set low, wonderful muzzle parts (nostrils etc).

        Dr. Doyle was standing a 25-year-old stallion named Ghadaf (Ribal x Gulnare), bred by W.R. Brown of the Maynesboro Stud. On Raswan’s insistence, Rabanna was bred to Ghadaf in 1954, producing in September of 1955 the first Pritzlaff foal, a grey filly named Kualoha.

        Rabanna was bred back to Ghadaf for foals born in 1956 and 1957. In 1957 both Ghadaf and Dr. Doyle died; Rabanna’s 1957 colt was named John Doyle. But by that time, Richard was already seeking elsewhere to round out the foundation of his herd.

        Raswan had suggested that Richard look to Egypt. Since 1949 the government breeding program at El Zahraa near Cairo had been under the direction of General Tibor von Pettko-Szandtner. In earlier days he had headed the Hungarian state stud of Babolna, where he made good use of the desert bred Kuhaylan Zaid, a stallion Carl Raswan had helped procure. So in 1956, after visiting Germany and Austria, Richard flew to Cairo. Each day he went out to the farm and looked over the horses of the Egyptian Agricultural Organization. Finally he selected a colt and filly, but as there were no ships headed to the U.S., he had to give up and return home without the horses, hoping one day to try again.

        In April of 1958 he did return. This time, with General von Pettko-Szandtner’s help, Richard chose five horses for export. When a ship became available, Richard and the horses left the farm and headed to Alexandria. With papers, feed, bedding, and horse boxes finally arranged, the horses were loaded on board and the voyage to America began. Richard described wrapping himself in his coat and sleeping on the forward hatch near the horses the night the ship set out on the Mediterranean. After 13 days at sea, they arrived in Wilmington, North Carolina.

        From the beginning, Richard realized what he had in this importation. He wrote repeatedly in his farm advertising that the “General considered Nazeer the finest stallion in Egypt, and Moniet el Nefous was his favorite mare.” The horses in the importation were:

        *Rashad Ibn Nazeer (Nazeer x Yashmak, by Sheikh el Arab), three-year-old bay colt. Richard commented on *Rashad’s action and elegance, and stated he stood 15.2 and a half. He described him: “Tall, sloping shoulder, high withers, short back, long neck and reliable disposition — wonderful for cross country riding.”** He lived until 1976.

        *Bint El Bataa (Nazeer x El Bataa, by Sheikh el Arzab), three-year-old chestnut filly.

        *Bint Moniet el Nefous (Nazeer x Moniet el Nefous, by Shahloul), yearling chestnut filly. Of the imported mares, she had the greatest influence on the herd, through both sons and daughters.

        *Bint Nefisa (El Sareei x Nefisa, by Balance), yearling bay filly.

        This was the first Nazeer and Moniet el Nefous blood to reach the United States, and also the largest importation from Egypt since the Babson and Brown horses had arrived in 1932. This first group of “new Egyptians” opened the floodgates for the later new Egyptian importations which followed.

        The story of Rancho San Ignacio cannot be told without mention of Col. Hans Handler. While skiing in Austria in the 1950s, Richard met Col. Handler and became friends. Col. Handler was made head of the Spanish Riding School in Vienna, and Richard was able to observe the training of the horses there. In later years Col. Handler was a guest at Rancho San Ignacio and schooled a few of Richard’s stallions.

 

THE BREEDING PROGRAM AND BLOODLINES ADDED

        The main sire line used in developing the herd was *Rashad’s. *Rashad himself was not doing all the work, however; the program is unusual for the large number of sons and grandsons of its foundation sire used for breeding. Readers are referred to the accompanying chart of the *Rashad male line, which shows the *Rashad line horses which Richard Pritzlaff used for breeding. Stallions are in bold face. Each step to the right represents one generation. Other charts arrange the breeding stock by female line.

        Ghadaf’s son John Doyle made an early and permanent contribution to the herd through his grey daughter Tatu. Later his daughter Chev-RSI was also added to the mare band.

        The stud books show few outside lines added following the 1958 importation. Richard introduced the blood of only four stallions.

        The 1960 Babson stallion Faarad (Faaris x Fadba), bred by Jay and Lorane Musser, got his first foal for Richard in 1965. Faarad sired nine Rancho San Ignacio foals over the next six years, but Richard himself does not seem to have used any of them for breeding. Nonetheless as late as 1987 he still spoke of the Faarad blood as a component of the Pritzlaff Arabian.

        In 1968 *Bint El Bataa produced Naszala, a filly by the Ott-owned stallion Bel Gordas (Sirecho x Habba). One of Richard’s stated aims with this breeding was to add another *Nasr line to his herd. Naszala produced one filly by Ansata El Salim and one by Alcibiades.           Starting in the late 1960s, Richard entered into a reciprocal arrangement with Norton and Millie Grow of Rafter G Arabians in Prosser, Washington. The Grows had the young stallion Ansata El Salim (*Ansata Ibn Halima x Maarqada). A number of Richard’s mares, as well as Alcibiades, were sent up to Washington. Pritzlaff-owned mares produced a total of 25 Ansata El Salim foals through 1982. Ansata El Salim’s son Cibola RSI (x Soja RSI) returned to stand in Sapello, and three Ansata El Salim daughters produced Pritzlaff-bred foals, but this blood was never widespread in the herd.

