/n TUFTS UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES 3 9090 014 550 475 Wtebster r, eterinary Cummings Set ,^^ j lertnary Mo d i d no Ol Tufts University 200 Westboro Road North Grafton, MA 01536 HINTS TO HORSE-KEEPERS. A COMPLETE MANUAL FOR HORSEMEN; EMBRACE G CHAPTERS ON MULES AND PONIES, BY THE LATE HENRY WILLIAM HERBERT, (FBANK FORRESTER.) WITH ADDITIONS, INCLUDING "bAUCHER'S SYSTEM OP HORSEMANSHIP ;' ALSO, GIVING DIRECTIONS FOR THE SELECTION AND CARE OF CARRIAGES AND HARNTJSS OF EVERT DESCRIP- TION, AND A MEMOIR OF THE AUTHOR. BEAUTIFULLY ILLUSTRATED. NEW YORK: ORANGE JUDD COMPANY, 1906 Entered, according to Act of Congress, In the year 1887, by the O. JUDD CO., lu the Office of the Librarian ol Congress, at Washington. THESE HINTS TO HORSE-KEEPERS ^re respectfully bebicateb to fjis; Jfrienb CHARLES A. DANA, AT WHOSE SUGGESTION TIIEY WERE COMPOSED THE AUTHOR, HENRY W. HERBERT, The Cedai's PUBLISHEES' PREFACE. The basis of the present work is the valxiable matter written by Mr. Heroert shortly before his death, comprised within the first thirteen chapters. An extension of the work was undertaken by the author, and the outline of the remaining chapters was being filled out by him, when that strange and fatal mood overshadowed his life, and terminated his earthly labors. In committing the unfinished task to other hands, we have been particularly fortunate in procuring, for each de- partment, competent and experienced aid ; and if the style of a favorite author is not to be recognized by our readers in all parts of the work, thoy may derive some compensa- tion firom the fact, that by combining the experience oi' a number of contributors we present a completness and variety not to be expected in the production of any one mind. These Hints to Horse-Keepers are intended to in- clude every subject of interest to those who, for pleasure or business, own or use a horse. From their comprehensiveness they are necessarily brief and condensed. More elaborate works on each speciality have previously been in the hands of the public, and this volume is not adapted, noi intended, to supplant them; but by presenting in one volume a compend of our valuable standard works, with the latest discoveries and improvements, it is believed wa have answered a demand till now unsupplied. I»l HEBBEBT. Henry William Herbert, more familiarly known aa * FiAnk Forester," was bom in London, on the 7th ol April, 1S07. His father, the Hon. and Eev. William Herbert, Dean of Manchester, and third son of the Earl of Carnarvon, was a profound scholar, and is well known to the American public as the author of " Attila." His mother, a most estimable lady, was the second daughter of Viscount Allyn, of Kildare, a representative peer of Ireland, and is still living in London. Herbert was thus descended from some of the most aristocratic families of Great Britain and Ireland ; and to the advantages of birth he joined those of a thorough edu- cation, which commenced under the auspices of private tutors in his father's house, and was continued at Eton and Cambridge, until he graduated from Caius College at the age of twenty-three. His tastes and occupations through life induced a habit of study, and it was recently remarked by a gentleman of New York, whose position brings him in contact with literary men and scholar^ that Herbert was one of the best educated men of hia acquaintance. Our author's acquirements at Cambridge were not all of a scholastic nature ; for he there contracted such habits of life, that before he attained the age of twenty-five, he had thrice been '* whitewashed" for insolvency; had been eentenced to outlawry for debt; and had emigrated to 8 BfiBBBKt. America, where he soon expended hia little remain^n|$ money. It is now that his life, as a man, commenced ; and the many difficulties and misfortunes which beset his way, are thus alluded to in his last letter to the press : — " I beai an honorable name ; I have striven hard, in great trial, in great temptation, in a foreign country, in a false position, among men who did not, perhaps could not, sympathize with me, to keep it honorable." Again — " Remembei also, when you judge me, that of all lives, mine has been almost the most unhappy. No counsellor, no friend, no country have been mine, for six-and-twenty weary years. Every hope has broken down under my foot as soon as it has touched it. Every spark of happiness has been quenched as soon as it has been kindled." For eight years Herbert was a teacher in a schoo. in New York, where he gave the most perfect satis- faction. He was a frequent contributor to the best jour- nals of the day, and an editor of the " American Monthly Magazine." In " The Captains of the Old World," " The Roman Republic," ** The Brothers, a tale of the Fronde," " Ringwood the Rover," " Warwick Woodlands," " Crom- well," &c., he has given pleasure and instruction to many readers. These facts concern Herbert's literary reputa- tion, which was good among distinguished literary men ; but that which binds him to the hearts of true sportsmen, and lovers of nature, he has won under the nom de plume of "Frank Forester," in the "Field Sports," " Fish and Fishing," "The Deer Stalkers," "The Complete Manual for Young Sportsmen," etc. More recently, he wrote a very large work on " The Horse of America," and, last of all, these " Hints to Horse-Keepers." Herbert was twice married ; — first, in 1839, to a Mis^ Barker, of Bangor, whither he had accompanied a gentle HSBBSBT. 9 man of New York, a literary friend, for the purpose ol acting as groomsman at the marriage of his friend and the lady in question. With the variableness of a woman, Miss Barker made a bridegroom of the groomsman, and cast an enduring shadow over the life of her former suitor. The only child by this wife was a son, now living in Ed gland, at the age of eiejhteen. Mrs. Herbert died in 1846. In February of 1858, Herbert married a lady from Prov- idence, R. L, after a brief and romantic acquaintance. His affection for her seems to have been unbounded ; but — whether on account of habits long ago contracted, or in consequence of the slanders of meddlesome neighbors, the world does not know, and has no right to inquire — she left him ; and he, broken down by this last great sor ow of a life of sorrows, committed suicide at the Steveas House in New York, on the 17th day of April, 1858. He was buried in the cemetery adjoining his place, " the Cedars," near Newark, N. J. The character of Herbert is a difficult one to criticize ; but it is very certain that his intellectual attainments, his great love for everything in nature, and his power of com- municating that love to his readers, by far outweigh in importance his faults, which were those of the head and not of the heart. In no line that he ever wrote is there an improper tendency, or the expression of an impure thought. Judged by his works, he appears preeminently a good man. Judged by what is known of his life, he a}>pcars to have been prevented only by faults which were the inheritance of a misspent youth, from becoming a bright example of combined greatness and goodness. CONTENTS CHAPTER L HOW TO BREED A HOBSB— CHOICE OF STALUOH. National Talae of the Horse — The best class of Horses the cheapest for aD purposes — What constitutes excellence — Blood : what it gives ; should be on the side of the Sire — Breed up, not down — Diseases and Defects Hereditary — General Rules IT CHAPTER H. HOW TO BREED A HOBSB— CHOICE OP THE MARE. Bice, Symmetry and Soundness more important than Blood— Points of the Brood Mare — Diseases Hereditary — Condition of the Mare — Should have moderate work when with Foal — Food and care during gestation — Health and temper— General Rules 26 CHAPTER m. HOW TO BREED A HORSE— MXTTUAL ADAPTATION OF SIRE AND DAM. first consideration in Improvement of " cold " Blood— Relative siae of Sirt and Dam — Defects in either Parent — How Remedied in Progeny — Bloods which "hit"— General Rules 8ft CHAPTER IV. HOW TO BREED A HORSE — CANADIAN BLOOD. Fhe Ganadian originally the French Norman — Characteristics— Hardihood- Speed— Mode of Improvement— Crossing with Thorough-breda • ii 12 oojXTsism. CHAPTER V. HOW TO BREED A HOBSB— VOBMAjr BLOOD Origin and Hiatoiy of the PercLeron Norman— A pur© race— €hanMt«riitica and Points — Importation into this country • • • -SI CHAPTER VI. HOW TO BREICD A HORSE— MODERN ARAB BLOOD. English and American Thorough-breds derived from Oriental Blood— art now superior to the Modem Arabs— Nolan Arab - • • 68 CHAPTER VH. PONIES — THEIR DITFERBNT BREEDS, CHARACTERISTICS AlTD UTIIJTT. Qnknown to the Ancients — Origin — Diflferent Breeds— Shetlands and Sootf — Galloways and Narraganaetts — Mustangs and Indians — Profit of rais- ing Ponies .63 CHAPTER VIH. HOW TO BREED MULES. Value of Mules— Their History and Natural History — The Mule and Rinne/ — Thorough-blood wasted in the Dam for Mules— The Mule in the United States— Large Size not Desirable — Varieties of the A«« — The kind of Mares to be selected 81 CHAPTER IX. HOW TO BUT A HORSE. Of whom to Buy it — Extraordinary Cheapness and Extraordinary Exce*^ lence not consistent with each other — Points to be Regarded— Fow tt. examine the Eye — Broken Wind— Roaring — Whistling — Broken Knecw — To examine the Legs— Splents — Damaged Back Sinews — Spavins — Ringbones— Curbs —Thorough-pin — How to tell the Age of a Horse 94 CHAPTER X. HOW TO FEED A HORSE. Oonaequences of Improper Feeding — Different Food for different conditiorf — Food for the Brood Mare— for the Foal— For Working Horses- Green Food— Carrots— Com —Feeding Horses in Training — Wlfeilrt Travelhng- Summering Horses— The Best Method— Management of Omiubus Horsee in New Tone \^ OONTENTS. 13 CHAPTER XL HOW TO STABLE AND 6B00M A HOBSB. fteqiilmtefl for a good Stable — ^The economy of Proper Arrangements— Venti- lation — Grooming; its necessity for all descriptions of Horses— How Performed— Clothing— Treatment of the Horse when brought in from Work 139 CHAPTER XH. HOW TO BREAK, AKD CSS A HOBSB. Wliat is required in a well-broken Horse — His education should oommeno* when a Colt — Biting— Putting in Harness— How to Use a Horse— Travellin^f-Working— Pleasure Horses— Punishment • - 161 CHAPTER Xm. HOW TO PHTSIO A HOBSB — SIHPLB BEHEDIES FOB SDIPLB AIL1IZNT8L Gauses of Ailments — Medicines to be given only by the order of the Master — Depletion and Purging — Spasmodic Colic— Inflammation of thi Bowels— Inflammation of the Lungs — How to Bleed — Balls and Purga tives— Costiveness — Cough — Bronchitis — Distemper— Worms— Dis- eases of the Feet— Scratches— Thrush— Broken Knees - - 168 CHAPTER XIV. r ABBIEBT, Bra Castration— Docking and Nicking— Blood-letting— Treatment of Strains aoM Wounds— Galls of the Skin— Cracked Heels— Clipping and Singeing^ Administering Medicines— Diseases of the Feet • • • • 18t CHAPTER XV. BOW TO SHOB A HOBSB. IfBikflfiil 8hoer»— Anatomy of the Foot Illustrated— The Foot of a Coli- Preparation of the Foot— Bemoving the Old Shoe— Paring the Foot^ The Shoo— Fitting the Shoe— Nailing— Number of Nails— Diseases of the Foot Sll CHAPTER XVL BAUCHEB'S method of TRAmiNO HOBSBSL What Constitutes a Well-trained Horse— To make him come at your caQ* The Philosophy of Training— Flexions of the Jaw— Flexions of thi Neok- Flexions of the Croup — Backing — The Paces — T^ftnptng %a 14 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XVn. HOW TO BIDS ▲ HOBSa. the Sadie— The Girtha— The Stirrups— Saddle-Clotha— The Cruppet- The Martingale— The Bridle — Spurs — Mounting and Dismounting — The Seat —The Hands— The Legs— The Paces— Hints for Special Cases- The ArtofFalling— Riding with Ladies 261 CHAPTER XVHL ladies' BTOING — WRITTEN BT A LADT. LMurning to Ride— The Side-saddle— The Girths— The Stirrup— The Brid]»>- The Martingale — The Bit — The Dress — Mounting and Dismounting— The Position— The Hands— The Leg and Whip— Acddenta - 288 CHAPTER XIX. HOW TO DBITB ▲ H0B8S. Ihe Art of Driving— Pleasure Driving— How to Hold the Rems— Drivfag • Pair- Four-in-hand Driving — Driving Working Horses — Plowing — Three-a-breast 304 CHAPTER XX. BABET'S BTSTEU 07 HOBSE-TAUINO. Barey's System a New Discovery — Previous System — Principles of this Sya- tern — Instructions for practicing Earey's Method — To Stable the Horse — ^To Approach the Horse — Tying up the Leg — ^Laying the Horse Down •— Sinale — ^Vices and Bad Habits — Rearing— Kicking — ^Baulking — ^Poll* Ing on the Halter— Shying 81T CHAPTER XXI. Bi.omG. Tmining (he Baoer— Training Stables— Feeding Horses m Training— I owt of Badsg— Table of Weights for different Ages— Handicapping SSI CHAPTER XXTT. TXTEBINABT HOM(EOPATHT. trindplef of tbe System- Table of Remedies— Greneral DirectionB^Treat Bkont of a Sick Animal— Diet— Remediea for Spedflo Cases— Glossaiy ofDiaeasee .-••• 844 CONTENTS. 16 CHAPTER XXm, CkoenJ Remarks— Different Varieties of Vehicles— The Wheel, Hub, and Ajde—The Springs— The Shafts and Pol^— The Body and Top— Paint- ixig and Varnishing — Trinuning and Plating — Hannonj of Colors — How to Keep Carriages in Good Condition .... 3*24 CHAPTER XXIV. The Qoalitf of Leather— Stitchmg— The Collar— The Traces— The Sadl't and Breeching^The Bridle and ReisA— MincM* Dataila— Hew to Keep Ham«w in Qood Condition 401 HINTS TO HORSE-KEEPERS. CHAPTER I. HOW TO BREED A HOBSB — CHOICE OP 8TAMJ0N. KAn05AL TALUB OP THB HORSB— THE BETTER CLASS OP HORSES TUl CHEAPEST FOR ALL PURPOSES — WHAT CONSTITXJTES EXCELLENCE? — " BLOOD ;" WHAT IT GIVES — SHOULD BE ON THB SIDE OP THE SIRE — BREED UP, NOT DOWN— DISEASES AND DETECTS HEREDITARY — GENERAL BULBS, To enter into an argument at this day of the nineteentli century, to show that the horse stock of any country is a material item in the account of the national wealth, strength and greatness, would be to admit the arguer him- self an ass, or at least to show that he believed himself to be addressing an audience of asses. In no country in the world, perhaps, is such an argument less needed than in our own, where, certainly, the keeping of horses for the purposes of pleasure as well as of utility is more largely disseminated among persons of all classes than in any other, and where the desire and ability both to keep and breed horses of a high grade is daily gaining ground, both in town and country. Among farmers the desire to raise val- uable stock is, at least, increasing proportionally to the inorease of the profit to be derived from them, wliich w (17) lb HOW TO BREED A ^ORSE. advancing every day not in consequence of any casual oi temporary caprice, but is attributable to the growing percep- tion of tlie fact, among all borse-keepers, tbat it is not only as cheap, if one keeps a borse at all, to keep a good as to keep a bad one, but in reality much cheaper. The prime cost is the only difference to be considered : the price oi stable-room, keep and care is identical ; the wear and tear is infinitely less in the sound, able, useful animal than in the broken-down jade ; the work which can be done and the value earned by the one is in no possible relation to those by the other ; while, to conclude, the cash value of the superior animal, judiciously worked, — and by judiciously is meant profitably to the owner, as well as moderately and mercifully to the beast, — and properly tended, is actually increasing annually at a greater rate than that at which the inferior animal is deteriorating. In other words, a four-year-old horse, well bought at a rrice of two or three hundred dollars or upward, will, when he has attained the age of seven or eight years, after hav- ing earned his meat and paid the interest of his prime cost by his services, be worth twice the money, either for work- ing purposes or for sale, if the owner see fit to dispose oi him • while an animal bought for half or a third of that price, at the same age, will probably, at the same increased age, be wholly worn out, valueless and useless ; and the greater the excellence of the animal in the first instance, the greater and more rapid will be the increase in value , the lower his qualities, to begin, the speedier and more 0)mplete the deterioration. Now, as to what constitutes value or excellence in alJ horses. — It is indisputably quickness of working ; powei to move or carry weight, and ability to endure for a length of time ; to travel for a distance with the least decroase CHOICE OF STALLION. 19 of pace ; to come again to work day after day, week aftei week, and year after year, with undiminislied vigor. And it is scarcely needful to say that, under all ordinary circum- ijtances these conditions are only compatible with the highest form and highest physical health of the animal. Mai • formation must necessarily detract from speed and power : hereditary disease or constitutional derangement must nee essarily detract from all powers whatsoever. Under usual circumstances it would hardly be necessary to undertake to show that quickness of working, or, in other words, speed, is necessary to a high degree of excellence in a horse oi ^ny stamp or style, and not one iota less for the animal which draws the load or breaks the glebe, than for the tiding horse or the pleasure traveller before light vehicles. But it has of late become the fashion with some parties to undervalue the advantages of speed, and to deny its utility for other purposes than for those of mere amusement; and, as a corollary from this assumption, to disparage the effect and deny the advantage of blood, by which is meant descent, through the American or English race-horse, from the oriental blood of the desert, whether Arabian, Barb, Turk, Persian or Syrian, or a combination of two or more, or all of the five. The horse which can plough an acre while another is ploughing half an acre, or that which can carry a load of passengers ten miles while another is going five, indepen- dent of all considerations of amusement, taste, or what ia generally called fancy, is absolutely worth twice as much to his owner as the other. Now the question for the breeder is simply this : By what means is this result to be obtained ? The reply is, by getting the greatest possible amount of pure blood com patible with size, weight ani power, according to the pur 20 HOW TO BREED A HORSE. pose for whicli he intends to raise stock, into tlie animal bred. For not only is it not true tliat speed alone is the only good thing derivable from blood, but something very nearly the reverse is true. It is very nearly the least good thing. That which the blood-horse does possess is a de- gree of strength in his bones, sinews, and frame at large, utterly out of proportion to the size or apparent strength of that frame. The texture, the form and the symmetry of the bones, — all, in the same bulk and volume, — possess double, or nearer four-fold, the elements of resistance and endurance in the blood-horse that they do in the cold- blooded cart-horse. The difference in the form and text- ure of the sinews and muscles, and in the inferior tendency to form flabby, useless flesh, is still more in favor of the blood-horse. Beyond this, the internal anatomical con- struction of his respiratory organs, of his arterial and venous system, of his nervous system, in a word, of his constitution generally, — is calculated to give him what he possesses, greater vital power, greater recuperatory power, greater physical power, in proportion to his bulk and weight, than any other known animal — added to greater quickness of movement, and to greater courage, greater endurance of labor, hardship, suffering — ^in a word, greater (what is called vulgarly) game or pluck than will be found in any other of the horse family. But it is not to be said, or supposed, that all blood-horses will give these qualities in an equal degree ; for there is as much or more choice in the blood-horse than in any other of the family. Since, as in the blood of the thorough-bred horse all faults, all vices, all diseases are directly hereditary, as well as all virtues, all soundness, all good qualities, it is more necessary to look, in the blood-horse, to his ante* cedents, his history, his performances, and, above all, to hifi CHOICE OP OLAXLION. 21 sLape, temper, soundness and constitution, than it is inanj other of the horse family. To breed from a small horse with the hope of getting a large colt; frcm a long-backed, leggy horse, with the hope of getting a short, compact, powerful one ; from a broken* winded, or blind, or flat-footed, or spavined, or ringboned, or navicular-joint-diseased horse, with the hope of getting a round one ; from a vicious horse, a cowardly horse, — what is technically called a dunghill, — with the hope cf getting a kind-tempered and brave one ; all or any of these would be the height of folly. The blood sire (and the blood should always be on the sire's side) should be, for the farmer-breeder's purposes, of medium height, say 15 i hands high, short-backed, well-ribbed up, short in the saddle-place, long below. He should have high with- ers, broad loins, broad chest, a straight rump, — the converse of what is often seen in trotters, and known as the goose rump ; a high and muscular, but not beefy crest ; a lean, bony, well-set-on head ; a clear, bright, smallish, well- placed eye ; broad nostrils and small ears. His fore legs should be as long and as muscular as possible above the knee, and his hind legs above the hock, and as lean, short and bony as possible below those joints. The bones can- not by any means be too flat, too clear of excrescences, or too large. The sinews should be clear, straight, firm, and hard to the touch. From such a horse, where the breeder csan find one, and from a well-chosen mare (she may be a little larger, more bony, more roomy, and in every way coajser than the horse, to the advantage of the stock), Bound, healthy and well-limbed, he may be certain, acci- dents and contingencies set aside, of raising an animal that will be creditable to him as a scientific stock breeder, and profitable to him in a pecuniary sense. 22 HOW TO BREED A 30RSB. Tlie great point then to be aimed at is, the combining in the same animal the maximum of speed compatible with Bufficient size, bone, strength, and solid power to carry heavy weights or draw large loads, and at the same time tc secure the stock from the probability, if not certainty, of inheriting structural deformity or constitutional disease from either of the parents. The first point is only to be attained, first, by breeding as much as possible to pure blood of the right kind ; and, second, by breeding what is technically called among sportsmen and breeders, up^ not down : that is to say, by breeding the mare to a male of superior (not inferior) blood to herself, — except where it is desired to breed like to like, as Canadian to Canadian, or Norman to Norman, for the purpose of perpetuating a pure strain of any particular variety, which may be useful for the production of brood mares. By superior blood we mean that which approaches nearer to thorough blood. Thus, a half-bred mare should never be put to a half-bred stallion, as in that case the pro duce will, in nine cases out of ten, degenerate below th* dam ; whereas, if she be bred to a thorough-bred the pro duce will be superior, and will continually improve ad in- finitum, by adhering to the same process of breeding up. In the second place, a reasonable probability of raising sound and healthy stock can only be attained by carefully selecting parents free from disease, which is either heredi- tary, or apt to become so. It is idle for persons at this time of the world, to sneer at the idea of disease or other qualities being hereditary, or transmissible in the blood : it is known, both medically and physiologically, that they are so. All diseases of the lungs and windpipe, known as the heaves, as broken wind, as roaring, whistling thick wind, and the like, are, incon CHOICE OP STALLION. 23 testably, transmissible. Blindness is, if possible, yet more BO ; and even when one eye is destroyed by accident, if the other eye, through a sympathetic affection, follow it, we should consider it by no means safe to breed from a horse so injured. Lameness, arising from pure acci- dent, is of coarse not transmissible ; but where a race- horse has broken down, as it is termed, in running, — that is to say, where the sinews, or smaller metacarpal bones, commonly known as the splint bones, have given way from want of strength sufficient to endure the strain laid upon them,-r-it will be well to observe whether there be not some visible defect of the conformation of those parts, tending to undue weakness : such as disproportion* ate length of the lower or cannon bone of the fore leg, which can scarcely be too short ; or the defect which ia generally called tying in^ consisting of an improper con- traction of the volume of the leg, immediately below the fore knee, and indicating an insufficiency of the splint bone. These malformations are distinctly hereditary. H a horse, therefore, break down in his fore legs, having such a malformation, the breaking down itself may be said to have been hereditary ; and one would, therefore, eschew breeding from such a horse. Now, to give two cases in point : there is probably not a horse in America which a good judge would sooner select, m regard to size, strength, power, and all other qualifications, to which to put coun- try mares, than Boston. He is in every respect the beau- ideal of what, in England, would be considered a huntei getter. And the English hunter is precisely the stamp and style of horse which is the most profitable for the farmer to raise, for all general purposes. No one in Eng- land would drive before his carriage, or ride on the 'X)ad, anything but English hunters, if he could afford 24 HOW TO BBESd A HOBSB. the price ; and, as to their powers for drauglit or burden, it is only necessary to say that men weighing twenty horseman's stone, or 280 pounds, find no difficulty, being willing to pay the price, in getting hunters nearly tho- rough-bred — ^none others than such could do it— capable of carrying them across country, over hedges, brooks and timber, as fast as fox-hounds can run. But — ^for there is a but — Boston went blind, and his best son, Lexington, haa gone blind also, firjt of one eye, and then completely ; and this fatal fact sets Boston aside forever as a country breeder's horse. From the foregoing, then, may be deduced the following Genebal Kules: First, The more valuable horses ^e the most econom- ical for all purposes. Second, The more "blood" compatible with the size required, the better, — ^the high-bred animal having greater quickness^ strength^ hottorriy health and vigor of constitution, as well as courage and pluck. Third, The "blood" should be on the side of the sire; that is, the stallion should be thorough -bred, or at least of purer blood than the mare. Fourth, Choose a stallion in every respect sound, short backed, well ribbed up, short in the saddle-place and long below, with high withers, broad loins, broad chest, straig^ht rump, a high and muscular but not beefg crest, a lean, bony, well'Set-on head, a bright, clear, smallish, well- placed eye, broad nostrils and small ears. His fore legs above the knee, and the hind legs above the hock, should be long and muscular, and below these joints short and bony. The bones of the legs should be large, flat, and free from excrescences — the sinews clear, straight, and hard to the touch. OHAPl'ER JL HOW TO BREED A HORSE. — CHOICE OF THE MARS. KZB, SnOIETRT AND SOUNDNESS MORE DIPOBTANT THAN BLOOD — POIXTB OP THE BROOD MARE— DISEASES HEREDITARY— CONDITION OF THH MARE— SHOULD HAVE MODERATE WORK WHEN WITH FOAL — FOOD AND OARK DURING GESTATION — HEALTH AND TEMPER— GENERAL RULEa We now come to another and by no means secondary part of the business ; that is to say, to the choice of the mares. And here we say that the first thing to be looked for is, not blood nor performances, but size and symmetry, accompanied, as a matter of course, by constitutional and structural soundness. Blood from the sire, beauty from the dam, is the golden rule of the breeder. We know it is commonly said by farmers, concerning some miserable, undersized, ewe-necked, cat-hammed wretch of a mare, broken-winded, ring-boned and spavined, " Oh, she will do to raise a colt out of 1" So she will I But what will the 'Xjlt be ? The breeder had better, for all purposes, espe- cially for his own pecuniary benefit, have shot her at once; for the colt will not be worth the mare^s grass, let alone the price of the stallion's services. When we say that blood is not to be looked for, we mean not as a primary necessity. Of course, it is to be looked for, thus, — that a fine mare, having the breeding points finely developed, got by a prime thorough-bred horse, is a preferable animal for a iam, to an equally fine mare who has no thorough 2 ra6i 26 HOW TO BREED A HORSE. blood at all But, oa the contrary, a niare witli all tlie best bloods in the world in her veins, if she has not good shapes, good size, and good points, is not fit for a stud mare. We do not merely mean as to the absence of ac- tual deformities, or constitutional disease, such as spavin, ringbone or navicular disease, but as to lack of structural excellence and beauty. We go so far as to say that a farmer had far better let alone breeding from a mare which he knows to be herself a good and true one, if she be cross made, unsightly, and deficient in points of strength or in action ; for excellence will sometimes be found, acciden- tally and exceptionally, in all shapes, even the most unlikely. But it will be found, in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, that the ill shapes will be transmitted, while the excellence will not. Therefore, say we, when a good old mare, however good she may have been, if she want size, bone, muscular development and form, has done her work, it is better to let her go, her duties done, than t« seek to turn her to farther profit by breeding from her since the profit is extremely likely to prove a loss. An unproved mare, of fine form and good temper, with plenty of bone, good constitution, and free from unsoundness or vice, is a better animal from which to raise stock than the toughest bit of mare's flesh that ever stood on iron, if sho materially lack any one of those conditions. " In choosing the brood mare," says an excellent modern writer on the horse, though he is speaking of thorough- breds, " four things must be considered : First, her blood ; aecondly, her frame ; thirdly, her state of health ; and fourthly, her temper. "In frame, the mare should be so formed as to be capable of carrying and well nourishing her off-spring ; that is, she should be what is called roomy.