FOR SALE300 WILD PONIES

Grey River Argus, 2 September 1948, Page 8

FOR SALE300 WILD PONIES

OTTAWA, August 30. A herd of 300 wild ponies, more oi’ less, on Sable Island, off the coast of Nova Seotia, forms the latest of the numerous varieties of unusual surpluses to be disposed of by War Assets Corporation. While the corporation announcement specifies 300 ponies, it is believed that the roundup will incease that number considerably. Accordingly, offers are invited for" the whole population or for lots of 100. '

The purchaser will be responsible for the corralling and transportation of the animals, all of which must be carried Out with due regard to humane regulations. ’ According to the Federal Department of Agriculture, the origin of these ponies is obscure. One story advanced is that they are the result of a shipwreck in which a few horses got ashore, while another is that they were brought to the island by settlers from what is now New England, during the eighteenth century. These ponies are hardy, having to withstand rough weather with no adequate protection and depending for forage bn the- coarse grass with which the land is sparsely covered, cranberries and like plants which grow around the ponds. Sable Island is approximately 170 miles east of Halifax, being . almost 25 miles long and one mile wide and composed almost entirely of sand. Flat and low on the northern side, there are hills and cliffs up to 50 feet on the northern side, and most of the island is 10 feet above sea level. The population consists of 13 persons who tend the two lighthouses, one on either end of the island and the life saving services. Since 191 b a number of the pomes have been broken to saddle and for driving and are used for patrolling the beaches of the island and in hauling lifeboat equipment. A number have been shipped to the mainland and aie employed farms.