        The final addition was a 1977 chestnut mare named Sara Moniel, bred by Robert and Sara Loken. Sara Moniel was out of the Pritzlaff mare Naszeera (Umi x Naszra) and by *Fakher el Din, the full brother to *Bint Moniet el Nefous. Sara Moniel was added to the herd to bring in the *Fakher el Din line and cross it with *Bint Moniet’s.

 

A 1987 VISIT TO RANCHO SAN IGNACIO

        As I arrived at the ranch house and slowed down I saw an unmistakable, wizened figure walking slowly toward me. He had an eye patch and walked with two canes, one in each hand. I had heard so much about him, and seen so many photos, that it was a shock to suddenly be face to face with Richard Pritzlaff, as though a legend had come to life.

        But he did not greet me right away. “No, no, don’t park here. Park over there,” he said, indicating an area a few yards ahead. I dutifully moved the car. Later he explained that if I had left the car where it was, the view from the house to the pastures would have been blocked.

        When I got out of the car for the second time he looked at me. “How old are you?” he asked. I told him I was 22. “Then I am 63 years older than you,” he said, “and that is quite a lot.”

        We walked toward the old adobe ranch house and sat on the porch, a long, covered area, narrow, level with the ground, and floored with stone. Richard told me he had brought the table and chairs we were using from the Philippines in about 1936. Looking at them, I had no trouble believing they had spent the last 50 years on that porch. Behind Richard, against the wall, was a huge Chinese urn with long peacock feathers standing in it. There were peacocks almost underfoot, so it was easy to see where the feathers had come from.

        Next we looked at horses. Walking the herd with him, I noted that he liked a short, broad head, width between large jowls, and huge eyes. He seemed to like a big jibbah with deep dish to the face. He told me that he liked a balanced horse, though commented that he never understood what Raswan meant by the description “three-circle” conformation. I got the impression that selection for type, especially about the head, was particularly important to him.

        Uniformity in the herd also seems to have been a goal. One ad from the 1960s featured the produce of *Bint El Bataa and proclaimed, “Like Peas in a Pod.” The two yearling fillies I saw, Permoniet RSI and Golmoniet RSI, were nearly identical. Later I learned they were seven-eighths sisters. Richard pointed out one mare as coming from the *Bint El Bataa family. “That’s a Seglawi line, isn’t it?” I asked. “That’s bunk,” he retorted. Richard explained that the Bedouin strains are all mixed up now, although I did hear him refer to animals as Seglawi type or Kehilan type. I gathered during my visit, and have since read in his writings, that Richard sought a horse with the strength of Raswan’s description of Kehilan type along with the beauty and elegance of Raswan’s description of Seglawi type.

        We had walked to the far end of one of the large pastures when Richard looked at the sky and repeated an earlier warning about rain. Soon we felt a few drops. “We’d better get back,” Richard said as he turned around. We were still a fair distance from the house when a torrent came battering down on us, first rain, then hail. Richard moved as fast as he could with his hip replacement and two canes, and I kept pace beside him for a few strides before he yelled, “Run, run!” to me. So I bolted for the house and took shelter on the porch. A short while later Richard reached the house and stepped under cover. Thus at about noon we were both standing on the porch dripping wet and smiling at each other. At that moment we reached a sort of unspoken accord, and the slight stiffness of the morning disappeared.

        We went inside. The house was long and dark, with floors of wood or stone. Chinese art was everywhere. The front room was cluttered with books and papers. “It won’t be easy to get back to the road with all this mud.” Richard told me “You might be here for a day or two.”

        To reach the kitchen we passed through a small room that seemed more jungle than house, crossing a bridge over a pool of water instead of floor. Huge plants grew on all sides. From the kitchen I stared out the window at the rain, which continued to pour down, creating a network of ponds and streams behind the house. Richard offered me a drink, and I asked for ice. He informed me, “I don’t have any ice in this house,” so I had it without.

        Richard answered two phone calls while we sat in the kitchen. A mutual acquaintance had helped arrange my visit, and I heard Richard say, “Your friend is here.” Another call was from someone who owned a granddaughter of *Rashad and told Richard she was their favorite horse.

        In years past Richard had a reputation as an accomplished cook, but at 85 the lunch he served me was as he described it: “Nothing fancy: just good, nourishing food.” He told me stories of Arabian breeders he had known over the years, and greatly regretted that so many of them had been “corrupted by money,” as he put it.

        When the rain stopped we went to look at stallions. I liked Raj RSI and Monietor-RSI best. Blue Boy, who was then 14, struck me as a good natured fellow of pronounced muscularity. One young grey appealed to neither of us. “I don’t think I’ll use him,” was Richard’s conclusion. Back in the house he read me selections from Raswan’s travel books, working from photocopies of what looked like typed manuscripts.

        Friends had warned me that Richard was an old man who tired easily and that I should leave after four or five hours, but I found it difficult to get away. Each time I tried to excuse myself, he would bring out another stack of Raswan material, pour me another drink, take me back out to look at horses, put a magazine in my hands, or show me a bronze. Finally he made dinner. When I did leave, he walked me out to my car and told me to drive carefully. The mud was treacherous, but I avoided getting stuck and finally made it back to the gravel road.

 

GOALS AND PERSPECTIVES

        The Pritzlaff breeding program had clearly stated goals, chief of which was preservation of “the very finest, true Bedouin horse” using “the world’s finest, purest Bedouin blood,” as Richard wrote. He was convinced there were no better bloodlines for the task than what he had assembled with the help of Raswan and von Pettko-Szandtner, although friends say he recognized and admired other bloodlines.