* There ia a formation of the hips which is particularly unfit for CHOICE or THE MABE. 27 breeding purposes, and yet which is sometimes carefully selected, because it is considered elegant ; this is the level and straight hip, in which the tail is set on very high, and the end of the haunch bone is nearly on a level with the projection of the hip bone. Nearly the opposite form is the more desirable, where, on examining the pelvis, it will be seen that the haunch bone forms a considerable angle with the sacrum, and that there is, as a consequence, plenty of room, not only for carrying the foal, but for allowing it to pass into the world. Both of these points are important, the former evidently so, and the latter no less so on consid. eration ; because, if the foal is injured in the birth, eithei of necessity or from ignorance, it will often fail to recover its powers, and will remain permanently injured. The pelvis, then, should be wide and deep, — that is to say, large and roomy ; and there should also be a little more than the average length, from hip to the shoulder, so as to give plenty of bed for the foal, as well as a good depth of back ribs, which are necessary to give the strength to support this increased length. This gives to the whole frame-work of the trunk a larger proportion than is always desira- ble in the race-horse, which is easily overtopped in race- horses," — that is to say, they may easily have more bod^ than their legs can properly carry, — " and hence many good runners have failed as brood mares, while a great number of bad runnel s have been dams of good horsea Beyond this roomy frame, necessary as the egg-shell of the foal, the mare only requires such a shape and make as is well adapted for the purpose she is intended for," that is to say, for producing colts of the style and form she is in- tended to produce. We will add, that she must have four good legs under her, and those legs standing as a foun dation on four good, well-shaped, large feet, open-heeled, and 'by no means flat soled. That she should have a good, 28 HOW TO BEEED A HORSE. lean, bony head, small-eared, broad-fronted, well set on, upon a bigb, well-carried neck, thin at its junction with the head ; high withers, thin, and, above all, long, sloping shoulders. A straight shoulder is an abomination ; it ren- ders speed impossible, and gives a rigid, inflexible motion, often producing the bad fault of stumbling. She should be wide-chested, and deep in the heart-place. Her quarters Bhould be strong, well let down, long and sickle-shaped above the hocks. It is better that she go with her hocka somewhat too wide apart than too near together — the former point indicating power, the latter, weakness of a bad kind. It has been shown that a brood mare may, nay, should, be considerably longer in the back than one would choose a working horse to be ; but if she be partic- ularly so, it is desirable to put her to a short-backed and close-coupled horse. "In health," says the same writer who has been quoted above, " the brood mare should be as near perfection as the artificial state of the animal will allow ; at all events, it is the most important point of all ; and in every case the mare should be very carefully examined with a view to discover what deviations from a natural state have been entailed upon her by her own labors, and what she has mherited from her ancestors. Independently of the con- sequence of accidents, all deviations from a state of health in the mare may be considered as more or less transmitted to her, because, in a thoroughly sound constitution, no or- dinary treatment, such as training consists of, will produce disease; and it is only hereditary predisposition which, ander this process, entails its appearance. Still there are positive, comparative and superlative degrees of objec- tionable diseases incidental to the brood-mare, which should be accepted or refused accordingly. All accidental de« fecis, such as broken knees, dislocated hips, or even CHOICE OF THE MARE. 29 breaks-down,* may be passed over; the latter, however, only when the stock from which the mare is descended are famous for standing their work without this frailty of sinew and ligament. Spavins, ringbones, large splents, side- bones, and, in fact, all bony enlargements, are consti- tutional defects, and will be almost sure to be perpetuated, more or less, according to the degree in which they exist in the particular case. Ourby hocks are also hereditary, and should be avoided ; though many a one, much bent at the junction of the os calcis and astragalus^ is not at all liable to curbs. It is the defective condition of the liga- ments there, not the angular junction, which leads to curbs ; and the breeder should carefully investigate the individual case before accepting or rejecting a mare with suspicious hocks. Bad feet, whether from contraction or from too flat and thin a sole, should be avoided ; but when they have obviously arisen from bad shoeing, the defect may be passed over. Such are the general considerations bearing upon soundness of limb. ** 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, even if he could get such a mare stinted. Roaring is a much- vexed ques- tion, 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, and the risk of reproductit)n \s too great for any person wilfully to run, by breeding fifom a roarer. As far as I can learn, it appears to bo much more hereditary on the side of the mare than on that of the horse ; and not even the offer of a " Virago" should tempt me to use her as a brood-mare. There are so many fionditions of what is termed " roaring,'' that it is difficult to fornn any opinion that shall apply to all oases. In soma 80 HOW TO BREED A HOBSE, Lnstanceaj where it has arisen from neglected strangles,— generally known in the United States as colt distemper, — or from a simple inflammation of the larynx, the result ol a cold, it will probably never reappear ; but when the gen- uine ideopathic roaring has made its appearance, appar- ently depending upon a disease of the nerves of the larynx, it is ten to one that the offspring will suffer in the same ?ray. " Blindness, again, may or may not be hereditary ; but m all cases it should be viewed with suspicion as great as that due to roaring. Simple cataract, without inflammation, un- doubtedly runs in families ; and when a horse or mare has both eyes suffering with this disease without any other de ^•angement of the eye, I should eschew them carefully. When blindness is the result of violent inflammation brought on by mismanagement, or by influenza, or by any similar cause, the eye itself is more or less disorganized ; and though this is of itself objectionable, as showing a weak- ness of the organ, it is not so bad as the regular cataract." The writer quoted is one of much and standard author- ity, yet it is questionable whether, in his desire to put the question fairly in all its lights, he has not laid too little rather than too much stress on both these pe»rilous affectiona We should say, under no possible circumstances breed from a stallion which has any affection of any kind, of the res- piratory organs, whether seated in the lungs or in the windpipe, or from one which has any affection of che eyes unless it be the direct result of an accident, such as a blow or a puncture, — nor even then if the accident having oc- curred to one eye, the other has sympathetically followed Buit ; and, on the other side, we should say, on no account breed from a mare affected in either way, unless she be possessed of some excellencies so extraordinary and coun- tervailing that for the sake of preserving the stock, one CHOICE OF THE MARB. 81 would be willing to run some risk of having & worlhlesa animal for his own use, in the hope of possibly having one free from the dreaded defect and of superlative excellence. In any event, however, the practice is to be eschewed and the risk CO be considered excessive. Previous to sending the mare to the horse she should be got into the most perfect state of health and condition, by moderate exercise, abundance of good nutritious food, and warm stabling. It is not desirable that she should be in a pampered state produced by hot stables or extraordi- nary clothing, that she should have the short fine coat, or the blooming and glowing condition of the skin, for which one would look in a race-horse about to contend for a four mile heat — not that she should be in that wiry form of sinew and steel-like hardness of muscle, which is only the result j)f training. Still less desirable is it that she should be overloaded with flit, especially of that soft fat generated by artificial feeding. While the mare is carrying her foal, during the first three or four months of her gestation, she will be much the better, not the worse, for doing her ordinary work, — not of course galloping long distances at her speed, nor trotting matches, nor doing extraordinary distances on the road ; but, if she be a carriage mare or a hackney, doing her regular day's work at her ordinary pace before a carriage or under the saddle ; or, if she be a farm mare, going through the usual routine of light ploughing, harrowing, or road- work, nevei being put to any sudden or extreme exertion, such as being made to pull at excessive loads, or to any efforts likely to produce sudden jerks or strains, which are, of all things, the most likely to cause a mare to slip her foal. At a later period her work should be lighter and slower, but none the less regular, nor should her exercise ever be wholly tDtermitted. If she be let to run at grass, she should ht 82 flow TO BREED A HOBSE. in a small inclosure, in which she may trot indeed, and even canter, or gallop at half speed, but in which she can- not well get to her racing speed, or she will be likely to overdo herself, besides running the chance of getting falls and other accidents, which may produce consequences the most disastrous. Such enclosures should be divided by fences sufficiently high and solid that they shall not present to the animals the idea of being easily surmounted or broken through, — for if they seem to be so, even if they bo not so in reality, the mares will be constantly trying to leap them, or force their way through them, and bad, per- haps fatal, accidents will be occurring. It is a far better plan to have the fences made, at least at the upper part, of open work, so that the animals in two adjacent lots may De able to see one another and communicate, without being able to get at each other, — as when so situated they will be cionstantly gently trotting to and fro in order to find a meth- od of getting together, which will keep them in proper exer- cise, — than to confine two or more mares in the same lot or enclosure, as in that case they will be apt, in play and rivalry, to extend themselves too much in their speed, and over -exert themselves. An acre is ample space for such an enclosure, and it should be provided mth a good comfort- able hut or porch for shade in summer and warmth in winter, the doorway of which ought not to be less than live feet in width and eight in height, with the angles oi the door-posts and lintels rounded off in order to prevent the hips from being injured as the animal passes rapidly and impetuously in and out, or from the poll being injured by the throwing up the head suddenly and striking the sharp edge of the linteh The food of the mare during her gestation should be liberal, generous and nutritious, without heating ; for it ia to be remembered that during this time the female has to CHOICE OP THE MABE. 83 generate blood for tlie nourishment of her foetus as well aa of hersel£ Green succulent grasses and roots are excellent at this time, as clover, lucerne, green corn sowed broadcast and cut young for the purpose ; ruta baga turnips and, best of all, carrots. Large quantities of oats or of corn should not be given — if the latter be used at all, it should be old and thoroughly dried — though it is not advisable tc cut them off entirely; from four to eight quarts of oats may be given daily with advantage, and bran mashes, with the oats added to them, steamed or moistened with hot water, will be found the best method of administering them. There is no more certain method of insuring the produc- tion of a poor, under-sized, starveling and weak-constitu- tioned foal, than to starve the mother, or to feed her on ill-suited or improper food during her gestation, or to keep her cold, or wet, or exposed to violent changes of tempe- rature. Equal care should be taken of both mother and foal, after the birth of the young animal ; and it will be found well to repay the extra expense if both are furnished with a little oats and with nutritious food of the descrip- tions named above, so long as the young animal is suck- ing the dam. " Lastly, the temper," says the same authority on whom we have already drawn so largely, " is of the greatest im- portance, 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 the purposes of the rider, and will an-jwer to the stimulus of the voice, whip or spur. A craven or a rogue is not to be thought of as the mother of a family ; and if the mare belong to a breed which is remarkable for refusing to answer the call of the rider, she should be consigned to any task rather than the etud farm. Neither should a mare be used for this purpose which had been too irritable to train, unless she happen to 2* 84 HOW TO BREED A HORSE. be an exceptional case; but if of an irritable family, sbc would be worse tban even a roarer or a blind one." Sulkiness and savageness, and even the liability to start and shy violently, are likewise to some degree hereditary ; but as these are capable of being modified and affected io the highest degree, if not absolutely cured, by judicioiia and humane treatment in young animals, they are not so essential to be guarded against GENERAL RULES. First, Size, symmetry and soundness are mostly to be regarded in the mare ; — blood from the sire, beauty from the dam, is the Golden Kule. Second. She should have a roomy frame, hips somewhat sloping, a little more than the average length, wide-chested, deep in the girth, quarters strong and well let down, hocks wide apart, wide and deep in the pelvis. Third. In temper she should be gentle, courageous, free from all irritability and viciousness. Fourth. Previous to putting her to the horse she should be brought into the most perfect state of health, not over- fed, or loaded with fat, or in a pampered state, but by ju« dicious exercise and an abundance of nutritious food and proper grooming she should be in the very best condition Fifth. During gestation she should have generous and nourishing, but not heating diet. For the first three f x foui months she may be worked moderately, and even to within a few weeks of her foaling she may do light work with advantage to her system. CHAPTER III. HOW TO BBEED A HORSE. — MUTUAL ADAPTATION OF SIEE AUL DAM. FIRST CONSIDER ATION IN IMPROVEMENT OF THE " COLD " BLOOD — RELATIYl SIZE OF SIRE AND DAM — DEFECTS IN EITHER PARENT, HOW REMEDIED UT PROGENY — BLOODS WHICH " HIT" — GENERAL RULEa In the preceding chapters we have shown a few of the general principles of horse breeding ; the advantages aris- ing from breeding to pure blood on the sire's side, what- ever the quality of the dam ; the points of symmetry and strength most desirable, the necessity for perfect structural and constitutional soundness and health, on both sides, and for the absence of hereditary vice of temper ; and, lastly, the state of health to be aimed at in the dam, as well pre- vious to her being taken to the horse as during the period of her gestation, and the means to be taken to attain and preserve that condition of health, or, as it is usually termed among horsemen, condition^ emphatically. We shall now proceed to show, a little more particularly, what are the im- provements to be obtained in different varieties, and how this improvement is to be produced ; for it is very certain that the same horse will not answer for every kind of mare, but that, on the contrary, for very different styles of dams very different styles of sires will be required to produce equal results in the progeny. Now, it may be stated generally, that the ordinary objects of breeding up are twofold. One, the most common and most feasible, is, from an entirelj^ c»ld stock, — we will say, for example, the Cleveland Bay or, the nearest approaches to be found to it in this country, 86 HOW TO BBEED A HORSE. the Conestoga cart mare, or the larger Vermont diaught mare — we do not speak in this connection of the Morgan, or the Canadian, or the Norman, some mares of which last stock have been recently imported into this country ; since all of these have some strains, more or less distant, of thorough blood — to raise a progeny improved in spirit, speed, lightness of action, endurance of fatigue and cour- age, by stinting mares of that stock to blood-horses. This is the simplest of all the ends to be attained, and can be almost certainly accomplished, by sending the mare — taking it for granted that she is sound and generally well formed — to any thorough-bred horse, provided he also is sound, well-shaped and free from vice. Any such horse will, more or less, improve the progeny, both in blood and in form, structure and strength of bones, both in frame and spirit, without any especial reference to the particular strain of thorough blood from which he himself comes. In the second and third, and yet more in later gene- rations, when blood has been introduced, and the dams as well as the sires have some mixture of a pure lineage, it is more requisite to look to families ; since some families no- toriously cross well with others, and some as notoriously ill. Of course, it is better that the sire, where it is possible, should be of a racing stock that is famous for courage and stoutness, such as any of the stocks which trace remotely to Herod, Cade, Eegulus, Eclipse, or others of known fame ; but thus far it is not essential, or a sine qua non, since every blood-horse, even if, as Sir John Fenwick said, in the reign of Charles II., he be the meanest hack that ever eame out of Barbary, is so infinitely superior in courage, stoutness and quality, both of bone and sinew, as well aa blood, to the best cold-blooded mare that ever went on A shodden hoof, that he cannot fail to improve her stock, whatever may be his comparative standing among racers. GENEEAL RULES. 87 All, therefore, that the breeder has to do in thxS instance is, to satisfy himself that the horse is really thorough-bred — that is to say, traceable on both sides of his pedigree to English stud-book race-horses — and that he has the virtues and has not the defects of form which have been previously subjects of discussion. K ext to this, there must be a har- mony in the size, and, to some extent, in the forms of the animals. The putting small mares to gigantic horses, or colossal mares to ponies, in order to give size to the off- spring, will never answer, but, on the contrary, will result in the production of rickety, mal-formed produce. The mare, as it has been said, may be with advantage som^ thing larger, longer, and more roomy than the horse, but not too much so. We should say, a mare of sixteen hands, and propor- tionate strength, should never be put to a stallion under fifteen hands, and from thence up to fifteen and two inches ; nor a mare over sixteen hands to one short of fifteen and a half, up to fifteen, three, hands. Still less should little mares be put to tall horses, or low mares to leggy horses, in order to give height. If the brood mare be low, but long and roomy, it is no bad fault ; but the way to give size to the progeny is to select, not a tall or leggy horse for the stallion, but one of singularly perfect symmetry, not much higher than the dam, — thougb an inch or two inches will do no harm, provided he be not long in the legs especially from the knee downward, — short-backed, close-coupled, and generally strong built — particularly so in those points where the mare is the most defective. We stated above that there is no greater blunder than to breed an animal rickety and defective in one point, tc another imperfect in that point, or even unduly developed in it, with the expectation of curing both defects in the progeny. One often, however, sees both mares and horsea, 88 HOW TO BREED A HORSE. with some one or more faults m symmetry, whicTi are pos itive defects, although only in a secondary degree, and which are, at the same time, counterbalanced by so great a number of positive advantages, excellences and beauties, that he is wise to waive the one defect, striving to remedy it, in view of the other good to be hoped for from the strain. The transmission of external shapes is as yet a mystery, and probably ever will continue so. No one can say whether the stallion or the mare has the greater share in giving structural form or constitutional disposition to the young animal. Indeed, there seems reason to believe that there is not any invariable rule on the subject ; but that some dams and some sires possess an extraordinary power of impress- ing their own forms and stamping their own images, ic the greater degree, on the young. The general rule however, and that which it is wise to observe is, that lik( begets like. Therefore the practice should be always, where one decides to breed from a mare slightly defective m one point of symmetry, to select a stallion as excellent as possible in that point ; and if one be resolved for any cause to breed from a stallion of whose blood, or beauty, or performances he is particularly enamored, and that horse be weak in any point or points, to put to him what- ever mare one may have in his stud most excellent where he is weakest ; but in no case, even if it prohibit one from breeding from that horse at all, to put him to a mare w hich is faulty in the same part. The second ordinary object of breeding-up is, where mares of some highly valued strain, possessing some degree of pure blood engrafted on an inferior stock, have degen- erated in size, in heiglit, strength and size of bone, to breed them to such horses as shall, without deteriorating their blood, improve them in size and bone. This is a far mor« QENEBAL RULES. ' S9 difficult question in breeding, and, before it can be an- swered, it will be necessary to know of what blood is the impure portion constituted, and in what proportion does it exist. If it be distinctly of cold blood, as of Cleveland bay, Suffolk Punch, Conestoga, or common cart-horse, and if the proportion of thorough blood mixed with it be in- considerable, it may, at once, be pronounced useless to take any pains about it, as the results will not repay the trouble or expense. If the proportion of pure blood be considerable, but remote, and the stock have been long in bred — as^ for example, is the case with the Mcigans — the only possible way to breed them up is to stint the mares to the very best and most powerfully made, short-coupled, broad-chested, strong-loined, short-legged, thorough-bred stallions that can be found, of a totally distinct recent strain of blood, if the blood of the mares can be ascertained ; although it will not be the worse if, some ten or more gen- erations back, they both run into the same line. In this case, the stallion, in the first cross, should not be taller or larger than the mare, but may exceed her in strength, size of bone, and muscular development. The fillies in the second generation will be larger in all ways than their dams — since improvement of strength, health, symmetry, and development implies improvement in size. These fillies may be again put to horses of exactly the same stamp as that last described, but just so much larger than the filly as the filly is larger than her dam. This will, in all probability, achieve the desired end. This is, m fact, what is known among breeders as breeding up, in the true sense of the word. If, on the other hand, the mares, de- generated, have been crossed with pure English blood, but remotely and not recently, on Canadian or imported Nor- man stock, there will be no objection to crossing them back once to Canadian or Norman stallions ; since in Can- 40 HOW TO BREED A HORSE. adian or Norman blood there is a remote, dormant strain of pure blood, probably Andalusian Arab, whicb assim- ilates well with modern tborougli blood ; and the breeding back will often, in that case, so far reinvigorate the race, that the fillies produced by that union will often reproduce animals of astonishing excellence by a farther cross with well-chosen thorough blood of the present day. We have touched slightly on the effect produced by the intermingling, or crossing and re-crossing of various dis- tinct or cognate strains of blood, and the result on the character of the stock. When a cross of this sort is emi- nently successful in any particular line, for a number of years and in a majority of instances, we are accustomea to say that such or such a blood has '' hit" or *' nicked" with another ; and this effect is not dependent solely on the intrinsic excellence of either blood, but on some un known and mysterious influence produced, in one or more generations, by the cross. For instance, Priam, the son of Emilius, son of Orville, out of Emily, and Cressida, daughter of Whiskey, out of Sorcerer's dam by Diomed, was not only one of the most successful runners, if not the most successful, of his day, but in England was nearly as successful a stallion, having begot, previous to his ex- portation, an unusual number of winners. He was subse« quently purchased and brought to this country, where tho most sanguine expectations were formed of the great ad- vantage which would accrue from the infusion of his sin- gularly rich and noble blood. The result, however, was diametrically opposite to that which was expected. Scarcely a horse of any repute has been begotten by this stallion in the United States, although his high repu- tation for blood, beauty, and performances, procured for him more than his proportion of the best blooded and otherwise best mares in the country. Many persons— GENERAL RULES. 