HORSE LATITUDES, the zones of high atmospheric pres sure with calms and variable breezes along the polar edges of the belt of the trade winds (q.v.). The New English Dictionary gives two somewhat contradictory explanations of the origin of the name : one, that the calm kills horses on a sailing ship, the other, that the name signifies the unruly and boisterous nature of the winds of these latitudes compared with the pleasant trades. Neither explanation is generally accepted.