        As time went on the herd became more tightly linebred, with a high relationship to *Rashad and *Bint Moniet in particular. By 1987 Richard was writing that “Pritzlaff Arabians are a type,” although it had probably been true a good many years before that. In an interview he stated, “Selection has established the type at Rancho San Ignacio.” He considered a quiet and gentle disposition to be an important Arabian characteristic. He also felt the Rabanna blood “contributed stronger croups and more athletic bodies.” When asked to name his favorites in the interview, the *Bint Moniet offspring Tatu, Monieta RSI, and Dymoniet RSI were all included.

        A continental European approach informed Richard’s ideas of how to use horses, thus he was never tempted to select for some of the less useful aspects of halter horse conformation. If his horses could excel in dressage or jumping, or carry a rider mile after mile over the ranch, he was pleased with them. Richard Pritzlaff is named in the stud books as the breeder of more than 230 foals, many of which left the ranch and had successful careers. To discuss them all would require another article, so one recent example will have to do. The 1988 stallion Drkumo RSI (Dymoniet RSI x Kumoniet RSI) won the American Endurance Ride Conference’s Jim Jones Award in the ownership of Crockett and Sharon Dumas, Rodarte, New Mexico.

        Richard believed his horses were healthier and happier living with access to spacious pastures and with all of their hair intact. He felt that keeping horses in confinement, hooded and blanketed and overgroomed, was unhealthy and psychologically damaging. In keeping with this philosophy, some of the more baroque aspects of barn architecture — fountains, Corinthian columns, cut crystal chandeliers — were not found at Rancho San Ignacio.

        Richard continued to ride into his 80s. By the time Richard was 86, managing a large herd was becoming more difficult; he placed ads announcing a herd reduction. During his last years, breeding activity slowed and he became less mobile, but he could still see the horses from his window, and that made him happy. He died at the age of 94 on February 6, 1997, and a memorial service was held at the ranch on April 19. At the time of this writing, there are still about 40 Arabians on the ranch.

        It was Richard’s wish that Rancho San Ignacio would be preserved as the half-tamed, mountain refuge he called home for more than 60 years, and that conscientious breeders would continue his program. The horses have already contributed to breeding programs around the world, many based largely or entirely on Pritzlaff blood.

 


 

**Arabian Horse World, November 1980, p. 364.

Articles by Richard Pritzlaff himself appeared in:

Arabian Horse World, May 1983, p. 387.

Arabian Visions, October 1987, p. 80.

And an interview with him appeared in:

Arabian Horse World, May 1987, p. 298.

Thanks also to Richard’s friends Gerald Klinginsmith, W.B. Winter, and Charles Craver.

A Hungarian Horseman in Egypt: General Von Pettko-Szandtner and the Arabians of the Agricultural Organization

copyright by R.J.CADRANELL
from Arabian Visions May/Jun 1993
Used by permission of RJCadranell

Between the two world wars, the Hungarian state stud of Babolna “was known as the Mecca of European Arab breeding,” Erika Schiele wrote in The Arab Horse in Europe. She continued,

“The stud owed this prestige mostly to the unforgettable General Tibor von Pettko- Szandtner, commandant from 1932 to 1942. He was well known in Germany, earning storms of applause at Aachen Show when he turned out with Arabian or Lipizzan five-in-hands. He applied his principles in breeding in three departments: pure-bred, part-bred Arab, and Lipizzan. The criterion for all three was the same: ‘A horse must be handsome, possess quality both inwardly and outwardly and arouse enthusiasm by its action.'”

In later years the General directed the Egyptian government Arabian breeding program and attracted acclaim to it. During the General’s tenure horses were exported from Egypt to Germany, the U.S.S.R., and the United States. In the decade after General von Pettko-Szandtner left Egypt horses of his breeding were sent to Germany, Hungary, Morocco, Nigeria, Syria, the U.S.S.R., and Yemen — but the greatest number came to the United States. The General bred *Ansata Ibn Halima, the only imported Egyptian stallion to sire both a U.S. national champion stallion and a U.S. national champion mare; and *Morafic, the leading imported Egyptian sire of national winners. In Germany, Ghazal was a popular sire while Hadban Enzahi revitalized the breeding program at Marbach. Aswan was a key sire at Tersk in Russia and his influence is now spreading through the Polish state studs.

World traveler and Arabian horse devotee Carl Raswan wrote of the General as “not only one of Europe’s great horsemen, but also a distinguished scientist, scholar, cavalry officer and stud manager of the first rank, honoured and loved in every country wherever he showed his famous horses under the saddle or in harness.” Raswan wrote that his contact with General von Pettko-Szandtner extended from the pre-Warld War I years to the end of the General’s life. According to Raswan, the General “was born in 1886 on the Hungarian studfarm of his father. During the First World War he served four years in the artillery and returned after the war to his work (management of the Hungarian studfarms.)”         

In 1932 the General became commandant at Babolna. Among the chief sires he used at Babolna were the purebred Arabians Koheilan VIII, Mersuch II and Mersuch III, Siglavy Bagdady IV, and the desert bred Kuhaylan Zaid. Among his chief Shagya stallions were Gazal II, O’Bajan VII, and Shagya XXV.