41 Bome of them excellent judges— -entertain the opinion that the Priam cross has done permanent mischief to the horse stock of America, as it is alleged that nearly all, if not all his get, although they have large, flat, bony knees, are tied in, as it is technically termed, immediately below the knee, at the origin of the splint bone. This malformation is one of the most serious that can exist in a race or family of horses, as it renders them liable, and, in fact, almost certainly so, to break down, when put to any severe stress of work. At all events, it is indisputable that the blood of Priam has not " hit" or " nicked" with the best racing blood of America. To take another instance, Glencoe, another distinguished English runner, of equally distinguished blood, though of a distinct strain, being the son of Sultan, son of Selim, and of Trampoline, daughter of Tramp out of Web by Waxy, was imported into this country a few years later than Priam, with equally high expectations of success, which have in his instance been fully realized, if not ex- ceeded ; for his stock are of the very best now running in whe country. Therefore, we say emphatically, that the Glencoe stock has " hit" most eminently with the old blood of America, which, it must always, however, be remem- bered, is, in no respect, so far as it is pure blood, American or of American origin, but cmly descended from the earlier importations of the old English blood of the days of Janus, Eclipse, Highflyer, and the sons of Childers, and the Go- dolphin. ]S^o^v^, why one blood should " hit" and another " miss," when each strain is equally rich and pure, and when each has produced an equal number of distinguished performers, no one can say positively ; no distinct reasons have ever been assigned, nor, theoretically, can any prin- ciple be laid down on the subject. The blood of Priam, as it has been shown, above, "hit" with the fashionable 42 HOW TO BREED A HORSE. blood of England, and signally ** missed" with that oi America. On the contrary, the blood of Glencoe " hit" with the most fashionable blood of both countries ; and although he has got more fine stock in America, owing to his having served here during a much longer period, and of course, covered more fine mares, is scarcely more famous as a stock getter in this than in the mother country. In like manner, Leviathan, Sovereign and Sarpedon have all *' hif^ more or less decidedly, with the older English blood of America ; and Trustee must not be forgotten, both as the sire of the incomparable Fashion, and as a horse who has been extraordinarily fortunate in getting roadsters ot high quality out of common mares. Now, although there is no possibility of predicting, absolutely, what bloods will and will not hit, there are at least some facts established which will enable us to ven- ture a conjecture on the subject. It is well known to be the habit of gregarious and polygamous animals, such as horses, oxen, and some others, which are not long-lived— but of which the largest and most powerful males enjoy the company of the females of their own troop or band, of which they are the lords and Sultans, and from which they beat off and banish the younger and inferior animal of their own sex — to copulate, for at least two or three generations, with their own female descendants, while in a state of nature. As they decline in strength, vigor and courage with the increase of years, they are in their turn beaten off, and compelled to give way to some more power- ful rival, in the pride and maturity of equine manhood, perhaps from a different horde of animals, and almost certainly from a distinct strain of blood. Hence we come to the conclusion that horses in a wild state are accustomed to breed into the same family and blood ; that is to say, with their own daughters and grand- daughters, for about ADAPTATION OF SIKE AND DAM, 43 two generations — ^this is what is knDwn to horse-men as in* breeding — and then for many after generations to breed with strangers, or very remote connections. And it is worthy of remark that, although there are two distinct theories, exactly opposite to each other, one in favor of ill -breeding, the other of out-crossing, several of the best strains of blood on the English tnrf are directly traceable to an original incestuous connexion. Some of the most distinguished families, for instance, of English racers, trace to Spanker, a very high-bred horse, and very close to Arab stock on both sides, and his own dam : and where no near connexion has existed for many years in the blood of any peculiar family, it is on the whole the most approved method, to breed m, that is, be- tween close blood relations, for two, or perhaps three generations, and then to seek for some strain of blood as remote as possible by which to vary and reinvigorate the strain. This plan of breeding has been of late years very fashionable in England, and the result has been shown very beneficially in several families famous for their quali- ties of speed, endurance, and recuperation, at present on the turf. It is certain, on the other hand, that to persist too long in breeding, generation after generation, in and in, is the most prejudicial of all modes; and that animals so unnaturally connected in blood, degenerate in bone, in Bize, in stature, and ultimately in all qualities. Whenever, therefore, it is known, or strongly suspected, that in any family too long and persL<^tent an adherence has been had to one and the same blood, and still more, wherever the present generation is seen to iiave greatly de- generated in size, recourse should be had to a strain of blood as widely different as possible, in order to freshen and strengthen the stock. 14 HOW TO BREED A HORSE. We may deduce, tten, the following summary of GE5ft RAL EULES. First There should be a mutual adaptation in form and Bize; and indeed, in all important characteristics between tne sire and the dam. Second, K the mare be defective in any particular, do not breed her to a stullion having a similar, or even an op- posite fault ; but rather choose one perfect in that point. Third. Avoid breeding exceedingly small mares with enormously large horses : distortions will generally be the result. For a mare of 16 hands, select a horse of not lesa than 15 hands; if she be too low or small, the horse may be an inch or two higher, but not of the tall or leggy kind. Fourth, It is frequently the case that without any known cause, the blood of a certain strain of horses will not cross well with that of another. Such instances, when as- certained should be avoided. Fifth, If the mare is of a good strain of horses but one which has degenerated in size from "in-breeding," the only remedy is to breed to the purest stallion that can be found, but of a different strain from hers, unless some ten or more generations removed. Sixth, After breeding for several generations from males and females of one strain, it will generally be found beneficial to cliange to another entirely different. Degen- eracy in size will generally result from a neglect of thiif rule. CHAPTER IV. eOW TO BREED A HORSE — CANADIAN BLOOD. % OAVADIAN ORIGINALLY THE FRENCH NORMAN — CHARACTERISTICS— HABM MOOD— SPEED— MODE OP IMPROVING THEM— CROSSING WITH THOROUOB JBEDS. IflERE is one breed or stock of horses to which, thus far, we have but casually alluded. We mean the Canadian. It deserves, probably, a more extended notice, as being in itself, in the first place, a perfectly distinct family, where pure ; and in the second, as being very widely extended, both in its mixed and unmixed form, in the Northern and Eastern States; and, moreover, as being itself an exceedingly valuable animal as a working horse, and a progenitor, or progenitrix. The Canadian horse where he is yet to be found in his pure state, — that is to say, un- crossed with either the English thorough-bred, or tho English high-bred stallion of the hunter caste, — \s, origi- nally, beyond doubt, the French Norman horse ; and even where the crosses mentioned still exist, the French Norman blood vastly preponderates. The present characteristics of the Canadian are — a head rather large than otherwise, but lean, bony, and well formed, with an unusually broad forehead, with the ears far apart, carried loftily, a small clear eye, and a courageous aspect ; a bold upstanding, but thick crest ; a broad, full chest and a strong shoulder, a little apt to be too straight, as well as to be low and heavy at the withers; a stout, strongly -framed barrel, the charao' [45] 46 HOW TO BREED A HORSE. teristic fault of which is, to be somewhat flatsided, and not unfrequentlj too long; excellent loins; a round, fleshy croup; muscular thighs; and, above all, the soundest, most undeniable, flat-boned legs that are to be found in any race of horses not thorough-bred, and the toughest, hardest and most iron -like feet that are to be found in any race whatsoever. In fact, immunity from disease of the legs and feet, under the most unfavorable circumstances, — when ill-groomed, ill-shod, and subject to every trial and hardship, — appeals to be the distinguishing mark of the French Canadian horse. There is no horse, probably, in the known world, to which all ordinary diseases of the foot, and especially that which is known as foot-founders, are so nearly unknown ; and it has been well stated by an intelligent writer, well versed in the peculiarities of this particular race, that " there are numbers of horses in Canada that, under a mass of shaggy hair, never trimmed, and rarely cleaned or dried, possess dry, sinewy legs, on which the severest service never raises a wind-gall." In addition to these characteristics, the Canadians are generally distinguishable by their colors, of which the pre- vailing one is black ; and, probably the second, rich dark brown, often dappled with lighter brown on the shoulders and quarters. After these colors come cl .estnuts of differ- ent shades, but generally running to the torrels and duns, with manes, tails and legs of lighter color than the body ; and lastly, dark iron-greys with black legs. The last, how- ever, which in Normandy is at the present day, with the single exception of black, the commonest color, is, m Cana da and the United States, the least common. The true Canadians are remarkable for the great volumes of theii manes and tails, which are also distinguished by the pc'cu liar wavy and almost curly texture of the hairs composing them, and for the shaggy coating of their back siuewa CANADIANS. 47 flearly to the knee, and of their fetlocks. In height tne Canadian rarely exceeds fifteen hands, and in fact seldom attains to that standard ; from fourteen to fourteen hands and a half being their usual size. They are not generally Bpeedy, even at ordinary road speed ; still less often are they fleet, or what would be called yas^; though there are exceptions, as for instance the celebrated trotting stallion St. Lawrence, who has gone fast among fast horses, and has been so long on the trotting turf as to show that he possesses in a high degree the hardy endurance of his race. Their best rate of going, for fair, ordinary travellers, — nox select specimens, — does not, perhaps, exceed six or seven miles the hour ; but at whatever rate they can go at all, at that rate they can go before or under a heavy load, and for a long, continuous distance. Many Canadians will do fifty miles a day for several successive days ; and not a few can be found which will accomplish sixty, seventy, eighty, and even ninety, for one day ; and the lesser rates for a proportionate length of time. It seems remarkable that such should be the case, but we are strongly disposed to believe that, even in these days of horse improvement, horse fairs and agricultural progress, no systematical attempts have ever been made to improve the Canadians themselves in their pure form ; although many have been made, with great success, to create improved crosses by the intermixture of them with other races. No race, probably, is more susceptible of direct improvement than this ; and, as their excellence is universally acknowledged, both as the small poor farmer's working and draught horse, for which they are adapted above all American breeds, and as brood mares, from which to raise a highly improved and useful general working roadster, by breeding them to thorough-breda, 48 HOW TO BREED k HORSE. according to the rules heretofore laid down, it is evident that this is an end most devoutly to be wished. It would seem that, after the first importation of the Norman horse by the early French settlers, there were few importations of fresh strains of Norman blood from the mother country, in which continual systematic im- provements have been made ; and that, certainly, from the date of the English conquest of Canada, no efforts whatever have been made to procure the breed in its purity, or to raise its standard in height, to lighten its heavier and worse points, or to increase its speed and beauty, all of which might unquestionably be effected b;y judicious management. The effect of this continued breed- ing into the same exact strain, generation ofter generation, has been the same as it was with the Virginia race-horse prior to the recommencement of the importation of tho- rough blood, subsequent to the American Eevolution The strength, the courage, the bloody in a word, was there, but the size had deteriorated. The first and simplest mode of improving the Canadians as Canadians — that is to say, without endeavoring to raLse them to a higher degree of blood — is, to select the largest and most shapelj mares of that breed, and more particu- larly such as are the most free from the characteristic faults of the Canadians, viz., the thick neck, low, heavy withers, straight shoulder and flat side ; then to select the best stallions of that breed, having regard to the very came points named above, — and to see that the mare is in fine breeding condition when put to the horse. Care be ing had to follow up this plan judiciously, and to keep the mare during her pregnancy and the nourishment of her foal liberally and comfortably fed and sheltered, though not to force either mother or offspring, as is done with thorough breds, by hot lodging and over stimulating provender, GENERAL RULES. 49 there cannot be a doubt but that, in course of twc cr three generations, at farthest, an inch, or perhaps even a couple of inches, might be added to the stature of the Canadians^ without deteriorating — we should rather saj while im- proving upon — their original merits of bone and sinew aud amending the more defective points of their shape Apart from their natural good qualities as farming horses^ teannsters and animals of moderately quick draft, the Cana- dians, with the single exception of the Percheron Nor- mans, which are, — after all is said, nothing but Canadians in their best form, — are the only horses of cold blood from Avhich we believe it advisable to breed on both sides ; that is, both from the stallions and mares ; either each to each, for the maintenance of their own blood, or each to others, for the improvement of various foreign strains. By care- fully breeding Canadian mares to Canadian stallions ac- cording to the directions above stated, or still more to im- ported Normans, an improved Canadian can be produced, taller, more shapely, and perhaps lighter in the neck and shoulders, and speedier. This will be, of course, a better animal both for work and for breeding than the present race. By breeding the present Canadian mare, or still better, improved progeny, to well-selected thorough-bred horses, a very good roadster and highly improved light carriage-horse will be the result ; and by breeding the female offspring of this cross again to the thorough-bred, oi sufficient bone and size, we do not doubt that the finest saddle-horses, phaeton horses or light carriage horses in the world can be produced, nearly of the same style aa the Morgans, but superior to what the Morgans ever were, in their best day. The male offspring of all crosses or half-breeds — we dc not include imported Norman into Canadian in the cate 50 HOW TO BREED A HORSE. gory of crosses — should invariably be castrated. For our own part, we should consider it a most desirable tbing, if possible, that there should not be such a thing as a half-bred stallion in the world ; but that all the distincvt breeds, aa Canadians, Vermonters, quasi identical with Cleveland bays, and Conestogas, quasi identical with the English im proved dray-horses, should be preserved distinct by brecid ing the mares to stallions of their own families, unless when it is desirable to lighten the stock ; and then to lighten it by breeding to thorough-breds. Canadian or Norman stallions are the only male horses which we would ever put to any lighter mares of American blood ; but we are strongly of opinion that both the Morgan mares and the ordinary better class American farming mares, which have some indefinably remote cross of better blood than the cart-horse, can be made to produce a progeny highly improved, hardened in bone, bettered in legs, feet, and con- stitution, and more adapted for being the mothers of fine, large carriage-horses, by breeding them to Normans, whether native or imported. It is a remarkable quality of the Normans, that though small themselves, when crossed, — either males to other races, or females to tho- rough-breds, — they almost invaribly breed larger instead of breeding snaaller than themselves. CHAPTER y. HOW TO BREED A HORSE — NORMAN BLOOD. OBTOIX AND mSTORT OP THE PEEOHEfiON NORMAN — A PURE UACE-CUA EAOt3SRISTIC8 AND POINTS — IMPORTATION INTO THIS COUNTRY. In the preceding chapters on this subject, we have had occasion to speak of the Percheron Norman horse, some of which breed have been within a few years, comparatively speaking, introduced into this country ; and, believing that the knowledge of this race at all, and still more of its ex- istence in the United States, is confined to a small number of persons, and for the most part to a single locality, we have thought it would be not uninteresting to our agricul- tural readers to give a brief account of the animal, its derivation, its importation into this country, and of the benefits which are, we fully believe, to be derived from its employment. In the first place, then, Le Perche is a dis- trict of that portion of France which was formerly known as Normandy, in which the breed of the Normap horses has been most highly cultivated, and exists in its most perfect form and improved condition. Indeed, by some means somewhat anomalous, and at variance with the gen- eral experience and principles of breeding, this breed, which must in its origin have been a cross, has, in tho process of many ages, become a family perfect in itisel^ capable of transmitting its qualities and reproducing itselC like to like, without any loss of energies or characteristics by breeding mares and stallions of the same race together. The remarkable purity of the race is attested by the ce*"' [51] 52 HOW TO BREED A HORSE. tainty with whicli tlie stallions transmit to their progeny, begotten on mares of a different race, their own character- istics, and the high degree in which the offspring of the aaares, bred to horses of superior class, retam the better qualities of their dams. For it appears to be a certain rale n breeding, that the purer the blood, and the higher the vital energy and vigor of either parent, in the greater degree does that parent transmit its properties to the young — although, as before insisted upon, the certain trans- missions of the larger portion of those energies is always on the stallion's side, and it is only in the longer retention of an inferior proportion of her qualities by the progeny that the better blood of the dam can be traced when bred to an inferior sire. When bred to a purer blooded stallion than herself, the more pure blood the mare herself has the more strongly will her own marks descend to her progeny, and the less will they be altered or modified by those of the sire. Now, the Percheron Normans are clearly a pure race per se; we do not mean by the words, a thorough-bred race, but a race capable of producing and reproducing themselves ad infimium, unaltered, and without deterio- ration of qualities, by breeding like sires to like dams, without infusion of any other blood, just as is done by Durham, Ayrshire, or Alderney cattle, by setters, pointers, greyhounds, and, in a word, by any and all animals oi distinct and perfect varieties of the same species. The only remarkable thing in this case is, that such should be the facts, under the circumstances, of the Percheron Nor- mans, being originally — as they are beyond a doubt — the produce of a cross, although a most remote cross in point of time. The original Norman horse now nearly extinct, which was the war-horse of the iron-clad chivalry of the earliest agjea — of William the Conoueror, and Richard N0BMAN9. 53 Coeur de Lion, is thus accurately described bj the im- porter of the Percherons into New Jersey : ** They ave- rage," he says, and we are personally cognizant of hii accuracy, " full sixteen hands in height, with head short, thick ; wide and hollow between the eyes ; jaws heavj ; ears short, and pointed well forward ; neck very short and thick; mane heavy; shoulder well inclined backward; back extremely short ; rump steep ; quarters very broad ; chest wide and deep ; tendons large ; muscles excessively developed ; legs short, particularly from the knee and hock to the fetlock, and thence to the coronet, which is covered with long hair, covering half the hoof; much hair on the legs." It was soon found even while complete armor was in use, that these enormous, bony Normans, which are still though deteriorated the ordinary, heavy draught horses of France, had not sufficient speed to render the cavalry charge effective, or sufficient blood to give spirit adequate to the endurance of long-continued toil. The Andalusian horse, which in its highest form, was a pure barb of Mo- rocco, imported into Spain by the Saracen Moors under Tarik, who has left his name to the rock of Gibraltar, and in its secondary form, a half-bred horse, between the African barbs and the old Spanish horse, which had long oefore received a large tincture of Oriental blood from the Numidian chargers of the Carthagenians, who so long oc- cupied that country, proved, in its unmixed state, too light for the enormous weight of a caparisoned man-at-arms, or, if occasionally equal to that weight, too costly to be within the means of any but crowned heads. " The bone and muscle," observes the same writer we have before quoted, ** and much of the form of the Percheron, come from this horse" — ^that is, from the old Norman war-horse previously described ; " and he gets his spirit and action from the Andalusian. Docility comes from both sides. On tho 64 HOW TO BREED A HORSE. expulsion of the Spaniards from the Korthern Provincoa^ the supply of Arabian stallions was cut off, and, since that time, in the Perche district of Normandy, their progeny has, doubtless, been bred in and in ; hence the remarkable uniformity of the breed, and the disposition to impart their form to their progeny beyond any breed of domestic an- imals within my knowledge. Another circumstance which, I think, has tended to perpetuate the good qualitiea of these horses, is the fact of their males being kept entire ; a gelding is, I believe, unknown among the rural horses of France. You may be startled at this notion of mine, but, if you reflect a moment, you must perceive that in such a state of things — so contrary to our practice and that of the English — the farmer will always breed from the best horse, and he will have an opportunity of judging, because the horse has been broken to harness, and his qualities known, before he could command business as a stallion/ There can be no possible question that the writer is correct m this view of the advantage, so far as breeding is con- cerned, of preserving all horses entire and ungelded ; as it must naturally and necessarily follow, where a great majority of the males of any breed are gelded when young colts, and a few only are selected to some extent by chance to serve as stallions, that many of the very best, and per- haps actually the best, of every year, are deprived of the means of perpetuating their excellence. This, undoubtedly, is one of the causes of the constant preservation, if not im- provement, of the race-horse ; that, inasmuch as thorough- bred colts are never, unless from some peculiar cause, such as indomitable vice, deprived of their virility, the breeder has all the males of the race from which to select a stallion at his pleasure, instead of having only a small number from which to select. Yet even in the thorough-breda Vhe breeder sometimes has cause to regret the caprice or NORMANS. 55 erroi of an owner, which has allowed a colt to be deprived of his sex, whose after qualities proved him to be emi- nently worthy and preeminently adapted to become the father of a noble line. Who, for instance, but must regret tliat St. Nicholas, that noble specimen of a race-horse, perhaps the best now running on American soil, should be a gelding, and incapable of transmitting his blood and his honors to posterity ? Now, the points of the peculiar breed known as the Percheron Normans are these : First, they are considerably taller than the Canadian horses, among which, it is be- lieved, the Percheron blood is still to be found, though degenerated in stature, from cold, exposure, and ill-usage. Their standard is probably from fourteen and a half to fifteen and a half hands, the latter height, however, being as much above the average, perhaps, as sixteen hands is above that of ordinary horses. Secondly, they are very short in the saddle-place, and comparatively long below ; they are well ribbed-up and round-barreled, instead of having the flat sides and sway backs which are the most defective points of manv of the Canadians ; they have not the heavy head and extremely short, thick neck of the old Norman horse, and many of his descendants on this side of the ocean ; but, on the contrary, have the head short, with the genuine Arabian breadth of brow and hollow of the profile between the eyes and nostrils, which is often called the basin face ; nor are their heads thicker, espec- ially at the setting-on place, nor the necks, which are well arched and sufiiciently long, heavier or more massive than corresponds well with the general stoutness of their frame. Their legs are particularly short from the knees and hocks downward ; nor, though heavily haired, have they such shaggy fetlocks and feet as the larger Normans or Canadians, while they have the unyielding, iron -like 66 HOW TO BREED A HORSE einevvs and feet, apparently unconscious of disease, foi which the latter race are famous An English writer in The British Quarterly Journal of Agriculture^ speaking of the general working-horse of Nor» mandj, says : " The horses of Normandy are a capital race for hard work and scanty fare. I have never seen such horses at the collar, under the diligence, the post-carriage, fche cumbrous and heavy voiture or cabriolet for one oi two horses, or the farm cart. They are enduring and en- ergetic beyond description; with their necks cut to the bone, they flinch not ; they put forth all their efforts at the voice of the brutal driver or at the dreaded sound of his never-ceasing whip ; they keep their condition when other horses would die of neglect and hard treatment. A better cross for some of our horses cannot be imagined than those of Normandy, provided they have not the ordinary filling of two much length from the hock downward, and a heavy head." The two points last named are precisely those which are entirely got rid of in the best style of Perche- ron Normans, which are, as we have stated, those of the Normans most deeply and thoroughly imbued with the Arabian, or, to speak more correctly, Barb blood of Anda lusia. It is not easy to procure the best and fastest stallions of this breed, as they are bought up by the French Gov- ernment for the diligence and mail service, for which they are highly prized, and in which they are constantly kept at a pace varying from five to nine miles an hour, over roads and behind loads which would speedily kill anEng lish or American horse, without loss of health or condition. But there is no difficulty in obtaining the choicest marea at comparatively low rates — mares being little valued ybi work in France. Mr. Edward Harris, of Moorestown, N. J., who has been at much pains to import fine horses and mares of this breed, asserts of his horse "Diligence," that NORMANS. 67 he has produced above four hundred foals — that he haj never heard of one fetching less than one hundred dollars, and many much higher prices, and that he has never heard of his having produced one worthless colt, or one that is spa nned, curbed, ringboned, or has any of those defects which render utterly useless so large a number of fine-bred colts of the present day. We cannot close this chapter without stating our beliel that, in the present state of American breeding, more good can be attained, though the process is slower, by importing the best Norman and Cleveland-bay mares, and breeding them and their progeny — gelding all the males — for two or more generations to select thorough-bred horses, than by importing stallions of these very breeds in an endeavor to work a regeneration on our weedy country mares, or to raise valuable stock out of thorough-bred mares, which is hopeless. We fully believe that a breeding farm started with a dozen such mares, six of each breed, well chosen, and bred year after year to the best and best selected thor- ough-breds, would in a very few years realize a large fortune to the breeder. 8» CHAPTER VI. ^OW TO BBBED A HOBSE — MODERN A.RAB BLOODl UTQUBH AND AMERICAN THOROUGH-BREDS DERIVEl FROM ORIENTAL BLfDOB — ABE NOW SUPERIOR TO THE MODERN ARABS — NOLAN ARAB. It is an indisputable fact, tliat all the excellence of the Eng- lish and American thorough-bred horse is derived from Oriental blood of the desert, and originates, it is believed, in the admixture of the various breeds of the several coun- tries to which the horse in its purest and highest Ibrm, has from remote ages been indigenous. These countries are Arabia, Syria, Persia, Turkistan, the Barbarj States, Nubia and Abyssinia, all of which have races nearly con- nected with each other, but all possessing distinct charac- teristics. There would appear, of these races, to be in th« English thorough-bred horse — with which the American is identical — a larger proportion of Barb than of pure Arabi- an blood. The celebrated Godolphin is generally considered by the most competent judges to have been a Barb. Fair- fax's celebrated horse was a Barb ; the royal mares imported by King Charles II., to which nine-tenths of our modern thorough-bred horses trace, were Tunisian or Tangier Barbs. The other most famous progenitors have been Turks, as the Byerly Turk, the Lyster, or straddling Turk, the D' Arcy yellow Turk, Plaice's white Turk, and many others, The most noted of the pure Arabians was the Darley Ara [58] MODERN ARAB BLOOD. 