by C . Bruce Spencer
While the Blue Proxy forces and the White Proxy forces are still battling for control of the Breeders ' Association and the trainers are arguing over who is going to win what class at Montgomery and you and I are worrying about what horses we want to buy or sell at the Murray Farm Sale , a group of well-meaning but misdirected individuals in Washington , D . C . is putting us all out of business . Sound drastic ? Well , YOU better believe it is , because unless we take another look at our situation , we are all going to be " afoot ” ... as the saying goes .
The Tennessee Walking Horse had undergone many dramatic changes since this breed was established back in 1935 . Since that time we have seen the development of a horse that is most unique . We have seen some tremendous improvements m the breed from the standpoint of beauty and performance . We have developed an animal that is most versatile ; an animal that is suitable for pleasure , utility or show . And yet . . . yet we are currently confronted by movements both from within our own ran^ and from outside sources that would tend to destroy us all rather than let current trends continue .
The " current trends ” to whic^ i refer are those dealing with our activities in ge * ierai and the manner in which we train our horses spe £ ^ca^y- The development of the " sore horse ,” as it * s called , has been gradual and has slowly slipped into a drastic situation . It is vitally important at this time that we take
a good look at the situation and decide among ourselves exactly how critical our present predicament is , how it got that way and what WE can do about it .
Despite all the recent publicity regarding our horses
and the well-meaning activity of people on both sides of the issue . I do not believe that we have yet become aware of exactly what the real problem is . As most of you know , the NASHVILLE TENNES SEAN , a newspaper credited with providing considerable coverage of our horse activity since the advent of the breed , launched an all-out attack against the Tennessee Walking Horse industry during the 1969 Celebration . According to the reporter assigned to write these articles , they were looking for " facts , and not
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Voice of the Tennessee Walking Horse