The General left Babolna in 1942 when he was called to Budapest to join the Agricultural Ministry, heading all of Hungary’s state stud farm. He held this position until 1945 when, along with thousands of other Hungarians, the coming of the Russians forced him to flee the country. This ended General von Pettko-Szandtner’s association with the Hungarian horse breeding industry. According to the General’s friend and associate Laszlo Monostory, today the sole surviving pre-World ‘War II commandant of a Hungarian state stud, it was an association which had lasted 43 years. As with the Polish state studs, Hungary’s Babolna, Mexohegyes, and Kisber were decimated during the war. Now homeless, the General and his wife went from Germany to Sweden.

The president of Egypt’s Royal Agricultural Society, Mohammed Taher Pasha, had visited Babolna during the General’s tenure. He now contacted the General about accepting the directorship of the Society’s Kafr Farouk Stud near Cairo. In 1949 General von Pettko-Szandtner, then in his 60’s, moved with his wife to Egypt to take on the task of breeding and managing Egypt’s national Arabian horse stud.

General von Pettko-Szandtner developed many aspects of the society’s operation. Stables, administrative buildings, and living quarters were remodeled or built from scratch. New paddocks were fenced. The General undertook extensive landscaping projects, including the planting of trees and grass. Judith Forbis visited the farm shortly after the General’s departure in 1959 and reported,

“The farm was kept immaculate, flowers bloomed gaily in the gardens, and the corral fences were kept sparkling white.”

With the reorganization and improvement of the physical plant also came the General’s restructuring of the breeding program. He culled the broodmare band, keeping only those mares with the type, conformation, and pedigree to meet his standards. He applied the same selectivity to the stallion battery, retiring older stallions he found faulty or unsuitable and drawing some of his replacements from the Society’s several stallion depots. Nazeer was among the latter, and in America General von Pettko-Szandtner is probably best known today as the one who incorporated Nazeer into the Society’s breeding herd.

The next major reorganization of the herd came with the absorption of the horses from King Farouk’s Inshass stud. In The Classic Arabian Horse, Judith Forbis tells the story:

“When King Farouk was deposed, the R.A.S. was renamed the more democratic-sounding Egyptian Agricultural Organization and the name Kafr Farouk was changed to El-Zahraa. At that time the General became responsible for selecting what remained of the ex-king’s horses. He screened them rigidly, breeding them apart at another farm until he decided which ones to approve for incorporation with the old society herd.”

In 1959 the time came for the General to leave Egypt. He and his wife moved to Germany to seek treatment for his advancing cancer, living as the guests of a Bavarian prince. According to Carl Raswan General Tibor von Pettko-Szandtner died in the spring of 1961. Raswan wrote in 1961 that

his memory lives forever not only in the hearts of his beloved people — the Hungarians — but also among the Egyptians and horse-lovers all over the world.

By using the listings in The Arabian Horse Families of Egypt one can analyze General von Pettko-Szandtner’s breeding program in Egypt. He worked toward increasing the numbers of the mare band and foal crops in Egypt. The 1950 and 1951 foal crops of the R.A.S. numbered fewer than 20. By the late 1950’s the number was closer to 30, with the Inshass mares contributing additional foals.

Most of the stallions the General used in his breeding had been born before he arrived in Egypt. The principal R.A.S./E.A.O. stallions he used, listed in order of approximate number of foals they sired for him (as tallied from The Arabian Horse Families of Egypt), are as follows:

1. Nazeer, 1934 grey (Mansour x Bint Samiha, by Kasmeyn). Although his first large foal crop did not arrive until 1952, Nazeer sired more foals for the General than any other stallion — approximately 100 born from 1950 through 1960. Laszlo Monostory says the General described Nazeer to him as a fine skinned grey with correct legs and good action. He had a great nobility of type, and many people feel he was a major source of quality in modern Egyptian breeding. Nazeer died in 1960.

2. Sid Abouhom, 1936 grey (El Dere x Layla, by Ibn Rabdan) began as the General’s head sire, with more foals than any of the other stallions in the 1950, 1951, and 1954 crops. He remained one of the General’s primary stallions throughout General von Pettko-Szandtner’s stay in Egypt, siring approximately 70 foals for him. Laszlo Monostory wrote that von Szandtner described Sid Abouhom as a large, strongly made horse with particularly good withers and hocks. Sid Abouhom was also known as a good mover. He died in 1963.

3. Gassir, 1941 grey (Kheir x Badia, by Ibn Rabdan) never monopolized a foal crop, but the General used him steadily throughout the 1950s. Gassir sired just over 20 foals for General von Pettko-Szandtner. According to Laszlo Monostory, the General considered Gassir to be another well made, good moving horse with correct legs. Gassir died in 1970.

4. El Sareei, 1942 bay (Shahloul x Zareefa, by Kasmeyn) sired almost as many foals for General von Pettko-Szandtner as did Gassir. His first foal did not arrive until 1955. That year, the General made El Sareei, along with Nazeer, the major sire for the 1956 foal crop. Mr. Monostory records that the General considered El Sareei a particularly handsome, good moving horse with notably good tail carriage. El Sareei died in 1967.

5. Sharkasi was a grey racehorse of T.G.B. Trouncer’s. After Trouncer died in 1955 the E.A.O. acquired Sharkasi. He sired a few foals for General von Pettko-Szandtner in 1955. Larger numbers came in 1959 and 1960 from the Inshass mares.

6. Mashhour, 1941 brown (Shahloul x Bint Rustem, by Rustem) was used at the beginning and again at the end of General von Pettko-Szandtner’s tenure in Egypt for a total of just over ten foals.

7. Sayyad el Lel (Mashaan x El Dahma, by Rustem) was born in 1938. His number of foals for the General was also just over ten, but these foals were all born from the years 1951 to 1953.