59 bian. And it is, perhaps, the most considerable opinion that the great and unrivalled excellence of the English horse arises from the fact that he is the offspring of a ju- dicious cross of all the best oriental races, and not the produce of a system of close in -breeding. It is worthy of remark, however, that although the fact iS universally admitted that the whole original excellence of the English thorough blood is attributable to the blood of the desert, and although no horse is to be held as thor- ough-bred unless he can trace in both lines, paternal and maternal, to that blood, and although many horses of va- rious Eastern and African breeds have been constantly im- ported both into England and America during the last two hundred years, no one of them has improved the breed of race-horses within the last century, or perhaps two centu- ries. So low at present does modern Arabian blood stand in the estimate of English turfmen, that a horse begotten by a Turkish, Arab, Barb or Persian stallion, on an Eng- lish thorough-bred mare, receives in the Goodwood Cup and other races in which allowances are given, 24 lbs. from all English bred racers ; and a horse begotten by such a stallion on a mare of any one of the same races, receives an enormous advantage of 48 lbs. The fact that even with this enormous advantage, no horse so bred ever wins any plate or race of consideration, shows that the distaste to the blood is not a prejudice, but is founded on valid reasons. Why this should be so is not so clear. It appears, however, to be a certain and fixed rule of breed- ing, that in order to improve any race the higher and purer blood must be on the sire's side, not on the dam's ; and that he must be the superior animal. It is, we think, now an indisputable and undeniable fact, that the English thorough-bred horse is, in all respects, but especially in size, bone, power and beauty, a superior animal to anj aO HOW TO BREED A HOBSE. of the Oriental races, and consequently tliat his blood cannot be improved by any further admixtui s of that strain. Why this should be so, cannot clearly be shown ; but it arises probably from two causes : first, that aa the Mohammedan race has degenerated in intellectual energy, in civilization and in power, the breed of hor- ses used by that race has sufiered a corresponding de* terioration, owing to the want of intelligent breeding, of care, of management, and to the inferiority of their food, stabling and nurture ; and, second, that the English and American descendants of the same horses have, by the vast attention given to breeding them only from the best and most choice parents, to their more gen- erous nutriment, better housing and clothing, and to the enlightened and scientific culture which they have long re- ceived, been improved in proportion to the deterioration of their ancestors. No intelligent sportsman doubts that the English or American thorough-bred horse can beat the Oriental horse anywhere and everywhere, and in all respects. In Hindos- ta» at the European races, the whole-bred and even the half-bred English horses invariably beat the Indian Arabs ; and very recently an Irish mare, named Fair Nell, dis- gracefully beat all the Egyptian Barbs of Ali Pasha, who had challenged the English Jockey Club to a trial match between English and Oriental horses for a prize of £10,000, The Jockey Club declined to take up the match collectively, because, as a body, they do not own race-horses, and indi- vidually, because the risk of running the best horses in a race of eight miles, which was proposed, over the rough and stony or sandy desert, was held rightly to be too great to justify the sending of animals of great value to a distant and barbarous country. The English residents oi Alexandria and Cairo, however, excited by national spirit, MODERN ARAB BLOOD. 61 and provoked by tlie triumpliant tone of the Orientals, resolved to test the question. The Irish mare "Fair Nell*' was selected, which was not a racer of any note or distinc- tion, and about which there is now some dispute, whether she is or is not actually thorough-bred, though she is known to be very highly and very well bred ; and the result was, that vastly to the disgust and disappointment of the Egyp- tians, she defeated all the best Arabs of the Pasha's stud with perfect ease. It has been asserted and is constantly urged by the favorers and defenders of Oriental blood, that no horses of really superior qualities or decided excellen- cies, as Arabs or Barbs, have recently been imported ; and that to this, and to no natural or general inferiority of the Arab or Oriental horse, is the want of success in breeding from him to be attributed ; and, as a matter of course, every one who imports an Arab or a Barb, asserts that his horse, and his only, is a real and superior-blooded animah The plea is not, however, a valid one ; for it is not likely, when a great majority of the horses imported from the East into both England and America have been gifts of Oriental potentates to crowned heads or presidents, that no one of them should have been a valuable creature. It is clearly the sounder opinion that the modern thor- ough-bred horse of Oriental origin is a superior creature to the modern Arab ; and consequently it is clearly unwise to attempt to breed thorough-bred mares to Oriental stal- lions, or to breed any highly bred mares to such stallions, in preference to the best thorough-breds. Still it appears not improbable that the general trotting stock and country stock of America might be improved by crossing with good Arabian or Barb blood, where the best thorough-blood, combined with fine form and power, is not to be attained. We are oven impressed with the idea, that with some half- blooded breeds, such as the Canadians and Normans, both 62 HOW TO BEEED A HOBSB. of which have a large, although a very remote cross of the African Barbs of Andalusian breed, a recurrence to the original, undiluted Barb or Arabian blood might be pref- erable even to breeding from modern thorough-breds, on the principle, before referred to, of having, after many years or centuries of out-crossing, recourse to the original strain of blood, which is often found to "AiY," as it is tech- nically termed, when it succeeds highly. It is worthy of remark that some distinguished trotting horses trace to Black Bashaw, who was a pure Barb of Tripoli, and who is said to be a horse of great beauty and power. The Ca- nadians and Normans both show far more similitude of structure and form to the Arab and Barb, than do the modern thorough -bred horses ; and that is a strong reason for believing that such a cross might prove successfal. We should like to hear of the experiment being tried, and although we should not care to predict perfect success we should rather anticipate a good than an evU result ; we would, however, on no account put a thorough-bred mare to any Eastern horse, nor any very highly bred mare, where a thorough-bred stallion is within reach. Of course the boniest, most compact and strongest Arabs should be «elected ; an Arab weed of inferior strain is a very poor creature for any purpose, and worst of all from which to breed. From what we have heard of the Nolan Arab, and from the consummate knowledge in horse-flesh of his gallant owner, we should augur as well of him as of any recent importation from the East. We should not be sur- prised if in future days material improvement in the horse-flesh of the West, where there has been until very recently a great want of thorough blood, may be traced, hereafter, to that horseu CHAPTER VII. POKnBB — THKIR DIITERENT BREEDS, CHARACTERISTICS tk.mb DTrLITY. UKKNOWN TO THE ANCIENTS— ORIGIN— DIFFERENT BREEDS — SEBTLAND AHD SCOTS — OALLO WATS AND NARRAQANSETTS — MUSTANGS AND INDIAIfS— PROFIT OF RAISING PONIEa It is very remarkable that these hardy, active, and, in many cases, beautiful little animals appear to have been either absolutely unknown to the ancients, or so much neglected and undervalued by them, as to have obtained not only no special description, but not so much even as a distinctive name in the principal languages of antiquity. In the He- brew this may be accounted for by the fact, that the soil and surface of Judea were so ill adapted for the employ- ment of the horse, that its use was superseded by that of the ass ; which animal, with its strong, hard hoofs and in- flexible pastern joints, was better suited to the rocky nature of the ground and the hill fastnesses of Idumea than the nobler horse. This reason, however, in no respect explains why the Greeks and Eomans, both of whom most sedulously culti- vated the horse, and who, by their writings still extant on the subject of equestrianism, were well informed on all matters connected with that animal, and were good judges ot its points according to the received modern ideas, should have no definite word, if indeed any word at all, signifying a pony. In both tongues there is a diminutive of tne word horse : in Latin, from equus, equuhus ; as also, from mary [63] 64 PONIES—THEIR DIFFERENT BREEDS. nuSf a nag or pad, mannulus ; and in Greek, from hippos^ hipparion ; and to all these diminutives, the primary mean* ing of which is, a foal or young, and, because young, Bmall horse, the lexicographers have attached the inter- pretation pony. It is, at least, doubtful whether the dimin- utives mentioned ever bore that sense ; the immature yoxLng of the horse and the adult pony, which, properly speaking, cannot even be termed a little or small horse, since it is not in its nature ever to become, or to produce by generation, a large horse, but to produce and repro- duce itself, like to like, as is the case with any other dis- tinct species of the same family. In corroboration of which view, it is well to remark, that there are several races or varieties of ponies, peculiar to various parts of Europe, Asia, and, more recency, of America, in all respects as distinct and peculiar as any of the families of the horse, such as the Norman, Flemish, Cleveland Bay, Suffolk Punch or thorough-bred, and which will no more, when bred like dam to like sire, produce a young one of any other family, still less of the full-sized horse, than will any of the horse families named above. The pony, therefore, is by no means to be regarded as a dwarf horse — since full- sized and healthy horses never produce ponies, although they may produce rickety, small-sized and defective colts or fillies; nor do ponies, as above stated, ever produce full sized horses, which would occasionally be the case, es pecially in the former instance, were they accidental mon Btrosities, and not a distinct race. In what manner the pony was originally produced, ir its primary form, or subsequently established in aU, oi any one, of its self-reproducing varieties, is impossible to de- cide, and useless to speculate. It is evident and certain that once, at a vastly remote period, they all arose from a single type of each species ; but that, at periods stiU exceed- ORIGIN OF PONIES. 66 bgly remote, thougli comparatively recent, divers varieties have branched off accidentally from the primary species, which, by accident or design, by circumstances of climate, or by care and cultivation, have been first rendered per manent It is remarkable and significant that all the most dis- tinct breeds of ponies, with which we are acquainted, are Btill to be found, and appear to have been originated in extreme latitudes either of heat or cold ; latitudes to which the horse does not seem to be indigenous ; to which he has, according to all natural probabilities, been imported ; and in which one would naturally expect him to degenerate, at least in size. It follows, if this view be correct, that at the time when the Greek and Latin languages prevailed, ponies, which were then possibly in progress of forma- tion in regions beyond the ken of early civilization, in the lands which are laid down on the maps of " the world known to the ancients" as countries uninhabitable on account of heat or of cold, and in which distinct ponies do now exist, had not yet been brought at all to the knowl- edge of the civilized world, or, if at all, so rarely as to be regarded as accidental dwarfs and monstrosities, rather than a distinct breed. Now, of European ponies, the mcst clearly distinct types are those of the Shetland Isles, of Scotland, in the northern parts of Iceland, and of Sweden. There are also ponies, some- what similar to those of Scotland, in Wales, and others in the New Forest, on the south-western coast of England, which B6em referable to a cross of the same pony with some horse of higher blood. On the whole, it seems likely that the Shet- land, Scottish, Welch, Swedish and Icelandic pony is one and the same animal, as to its origin or original mode oi production, slightly influenced perhaps hy the original type of the horse of which it is a pattern, dimmished in 66 POiaES— THEIR DIFFERENT BREEDa size, but ondeteriorated in spirit bv years, nay, centuriei^ of habituation to cold and scanty fare. In Spain there existed from an early date in the middle ages a peculiaj breed of very small, high-bred horses, scarcely to be called ponies, known as the Andalusian jennet, the descendants of which are' said still to exist in the Connemara horse, peculiar to Galway in Ireland, and to have existed in the Scottish Galloway, on the shores of the Solway Frith, in .he south of Scotland, and probably in the Narragansett pacer, both of which families are now unfortunately ex- tinct. These Spanish ponies, or ponies of Spanish descent, ere referable to another and entirely different mode of pro- duction, by breeding, and not by deterioration in size, oi dwarfing. In Asiatic and European Eussia, again, the Cossack horse, which is little more than a large pony with good Turkish blood, is evidently the result of modi- fied dwarfing by hardship and severity of climate. It is remarkable, however, of all these European and Asiatic ponies, as also of the American varieties, of which we shall speak hereafter, that, unlike most animals which have de- generated in size, uwing to severity of climate and scanty fare, they have lost nothing of their spirit, and — what ia yet more singular — have gained rather than lost in their capability to endure toil, hardship, and spare diet, in which particulars the tiny Shetlander and the rugged Cossack will probably surpass any other horses in existence. Of the Southern Asiatic races comparatively little is known ; but it is certain that in Ceylon there is a pygmy race of ponies not exceeding twenty-seven inches in height, A little mare was exhibited in London, in 1765, brought from the East Indies, only twenty-seven inches in height, well-formed, and between four and five years old. In Persia and among the mountains of Afghanistan, there b found a useful breed of large ponies, called YaubooB, SHBTLANDS AND SCOTS. 67 ^hich is probably merely the Turkoman horse stunted by the hard fare and severe winters of the hill country. And lastly, in America we have the Indian Pony of the north, of the Canadian type, the Mustang of the south-west, and in South America a very singular-looking breed ol horses, of very diminutive size, which is found in thr mountains of Venezuela. Or these various families of ponies we shall toucu more at length, and on the qualities for which they aro famoua and worthy to be more generally cultivated in our own country. We admit that we wish we were more a race of horscmeiL, and less a race of sulky, buggy or wagon-drivers. The saddle is the true use of the horse ; and riding is the man- liest, freest, boldest of exercises. We can hardly fancy a good rider to be a fool or a fribble ; a coward he cannot De by any possibility. It is for this reason that we would gladly see ponies more largely introduced, and even bred in this country ; nor would it be amiss to introduce premi- ums for the encouragement of this breed at agricultural fairs. SffETLANDS AND SCOTS. Unquestionably, the most remarkable of all the Euro- pean pony races, and the best adapted for one of the principal uses to which ponies are applicable, are, the little Shetlanders, which are natives of all the northern Scottish iales, but which are found of the smallest size and of the most perfect form in the extreme northern isles of Yell and Unst. None of the Shetlanders exceed in the average nine or ten hands — that is to say, from three feet to three feet four inches in height ; and none are considered truly bred which exceed eleven hands, or three feet eight inches. Many are found which do not exceed thirty or thirty -two ia»hes, and which are consequently inferior in size to 68 PONIES — ^THEIR DIFFERENT BREEDS. Bome of the largest dogs of the Newfoundland and Lab rador, or Great St. Bernard breeds. Their characteristic form is a round, closely ribbed-up barrel ; a well-laid, slop- ing shoulder, but thick rather than line, and with little elevation of the withers; a short, thick neck, covered with redundant masses of coarse mane, scarcely inferior to that of the lion ; a well-shaped, lean and bony head, wide in the brow and not seldom showing something of the char- acteristic basin-face of the Arab. The ears are unusu- ally small, erect and well-placed; the eyes large, clear and intelligent. Their loins are superb so that their breadth bears no small proportion to the entire height of the animal. Sway backs and flat sides are unknown to the race. Their quarters are scarcely large in proportion to their other muscular developments, but their legs and feet, which are not so densely matted with hair as would be ex- pected from their flowing tails and abundant manes, are, like those of the Canadians and Normans, to which they have many strong points of similitude, literally made of iron. Splints, curbs, spavins, windgalls, thorough-pins, ringbones and navicular disease seem to be things utterly foreign to the Shetlander. Out of many hundreds which we have seen, — sometimes in droves of fifty or sixty at a time trav- elling down from their native moor? and mountains, the raggedest, rustiest, most comical looking little quadrupeds eye ever dwelt upon, driven by a gigantic six-foot High- lander, perched on the back perhaps of the smallest of the number, — we never saw a lame Shetlander. Their hardi- hood and spirit is wonderful. In their native isles they run wild on the hills as the ragged, black -faced sheep, with which they keep company, never herded, sheltered nor fed, but picking up a hardy livelihood from the tender shoota of the heather, and the coarse, innutritions grass which grows among it In very severe winters, when in that SHETLANDS AND SCOTB. 69 high northern latitude the mountains are buried deep in frozen snow, thej resort to the sea beaches and feed on th» kelp and sea ware. Even when taken into domestication theii fare is but little improved. Oats is a luxury unknown, and a few bundles of wild meadow haj or barley straw furnish a dainty banquet to the wee Shetlander. Hia speed is of course not great, but he will go along at a sort of waddling run under a weight which it would bother some horses to carry, — that is to say, from 150 to 200 pounds, — at the rate of four or five miles an hour ; and will accomplish his fifty miles between sunrise and sunset with a great hulking Highlander on his back, who seems fitter to carry the pony than the pony to carry him. For little boys and girls learning to ride, the Shetlander is perfection ; for though he has sometimes a will of his own, and has always a very sufficient share of spirit, which sometimes leads him to play queer, grotesque tricks and to make uncouth gambols more resembling those of a big dog than of a small horse, he is very docile, intelligent, af- fectionate and gentle. He readily becomes extremely fond of his small rider ; and if, as will sometimes happen, he kicks him over his head for fun, he will generally stop by his side until he gets up again, and will suffer himself to be remounted without opposition ; and tlien, which is a great consideration, it is not far to fall from his back to the ground. The colors of the Shetlanders are generally black, dark brown, and a sort of rust-colored sorreL Whites and greys are exceedingly rare, and blacks are considered the best of the race. There is a race of vtivy email ponies, analagous to the Shetlanders, in Terie, one ol »he Hebrides or Western isles, belonging to the Duke Dt Argyle. Next in size to the Shetlanders is a small white race ot ptmes, generally supposed to be of Hanoverian ongm, 70 PONIiCS — THEIR BlFFERE^l BRBEDS. whicli were some years ago mucli the fasbion for ladies pony carriages. They ran from ten to eleven hands high with softer and finer coats than the Shetlanders, and with manes and tails which, though full and flowing, were not BO abundant and massive as those of their little congeners They were not unfrequently alUnoes^ having blood-red pu- pils to their eyes, which tends to confirm suspicion of their Hanoverian origin. Persons who remember the drive in Hyde Park and the comer of Eotten Row in the days when George lY. was King, will not easily forget the beautiful turn-out of the beautiful Lady Foley, a four-in- hand of snow-white ponies, scarcely bigger than the rats which furnished Cinderella's carriage-horses, and two little ten-year-old outriders mounted on two others of the same stamp, in fiill uniform of top boots, leather breeches, and miniature hunting whips. These pretty Hanoverians are, however, only pretty playthings for pretty women, for they have none of the stamina of the Shetlanders. Shetland ponies of the true breed are not often imported into Amer ica, although of late years a good many of the larger Scottish and Welsh ponies are being introduced, and, if black, are often erroneously called Shetlanders. At the State Fair of New Jersey, held at Newark, in 1857, we noticed a very neat, very small dark grey pony, not above ten hands high, but finer coated and less shaggy than the ordinary run of Shetlanders. He was in the care of a very large, very green Hibernian, between whom and ourselves passed the following colloquy. "That's a very nice pony, my man ; who owns him ?'• " He is. Oin'ral Moore, of Belleville." " Is he a native pony, or imported ?" " He ^s." " He is what V " He i$ that /" " Yes, I see — where did he come from ?'* " Ho come from New York ; the Gin'ral got him there I'* "-Ah, I understand. But did he come from across the sea» t to field labor or the rude and sordid drudgery to which he is too often degraded, and to which he is wholly unfitted. It ia claimed for the mule, and rightly, that he can do his own work, that is to say, field work, heavy teaming, and car- rying pack -burdens, all. as well as the horse, — the lasl 88 HOW TO BREED MULES. Item better than the horse, — and twice as much of each on€ of them as the horse, provided he be not hurried ; keeping himself in perfect condition, where the horse would knock up and starve ; that he can do all this on half the food and with half the care that the horse requires, although the more food and the more care both have the better they will do their work ; and lastly, the mule being an animal of great longevity and great retention, or conservation, of both his vital energies and his physical powers, is able to work to the advantage of his owners, twice, if not thrice as many years as the average of horses. These are the in- ducements to breed the mule, and to apply it strictly to the purposes for which it is best fitted, and foi which na- ture seems to have intended it. We propose now to treat of the difference between the mule of Europe and that now generally raised in the United States ; the error, as we believe it to be, in the present American system of breeding, and the best plan to be adopted for raising the most valuable mules. Inasmuch as asses are not bred to any extent in the United States, it is of the first consequence for breeding to import fine jacks from their native countries, of the breed and description most suitable to the purposes for which they are intended ; and of the second, to cross them with properly-selected mares, so as to raise mules of the best type, size and substance for general work. A nd it will be well here to observe that in the United States generally the work of the mule is and ever will continue to be, — unless some radical change takes place — which is not to be expected — in the tastes and habits d! the people, — field-work, agricultural labor and team-draugnt on the roads, as opposed to use under the saddle or in pleasure vehicles. In the prairies, plains and mountains of the extreme west, on the Mexican frontier and on the BEST SIZE FOE A MULE. 89 California route, thej are and will be used as pack animals, and in a minor degree as beasts for the saddle, both foi travellers and for the trappers of those wild sol'tudes; but this is the exception and not the rule. Now, any person who has travelled on the continent ol Europe, in those countries where mules are in use, espec- ially Spain and Portugal — for the mules of Italy and Switzerland are of an inferior kind — cannot have failed to observe that it is the medium and even the small-sized mules, whi'ih are the most highly esteemed ; that the great majority of the race do not exceed fourteen hands in height, so that one of fifteen is a rarity ; and that those nearest to the standard first named, are most prized for their hardiness, while they consume far less provender, in proportioE to the amount of labor which they are capable of performing, than the loftier animals of the same breed. In the United States, the ratio of value in the mule is exactly the reverse of the above in general estimation — the largest mules being the most highly prized ; and, as a matter of course, all pains are taken to raise the standard, and to breed them of the greatest possible height. In this aim the breeders in the United States have been eminently successful, — if that can properly be called a success, the effect of which is to produce what one aims at producing, though in fact he had done better to produce something else. And it may be said that the average size of the mule of the United States is not inferior to that of the ordinary working horse, while that of many is vastly superior We have at present within our own knowledge many teams of working mules, employed in drawing iron from the New Jersey foundries and in carting coal and ore, which vary from sixteer to seventeen hands in height, while some exceed by half a hand the latter standard, vhich, it may be said, is never attained by any horse, yO flow TO BREED MULES. unless it be the huge London dray-horse, an animal incapa ble of working faster than at a foot's pace, and only bred in fact for show and ostentation, not for utility. How it 18 that an animal sprung from the cross of two species, the sire of which is always greatly smaller than the dam, should be larger than either parent, is one of the unex- plained mysteries of breeding ; but the mode in which it has been accomplished is no mystery. It is by selecting the very largest and loftiest jacks of the breeds used, in Europe generally, for the saddle, and, in Spain, for the draught of public conveyances and private pleasure car- nages, and breeding from them out of the tallest, largest and most roomy mares that can be procured. That such dams should produce hybrids larger than their sires is in the natural course of things, since — as we have pointed out in our previous papers on horse-breeding — it is the mare, furnishing the matrix of the foal, that gives the size and bone to the progeny. But why such mares should pro- duce a much larger offspring, to a male infinitely smaller than themselves in stature, than they would bear to a stal- lion of their own race, equal or even superior to themselves in height, is not to be accounted for by any known prin- ciples of physiology. The fict is, however, as stated, and the result is not desirable. For the mule of increased size appears to approach somewhat nearer to the horse in organization, whereas it is desirable that he should ap- proach nearer to the ass. He is a slower and more slug- gish animal, than the smaller breed, is less enduring of labor, less capable of toiling under extraordinary tempera- tures of heat — which is one of the admitted points of superiority in the mule over the horse — and, being much heavier in proportion, is apt to sink his small, narrow, com pressed hoofs far deeper into the ground, where the soil ia deep and the roads are sticky and tenacious, while he wiD VARIETIES OF THE ASS. 91 'consume fixDm one-fifth to one-tliird more provender. Ye\ sven at this he will consume so much less, while doing more constant, though some\^'hat slower, work than the horse, that three of the large-sized mules may be kept in perfect condition on the same amount of food which ifl required for the support of a pair of the nobler animals. It is evident, therefore, that where mules are not re- :juired for show or speed, as saddle or carriage animals, aa they are not, and probably never will be, in this country, the smaller-sized animals are the more profitable both tc raise and to keep, for the purposes of labor. Now, it should be understood, that there are at leasl three different varieties of asses — beside the small, common jack, supposed to be of African origin, generally of a light- grey color, with a black stripe along his back and a trans- verse list or bar across his shoulders — all of which, are more or less used for breeding in this country. Although the African jack above mentioned, is rarely used in this country for breeding purposes, the mules bred from him are infinitely the most hardy of all, though the lowest in stature. The other breeds are these : first, the large, coarse, heavy Spanish jack, with slouching ears and a dull, plod- ding gait, from which the mules for agricultural purposes are ordinarily raised on the Peninsula. It is this breed which has been so much exhausted by the consumption of the Peninsular war, and subsequent internal commotions, that it is in some districts all but extinct. Second, the Andalusian jack, with shorter and more erect ears, mor6 active, spirited, and sprightly than the foregoing species, yet sufficiently strong and well provided with bone. This animal is probably no other than a slightly degenerated descendant of the Arabian species, which has become some what coarser and larger boned, as well as less spirited, in oonsequence of his long residence in a colder climate — 92 HOW TO BREED MULES. thougli still warm — than his native land, and perhaps ol crossing with the species first described. The third is the Arabian jack, which is to the ass what the thorc ugh-bred is to the horse, — taller in neight, lighter in limb, slenderer in bone, with a high-carried head, shorter and always erect ears, and a higher and more sprightly spirit, than any other of the ass species. It is said by those who nare