8. Azmi, grey (Sid Abouhom x Malaka) was born in the early 1950s. He sired fewer than ten foals, all born in 1957 and 58. Azmi was exported to the U.S.S.R. in 1958.

9. Balance, 1928 grey (Ibn Samhan x Farida), had been a successful race horse in years past. According to Monostory, the General felt Balance had good bone structure but was not as typey as the other stallions. He was a minor sire for General von Pettko-Szandtner. Since Balance was an older stallion, the General was able to incorporate the Balance influence through his pick of the Balance daughters born before General von Pettko-Szandtner came to Egypt. Balance died in 1960.

10. El Amin, 1947 chestnut (Shahloul x Rowala, by Ibn Samhan) sired two foals born in 1954.

11. *Morafic, 1956 grey (Nazeer x Mabrouka) was a young stallion just coming into use as the General was leaving Egypt. He became an important sire at the E.A.O., and was imported to the United States in 1965 by Douglas Marshall of Gleannloch Farms.

The stallions Amro, El Dalil, and El Nasser were minor sires; each got one foal for him listed in The Arabian Horse Families of Egypt.

General von Pettko-Szandtner’s Broodmares from the R.A.S. Herd

    

General von Pettko-Szandtner is said to have chosen his broodmares carefully from the R.A.S. mares foaled before 1950. The mares named in the chart at left produced R.A.S./E.A.O. foals listed in The Arabian Horse Families of Egypt during the period from 1950 to 1960.

The group included seven daughters each from Shahloul and Sheikh el Arab, five Balance daughters, three each from Ibn Rabdan and Kheir, two each from Gamil III and Hamran II, and one daughter each of Kasmeyn, Mashaan, Nabras, Baiyad, Mansour, El Garie, El Nasser, Awad, Registan, Ibn Manial, Ibn Samhan, Zareef, and Sid Abouhom. When von Pettko-Szandtner began placing young mares of his own breeding in the mare band, they were overwhelmingly daughters of Nazeer and Sid Abouhom (see chart [which follows]).

Broodmares the General singled out for admiration in his correspondence with Laszlo Monostory include Moniet el Nefous, Bukra, Nefisa, Maisa, Shams, and Salwa. Raswan described Moniet el Nefous as von Pettko-Szandtner’s favorite mare.

In arranging breedings, von Pettko-Szandtner paired a mare with a variety of stallions over the years. For example, Nefisa had foals by Sid Abouhom, Nazeer, and El Sareei, as did Maysouna. The General’s registered foals from Bukra were all by Nazeer, and Medallela’s were all by Sid Abouhom, but such exclusive pairings were the exception.

The military coup resulting in King Farouk’s being deposed happened on July 23, 1952. After the coup the horses from his Inshass stud were scattered in several directions, but a core was kept intact and the horses temporarily bred separately from the E.A.O. herd. The first foals from E.A.O. stallions crossed on Inshass mares arrived in 1959. The same years saw the birth of foals by the Inshass stallion Anter out of E.A.O. mares. In 1960 there came many more foals by Anter and out of E.A.O. mares. Anter and Sameh became the most used Inshass stallions after the coup. Aboud and Bedr were also frequently used Inshass sires in the middle 1950’s.

Zareefa 1927 b Kasmeyn x Durra, by Saadun
Bint Farida 1931 gr Mansour x Farida, by Saklawi II
Samha 1931 gr Baiyad x Bint Samiha, by Kasmeyn
Zamzam 1932 gr Gamil III x Bint Radia, by Mabrouk Manial
Gamalat 1934 gr Ibn Samhan x Bint Gamila, by Mabrouk Manial
Kahila 1934 b Ibn Rabdan x Bint Rustem, by Rustem
Medallela 1935 ch Awad x Khafifa, by Ibn Samhan
Bint Zareefa 1936 gr Balance x Zareefa (above)
Komeira 1937 gr Nabras x Layla, by Ibn Rabdan
Kateefa 1938 gr Shahloul x Bint Rissala, by Ibn Yashmak
Ragia 1938 ch Ibn Rabdan x Farida, by Saklawi II
Shams 1938 b Mashaan x Bint Samiha, by Kasmeyn
Zahra 1938 ch Hamran II x El Yatima, by Ibn Rabdan
Badr 1939 b Registan x Bint Samiha, by Kasmeyn
Salwa 1939 bl Ibn Rabdan x Bint Rustem, by Rustem
Helwa 1940 gr Hamran II x Bint Farida (above)
Kawsar 1940 ch Ibn Manial x Zamzam (above)
Atlus 1941 gr Zareef x Zamzam (above)
Malaka 1941 gr Kheir x Bint Bint Riyala, by Gamil Manial
Yashmak 1941 b Sheikh el Arab x Bint Rissala, by Ibn Yashmak
Bukra 1942 gr Shahloul x Bint Sabah, by Kasmeyn
Kamla 1942 gr Sheikh el Arab x Samha (above)
Futna 1943 gr Shahloul x Farida, by Saklawi II
Yosreia 1943 gr Sheikh el Arab x Hind, by Ibn Rabdan
El Bataa 1944 b Sheikh el Arab x Medallela (above)
Halima 1944 b Sheikh el Arab x Ragia (above)
Rouda 1944 b Sheikh el Arab x Fasiha, by Awad
Amara 1945 ch Kheir x Zahra (above)
Lateefa 1945 gr Gamil III x Salwa, by Ibn Rabdan
Nefisa 1945 gr Balance x Helwa (above)
Om el Saad 1945 gr Shahloul x Yashmak (above)
Afaf 1946 gr Balance x Badr (above)
Fadila 1946 gr Sheikh el Arab x Atlus (above)
Moniet el Nefous 1946 ch Shahloul x Wanisa, by Sheikh el Arab
Turra 1946 gr Balance x Layla, by Ibn Rabdan
Zaafarana 1946 gr Balance x Samira, by Ibn Rabdan
Halawa 1947 ch Shahloul x Medallela (above)
Khairia 1948 ch El Garie x Kawsar (above)
Maisa 1948 gr Shahloul x Zareefa (above)
Maysouna 1948 br Kheir x Shams (above)
Sehr 1948 bl El Nasser x Salwa (above)
Galila 1949 gr Sid Abouhom x Rouda (above)

The “Next Generation” Broodmares (mares born in 1950 or later with E.A.O. foals born by 1960 and listed in The Arabian Horse Families of Egypt)  

Dahma II 1950 gr Nazeer x Futna
Elwya 1950 gr Sid Abouhom x Zareefa
Fathia 1950 gr Sid Abouhom x Shams
Saklawia II 1950 ch Mashhour x Zamzam
Farasha 1951 gr Sid Abouhom x Yosreia
Fayza II 1951 ch Sid Abouhom x Nefisa
*Ghazalahh 1951 gr Mashhour x Bint Farida
Mabrouka 1951 ch Sid Abouhom x Moniet el Nefous
Rahma 1951 b Mashhour x Yashmak
Hemmat 1952 gr Sid Abouhom x Maysouna
Samia 1952 gr Nazeer x Malaka
Tahia 1952 gr Gassir x Kawsar
Abla 1953 gr Nazeer x Helwa
Ahlam II 1953 ch Sid Abouhom x Bint Zareefa
Fatin 1953 gr Nazeer x Nefisa
Kamar 1953 gr Nazeer x Komeira
Mamlouka 1953 ch Nazeer x Malaka
Bint Kateefa 1954 ch Sid Abouhom x Kateefa
Mouna 1954 ch Sid Abouhom x Moniet el Nefous
Nazeera 1954 gr Nazeer x Malaka
Souhair 1954 br Sid Abouhom x Salwa
Rafica 1955 gr Nazeer x Om el Saad
Shahrzada 1955 gr Nazeer x Yosreia
Zahia II 1956 br El Sareei x Zaafarana

Approximately 24 different Inshass broodmares produced foals in 1959 and 1960. They included Hafiza, Ghorra, Shahbaa, and Rooda.

The Inshass herd had many lines in common with the E.A.O. stock of von Pettko-Szandtner’s time, but it also included lines distinct from it — most notably some gift mares from the House of Sa’ud. By 1960 the Inshass mares had arrived at El-Zahraa and the two groups have since then been bred as more or less one herd.

It is not clear to this writer to what extent von Pettko-Szandtner would have integrated the Inshass lines with the E.A.O.’s existing herd had he remained in Egypt, but clearly an intermingling was already underway when he left. The Austro-Hungarian military horse breeding tradition of which he was a part made repeated and regular use of outcross bloodlines. Early to mid-20th century pedigrees of both purebred and Shagya Arabians from the Hungarian state studs show a minimum of inbreeding and regular use of outcross animals.

General von Pettko-Szandtner’s purebred Arabian breeding at Babolna was mostly scattered or destroyed during World War II. It lives on mainly as trace elements in some Polish pedigrees. It seems ironic that this great Hungarian horseman should have had his largest influence on world Arabian breeding through what amounted almost to a retirement venture for him — and in a land many miles and across a sea from his native Hungary.

Sources

Judith Forbis, The Classic Arabian Horse, Liveright, New York, 1976, pp. 218-9.

Laszlo Monostory, “General Szandtner and the El Zahraa Stud Farm in Egypt,” Arabian Horse World, June 1980, pp. 107-10.

Colin Pearson with Kees Mol, The Arabian Horse Families of Egypt, Alexander Heriot & Co., England, 1988.

*Carl Raswan, The Raswan Index, vol. IV, Mexico, 1961; pp. 563-34 and section between plates 117 and 1320.

Erika Schiele, The Arab Horse in Europe, American edition 1973, pp. 207-8.

Jadaan: The Horse That Valentino Rode

by Aaron Dudley
Photos from Spide Rathbun Collection
from Western Horseman Mar 1952

Two great horses. Jadaan visits the statue of the immortal Seabiscuit at Southern California’s famous Santa Anita race track. A special platform was built in the midst of one of Santa Anita’s noted pansy beds for this occasion.

Probably no horse of modern time — including the favorite mounts of our current TV and movie cowboys — has enjoyed greater popularity or been viewed by more people than a proud little grey Arab named Jadaan.

That name probably means little to the average horseman, and certainly nothing to the millions of curious fans who have seen him, but when you say he’s “the horse that Rudolph Valentino rode” there’s an immediate reaction.

Rudolph Valentino and the stallion Jadaan in full desert regalia, ready for a dash over the sands for cameras recording “The Son of the Sheik.” This costume and the Jadaan trappings are still on display in the tackroom of the W.K.Kellogg ranch at Pomona.