seen and examined this animal in its native land, and who are competent to judge, that it bears so close a resem- blance to the wild ass, Dziggtai, Equus Hemionus^ of Persia and Mongolia^ as described by Pallas, the naturalist, that it is not to be doubted that it is descended from thai swift and beautiful creature. Were the saddle, or harness before pleasure vehicles, the object of mule-raising, thia jack or his representative, the Maltese jack, which is evi- dently directly siprung from him, with little or no degen- eracy or deterioration, would, unquestionably, be the best sire. But for draft mules for heavy work, these jacks are too slender in the limbs, and especially too long in the pasterns to make eligible sires. In our opinion the Maltese jack should never be chosen as a sire for working mules in this country ; but if he be, he should be bred to close-ribbed, strong-boned, stocky mares ; Canadians we should prefer to any other form. It is our belief, however, that the Andalusian jack, if it can be procured, is the most eligible sire for the United States; but as it is understood to be difficult to procure this race, it would be perhaps advisable to commence from the com- mencement, and proceed to breed our own jacks for the purpose of breeding our own mules, instead of having re- course to the constant importation of male asses. This, in the end, would prove to be not only the surest but the cheapest method; and it is confidently believed that a superior jack to any now existing, for American breeding VARIETIES OF THE ASS. 9^ purposes, might thus be produced. In the islands of Ma- jorca and Minorca, to which the ravages of foreign and civil war have not so far extended, it is well ascertained that the large, coarse, slouch-eared Spanish breed still exists in perfection; and thence it would be easy to procure jen- uies — as the females of the ass are technically termed — ^by breeding which to the finest Maltese jacks, there can be no doubt that stallions might be reared superior in the com- bination of bone with beauty and spirit to any breed of original jacks now in existence. The choice of mares from which to breed mules by such jacks is an easy matter. They «hould on no account be blood mares, or highly-bred mares, or tall mares. Fifteen hands in height is abundant stature, and fifteen two is too large, but they should be rather long- b\->died, roomy, and, above all, bony. They should have long shoulders, as oblique as possible, since those of the ass are very straight, a peculiarity which it is desirable to correct; and, f(»r analogous reasons, they should not have the pasterns too stiff and erect; and they s/zowM have the hoofs large, round and well opened. The better their necks, ifithers and heads, the neater, in all probability, will be tko pro- duce. On the whole, we have little doubt that finr, well- selected Canadian or Norman mares will prove to be the best mule mothers — as thorough-breds will prove to be the (vorst — while Andalusian jacks or half-breeds, between the Maltese and great Majorca race of asses, will prove the best possible sires. It only remains to be stated that, in order to have mules docile and gentle, they should be handled as young as possible, and invariably gelded before they are six month old. The longer that operation L*. de- ferred, the more indocile, obstinate, and, perhaps, vrr/lnua they will become, which is the greatest defect in the i/.ar- acter of the mule, and that against which it behoov«j8 tbfl breeder most to be on his guard. CHAPTER VII. HOW TO BUY A HORSE. W WHOM TO BUT- EXTRAORDINARY CHEAPNESS AND 3XTRA0RD3fA8\ £X CELLFNCE NOT TO BE EXPECTED— POINTS TO BE REGARDED— HOW TO E^JLM INE THE EYES— BROKEN WIND — ROARING— WHISTLING — BROKEN KNKWI— TO EXAMINE THE LEGS— SPLENTS— DAMAGED BACK SINEWS— SPAVIN i*— RINGBONES — CURBS — THOROUGH-PIN— HOW TO TELL THE AGE OF A H0U3E. It is not, of course, to be imagined, that any person entirely unacquainted with horses, the points of their anatomical structure^ their constitution and their qualities, can be by the mere perusal of any one or more books on the subjeet, at once created into a good judge of the animal, and a com- petent purchaser beyond the risk of being deceived or oi deceiving himself. To become a perfect judge of a ho) se requires the observation and attention of half a life-time ; nor with every man will these be sufficient ; for a certain degree of natural tact and talent, or adaptability to the study, is clearly indispensable ; and there are some men who, if they were born in a manger and brought up in a stable, would never become horsemen or judges of a horse Still, there is no doubt that a person desiring to purchase, and desiring to exercise in some degree his own choice in the matter rather than submit wholly to the guidance of a friend, may, by carefully studying what has been written on the subject, qualify himself so far as in a great measure, using proper precautions and profiting by some advice, to iecurc himself against the probability of being very groa^Iy [941 or WHOM TO BUT. 96 deceived, and to obtain an animal wbicli will please Mm bet- ter than one selected for him bj a person employed as mtermediate between himself and the dealer. The first rule to be laid down, then, for the buyer who wishes to obtain a superior animal for his own use, and who is neither a first-rate judge of horse-flesh, nor a first rate horseman himself, is, not to attempt to buy out of the farmer's or breeder's hands ; least of all at a horse fair oi agricultural show, — ^but from some large, well-known and respectable dealer, one who has a character to lose and who is, therefore, not likely grossly and outrageously to deceive, although he will probably not fail to do what he can in extracting as large a price as the verdancy or eagerness of the purchaser may give him the hope of obtaining. The reasons for this advice are as follows : First: Breeders and farmers do not often themselves know what their horses really are as to actual soundnesa much less as to speed, — which probably has never been cultivated; or endurance, — which has almost certainly never been tested. So that a farmer or breeder will often honestly guarantee an unsound horse to be sound, from not knowing enough to have discovered the contrary. The writer saw a curious point of this kind, when, in 1837, the authorities of the Canadian government were purchasing fine Vermont horses for the use of the Eoyal Artillery. The dismay of the farmers who came in to sell, in comjjli- auce with advertisements, was extreme, and their disgusi yet greater, at finding that not above one in three animals, which they believed to be perfectly unimpeachable, could pass muster as sound in wind and limb under the scrutiny of experienced veterinary surgeons, who at once detected the germs of incipient diseases which had not even been suspected by the breeder. By buying of the dealer you are tolerably well assured that when he bought he believed 96 HOW TO BUY A £OESE. the horse to be right, and, theTefore, yon have one intelli gent opinion in jour favor. Secondly: Breeders' and farmers' horses are usually sc overloaded with flesh and fat, especially at agricultural shows and horse fairs — having been prepared, in order to make the best show, by feeding them on hot mashes, boiled grain, boiled potatoes and the like, and by keeping thera in hot stables — that it is dif&cult, if not impossible, to come to any true judgment as to the horse's real points ; and that, even if the horse be bought rightly — which means well and wisely — for exactly what he is, and about what he is worth, there will be great risk of ruining him utterlj if he be put to hard work in his present condition ; and if he be judiciously prepared by his buyer before putting him to work, much time, much pains, and much expense will have to be laid out on him before he can be of any real utility. Lastly: Horses in the hands of the farmer or breedei are never properly bitted, broken, or trained to going; and unless the buyer be able to break him in these re- spects, to form and finish him himself — which is to pre- suppose him to be a perfect horseman — ^it will cost him half as much more to have him trained and rendered fit for use, by a horse jockey or trainer, as it did to become his owner in the first instance. Therefore, it is ever the better and wiser way to buy at first, of a reputable dealer, a horse which is in working order, whose faults and excel- lences are both known to the seller, if he choose to let them out, and which can be both critically examined, owing to his being in working condition, and tried on the road, under saddle or in harness, if desirable. The second great rule is, not to imagine that perfection can be bought for a song, or that great excellence is com- patible with great cheapness. A remarkable bargain in GREAT BARGAINS. 97 horse-flesh is always suspicious, and the greater the bar- gain the more suspicious he becomes. If in appearance, fihow, beauty, style of going and action, the animal offered for sale be very superior, and the price at which he is offerc/i veTy inferior, one may be perfectly certain that the horse h^s some very bad secret fault, whether of temper or constitution, of vice or of unsoundness, which time will be sure to discover. It is never safe to take it for granted that the seller of a horse is an ass, or is not aware of the worth of his merchandise. If he err, nine times out of ten it will be in overrating, not underrating its value. To get a good horse, ordinarily, one must expect and be con- tent, to pay a good price — the m.ore, the greater the num- Dcr of excel] encies one may desire to obtain. These ruleo premised, it is necessary for the buyer to make up bis mind exactly as to what he wants, which, of course, miist be in a measure regulated by what he has got to pay. If he merely wants a stout, serviceable, sound, active, useful brute, without caring about speed, action, beauty, or blood, he will be readily and easily accommo- dated for a moderate sum, say from $75 to $125 ; with each of the other additions the figure advances in arith- metical progression, until, if one require a highly-bred, beautiful, fine-stepping, fast, gentle and perfectly broke horse, the price becomes a fancy one, and, according to the degree of each attribute, ascends higher and higher, and may become anything. Of course it is not with animals of this kind that we are dealing ; nor is it to this that we require our purchaser to make up his mind — but as to the use for which he requires his horse ; whether for heavy draft, for a carriage-horse, a light harness horse, an agricultural horse, or a saddle-horse, all of which have different points of excellence and dis dnct qualifications. The heavy draft-horse and agricul- 5 98 HOW TO BUY A HORSE. tural horse are tlie least difficult to select, and tlie lowest priced ; the carriage-horses next ; then the light harnesa horse, and, lastly, the saddle-horse, which is the most dif- ficult of all to find nearly perfect, as requiring the greatest union of rare qualities. The heavy draft-horse requires only great power and weight, with a fast-walking action, or a moderate trot, and the power of going easily to him- self The agricultural horse requires strength, quickness, activity, hardihood and courage. The carriage-horses are to be estimated very differently ; size, fine figure, great Bhow, stylish action and a moderate stroke of speed are all that is needed. With none of these animals is the manner of going, of being bitted, mouthed, or broken, of so great consequence. For the light harness horse more is needed — -more style, more speed, generally at a slashing trot, which may be as rough and difficult to sit as it may ; plenty of endurance, and above all a good mouth and a pleasant style of driv- ing ; since it is our own hands, not John's or Thomas's, w hich are to be excoriated, and our own shoulders which are to be lugged out of the sockets if he be an inveterate bearer. For the saddle-horse most of all is needed. He must be handsome ; he must have safe, showy, stylish action ; he must be sure-footed ; must have a fine mouth, a fine temper, lots of courage, and perfect docility. Above all, he must be an easy mover, both to himself and to his rid«:)r, or else grievous will be the loss of temper and the loss of leather to the latter. The best saddle-horses, un- less one prefer to ride gallopers, are horses with not less than three, and as many more crosses as possible, of thor- ough blood on any good common stock. Three crosses from Canadians, or two from Morgans, make capital road- Bters. Thorough-breds are not often great trotters, since POINTS TO BE REGARDED. 91) their action is apt to be too straight and near the ground, VVhen, however, they do take to trotting, they make the best trotters in the world ; as they invariably, and they only, make the best gallopers. The points of the phjsical structure of a horse on which the most, indeed the whole of his utility depends, are hia legs. Without his locomoters, all the rest, however beau- tiful it may be, is nothing worth. Therefore, to these we look the first. The fore shoulder should be long, obliquely Bet, with a considerable slope, high in the withers and their above. The upper arm should be very long and muscu- lar ; the knee broad, flat and bony ; the shank or cannon bone, as short as may be, flat, not round, with clean, firm sinews; the pastern joints moderately long and oblique, but not too much so, as the excess produces springyness and weakness ; the hoofs firm, erect, or deep, as opposed to flat ; and the feet generally large and round. In the hind legs, the quarters should be large, powerful, broad, when looked at in profile, and square and solid from be- hind. The hams should be sickle-shaped, not straight, and well let down, so as to bring the houghs well toward the ground. The houghs should be large and bony, straight, not angular or convexly curved in their posterior outlines ; the shanks corresponding to the cannon bones, short and flat ; and the hind feet similar in form to the front. The back should be short above, from the poir-t of the withers and shoulder- olade, which ought to run well back to the croup. The barrel should be round, aii-J for a horse in which strength and quickness are looked to more than great speed and stride, closely ribbed up. A horse can scarcely be too deep from the top of his shoul- der to the intersection of his fore leg — which is called the heart- place — or too wide in the chest, as room in these parts gives free play to the most important vitals. The 100 HOW TO BUY A HOBSB. form of the neck and setting on of the head are essential not only to the beauty of the an imal, but to the facility and pleasure of riding or driving him ; hence, a horse with an ill-shaped, short, stubborn neck, or an ill-set-on head, cannot, by any possibility be a pleasant-mouthed horse, oi an easy one to manage. The neck should be moderately long, convexly arched above from the shoulders to the crest-, thin where it joins the head, and so set on that, when yielding to the pressure of the bit, it forms a semi, circle, like a bended bow, and brings the chin downward and inward until it nearly touches the chest. Horses so made are always manageable to the hand. The converse of this neck, which is concave above and struts out at the windpipe like a cock's thrapjile, is the worst possible form ; and horses so made almost invariably throw up their heads at a pull, and are those most exceptionable of brutes, regu lar star-gazers. The head should be rather small, lean, bony, not beefy, in the jowl ; broad between the eyes and rather concave, or what is called basin-faced, than Roman-nosed between the eyes and nostrils. The ears should be fine, small and pointed ; the eyes large, clear and prominent, and the nostrils wide and well opened. A horse so framed cannot fail, if free from physical defects, constitutional disease and vice, to be a good one for any purpose — degrees of strength, lightness and speed being weighed in accordance with the purpose for which he is iesired. We shall proceed to point out some of those more prominent defects and ailments to be found in horses commonly offered for sale, and a few simple plans for de- tecting them, under ordinary circumstances, which, where resort is had to no villainous jockeying, will be found, in most cases, sufficient to an ordinarily acute observer. DEFECTS. lOl DEFECTS TO BE DETECTED IN THE jiGE AND EYES. As to the age of horses, we would observe, that the number of years which the animal has lived is indicated, up to his seventh year, by marks in the teeth of both jaws, bat principally of the lower jaw, which vary every year antil the eighth, when they become obliterated ; they aio difficult to learn, and impossible to explain without the aid of diagrams, which will be furnished in this chapter, with more minute directions for ascertaining the age. There is a system of jockey rascality by which false marks are forged on the teeth of aged horses, making them to ap- pear to be six or seven j^ears old, which may deceive, and often do deceive, novices, but are thrown away on judges and old hands. This system is called Bishoping^ and is executed by the use of a file and the usual cautery. There are, however, some signs of extreme age in the horse which can easily be recognized by any one, some of which are infallible. One of these is the fact that in a young horse the crown of the tooth is oblong or rather obovate in form, lengthwise^ or in the line of the jaw-bone: but that in very old horses the crowns change their shape and become oblong or obovate across the jaw-bone. When, therefore, the tooth has assumed this form, or has even become much modified from the longitudinal shape, it is certain that the horse is too old to be a desirable acqui- sition. A second sign is the length of the teeth from the root to the crown, and their angular protrusion like those of the nare or rabbit; in both which particulars the in- crease is regular with the increase of age. Indeed, the degree of this protrusion is said to be so certain and in- fallible, that a machine has been invented by the French veterinarians for measuring the angle of protrusion, by which it is alleged that the exact age can be ascertained up to any known period of equine lifa Without under- 102 HOW TO BUT A HOESE. taking to answer for this, we should advise a buyer alwaja to look to the points mentioned; as it is extreme age which one seeks to avoid, with reason, not maturity, oi even the commencement of decline. Except to a racing man, it matters little whether the horse he buys be four, six, eight or nine years old, provided that he be sound, suitable in other respects, and free from the effects and marks of hard labor and wear and tear ; remembering Rlways that if the buyer requires a horse for immediate hard use, he should not purchase one under six; and if the animal be perfectly sound, and fresh and clean in his legs, will be wiser to buy at eight or nine than younger. We now come to the eyes, which of all the parts of the horse are, except the legs, of the most vital importance, and in which it is often the most difficult to detect imper- fection. There are some species of blindness, which to a common observer give no sign, and in many instances the writer has known the eye of a horse nearly stone-blind to be looked at casually by a purchaser, and passed as need- ing no further scrutiny. " There is nothing," says Youatt, " which deserves so much attention from the purchaser of a horse as the per- fect transparency of the cornea (or glassy and transparent portion of the eye), over the whole of its surface. The eye should be examined for this purpose both in front, and with the face of the examiner close to the cheek of the horse, under and behind the eye. The latter method of looking through the cornea is the most satisfactory, so far as the transparency of that part of the eye is con- cerned. During this examination the horse should not be in the open air, but in the stable, standing in the doorway, and a little within the door. If any small, faint, whitish lines appear to cross the cornea, or any part of it, they tHE EYiid. 10& we assuredly signs of previous inflammation ; or, although the centre and bulk of the cornea should be perfectly clear, yet if around the edge of it, where it unites with the sclerotica (or hard interior covering of the back of the eye), there should be a narrow ring or circle of haziness, the conclusion is equally true, but the inflammation occurred at a more distant period. Whether, however, the inflam- mation has lately existed, or several weeks or months have elapsed since it was subdued, there is qyqtj proba- bility that it will return. There is one little cautiou to be added. The cornea, in its natural state, is not only a beautifully transparent body, but it reflects even in pro- portion to its transparency many of the rays which fall upon it ; and if there be a white object immediately before the eye, as a very light waistcoat or much display of a white neckcloth, the reflection may puzzle an experienced observer, and has misled a careless one." It is hardly necessary to observe that the existence of a white filmy spot on any portion of the cornea, or, still worse, ar opaque filmy condition of the whole of that beautiful and delicate membrane, is a fatal defect, the latter indicating a total loss of sight, the result either of specific ophthalmia, or of cataract. But it may be well to mention a very practical and simple mode of ascertaining how far the powers of sight in a horse are or are not effected. Hold- ing him gently by the head-stall, let the observer place himself in front of the animal, and, after caressing him and rubbing his nose, so as to avoid giving him sudden aUrm, let him move his fingers rapidly toward and across his eyes, carefully noting how far he starts back, or winks his eyelids. Care must be had, in this experiment, not to move thb hand with so much violence as to cause a cur- rent of air , for that, striking on the delicate surface of the orgar, even when it is totally bereft of vision, will some- 164 HOW TO BUY A HOilSL. times cause tlie animal to wink and even to start back, aa if he saw the motion which produced it. DEFECTS TO BE DETECTED IN THE WIND. Next to the eyes, the wind, as it is commonly called, or the condition of the lungs of the animal, is to be exam- ined ; and this is liable to so many modifications, ai^ affects the animal so fatally as to his utility, when required for even moderately rapid work, that too much care cannot be had in the examination. It is needless to say that a horse, with the slightest imperfection of his lungs, windpipe, or breathing apparatus, ought at once to be rejected ; as there is no hope of its ever decreasing, being cured, or palliated, either by rest or by work ; but on the contrary, an ab- solute certainty of its growing worse, day by day, and the more so the faster and more regularly the animal is worked, until it becomes absolutely broken- winded and useless. In this stage of the disease it needs no examination to detect it : when at work, the loud, sobbing breath, and the laborious heaving and jerking collapse of the flanks, show it too plainly to be mistaken. It is caused by a rup- ture of some of the air-cells of the lungs, and the inspira- tion of the air is readily effected by the animal at a single effort, as usual ; but the expiration of the air, from the ruptured and ragged cavities into which it has been ad- mitted, requires a double effort ; and when the disease is in its worse form, even two efforts are insufficient fully to expel it. Broken wind is accompanied with a hard, husky cough, which is not easily described, but cannot be mis- taken by any one who is used to horses. Broken-winded horses can never be cured, since it is not in the power of human art to build up and restore a broken-down and dis- 6» THE WIND. 108 organized structure ; but there are jockj tricks by wliich thej can be so far palliated as to be made to (iisappear, foi two or tbree days^ time, under any moderate observation. But let the horse be galloped a hundred yards, at his best, up hill; let his rider spring quickly to the ground, and apply his ear to the chest, and the double expiration will be clearly heard, even if the flanks do not show — as, how- ever, in ninety cases out of a hundred, they will, by theii jerking and laborious collapse — the extent of the affection. The minor and secondary modifications of this disease are, thick wind, roaring, wheezing, and whistling — all of which, more or less certainly, degenerate into broken wind, and are to be carefully looked for, and when detected, reso lutely avoided. They all arise from a diseased or ob- structed condition of some of the air passages, whether ot the lungs themselves, the windpipe, the bronchial tubes, or the nostrils. Thick wind is produced by insufficient space for the play of the lungs, or for the 'ssue of the air through the bronchial tubes, owing to the thickening of their mucous lining consequent on previous inflammation. It produces laborious breathing, only effected by prodigious exertion of the lungs; often extends almost to suffocation, and nearly always leads to broken wind, or total disorganiza- tion of the structure of the lungs — of some portion or ram ification of which it indicates either an orignally faulty formation, or a diseased condition. EoARiNG is a modification of thick wdnd, produced by the existence of a ring of coagulated matter, or a thick* ening of a portion of the mucous membrane, within the windpipe, which produces a contraction of that passage, and, preventing the regular issue of the breadth, renders Bome exertion necessary to expel it, and causes a loud puffing or roaring sound, similar to tha* of strong and 106 HOW TO BUY A HORSE. hoarse exhalations, the inhalation being noiseless. Roar ing occurs on sudden motion. Wheezing is a modification of roaring, and is produced, it would seem, by the lodgment of mucous matter in the bronchial tubes. It differs from roaring, in that it exists even when the animal is wholly at rest, and in his stable. Whistling is a second modification of roaring, from which it differs in that the noise produced is shriller, and that it does not occur on sudden, but only after continuous motion. It is supposed to be caused by some contraction of the larynx. Animals subject to any of these diseases speedily be- come exhausted by exertion, even while the disease is in its original state, apart from the distressing sound which they produce. All the forms are liable to degenerate into the worst form of broken wind, and all constitute an un- soundness for which a horse warranted sound is returnable. The modes of detecting these diseases are various, but simple and easy of execution. The first is by grasping the horse's throat from the front, and forcibly compressing the mouth of the larynx, so as to compel him to cough A sound horse will cough once and recover his wind, with a clear, sonorous inhalation and exhalation. The diseased horse will utter a broken, ragged, rattling cough, and re- cover his breath with a long, wheezing and laborious 7dle, This sign is infallible ; and the degree of labor and difij • culty will certainly indicate the degree of the affection. A roarer may be detected even in the stable, by approaching Lim suddenly and hitting him an unexpected slap on the belly, when he will utter a loud grunt, not unfrequently iwjcompanied by a flatulent crepitus. When the affection is confirmed roaring, it will manifest itself when he is put to his speed ; but if he is merely a whistler, the noise ia ©ften drowned, particularly when the disease is only in ita LEGS AND FEET. 107 incipient state, by the clatter of tae hoofs. It may, how- ever, alwc^ys be detected by the rider suddenly pulling him up, after a long, sharp gallop, and listening with hia ear inclined forward and downward, and brought close to tlie windpipe; or, if he be not readily able to accomplish this position while mounted, which he may not be able to Jo if not a practised rider, by dismounting quickly and listening with his ear applied to the neck, near its junction with the head. If the whistling be bad it will be heard even without this precaution, and will continue for some seconds, or even minutes, after the motion of the animal has ceased ; but this method of auscultation will detect it in its smallest and most incipient stage. There is no point in which a tyro in horse purchasing is so likely to be de- ceived as in the wind. It requires, therefore, the utmost precaution to detect it ; and the most positive determina- tion when it is detected, even in the slightest modification, to reject the animal, however otherwise irreproachable. DEFECTS TO BE DETECTED IN THE LEGS AND FEET. We now come to the diseases and affections, or mal- formations, of the legs and feet, which are, of course, most fatal of all to the horse, for any useful purpose whatever ; inasmuch as an animal, whose only utility lies in his powers of locomotion, if deprived or seriously curtailed of those very powers, is nearly valueless ; quite so, unless he be an entire horse or a mare capable of pro- pagating its species, and even then of little worth, since DO one witli judgment cares to propagate animals 'ikely to inlierit lameness in their blood. It is not necessary, of course, to speak of horses which are absolutely lame at the moment when they are offered for sale, since such cripples cannot avoid showing the ail- ment in their gait the moment they are put in motion, 108 HOW TO BUY A HORSE. especially on a hard road, so palpably that no tyro can M to discover it. For tHs reason, it ia well that the