Millions trekked to the famous W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse ranch at Pomona, Calif., upon the matinee idol’s death to see this horse and view trappings the dashing Latin used in his popular desert pictures of the 1920’s. And although the ranch had many fine horses, fully 90 per cent of the visitors who came wanted to see “the Valentino horse.” Women crowded around his box stall, wore the stable door smooth pressing for a better look at the sleek stallion. And they stood to silent near-reverence when Jadaan was led riderless into the arena carrying his former master’s colorful desert regalia.

Jadaan in later years, standing at the foot of the Valentino shrine in Hollywood. The old horse was trailered to hundreds of gatherings honoring Valentino, and was a top attraction at movieland parades.

This idolizing of a movie hero’s horse continued almost unabated for 19 years until the little horse died in 1945. And then avid Valentino zealots had his skeleton preserved and enshrined in the University of California’s School of Animal Husbandry.[1]


Unfortunately, Jadaan was neither a top individual (from a horseman’s point of view) nor did he produce outstanding colts; this in spite of the fact his ancestry was the best of old-line Arabian stock. His granddam was the famous mare Waddudda, brought to America in 1906 and presented to Homer Davenport by Achmet Hefiz, who also reportedly sent along a desert tribesman to care for the mare.

Registry No. 196, Jadaan was foaled in April, 1916, at Hingham Stock Farm, Hingham, Massachusetts. His sire was the desert-bred Abbeian, imported by Homer Davenport in 1906. The dam was Amran by Deyr, No. 33, another Davenport importation.

Deyr, a very fine individual, was the only stallion of the original Davenport importation ever at the Kellogg Ranch. His skeleton, a classic example of the Arabian, is now on display at the Los Angeles Museum at Exposition Park.

But in spite of this royal Arab lineage, Jadaan had very poor front legs and his get tended to be even farther over in the knees than their sire.[2]

Horsewomen Monaei Lindley dons Arabian garb and mounts Jadaan for a photo at the Kellogg Arabian Horse ranch entrance. Everything good and bad about the horse can be clearly seen in this photo. Miss Lindley, at the time this photograph was taken, was an active horse breeder of Cinnebar Hill, Reno, Nevada.

H. H. Reese, in charge of the Kellogg Ranch when Jadaan was at the height of his fame, complied to the public clamor for colts from “the Valentino horse” and produced a big crop of colts for several seasons. They sold fast, but failed to do anything in the shows, and when a noted judge finally complained about the uniform badness of Jadaan’s offspring, Reese retired the stud to the limelight of his fame as a movie and parade horse and withheld him from further activity in the stud.

This situation was made to order for Spide Rathbun, promotion manager for the Kellogg ranch and the man second only to Valentino in contribution to Jadaan’s fame. It was Rathbun who gave Jadaan the big build-up as Valentino’s horse, who made Jadaan THE Valentino horse, in spite of the fact Valentino had ridden Raseyn and other Jadaan stablemates in motion picture work.

So when Reese wrote finis to Jadaan’s career in the stud, Rathbun went to work with added enthusiasm. Jadaan’s picture began appearing in the Sunday supplements at a rapid rate. Struggling movie starlets begged for an opportunity to be photographed with him. He was a fixture at Hollywood parades, and even was placed on exhibit in a special stall right in the lobby of one of the town’s plushiest theaters. He led Pasadena’s famous Tournament of Roses parades, had half a dozen different authentic desert outfits and rivaled the famous Lady in Black in contributing to the fanatical Valentino memorabilia. People just wouldn’t forget Valentino nor anything that had been connected with him.

Spide Rathbun and Jadaan went along with them, and whatever the little horse lacked in conformation he made up in spirit and a strange human like response to parade music or camera lens.

Jadaan in his prime looks over the Kellogg ranch from a nearby hilltop, with Ken Maynard as Buffalo Bill Cody astride. Maynard was a frequent visitor at the Kellogg ranch and often rode Jadaan in parades.

“Jadaan had an extraordinary faculty for falling naturally into beautiful poses,” says Rathbun. And there are literally thousands of pictures to prove it.

Jadaan had natural beauty, poise, grace, and a vibrant personality. His head and shoulder poses were described by some of Hollywood’s top cameramen as the most impressive they had ever photographed.

There is no denying he was an impressive horse.

Valentino first saw him in Palm Springs. Jadaan was in his prime and in his element, the sandy desert. And he had the benefit of a masterful rider, a European horsemen named Carl Schmidt, known to thousands of Arabian breeders today as “Raswan.”

The pair made an impressive picture, and Valentino immediately was interested in the prancing stallion. The price was $3,000 at the time, according to Raswan. (Kellogg had paid $1,200 for him.) Carl and Valentino visited at length concerning Jadaan and his possibilities as a movie horse. This was in 1926 and Valentino was about to make another desert picture in which he hoped to use an outstanding mount.

Jadaan at this time was owned by W. K. Kellogg, the cereal king, having just been purchased from C. D. Clark, of Point Happy Ranch, Indio, along with nine others. Kellogg, however, left the horse in Clark’s care, with Schmidt in charge.

Jadaan was then 10 years old.

Valentino wanted Jadaan badly. Friends said he mentioned the horse often in the next few months, comparing the horse with famous statues he had seen in Italy, statuary of Garibaldi and Marco Polo, always mounted on rearing horses.

“I used to look at the great, metal Garibaldi in the little park,” friends quoted the actor saying. “I can see him now, seated firmly on his rearing horse. I always wanted to ride like that.”

This admiration for dashing horsemanship probably was responsible for much of the success of Valentino’s desert sheik pictures and, no doubt, led to his first interest in Jadaan. Jadaan commanded attention.