pur- chaser should always insist on seeing the animal which is offered for his inspection put through all its paces rapidly. for a short distance, on a hard surface ; since many cripplte are able to make a good show enough on a soft ride, laid several inches deep with tan-bark or sawdust, or on a piece of nice turf, which if put in motion on a macadam- ized road will flinch and show the weak point immedi- ately. It is rather, therefore, the points which indicate past lameness, likely to return, or the in Jpient traces oi what will probably produce future lameness, for which the purchaser should be on the look out, than for actual lameness which displays itself on the spot. In the first place, we will observe, that white hairs in Bmall spots on bay, brown, black or chestnut horses, un- less on the face and feet, indicate wounds or abrasures, where the roots of the hair have been injured so far as to weaken the subsequent growth ; bare spots indicate wounds of greater depth, where the roots of the hair have been entirely destroyed. Broken Knees. White spots on the knees show thai the horse has broken his knees at some time or other, and ninety-nine times out of a hundred by falling — although the owner will always have a good reason for the blemish, that the horse was trying to leap a stone wall out of the pasture and grazed his knees on the coping ; or that he reared up in the stable and barked them against the under side oi the manger; or something else equally likely to have happened. Now, a broken knee from a fall, if it be healed, is no defect in itself, and produces no unsoundness ; still, as it is fifty to one that a horse which has once fallen will, under the like circumstances, fall again, a broken-kneed horse is to be eschewed even more than a runaway or 9 EXAMINING THE LEGa 101 kicker. And as it is fiffcj to one that every broken-kneed horse is a stumbler, and that every horse with white or bare patches on his knees is both a broken-kneed horse and a stumbler, no one should buy a horse with bare or white patches on his knees. In Examining the Legs of a Horse, the purcnase^- should first stand with his face to the broadside of the horse jiS he stands on flat ground, and observe whether he rests perpendicularly on all his legs, having the natural propor- tion of his weight on each leg straightly, squarely and di- rectly ; or whether he stands with all his legs straddled outside of their true aplomb ; or with all drawn together under the centre of his belly, as if he were trying to stick them all into a hat ; or lastly, whether he favors one oi more of his legs, either by pointing it forward or by placing it in any position in which no weight at all or a very small stress of weight is thrown upon it. A horse may appar- ently favor one foot accidentally, from a casual impatience or restlessness. He is not, therefore, to be rejected because he points a toe once or twice. But if he seem to do so, he should be constantly brought back to the original position, in which he must bear equally on each foot ; when, if he be found constantly to favor the same foot in the same man- ner, something serious must be suspected, 'which gives the horse uneasiness and pain, though not perhaps sufficient in degree to produce present lameness. If the toe of a fore foot be persistently pointed forward, disease of the navicu- lar, commonly known as the coffin bone, is to be suspected, than which no worse or less curable disease exists. If both the fore feet are protruded and the hind feet thrown back as if the horse were about to stale, he has probably been at some time foundered. If he stand with all his feet drawn together under him, he is generally entirely used up, and what is called groggy. If he stand with one or both 110 HOW TO BUY A HORSE. his kueesbeut forward and his legs tremulous, or with both bis fetlock joints knuckled forward over his pasterns, one may be sure that however good he may once have been, he has been knocked to pieces or injured by hard driving and hard work. Supposing the horse now to stand square and true on all his legs, leaning his weight on each and all indifferently, with one glance at the horse in profile the side examination may be held as complete and satisfactory. That glance will ascertain whether the posterior outline of the hock joint is nearly perpendicular, or whether it is an- gular or has a convex curvilinear protuberance immedi- ately above the commencement of the shank bone. This curvilinear protuberance, if large, is a curb which will pro- duce lameness, though not of an incurable sort ; if not large, it is either the trace of a curb which has been cured, but may at any time return, or an indication of tendency to throw out curbii, on being put to hard work, especially in heavy gi-ound. Horses which have been curbed, or which have curbed-shaped hocks, are generally to be avoided ; but, as it is generally colts which throw out curbs, when first put to hard work, an old horse which has done his share of work without having been actually curb:d, is not to be ab- solutely rejected because he has what are commonly called curby hocks; for, that he has not yet thrown them out, under the stress of his early hard work, is, to a certain ex- tent, security that he will not do so now. Had the tendency been strong it would probably have developed itself al- ready. The side examination finished, the observer should sta- tion himself opposite to the head of the horse, and see that in this point of view also the horse, standing or moving, Btands and moves with all his legs perpendicularly under him. Kot to do so does not, it is true, indicate disease, W. it indicates malformation, inducing awkwardness and DEFECTS OF THE LEGS 111 sometimes weakness. A knock-kneed or how-kneed horse, before, is like a knock-kneed or bow-kneed man : if the former, weak and shaky on his legs ; if the latter, a clnmsj' mover, and, in the case of the horse, almost sure to inter- fere, or strike one leg with the inner edge of the hoof of the other — a very bad and, in some cases, very dangeroug fault. If, behind, the hocks are drawn in and the shanks diverge outwardly, the horse 's said to be cat-hammed oi cow-hocked ; and this is a serious malformation, an un- gainly defect, and a cause and sign of weakness. If, on the contrary, the hocks and If^-gs are unusually wide apart, BO that the animal straddles in going, while it is a decided point of strength, and consequently no defect in a mere draft horse, it is yet ungainly and against a high degree of speed, especially in a galloper. Some trotters of great speed have been straddlers behind ; and when this is the case and the animal is needed for harness only, as it is a sure mark of strength, it is not to be avoided, although ungainly ; for a saddle-horse it is decidedly objectionable, since it produces a style of action which is extremely disagreeable to the rider. His examination concluded, the purchaser must examine the several legs, for distinct marks of structural unsound ness. The chief of these are, in the fore legs, splenis, dam- aged hack sinews, and ringbones or side bones — in the hind legs, bone, blood, or bog spavins ; curbs, which have been de* scribed above ; thorough pins, and, as in the fore legs, ring- hones or side hones. Splents are small excrescences of the bone, extruding laterally from the canon bones, or shanks ; they sometimes produce lameness, if so near to the knee as to interfere with the action of the joint, or so far back as to interfere with the play of the back sinews. If on the middle of the bone, and Df^^ixly midway between the knee and fetlock, 112 HOW TO BUY A HORSE. tliey are of little consequence. In fact, if a horse oe not lame of them, they are of less importance than is gene- rally considered to be the case. They will generally yield to blistering and acupuncturing. Still, a splenty horse is, cocteris paribus^ to be avoided ; rather, however, in our opin ion. because it shows a tendency to form bony excres cences, than from the actual evil that they do. Damaged Back Sinews arise from the giving way of those most important motors, in consequence of wrench, or strain, or over-exertion. However momentarily cured, or relieved, a horse whose back sinews have once yielded, is never again to be depended upon. These sinews run down the back of the leg, immediately in the rear of the canon bone, from the hock to the fetlock, and in their proper condition, should be as round, as tense and as firm as a harp-string, and connected to the bone by a sheath of firm yet elastic ligaments. The state of these is ascer- tained by grasping the leg, from before backward, and running the hand downward from the knee to the fetlock, with the nails of the thumb and middle finger in the groove formed by the connection of the canon bone and sinew. If the sheath be even, free from loose cells or flexures, and if the sinew be firm, round, straight and cord-like, all is right. But if it be in places detached par- tially from the bone, flexed inward or outward, or if it feel spongy or knotty, it is certain that something has gone wrong, and will, or at least may, be wrong again. If pinched at the places where the flexures, detachments, Bponginess or knottiness occur, the horse will often evince pain and wince manifestly from the pressure. Damaged back sinews, if they do not produce present lameness, do not constitute unsoundness, but they do constitute a Berious blemish, and are, in our iudgment, an all-sufficienl obstacle to purchasing DEFECTS OF THE LEG& 113 HiNGBONE is a circular excresence of tlie bone, as its name indicates, encircling tlie coronet, or part of the foot immediatelj above tlie junction of the hair and hoof. It produces one of the worst and the most incurable of all foot lamenesses. Side-hone is the same affection when it is only partial — not forming a complete ring round the foot. It produces the same lameness, and is equally incurable. It is com- mon to both fore and hind feet, although far more frequent before. It can easily be detected by the hand passed care- fully over the part. Of navicular disease and other deep-seated lamenesses, there are no exterior signs, and, if the animal do not go lame, they are undiscoverable and beyond suspicion ; it needs not, therefore, to allude to them. Chan legs are those free from all splents, bony excres- cences and protuberances, the effect of accident or knock- ing about. Fresh legs are those in which there are no windgalls or puffy excrescences of the skin, but in which the bones, sinews, ligaments and cuticle are all in their normal and proper condition. In the hind legs the joint most to be looked to is the hock, and the ailment most to be dreaded, the spavin. The Spavin is either bone, blood or bog, all equally producing a desperate and dangerous lameness; but the first curable, the last two utterly incurable. The first is a bony excrescence of the inward and lower anterior per- tion of the hock joint. It is discoverable by the eye looking from before backward, or by the hand. It some- times produces total lameness; sometimes severe lame- ness on first starting, which passes entirely away as soon as the animal gets warm to his work; and sometimes, though rarely, exists without producing any lameness at J 14 HOW TO BUY A HORSE. all. It is sometimes curable by firing and blistering, sometimes utterly incurable. It is always an absolute cause for not purcbasing any borse; but not always an absolute cause for selling an otherwise good borse. We ou3e drove a grey grandson of Messenger, for five years, who bad a very large bone spavin in tbe very worst place. He invariably took his three first steps from a stationary position, however momentary the duration of the time he had been at rest, like a dead-lame horse, but then went as sound as any other horse in the world, until he again stood Btill. No day was too long for him, nor was every day in a month too often. But, after all, he was not the rule, but the exception which proves the rule. Bog spavin is the extravasation of the synovial fluid, nrhich lubricates the joint, and its collection in a sac in the mward and lower anterior portion of the hock joint, some- what within and before the point at which the bone spavin occurs. It may be seen partially in profile, but can be felt readily by pressure of the hand, under which it fluctuates. Blood spavin is a similar extravasation of arterial blood and formation, nearly in the same place, of a sort of aneurismal sac. It is detected as before, and may be dis- tinguished from the bog spavin by the fact that it pulsates. Both these spavins are incurable under any ordinary treat- ment ; the former absolutely so. It is possible that tying the artery might reduce the latter, but we are not aware that the operation has ever been tried. Tlwroughpin is a similar extravasation of the synovial fluid, and the formation of a sac, running between the bunes of the hock joint, not from the fix nt backward, but across the joint, fi-om side to side. It can be easily de- tected by the fingers, under the pressure of which the fluid can be felt to ebb and flow from side to «ido. Tboroughpin, like the kindred spavins, is ii curable. It THE AGE OF A HORSE. 115 b needless to saj that every torse with determined bone, bog or blood spavin, or with thoroughpin, must be sum- marily rejected, but not needless to saj that every cue with any tendency to irregular bony enlargement, or to puffiness in the places indicated, should be peremptorily refused as something more than suspicious. . These are the points which it is most necessary for the purchaser to look to ; still, even if he be a really good amateur judge of a horse, he will be wise not to buy except of a person of whom he knows something — not to buy without a guaranty of soundness; and above all, not without the opinion of a reputable veterinary surgeon, whom he knows to have no interest in the sale, or friend- ship with the seller. Even so, he will never be perfectly sure that he will not himself be sold; for, as a distin^ mished novelist has well observed, although there is no Iionester beast in the whole range of creation than a horse, no other has so singular a faculty for making men dis- honest. How TO Tell the Age of a Horse. — The age of the horse is usually determined by the appearance of the teeth j of these there are two sets: first the milk teeth, which come before the age of one year ; second, the " permanent set" which come soon after the falling out of the former ; this change is completed at the age of five years. The teeth which are most uniform in their progression Bre the nippers or incisors^ those on the lower jaw being ordinal ily referred to. Of these nippers there are six, — those farthest from the centre are called '* corner teeth." These corner teeth, and, indeed, all of the nippers, are composed of a bony substance which is inclosed in the enamel, which gives hardness to the teeth. Their form ia Bomewhat conical, though irregularly so (fig. 1). The top of the newly-formed tooth, say the corner tooth of a fiv^- 116 HOW TO BUY A HORSE. years-old horse, is long from side to side, wMle, a little far ther down, the form becomes more triangular ; and neai Ihe bottom— that part of the tooth which is below the gums in early life — it is long from front to rear, and narrow from side to side. This is shown in fig. 2, which represents a tooth cut across at various distances from the top of the crown, and in which the different forms of the different parts of the tooth are plainly represent- ed. Now sup- pose the tooth to be split down ^ themiddle,from one end to the other, on a line passing across the top of the tooth, from the outer side to the inner side, as the tooth stands in the jaw. This will give a sec- tional appearance, like that in fig. 3, the concave side being the inner side. The hard enamel which coats the outer portion of the tooth folds inward and passes down, forming a cavity, nearly to the bottom of the tooth, and then retnrns neai the inner edge, until it joins the exterior coating of en- amel on that side. The cavity thus formed is filled with a dark-colored matter, and it is closed, or nearly closed, at the top by a dishing cover of enamel. We are now prepared to understand how the appearance of the teeth becomes changed with age. The corner tooth, at five years of age, is long from side to side, and has, at ita gummit, a deep cavity, called a "mark," which i* Fig. 1. Fia. 2. Fig. 3. THE AOB. 117 no. 4. represented at the tops of fig-ares 2 and 3, the six nip- pers together form- ing nearly a semi- circle ; and their general appearance is similar to thai represented in fig- ure 4. As the horse becomes older his teeth are worn away by use, and it is to this cause only are due the changes by which we determine his age. The effect of this wearing down is the same as would be that of cutting or sawing off a portion of the teeth. They are supposed to be worn down about one twelfth of an inch per year, though the precise amount must depend very much on circumstances, such as crib-biting, vigorous feeding, etc. If we look at the mouth of a horse eight or nine years old, we shall see that his corner teeth have been so worn down that the mark, or superficial cav- ity, is entirely destroy- ed, and that the surface has descended to the point marked by the lines a. a., figures 2 and 3 ; still later the upper larface of the tooth descends to the point marked by the lines h. 6., figures 2 and 3. The folding in of the enamel has now almost entirely disappeared, leaving very little dis- coloration on the teeth, while the upper surface of the tooth is almost triangular instead of being long from side to side, as was the original surface. The teeth of the lower jaw now present the appearance shown in figure 5^ Fig 6. 118 sow TO BUT A HORSE At the age of twentj-one years the teeth d{ the lowei jaw become very long from front to rear ; thk having always been the shape of that part of the tooth which has never until now been made ap» Fio. 6. parent. The teeth at this ige are represented in figure 6. The experience of horsemen has established the follow- ing rules for determining the age from the appearance of the teeth (we adopt the classification of Pessina, a Germaii Veterinary Surgeon) ; At birth the teeth have not appeared ; six or eight days thereafter the two middle nippers of the set of milk teeth are cut ; the pair next to them are cut at thirty or forty days; and the corner teeth at six to ten months. These teeth ^^j have all the mark, or superficial cavity, when first cut ; this how- ever disappears in the teeth of the lower jaw, in the middle nippers, in ten months; in the next pair at one year ; in the corner teeth at from fif teen months to two years. The milk teeth give place to the permanent set as fol- lows : the middle nippers at two and a half to three year^ the next pair at three and a half to four years, the corner teeth at four and a half to five years, — these periods may by hastened three or four months by pulling or knocking out the milk teeth. At Jive yearsy the corners are up even with the othei teeth, the mark is entirely worn out from the middle nip- pers, and partly worn from the next pair (fig. 4) Fia. 7 THE AGE, 119 At six years^ tlie mark is almost gone from the second pair, and the outer edge of tlie corner teeth is worn dowi^. At seven years^ the mark is entirely gone from the second pair, the edges of the corner teeth are worn somewhat flat; though there is still a slight cavity in the centre. At eight years^ the teeth of the lower jaw are worn en- tirely flat, the mark having disappeared from all of them. The form of the surface of the tooth has become oval, and the central enamel is long from side to side, and is near to the front of the tooth. At nine years, the middle nippers are rounded on the inner side, the oval of the second pair and of the corner teeth becomes broader, the central enamel is nearer to the inner side, and the marks have disappeared from the teeth of the upper jaw (fig. 5). At ten years, the second pair are rounded on the inner side, and the central enamel is very near to the inner sida At eleven years, the corner teeth are rounded, and th^ central enamel becomes very narrow. At twelve years, the nippers are all rounded, and the cen- tral enamel has entirely disappeared from the lower jaw, but it may still be seen in the upper jaw. At thirteen years, the middle nippers commence to assume a triangular form in the lower jaw, and the central enamel has entirely disappeared from the corner teeth of the up* per jaw. At fourteen years, the middle nippers have become trian^ gular, and the second pair are assuming that form. The central enamel has diminished in the middle nippers of the upper jaw. At fifteen years, the second pair have become triangular ; the central emamel is still visible in the upper jaw. At sixteen years^ all of the teeth in the lower jaw havo 120 flow TO BUY A HOESE. become triangular, and the central enamel is entirely re- moved from the second pair in the upper jaw. At seventeen years, the sides of the triangle of the middle nippers are all of the same length ; the central enamel has entirely disappeared from the upper teeth. At eighteen years the sides of the triangle of the middle iiijr»pers are longer at the sides of the teeth than in front. At nineteen years, the middle nippers become flattened from side to side, and long from front to rear. At iweray years, the second pair assume the same form. At twenty-one years, all of the teeth of the lower jaw have become flattened from side to side, their greatest dixuneter being exactly the reverse of what it was in youtk CHAPTER X. HOW TO FEED A HORSE. < NSEQUENCES OP IMPUOPER FEEDING— DIFFERENT FOOD FOR DIFFEREiTt CONDITIONS — FOOD FOR THE BROOD-MARE — FOR THE FOAL — FOR WORKDffl HORSES — GREEN FOOD — CARROTS— CORN — FEEDING HORSES IN TRAINING— WHILE TRAVELLING — SUMMERING HORSES: THE BEST METHOD— MAN AG* ArFNT OF OMNIBUS HORSES LS NEW YORK. To those who are really acquainted with the horse and ac- customed to his use, it is well known that, at the least, one-hali of his availability for work, of his fitness for its perform- ance, of his endurance through a period of years, his health, his beauty and his value, depends on the quality and quantity of his food and the manner of his feeding. At least one-half of the diseases to which he is liable are di« rectly ascribable to bad food, or good food badly adminis- tered ; to insufficient food or to over-feeding ; to want of judgment in feeding when no food should be given, or in giving what would be the best at one time, at another time when it is the worst. Bad stabling, bad grooming and bad clothing are nearly as bad in their results; but it may be safely said that the bane of most horses and the shame of most stables, is bad feeding; and that, too, when no expense is spared by the owner in providing for the best and where nothing is wanting but a clear understand ing of what ought to be done and what left undone, in the way of feeding, joined to a system by which the groom, or whosoever has the duty of attending the animal to per- form, shall be compelled or induced implicitly to obey orders, if he break owners. The system of feeding horses is diverse and complex ; it cannot be presented once for all, or laid down on a set [121] 122 HOW TO PEED A HORSE. formula, for it must constantly vary with the various qual- ities of horses ; the various conditions to which every in- dividual horse is liable; the various kinds of work to which he is applied, and the various circumstances under which he may be required to do his work. Thus, the food of a race-horse or a match-trotter will and should differ essentially from that of a carriage-horse, a road-hackney, or a riding-horse ; wlule the food of these again, as also their stabling and grooming, will and should differ materially from those of a team-horse, or a slow- working farm-horse. Again, the food of a gentleman's show carriage-horses, or roadsters, which are only called upon to do a few hours light work on four or five days in the week, and which stand idle in their stalls half the time, yet are always required to show well in their coats, and ex- ecute well as regards wind and speed, will and should differ materially from that of horses of the same class, iv che hands of another owner who drives or rides his an? mals over twenty, thirty or forty miles every day, with now and then, only, a day of rest, and who expects to have them looking well, working well, in good heart and in good condition all the time. Lastly, the food of all horses must vary and differ from time to time, according to their age, the seasons of the year, their exact state of health at the time, and the nature of the work they are doing or will shortly be called upon to do ; and, still more than all, must vary and difi^r, as they may be standing in their own comfortable stables, oi travelling on the road in the performance of a journey, under unusual hardship and fatigue. In the first place, however, to begin from the beginning-, the system of a horse's feeding, as well as of his grooming and stabling commences, — and if it be intended that he ehall be a valuable and superior animal, must neeas com* HOW TO FEED A lEOBdE. 123 mence, before lie is born. If his dam, wliile pregaant ol him, be over\7orked, be under-fed, be neglected, and kept cold or iiltliy, or allowed to pick up her own subsistanca as she may on open fields or commons, the foal must be a a starveling ; and, ten to one, will never attain its full size, or the full possession of its powers. If to neglect be* fore its birth be added neglect of the dam and young crea- ture, both, during its minority ; if they be exposed to cold, to rain, snow, heat, in a word, to the weather and its chan- ges, generally ; if they receive no food, — the dam, but what she can gather from the pasture, and the foal, but the thin and unprofitable milk which the dam can produce from such sustenance, — if they have no comfortable, airy shed ^o protect them from the scorching suns of summer, no warm stable to shield them from the nipping cold of au- tumnal nights, the foal will be, from the first to the last, but a wretched, stunted, starveling creature ; and wiD never repay the breeder the expense or pains of rearing him. According to the nature, quality and blood of the foal, BO should the mare, before and after parturition, and tho foal, from the time of its birth, be nurtured, housed and fed. It is not of course to be expected that a cart-mare, in foal to a cart-stallion, a Norman, Canadian, or Cleveland, or Clydesdale, the produce of which expects only to be a cart-horse of improved degree, or, at the best, a heavy carriage-horse, should receive the pains, and have the ex- pense lavished ol ner which would be expended on a thorough-bred mare, having the blood of twenty genera- tions in her veins, and stinted to a horse inheritor of all the glories of the turf, to the days of its first and noblest champions. Still, it is a truth, that if it be w orth the whiJa to breed a beast at all, it is worth the while to breed a good beast, — nay I but the very best beast, if one can, of the 124 HOW TO FEED A HOBSK. race oi family to which he belongs ; and this cannot be done unless both the dam, before parturition, and the dam and foal together, after the birth of the latter, be so supplied with food, warmth, and shelter, as to allow the little animal an ample fund whence to draw his bone, his muscles, the development of his size and his blood, and, in a word, suf- ficient nutriment for the production of all those qualities which one would desire him to possess when he shall have attained his maturity. Mares and foals should, then, always be supplied, in their summer pastures, with a good, cool, airy shed, for shelter against the sun, or rain ; in their winter quarters, with a close, warm, but thoroughly clean and ventilated stable. They should have abundance of good, rich, suc- culent food of the best quality ; especially the dam, before the birth of the foal, and during the time while she is suckling it. It is not necessary, but it is desirable^ that she should have oats or corn : where it is a thorough-bred mare in foal to a thorough-bred, and expected to produce a racer, she should be cared for almost as if she herself were in work, and should have, at least, her two feeds daily, before par- turition ; and, after the birth and in the early days of nurs- ing, two good mashes of steamed oats and bran, given moderately warm, in addition to her pasturage. As the foal gains age, she should have her oats regularly, and the young thing should be encouraged to eat of oats, likewise, as early as possible. He will soon take to it, and a quart or two per diem, increased to a full peck during the first year, and to two pecks, added to his pasturage in summer, fcnd his hay. chopped straw, or feed in winter, in his sec- ond year, will amply repay the owner in the quality of hone and muscle which the animal will form, and in th« increased size, beauty and stamina, which will be his char- acteristics when he is growing toward maturity. It L<» not HOW TO FEED A HORSE. 125 loo much to say, that a foal, treated thus, will be, at two years old, the equal of any three year old, allowed to take his chance, without any food but that furnished by hi? dam from her ordinary commons, or picked up by himself, in his summer pasture or winter straw yard. Scarcely inferior should be the pains taken with a good half-bred mare, or Canadian, or Norman, in foal to a thor- ough-bred, and expected to produce an offspring of supe- rior character, as a trotter, a carriage-horse, or a roadster ; and we should clearly and decidedly recommend the giv- ing of oats, in small quantities, to both the parent and the young of this second description. Where ordinary horses are concerned it must be a ques- tion, in the main, of dollars and cents ; for it is clear that, H a man be breeding from such parents, and under such cir- cumstances that he only expects to realize a hundred dollars, more or less, for his colt or filly, at three years old, there will not be much margin for superfluous expenditures, in the way of early feed or nurture. Still, it is certain that every dollar laid out on the pregnant mare, and on the nursing mare and her foal, will return tenfold to the breeder, in the real goodness of the animal. We do not believe that it is ever worth the while to breed inferior or second-rate animals of any kind ; but that, whatever the kind be, it is the most profitable to breed the best of that kind, and so to keep and care for it, that the creature, when bred, shall attain its perfect standard an(] full development, and be, in itself, the best attainable speci- men and standard of its kind. This cannot be done, whether the animal is to be an Eclipse, a Flora Temple, a clever roadster, a noble express teamster, a showy carriage-horse, an officer's charger, or a first-rate farm animal, unless it be well-fed and well cared for while it is growing. 126 HOW TO FEED A HOESB. !N'ow, to come to working-horses, we would saj' , in the first plax3e, that as a general rule, especiaUj for fest-work- ing liorses. a great deal too mucli hay and too little grain, comparatively, and, indeed, too much of both is ordinarily given. For a gentleman's carriage-horses, or roadsters, at ordinary work, in their own stables, eight pounds, and from that up to ten, of the very best, richest and most succulent hay is amply sufl&cient, with twelve quarts of good heavy oats, as a daily allowance. They should be fed with a lock of hay and half a pail of water, the first thing in the morning, on opening the stable ; and when the stables have been aired, cleaned and littered, should have, after being thoroughly groomed, their other half-pail of water, and — if they be not going out — ^four quarts of oats ; and when they have eaten these they may have about four or five pounds of hay in their racks, and be left dark and quiet. If they be going out early, they should have six quarts of oats at their morning feed, and no hay. K they be standing in the stable, and not to be put to work until afternoon, they should be again watered, and have four quarts more at noon ; and when they return at night, should be cleaned, watered, fed with oats, and have the remainder of their hay in their racks at night. This will be found amply sufficient to keep horses in good working condition, when no extraordinary labor — that is to Bay, not to exceed from ten to twenty miles per diem— Is expected of them, and neither extraordinary turns of speed nor feats of endurance. Half a bushel of nicely- washed carrots, given, a few at a time, every week, will be found to improve the coat, to be particularly beneficial to the Btomach and wind, and to be very grateful to the animal ; and, in weather and in places where thev can be easHy provided, a few handfuls of green meat, clover, fine mead HOW TO FEED A HOBSBL 127 ow grass, or maize, — ^long stalks and leaves, sown broad- cast and cut joung, will cool the blood, give a kinllj al« terative to the system, keep the bowels moderately open, and please the appetite of the animal. They should not, however, be given too freely, when the horse is at hard work, as they wil], perhaps, produce laxity and scouring. It is a good plan to give a good mash of stewed bran and oats once a week. Saturday evening — ^if Sunday be, as it often is, and always, except in cases of emergency, should be, a day of rest — is often and appropriately set apart for this purpose. After an unusually hard day's work, such a mash is always both useful and grateful to the beast ; and where there is much fatigue and exhaustion, a quart of ale may be added to the mash with advantage. Nitre and drugs of all kinds should be studiously avoided, and never wsed except when prescribed as medicine. New corn should never be used as horse feed. It is emphatically danger- ous ; is heating, apt to swell and produce obstruction of the bowels, and to cause colic and even acute inflammation. Old corn may be given, but sparingly and cautiously, and never in a greater ratio than two quarts where you would give three of oats. Horses should never be fed within ai^ hour before being put to work, and then should be worked slowly until the bowels are fully evacuated ; nor within two hours, if it can be avoided, should they have to per- form sharp work. More horses have their winds broken by being worked quick and hard, with their bellies dis- tended with hay, grain and water, than from all other causes combined; and more are foundered from being over-fed while hot, exhausted, and in a state of quasi col- lapse ; and are exposed to colic and acute inflammation of tne bowels, from being freely watered and subjected to drafts of cold air, showers of rain, or being injudiciously bathed or washed, after sharp work, when their stomachs 128 HOW TO FEED A HORSE. are empty, and themselves craving a good dressing and a warm mash, than one would readily imagine. The faster and severer the work which a horse is ex- pected to perform, the sounder, more nutritious and more abundant should be his food. His oats should be increased and his hay diminished. For a fast trotter, in constant work, and expected to perform considerable distances in good time, six pounds of hay will be amply sufficient — since dry hay, indisputably, is injurious to the wind ; but ihe oats may be increased to fourteen, or sixteen quarts, or, in fact, to as much as the animal will eat. The same may be said of a hunter, of a gentleman's roadster (when the master is in the habit of calling on him to do long distances regularly, at a good rate of speed) and, in sliort, of all horses, which it is more or less necessary to force, to keep in an unnatural state, for the performance of un- natural feats. The training of racers and trotters is so distinctly a science, apart and of itself, and is one limited to so small a class of persons, comparatively speaking, and consequently possessed of so little general interest, that it will not be worth the while to speak of it in detail at pres- ent. It consists, of course, in getting the horse for a short time, into the highest possible state of condition; hardness of flesh, excitement of spirits, bloom of coat, speed of foot and depth of wind, which is effected by com- bining the most nutritious and stimulating system of feed ing with such constant and severe exercise, and such medical treatment as, while exciting and raising every power oi the animal to the utmost, prevents surfeit, prevents fever, and, for the time, preserves an equilibrium, which, how- ever, at best, is only temporary, and cannot possibly be prolonged ad infinitum, A horse could no more be kept always in full training than he could always be ridden at ftill gallop. It is an abnormal condition; andjWhOe it HOW TO FEED A HORSE. 129 develops thdi nitmost powers of the creature, requires iha greatest skill and the most constant attention on the part of the person who undertakes to produce it Even with horses in full training, or in that half training which is necessarily aimed at by those who keep pleasure horses for fast, continual and long protracted work, the oc- casional exhibition of carrots and green meat, in small quantities, is of great advantage. It prevents the animals from becoming hide-bound, it keeps their blood cool, and it affords an agreeable change to their over-stimulated ap- petites, often partially fevered from excess of grain feeding. Mashes are also highly valuable ; and it is always desirable to give them, after hard work, and when too hard work ia not likely to ensue on the following day. Moistening the hay and oats is not a bad practice, and is especially bene- ficial to the wind. A small quantity of salt may be occa- sionally given to advantage in the oats ; horses are fond of it, and will often take their feed greedily if a little is inter- mixed with it, when they would otherwise refuse it alto- gether. Nitre should never be given in the food, though bad grooms are extremely fond of using it, as a nostrum for the production of fine coats. It is a severe diuretic, and injuriously drains the stamina and strength of any horse to which it is supplied as an article of food or a con- diment^ although it is valuable as a medicine. It rests only to say, that water, although it should never oe given to a horse in large quantities shortly before being put to work ; or at all, on his coming off work, while hot; still less, while jaded or exhausted, — should be ordinariij furnished to him often, and in abundance. Not so much in large draughts at a time, which improperly distend tho stomach, as in small quantities, at frequently-recurring in- tervals. Many persons advocate the plan of keeping water coDstantly within reach of the horse, on the ground that ha 6* 130 HOW TO FEED A HORSE. Rctually drinks less, on the whole, when he has it ever W tore him ; and that from never becoming intensely thirsty, he is never tempted to drink to excess ; and the argument is certainly good. The difficulty lies in this, that the horse is particularly delicate about what he drinks, and cannot en- dare tepid, stale, or impure water; and that, if water be supplied constantly, in the stable, with ninety-nine grooma out of a hundred, it will be allowed to stand in the vessel, week in and week out, occasionally filled up, bul never drawn off or thoroughly cleansed until it is full of impurities of all kinds impregnated with ammonia from the atmosphere, and alike unfit and unwholesome for the animal to drink. When metallic mangers can be contrived, having a sup- ply pipe feeding them with constantly running, aSrated water, and an escape pipe, which, while they shall be constantly full, shall never allow them to overflow, no plan can be adopted equal to this — as the water, beside supplying the animals with their beverage, will have an admirable effect in purifying, and cooling the heated at- mosphere of the stables ; but, otherwise, it will be hardly practicable, or desirable, to keep water constantly before horses in their stalls or boxes. When horses are working on the road, they should be watered, cleaned and fed, very early, at least two hours before it is intended to start them; they should have merely a lock of hay, to play with, while being dressed, and should be then fed with full six quarts of oats. If they be, at all, delicate feeders, it will often succeed to offer them two quarts at a time, and, when that is finished, to refill the mangers. Sometimes, by partially harness- ing a horse, particularly if he be a cunning old stager, he will be inclined to go to work as hard at his feed as he can, for fear of losing what is set before him. For the HOW TO FEED A HORSE, 13*1 drsl six or eight miles tlie horse should be driven gently, ttntii lie has unloaded his bowels, when his pace may be increased, until he be within a few miles' distance of hi* mid-day halting and feeding-place, when he should be palled up, so as to allow him to come in cool. Horses should be watered often, when at work, say once in every eight or ten miles ; but from a few swallows to the extent of half a bucket, at the most, is sufficient. This will not hurt :hem, even if they be hot, provided they be not exhausted, and provided they be kept standing but a little while, and be instantly put to their work, again, at a moderate pace. [t is an excellant jDlan to accustom them to drink water, with a few handfuls of Indian meal, and a little salt stirred into it, as this not only prevents the possibility of a chill, but affords, in some degree, the support of a solid meal. Some horses will drink ale or poiter, freely ; all torses may be taught to do so, by sweetening it with brown sugar. It is a very useful and desirable quality, in a horse. It is astonishing how much an exhausted animal is sometimes reinvigorated, on a hot day, by a draught of ale, and if he will — as we have seen many do — eat a rye loaf cut in pieces and steeped in ale or porter, it will do him more good than six quarts of oats. The mid-day halt of a horse should be long enough to allow of his being thoroughly rested and cleaned, before being fed ; he should have, as before, a lock of hay to play with, while cleaning ; be watered sparingly, and then be fed with four quarts, and have the rest of his water shortly before starting. In travelling a journey, it is desirable to start as early as possible in the morning, and to accomplish the most of the days' jouniey before halting to bait. In summer one would start at four o'clock, travel till ten or eleven, halt wad bait until five, and drive on until nine or ten; at 132 HOW TO FEED A HORSK, this rate oue will do his fifty miles for a few days, or hia forty, day in and day out, for a month — as the writer has done more than once, without trouble or distress to hia team. On getting to the journey's end, at night, if very much exhausted, the horses should be plentifully supplied, as quickly as they can have it, with tepid gruel, if they will drink it, — the thicker the better; they should be walked about until cool, be thoroughly cleaned, having a bit of hay to amuse themselves with, nicely clothed, and their Icga bandaged. Then they should have half a pail of water, and six quarts of oats ; and, after giving them the second half pail, their racks should be furnished with six or eight pounds of good hay, and they should be left for the night. Give them good beds, and they will be as fresh as birds, and ready for any work they may be required to perform, to-morrow. Far otherwise, if you feed them lightly, at night and in the morning, and stop them twice, or more during their working hours, to fill their bellies with a mass of hay and oats, and then work them, with their stomachs distended, and their bowels stuffed with cride or undigested food, from which they have derived no real nutriment. With regard to mere farm-horses, it is, usually, the habit to feed them entirely on hay, or cut straw, with now and then a mash, giving them little, or no oats, or corn. It is certain, however, that this is a mistake. That the value of the work which the horse can do, and of the horse himself, arising from his improved condition and increased endurance, will be materially raised, while the actual cost of his keep will not be very materially increased by the diminution of the quantity of the cheaper and less nutri- tious food given to him, and the addition of a smaller or larger portion of the more nutritive grain, which furnished HOW TO FEED A HORSE, 133 Stamina and streDgth, in a degree greatly in excess of ita own increased value, may be assumed as facts. Slow working horses do not, of course, require so much nutriment of a higli quality, as those which are called on to do quick work and perform long distances ; but, as a rule, all animals, which have to do hard work, and much of it, must necessarily be so kept as to have hard flesh ; and they cannot be so kept, unless they are fed on hard grain. There is, perhaps, under the head of feeding, one more point, which should be considered. It is that of summer- ing horses, which have been kept up at hard work, in hot stables and on highly stimulating food, for a year or more ; and whose feet and legs have become stale, and their whole systems more or less fevered, so that it is desirable to alter their mode of life, for a time ; to give them more air, cooler lodgings, and a more natural and less exciting diet. It was, formerly, usual to prepare such horses for grass, by three regular doses of medicine, and then to turn them out, upon some grass land, to fare as they might best, until the summer time should be over, when they are to be taken up again, physiced, as before, and got gradually into condition, by feeding and exercise — a process which could not, with the very best grooms, be accomplished under three or four months, perhaps not in double the time. The objections to this plan are, first, the length of time, which is required before the horse, which has by thif system been thrown wholly out of condition, can be re- cuperated. Secondly, the great probability of his coming up lame from galloping, gambolling and skylarking with his co-mates, on the pastures, which under our American suns] line are usually burned as hard and nearly as brown as a turnpike road in July. Thirdly, the poorness and innutriciou s quality of the arid dried up grass at this period tH HOW TC FEED A HORSA. Fourthly, the want of shade and shelter on most horse pastures. Fifthly, the plague of flies and mosquitoes, which are almost sufficient to torture a thin-skinned ani- mal out of his life ; and sixthly and lastly, the result of the whole is. ^ine times out of ten, that the animal comes up poorer than he was when he went out, sun-bleached, thin, and dry in his coat ; his hair staring : his ribs bare ; in all respects a failure, unimproved if not actually deteri» orated by his summer's run at grass. For this, it has been lately attempted, we may say now established, with perfect success, to keep the horse par- tially up, in a large, loose box, if possible, adjoining and opening to a soft, moist, well-sheltered paddock ; to take off his shoes, stuff his feet with a cooling paste of tar, tallow, clay, and cow-dung ; to reduce his system, by ad- ministering two or three mild doses of medicine, not to exceed four drachms each of Barbadoes aloes, the anima having been well prepared for them by assiduous mashing and then to feed him regularly and plentifully with rich, moist, succulent, green meat, cut for him fresh every day not forgetting a dessert of carrots, and a standing dish of at least six quarts of oats per diem, administered at two feeds. K the horse have the advantage of a good jiad- dock, wherein he can run, he will not so much need other exercise; but, at all events, he will be better for being walked out, or trotted gently, daily, on soft ground. If there be no paddock or natural exercising ground, the walking exercise will be absolutely necessary, and it may be extended advantageously to four hours a day, in two instalments of two hours each, during one of which he should be walked only, and in the other trotted to a little livelier and faster motion. The advantage of this method is manifold. The animal is not so wholly depleted and reduced ; he is not exposed HOW TO FEED A HOKSE. 135 to hot runs, wet nights, or extraordinary changes of tem- perature* he is not tormented by flies; he has no oppor- tunity of galloping his flesh off his bones, or battering hia feet to pieces, on the hard ground. In short, he has all the advantages and none of the drawbacks arising from a run at grass; and, when the time comes when he is again to be brought into condition, it can be done gradu- ally and almost imperceptibly by continually decreasing the supply of green meat, and increasing that of grain, while adding more exercise, putting on more clothing, and keeping the stable warmer, until the animal is brought back into perfect condition. THE MANAGEMENT OP OMNIBUS HORSES IN NEW YORK CITY. There is no place in this country where so many horseg are kept at regular work, and under circumstances which will admit of systematic feeding and management, or where so good an opportunity for valuable experimenting is afforded, as in the Omnibus and Railroad stables of Ne\i York city. At the request of the Farmers' Club of the American Institute, one of its members made a careful examination of the practice in these stables, the result of which exam- ination is given below.* There is no farmer who keeps a horse who will not be well repaid for a close study of this paper, in which he will doubtless find reasons for modifying his own practice, and making it to conform more or less to this system, which, as its result shows (these horses being notoriously in good condition, considering the severe labor which they often perform), is the best for horses performing hard work at a moderate pace. • Transftctions of the American Institute for 1856, p. 46A. 136 HOW TO FEED A HOBSK. "OTAOB LINE3. i ^ : ~ : ^ if Il 1^ si is 1!- : : if : tr !i if Red Bird Stage line, - - 116 17 14 18 U 3J Spring St. do - - - 105 21 14 20 4 3J Seventh Av. do - - - 227 22 10 18i 1 2i Sixth Av. Rail- ) Horses - road, \ Mules - - 117 17 10 14 2 ..•. 211 17 10 7 2 .». N. Y. Consol'd. Stage Co. 335 1\\ 8 17 2.9 2i Wash'n Stables, 6 livery horses - - - «.. .... 12 n* .... ».. "It is tlie object of tTie stage proprietors to get all the work out of their teams possible, without injury to the animals. Where the routes are shorter, the horses conse- quently make more trips, so that the different amounts and proportions of food consumed are not so apparent when the comparison is made between the different lines, as when it is made also with the railroad and livery horses. The stage horses consume most, and the livery horses least. " The stage horses are fed on cut hay and corn meal wet, and mixed in the proportion of about one lb. of hay to two lbs. of meal, a ratio adopted rather for mechanical than phy Biological reasons, as this is all the meal that can be made to adhere to the hay. The animals eat this mixture from a deep manger. The New York Consolidated Stage Com- pany use a very small quantity of salt. They think it causes horses to urinate too freely. They find horses do not eat so much when worked too hard. The large horsea eat more than the small ones. Prefer a horse of 1,000 to 1,100 pounds weight. If too small, they get poor, and cannot draw a stage ; if too large, they ruin their feet, and their shoulders grow stiff and shrink. The principal 9 And 6 quarts oats at nooa. HOW TO PEED A HOBSE. 137 objection to large horses is not so much the increased amount of food required, as the fact that they are soon used up bj wear. They would prefer for feed a mixture of hall corn and half oats, if it were not more expensive. Horses do not keep fat so well on oats alone, if at hard labor, as on corn meal, or a mixture of the two. " Straw is best for bedding. If salt haj is used, horses eat it, as not more than a bag of 200 pounds of salt is used in three months. Glauber salt is allowed occasionally as a laxative in the spring of the year, and the animals eat it voraciously. If corn is too new, it is mixed with an equal weight of rye bran, which prevents scouring. Jersey yel- low corn is best, and horses like it best. The hay is all cut, mixed with meal, and fed moist. No difference is made between day and night work. The travel is contin. uous, except in warm weather, when it is sometimes divided, and an interval of rest allowed. In cold weather the horses are watered four times a day in the stable, and not at all on the road. In warm weather, four times a day in the stables, and are allowed a sip on the middle of the route. " The amount that the company exact from each horse is all that he can do. In the worst of the traveling they fed 450 bags per week of meal, of 100 pounds each. They now feed 400. The horses are not allowed to drink when warm. If allowed to do so, it founders them. In warm weather a bed of saw -dust is prepared for them to roll in. Number Ot horses, 835. Speed varies, but is about four miles aa hour. Horses eat more in cold weather than in warm, but the difference cannot be exactly determined." From this Eeport we deduce the following hints : 1. It IS possible for horses to be kept in good condition, on severe work, when fed on cut hay and corn meal, with- out oats. 138 HOW TO FEED A HORSE. 2. An aimixture of oats in the feed would be ad van tageous, when economy is not very closely studied : pro- bably it is always better to use them in the country, wliera horses are expected to last longer than on hard pavements. 3. Ten pounds of hay per day is a sufficient allowance ?ven for working-horses. i. Bye bran, mixed with the food, will prevent soooiing CHAPTER XI. now TO STABLE A_ND GROOM A HORSE. fKBQUIBITBB OF A GOOD STABLB— THE ECONOMY 07 PROPER ARRAKOElCarTS — VENTIiATION- -GROOinNGh—ITS NTiCESSITY FOR ALL DESOBIPTIONS 01 HORSES— HOW PERFORMED — CLOTHING — TREATMENT OP THB HOSSB WB£1I BROUGHT IN FROM WORK. Wb now propose to give a few brief and comprehensive rules as to the mode of stabling and grooming a horse, premising, always, that both these important branches of horse economy are, for the most part, utterly misunder- Biood and neglected in tlie United States, and that, where they are so, it is utterly impossible that the animals can be in a state of health, and comfort to themselves, or in a con* dition to do good service to their owners. In a climate so uncertain, changeful, and in which the extremes of heat and cold ]ie so far apart as in this coun- try, the question of stabling is one of paramount im- portance. The stable, to be of real utility, must be per- fectly cool, airy, and pervious to the atmosphere in summer ; perfectly close, warm, and free from all drafts of external air, except in so far as shall be needed for ven- tilation, in winter ; perfectly ventilated, so as to be pure, and free from ill odors, ammoniacal vapors and the like, arising from the urine and excrement of the animals at all times ; perfectly dry under foot and well drained, since nothing is more injurious to the horse than to stand up to his heels in wet litter, decomposed vegetable matter, hia own ordure, and slops of all kinds ; and more than one acute and dangerous disease, — of which we shall only here epeeify the '^scratches," as it is commonly termed in America, (139) 140 HOW TO STABLE or "grease," as one of the most baneful, aa it is the most disgraceful to the groom and stable-master, — has its oiigin. Lastly, it should be perfectly well lighted, as well as thor- oughly aired, since it is not only cruel to animals, which are of a gay, cheerful and sociable nature, to keep them constantly in the dark, and not only depresses their spir- its, and thus injures their animal health, but it is a frequent cause of blindness. To keep an animal continually in al- most total darkness, as is the case in many city stables and in most country farming stables, occasionally bringing him out to do his work, with no protection to his eyes, in the full glare and blaze of an American summer or winter, sunlight, must naturally and necessarily tend to produce blindness. It is not too much to say that, on nine-tenths of the farm- steads of America, excepting always those of a few model farms, and what may be called show agricultural establish- ments, the property of wealthy amateurs, the stables are a disgrace to common sense and common humanity ; and for the most part are unfit to be used as pig-styes, much less for the dwelling of so noble, so intelligent, so cleanly an animal, and one so acutely sensitive to all impurities of air, food or water, as the horse. In the first place, a stable she uld never be under ground, wholly or in part; in the second, it should be, invariably, underdrained, with a sufl&cient fall to the drains, and with a grating, or perforated slate or flag-stone in the middle ol each stall, to which the floor, of whatever substance it is composed, should descend on all sides, with a grade not to fxceed an inch to the yard. The expense of this work may seem, to an unthrifty and thoughtless farmer, useless and su- pererogatory; but, supposing him to work three cr more horses of the first cost value of $100 to $150 each, and sup- posing that these horses last him twice as long, are not half LNjy GROOM A HORSE, 141 BO often ailing, and do him twice as mucli good work while the J do last, — as it is undoubtedly the case that they will do, in wholesome and well-constructed stables. -he will easily find, at the end of fifteen or twenty years, that by the first outlay of a couple of hundred dollars at the outside, in making his stable dry, airy, warm and light, he will have economized many hundreds, if not many thousands. And this will easily appear from a very slight calculation of the losses which will arise from the deterioration of his farm stock, their falling lame, requiring farrier's advice, doing but half work half the time, and finally having to be rejected as useless, sold at half price and replaced at full price, after three or four years, by others which will unavoidably follow the same course ; whereas if properly lodged and cared for, the first animals, being sound and hearty at the commencement, might have done good slow farm-work for ten, twelve, or even fifteen years, as well as not ; and if mares, might have brought him half-a-dozen good serviceable colts, or fillies, which would owe much of their value to the state of their dam's health, arising from her food and stabling, without materially detracting from her service on the farm. The material of the stable floor should not be the natural soil, for that speedily be- comes saturated with moisture, and degenerates iLto a slough. It should not, we think, be of wood, for wood absorbs the urine, becomes impregnated with ammonia, and is heating to the feet. Yery hard beaten clay may an- Bwer, but a pavement of small cobble-stones, neatly laid, with such a fall as is mentioned, in clay and sand, or, what b better, of hard bricks laid in cement, and set edgewise, b the best stable floor with which we are acquainted. The stable should never be less than eight or nine, but had better be ten or twelve feet high from the floor to the rafters. The door should be so placed that when open, 142 HOW TO STABLE the air snail not blow full on tlie horses ; and it is well t< have it sawn in two halves, horizontally, in order to allow the upper lialf to stand open in summer, for the admission of fresh air. The windows whicli should be large as in a moderr dwelling-house, and as numerous in. proportion to the size of the room, should be opposite to one another, so as to allow a free draught of air in summer, but they should never open at the bottom nearer to the ground than at a full distance of six feet, so that the air may not blow on the horses, but circulate above their backs. The stalls should not be less than five, but had better be six feet wide, and nine feet deep ; and the stable should not be less than fifteen, or better, seventeen feet, from the head of the stall to the back wall. If hay rooms or feed rooms be placed above the stables, the roof should be of solid, permanent plank, well joined and under-ceiled, and with good trap- iloors to the apertures by which the hay is thrown into the iribs. Otherwise the ammoniacal vapors will certainly arise, taint the food, and render it unfit for eating. Lastly, the stables must be ventilated by a complete and permanent system, which, by the way, is neither diflicult nor expensive. This can be done in two ways,— either a eingle shaft, of a square of two feet on each side, may be carried up through the loft to the roof, made of well-jointed boards, and there fitted with a ventilator of the same size ; or, a central shaft equal in space to the square of twc feet, for every horse in the stable, may be carried up in the same manner, and fitted with a grand central ventilator, ol large dimensions, through which all the heated air will rise, while by the use either of Janes & Beebe's patent valves, or of some other suitable arrangement, no cold air can possi- bly descend. To this must be added a plan for the regular admission of cold air, at proper places, for the supply of r94l AND GROOM A HORSE. 