Unfortunately for Valentino and his backers, the actor did not give in to his urge to own Jadaan. Instead, it was decided to rent him from Kellogg for use in the upcoming movie.

This decision was an expensive one, for before they were through shooting, the aggregate cost of rental and insurance reached a reputed $12,000. And the movie makers had to furnish an expert attendant besides.

One day of retakes cost the film company $750 of insurance alone, and the backers were pretty sick of horse problems before they had the picture wrapped up.

And Valentino, in spite of the fact he was a far better than average horseman, was too valuable an asset to risk on a spirited horse for any length of time. As a consequence, the producer had to hire Carl “Raswan” Schmidt as his double. In the famous film “Son of the Sheik” Carl portrayed both the son and the father in all long shots and all those requiring fast or dangerous riding.

It was not long thereafter that Valentino died, and Jadaan, under the expert press agentry of Rathbun and thanks to an idolizing public, became the nation’s most famous living horse.

He was in such great demand that Kellogg Ranch officials had to maintain careful future booking records and exercise great caution in agreeing to public appearances for him. Idolizers of Valentino pulled hair from the horse’s tail and mane, asked for his shoes, and taxed the patience of attendants by filching jewels from the showy saddle, bridle and other elaborate trappings.

Heirs of Buffalo Bill Cody, after seeing photos of a movieland Buffalo Bill mounted on Jadaan, requested that upon the animal’s death his skin be sent them for mounting and placing in the museum at Cody, Wyoming. It was recalled that Buffalo Bill’s favorite mount was a white Arabian, Muson, a stallion loaned to him by his friend Homer Davenport. Cody always rode Muson in his appearances at Madison Square Garden; and it was on this animal he is mounted in the Rosa Bonheur painting.

Jadaan’s skin was preserved upon his death, but it apparently never reached its destined place of enshrinement at Cody.

The Jadaan-Valentino saddle is still much in evidence at the Kellogg ranch (now Southern California campus of California Polytechnic College). It looked for a while one day recently that future generations would not be afforded an opportunity of seeing this historic piece of Hollywood gear. As is the custom each Sunday, a riderless horse outfitted with the Valentino saddle, bridle, fringed martingale, and jeweled blanket is brought into the ring. The young Cal-Poly student who saddled the honored Arab on this particular day evidently saw no reason for cinching up the rig tightly, and the filly bearing it promptly bucked it loose midway in her appearance and proceeded to kick it pretty well to ribbons as it hung beneath her belly.

Harness maker Z. C. Ellis, of Pomona, came to the rescue, however, painstakingly piecing embroidery, dyed leather, and jewels back together again; and posterity can now see the saddle that Rudolph Valentino rode.

And parents can continue to scoff when youngsters look blank and inquire, “Who was he, anyway?”

Jadaan’s Get

From “Jadaan 196” by Carol W. Mulder in Arabian Horse World Dec. 1971

Year Name Dam Notes
1925 Markada Fasal a broodmare for Dickinson 3 reg foals (from Dickenson’s Catalog(’47): “Height 15.1 weight 1025” “Markada is intelligent to a degree and has been well educated. She knows a number of tricks and has personality enough to make an ideal heroine for a ‘human’ horse story. She seems to take pride in giving one a good ride. Markada is above average size and well built up, especially in the forehand. She has deep shoulders, sloping nicely, and good withers. Her middle piece is well rounded and she carries herself well at both ends. This mare is close to desert breeding and strong in the blood of great producing dams.” “Used 1931-1934. Sold in Tennessee”[3]
1927 Irak *Raida no recorded get
Wardi Sedjur a broodmare for Jedel Ranch
1929 End O’War Amham died at 4 months
Raidaan *Raida a sire for Gordon A. Dutt. 7 reg. foals
Jadanna *Rossana exp. to Mexico City, Mexico
Gloria Davenport Sedjur 4 reg foals
1930 Jadur Sedjur 2 reg. daughters
Badia Babe Azab Dam of12 offspring including the Davenport 2nd foundation mare, Asara. Damline of Fadjur’s favorite mare, Saki.
Estrellita Amham 8 reg. foals
1931 Jadura Sedjur line has died out
Amaana Amham at least 5 reg foals
Raidaana *Raida Kellogg broodmare. at least 6 reg foals. Destroyed by Remount in ’44 at age 13. Lame.
1932 Bedaana Beneyeh 5 reg foals
Majada *Malouma died at six months
Jurad Sedjur did not breed on.
Hamaan Amham sire for Marie C. Scott’s Wyoming ranch. 20 reg. foals
Jarid *Raida a sire for Dr. Fred A. Glass
Fred E. Vanderhoof bred 3 mares to him in 1938 resulting in
1939 Leidaan Leila bred on.
Havanna *Bint at least 7 reg. foals.
Ravaana Rasrah at least 7 reg. foals.
  1. [1]From Mary Jane Parkinson’s The Kellogg Arabian Ranch: The First Fifty Years p. 277: “JADAAN, age 29, had outlived his usefulness. …was destroyed on May 28” by the U.S. Remount.
  2. [2]“(Buck-knees) While this is a very unsightly disfigurement, it is not by any means as serious as several other front leg flaws, and is, in fact, considered by many experts to be relatively harmless!” — Carol Mulder
  3. [3]From “Fasal 330” by Carol W. Mulder in Arabian Horse World Feb. 1976: “(Markada) dying in her prime.”