14S the horses with a suitable quantity of fresh oxygenated air for the purposes of respiration. This is easily done and ai very small cost, while the stable is in process of erection* The best plan is to run either a tin tube, or a wooden box pipe, of the capacity of one square foot, through the whole length of the head wall at the height of the horses^ nostrils, say four feet from the ground, open to the exterior air at both ends, but protected from the entrance of vermin by a guard of coarse, open wire gauze. From this pipe, there should be bored diagonally upward, through the boarding of the stall, six auger holes, each of one square men space, into each stall. This will afibrd to each horse m ample supply of pure, fresh air, which, as it becomes heated and impure, will arise, pass off by the ventilator, and be succeeded by a constant stream of reinvigorating, vital atmosphere, preserving both the temperature and the odor of the stables even, agreeable and healthful, and adding more of life and health to each animal that one could im- agine possible, without an examination of the subject. The whole of this system of ventilation may be added to a new stable, or introduced into an o'^'i one remodelled, at a very small price. In fact, the paving, heightening, draining and adapting proper windows, doors and ventilators to an old stable, if so situated as to be capable of improvement, or the introducing all these as additions, into a new one, the site of which can be selected with a view to them, will not with reasonable economy, by any possibility exceed a couple of hundred dollars for a stable capable of containing from f<)ur to six horses : and undeniably, the owner of horses who will try it will find that, at the end of twenty years of horse-keeping, he will be an actual gainer of twenty times two hundred dollars. We will here add, that for country stables there is no better than a good, framed build- ing, rather loosely weather-boarded externally, lined ai 1^4 HOW TO STABLE the distance of nine incTies, or, better, one foot, with well grooved and tongued inch boards, or inch and a quarter planks, — having the intermediate space filled with tan bark. This will preserve an equal temperature through the whole year, and the stable will always be cool in summer and warm in winter. If external sliding shutters be appended to the windows, contrived to open and shut bj means of a cord and pulley, and if fly-nets of coarse gauze be added in summer, to exclude the winged pests, which are such tor- ments to horse-flesh, the expense will not be one of many dollars, and will add hundreds of dollars worth to the com- fort of the horses. We will only add that the new construo* tion of con Crete moulded walls is exct41ently well adapted foi country stables, and will, more easily than any other form, admit the introduction of air pipes, as described above. And now, the question of stabling disposed of, we pass to that of grooming and clothing, which is the next in im- portance, and scarcely secondary to those of food and sta- bling, as regards the health and comfort of the horse, and, what is the same thing, the true interest of his OAvner. Grooming. " Of this," says Mr. Youatt, '' much need not be said to the agriculturist ; since custom, and appar- ently without ill eftects, has allotted so little of the comb and brush to the farmer's horse. The animal that is worked all day and turned out at night, requires little more to be done to him than to have the dirt brushed off his limbs. Regular grooming, by rendering his skin more sensible to the alteration of temperature and the inclemency of the weather, would be prej udicial. The horse that is altogether turned out needs no grooming. The dandruff or scuri which accumulates at the roots of the hair, is a provision of nature to defend him from the wind and the cold. This, however, which may be true, and correct as of ihe horse which is turned out every night, during thff AND GROOM A HOBSK. 145 greater part of the year, and wHcli feeds only on grasai witli some slight addition of oats, and masLes, certainly is not applicable to the farm-horses of the United States ; which are, for the most part, if not altogether, stabled for the greater part of the year, or in winter, at least ; fed on artificial food ; kept warm, to a certain extent ; and which, of course, must be cleaned daily, especially after severe work, or exposure to wet, if they are to be kept in health and working condition. " It is to the stabled horse," Youatt continues, " highly fed, and little or irregularly worked, that grooming is of the highest consequence. Good rubbing with the brush, or the currycomb opens the pores of the skin, circulates the blood to the extremities of the body, produces free and healthy perspiration, and stands in the room of exer- cise. No horse will carry a fine coat, without either unnatural heat, or dressing. They both effect the same purpose, but the first does it at the expense of health, and strength ; while the second, at the same time that it pro- duces a glow on the skin, and a determination of the blood to it, rouses all the energies of the frame. It would be well for the proprietor of the horse if he were to insist, and to see that his orders are really obeyed, that the fine coat in which he, and his groom so much delight, is produced by honest rubbing, and not by a heated stable and thick clothing, and, most of all, not by stimulating, or injurious spices. The horse should be regularly dressed every day, in addition to the grooming that is necessary after work." It is true, in a measure, that the necessity of regular dressing, wisping, currying, brushing and, hard rubbing is far greater in the case of highly pampered horses, fed in the most stimulating manner, principally on grain, kept in hot stables, always a little above their work, and ready at 7 I'iQ HOW TO STABLE &}I times to jump out of their skins from the exuberance of their animal spirit ; jet it is necessary to all h Dused and Btabled horses ; and the farmer, no less than the owner of fast trotters, will find his advantage in having his horse curried and washed, before feeding in the morning, in the increased play of his spirit, and in the gayety and fitness of the animal for his work ; and if, when he brings him in at night, reeking with sweat, drenched with rain oi snow, his thighs and belly plastered with thick mud, and his legs covered, as cart-horses' legs mostly are, with thick hair, saturated with cold water and clogged with particles of mud and sand, he neglects to have him thoroughly cleaned, and made dry and comfortable for the night, he not only commits an act of gross cruelty, but wholly dis- regards his own interest. Unless a horse be cleaned and groomed when in such a condition, he cannot be kept in health ; and if he be fed freely when in such a state, — although the cart-horse is less liable to such ailments from his hardier habits and less impressive constitution, — the chances are that soon he will be attacked by inflammation of the bowels, or lungs, or with spasmodic colic — the race- horse, fast trotter, or highly bred and highly fed roadster would be so attacked, to a certainty — and the failure to dry and cleanse the legs of such a horse, especially if there be a draft of cold wind blowing upon the heels from a crevice under the stable door, as is generally the case in common farm stables, will be almost certainly succeeded hj that troublesome, dangerous and foul disease, known as "grease," or more commonly in America as "the scratches." It maybe well to say here, that the best average heat foi a gentleman's stable should be from 60, to not to exceed 65 degrees ; that the air should be perfectly dry ; for if there pe any moisture about the stables, it will hang about the AND GKOOM A HORSE. 147 horses in tlie sliape of a mist, and tlie animals, when thej^ are brought into the open air, although their skins will be as fine as can be imagined, will shiver as if thej had just made their exit fi:oin a warm bath. In stables such as this, a single good blanket, breast- plate and roller, will be a sufficient clothing, though a holland sheet, under the woollen rug, is very serviceable in keeping the skin smooth and the coat unruffled. A hood and cover should be added when the horse is taken out for slow exercise. It is common, in America, in winter, in unusually cold weather, where horses arc ex- pected to be driven fast, and to have to stand still, alter- nately, at shop doors or in visiting, to see them clothed, under their harness, in hoods and blankets. This plan can, evidently, do no good; the animal, while working last, is as much more heated by the covering, as he ia afterward more protected by it when standing still ; add to which, if the clothing be, as probably it will, saturated with perspiration while the animals are in motion, it will be frozen, or rendered entirely cold and clammy, so soon as the motion ceases; and will in that state affect the animals injuriously instead of beneficially ; just as it would affect a man, to wrap him up, when sweating profusely, in a heavy wet overcoat. If anything of this sort be re- quired, the only rational way is to have the rugs or blankets at hand, dry and warm, in the boot of the car- riage, and to throw them over the backs of the animals^ and buckle them across their chests, so soon as they are pulled up, removing them and restoring them to a dry place before again getting under way. Such is the rationale of out- door clothing. There is, however, no ob jection to the use of a water-proof covering over the loins of a horse, when he is taken out to be used through the whole of a cold, rainy or sleety day, particularly if it be 148 HOW TO STABLE at an even, slow pace, as is tlie case with carmen's horseSj in New York, which are often so equipped, Anothei excellent plan adopted bj these men, in summer, is the affixing an arched bow to the shafts of the cart, rising eighteen inches over the withers of the animal, from which an awning of duck is extended to a cross-yard, supported by an upright, at the front of the truck, affording a com- plete protection against the scorching sun, to the animal, and promoting a draft of air over his whole body, from the current caused by his mere motion through the at- mosphere ; which must be in the highest degree refresh- ing and delightful to the creature, during his day-long toil, in the dog days. But to return to the article of grooming. " When the weather will permit the horse," continues Mr. Youatt, "to be taken out, he should never be groomed in the stable, unless he be an animal of peculiar value, or placed for a time under peculiar circumstances. Without dwelling on the want of cleanliness, when the scurf and dust that are washed from the horse lodge in his manger, and mingle with his food, — experience teaches, that if the cold is not too great, the animal is braced and invigorated to a degree that cannot be attained in the stable, by being dressed in the open air. There is no necessity, however, for half the punishment which many a groom inflicts upon the horse in the act of dressing, and particularly on one whose skin is thin and sensitive. The currycomb should be, at all times, lightly applied. With many horses, its use may be almost dispensed with ; and even the brush need not be so hard, or the points of the bristles so irregular as they often are. A soft brush, with a little more weight of the hand, will be equally effectual, and a great deal more pleasant to the horse. A hair-cloth, while it will seldom irritate oi tease, will be almost sufficient with horses which hnvc a Uiin skin, and which have not l.- n r)ocr]po^oA After all AND GROOlf A liORSE. 149 it is no sliglit task to dress a horse, as it ought to be done, It occupies no little time, and demands considerable patience, as well as dexterity. It will be readily ascer- tained whether a horse has been well dressed, by rubbing him with one of the fingers. A greasy stain will detect the idleness of the groom. When, however, the horse is changing his coats, both the currycomb and the brush should be used as lightly as possible." In ordinary cleaning, in the morning, the head should be first dressed. The hair should be lifted, and deranged lightly, not stretched, or torn, with the currycomb, and then rubbed well, in all directions, both against and across the grain of the hair, as well as with it, until it is entirely clear from dust and dandruff. The ears should be gently pulled and stripped with the hand, from the roots to the ooints; and the whole head should then be washed smoothly and evenly, as the hair ought to lie. The neck, back, shoulders, loins, croup, and quarters, follow ; the same plan being used, except that, in dressing these parts, while the comb is used lightly and dexterously with one hand, the brush is employed in removing the scurf with the other. The flexures of the skin, at the insertion of the limbs, are parts which require especial care, as the dust is most api to collect in these places. This done, the horse must be thoroughly wisped, all over, with bunchea of dry straw, till his coat is quite clean and glossy, when it may be gone over, for the last time, with a fine, soil brush, or a light duster. His clothes may be then put on, and the legs cleaned in the same manner, and finished off by a car'^il hand rubbing. Flannel bandages, steeped in cold water, well wrung out, and applied loosely to the legs, and again corered by a tighter drawn linen bandage, are often of great advantage, after severe work, in keeping down and checking inflammation, as well as in fortifying and itrengthening the sinews, when in a sound state, and ir 150 now TO STABLE AND GROOM A H0B8K. remedying and alleviatiDg any slight slip, or casx^l strain The mode of dressing, when the horse is brought in, wet, weary, hot, dirty and exhausted, is nearly identical The ears ehould be first stripped and pulled, and the head made comfortable. The dry dirt should be scraped from the legs and belly. The legs should be plunged into tepid water, and have all the dirt washed carefully away ; they should be then carefully dry-rubbed with wisps of clean straw, and tightly swathed in flannel bandages, steeped in water as warm as the hand will bear. The whole neck and body should then — or, if there be sufiicient force of hands in the stable — at the same time while the legs are being arranged, be thoroughly rubbed, till perfectly clean, dry, and in a glow of vigorous animal heat, with straw wisps. After this they should be lightly curried, brushed, and arranged; and then, nor until then, the clothes may bo put on, the animal fed, his stall well bedded and littered down, and himself left to his repose, which, however hard his day's work may have been, will, if these precautions be taken, be both soft and light. This, in brief, is the whole theory of grooming. It re- quires care, dexterity, exactness, and honest application of work. It cannot be procured without some expense ; or relied on, without the active and intelligent supervision of the master ; but without it no stables can be in order, — no horses healthy, happy, or in condition for doing the work for the performance of which they are kept. As of feeding and stabling, it may be said of grooming, without fear of contradiction, that, for every dollar ex- pended, the horse-owner will receive in the results the recompense of, at least, a hundred; and that without attending to this essential branch of stable economy, he 2an never expect to be satisfied with, much less proud o£ the performances of his horses, and the state of his stables CHAPTER XII. HOW TO BBEAK AND USE A HORtiS. K'HAT 18 REQtTEED IN A WELL-BROKEN HORSE— HIS EDUOATIO* SHOULI OOMMENCK WHEN A COLT — BITTING — PUTTING HIM IN HARNESS — HOW TO USB A HORSE — TRAVELLING— WORKING — PLEASURE HORSES — PUNISHMENTS It is not too mucli to say, that not one horse in a hun- dred, if one in a thousand, in the United States, is ever properly broken ; or one in fift}^, when offered for sale as a finished horse, entered in the merest rudiments of his education. Horses in America, — we cannot say wherefore, but, perhaps, from the general absence of a very high de- gree of blood, from the general absence of extremely high and stimulating feeding and grooming, which not onl^ act directly on the individual horse, but exert an influence, increasing generation after generation, over the progeny )f horses long kept up in an unnatural condition, — are very rarely actively, and almost never savagely, vicious. Nothing more than this, as a general thing, is required. If a horse will carry his rider without kicking him over his head, or draw him in his wagon or buggy without kicking it to shivers ; if he will go off at a walk, increase his speed to the top of his gait, and stop again when pulled upon, without running away ; if he will hold back going down hill, and if ho will not balk going up hill; and more particularly, if he will stand at a door without tying, he is held tc be fully broken, and is willingly received, credited, and paid for as such. It is needless, however, to say to a real horseman, that Buch a horse is as far as possible from being broken at all, espocially fjom being well broken. To l»e really well brokeni C161] 152 HOW TO BREAK A HORSE. a horse must be so disciplined as to have apparently no will but bis rider's. He must have been so educated as to carry his body, lis head, all his limbs, in the easiest, the most graceful and the most accurate position. His neck must be like a steel bow, yielding to the pressure o£ the hand, but returning with the head to its natural position the moment that the pressure ceases. His mouth must be like velvet to the touch ; and if the animal at times pull or resist the pressure of the bit and the command of the rider's finger, it must be from exuberance of animal spirits and force of animal courage, not from hardness of mouth, as it is usually called, or in truth, from rigidity and intractability of the muscles of the jaw and neck — aa has been demonstrated by M. Baucher, the great French equestrian teacher. He must change his leg, alter his paces, moderate his paces, all at the will of his rider or driver, and must, in fact, be little or nothing more than a living and spirited automaton in his hands. The next question that arises is, how shall this be done ? Clearly, we answer, not by allowing the colt or filly to go wild and run riot, until it shall have attained its fuli strength, its full energies, and the full sway of its natural temper unconstrained, without making an effort to train, or teach, or even tame it, until it be two and a half or three years old, and then to take it up, saddle it and bridle it by force, and, putting it into the hands of some fearless, hard- hearted, mutton-fisted, rough-riding fellow, scarce less a brute, in all points of humanity, than that which he pro- fesses to teach, expect it to be turned out, by dint of whip and spurs, a gentle animal, rendered gentle by brute vio lence, and a well-instructed animal The education of a horse should commence when he is R colt. He should be handled frequently by different per HIS EDUCATION. ■ons, and should be made accustomed to whatever is likelj to attract his attention when he is put in harness. The more he is accustomed to straps the less likelj will he be to become frightened by accidental breaking of the har- ness, by the falling of a trace about his heels, or by having the reins thrown on his back by a careless dri/'jr i^oung horses, while mere foals nursing by tht-ir mothers* sides, should be accustomed to be fearless ; st/ould be ac- customed to feed from the hand, to suffer themselves to be handled, to have their feet lifted, and tapped with the hands or a hammer on the soles, to be led to and fro by the forelock, to endure the pressure of the hand on the back, to rejoice in being constantly flattered, caressed and spoken to ; nay, even to understand words of gentle re- proach. They should be very early equipped with a head- stall, having a ring appended to which a halter can be attached, and by these means they can be easily taught to follow at any pace the person leading them, walking, running or stopping as he may desire. Punishment at this period should never be resorted to, but rewards should be continually offered. Bits of bread, or carrots, should be carried in the pocket, and given to the little creature, with a caress, when it has done what is required of it. Soon after this a pad may be strapped on the back for a few hours daily ; and, after a time, stirrup-leathers, and then stirrups appended to it, and suffered to flap about, by which means all fear of such things will be removed long enough before it will become necessary to saddle him for any real purpose. When he is about a year old the coitus bita should be occasionally put in his mouth, and he should be reined up gently to his surcingle, and allowed to play with them or mouth them : and, after this, he may stand for an h jur or two between the pillars, with reins attached 7* 154 HOW TO BREAK A HOBSK. from the colt*s bit to rings placed at a proper height in the standards. But here it is necessary to observe, above almost any other thing in the world, that it is fatal to the formation of the animal's mouth to place the rings too high, or to bear up the head above its ordinary and natural ele- vation. This is a thing often done, with a vie-?? to giving a lofty carriage to the colt's head, and to produce a proud bearing. It does nothing of the kind. It causes the horse, weary with having its head forced into an unnatural position, to bear, to weigh, to hang upon the bits, — to be- come accustomed to their pressure, and to find pleasure instead of pain from it, so that, at the last, it acquires a mouth perfectly unimpressive, and muscles set and rigid. Shortly after this the colt should be longed, or worked in a circle, with a long cord attached to the breaking bits, in a smooth grass field ; by which means he is taught his paces, taught to regulate them, taught to moderate, to m crease or diminish his speed, to change his leg, to come toward the operator, or to stop dead short at a signal, either of the voice or of the crack of the whip. All this it requires only time, patience and good temper to effect ; and, when effected, half the business is done. The rest must be accomplished when the animal is backed. Experience, practice, patience, added to individual apti- tude, natural tact, and acquired skill and habit, are the only things by which a man may become a horse-breaker. No attempt should be made to put the colt to woik before he is three and a half to four years old, and it would be far better to exact no work, beyond what is necessary for gentle exercise, before he is six years old ; this, although not at first remunerative, is eminently so in the end, for the two years* loss in early life will generally add six to eight years to a horse's working time. If the colt has been treated as previously directed, there i IN HARNESS. 156 win be little difficulty in breaking bim to barness work. £t will be only necessary to put bim in by the side of aL old and steady horse, and light wagon without a load, and to handle him gently, until he is made to understand what is required of him. If he is a wild colt, whose whole life has been spent at ^•asture, or in the straw-yard, it becomes a more serious matter. He should be kept in the stable for a few days, visited and handled frequently, and gradually made ac- quainted with the harness, wearing it for a few hours at a time in his stall. He should next be taken into a large stable, or shed, or into a small yard, and made to advance, or turn to the right or to the left, as he is spoken to or guided by the reins. The trainer should use only the most gentle means, and should in no case allow himself to show the least impatience. Whatever he desires to have done should always be within the power of the horse to compre- hend, and then be strictly enforced, but always with perse- vering calmness. If it be necessary to whip the colt, it should be done thoroughly, and under such circumstances as will preclude the possibility of his resisting with any effect: for every compliance with our wishes he should be rewarded with caresses. If it is not convenient to put him by the side of a well- broken horse, as before directed, he may be brought out and have the wagon shown to him, being allowed to examine it with his nose until he has become familiar with every part of it, and until he can be led or backed toward it from any direction without fear. He should then be put into the shafts and securely attached, so that no straps can Btrike ugainst him ; he should then be made to advance, and the wagon pushed gently from behind, that he may not at first feel its weight. When he has in this way become ax> customed to its presence, the pushing from behind may b« 156 HOW TO BREAK A HORSK gradually lessened. It is a very good plan to set the wagon on ground which is slightly descending, so that it will nearly run from its own weight ; but the hill should not be steep enough to cause the wagon to run on to him. In this way any colt, not absolutely vicious — and very few, if any, are so until they have been badly treated— may be brought, by imperceptible degrees, to be a good harness horse, without in any way ruffling his temper, or giving him any disagreeable recollections which shall inter- fere with his future usefulness. This is properly training a horse, and it differs widely from the old method of breaking^ which was usually a struggle between the man and horse, to see whose will or neck should first be broken ; and which was sure, in nine cases out of ten, to produce a bad and lasting effect on the horse's disposition. The time to be occupied in the exercise of training will be long or short, in proportion to the skill of the trainer and the nature of the animal, but it can never be so long that it will not be a hundred times repaid in the docility and usefulness of the horse. Every part of the harness and wagon should be so strong and well made that there can be no possibility of breaking. When it is possible to do so, it is always best to put the young colt in double harness, by the side of a strong, steady, well-trained horse, until he is perfectly ^uiet, and will bear the whip and the rein well. Great ei docility, better subjection to the hand, and generally better style and action will be attainable, if the colt be thoroughly trained to the saddle before being put in harness; usually, however, hi this cour*ry, it :s v^ery difficult to find a proper person to train a coit in thig way, The same course of bitting should be resorted to as will be described for the preliminary training of the saddle borse. TWO CLASSES OF HORSED 167 HOW TO USE A HORSE. It is not, after all, every one who owns a horse thai Knows how to use him, whether for his own pleasure or the bora's, which is, in other words, the owner's best advan- tag/*. Nor is it very easy to lay down rules how a horse should be used, considering the many different purposes for which horses are kept, the different natures and consti- tutions of the animals, and the different circumstances of their owners. Horses may, in general, be divided into two classes, — those kept for work, and those kept for pleasure. In the former class may be included form-horses, stage, coach and omnibus horses, team-horses, employed in the transporta- tion of goods, and moving heavy and bulky masses, car men's horses, — and lastly, the road horses of all professional men, who, like lawyers, doctors of medicine, and the like, are compelled to drive or ride many hours 'per dierriy regu* larly, in the performance of their business. In the latter class may be included race-horses, match- trotters, private gentlemen's saddle-horses, carriage-horses, or roadsters, and many other animals belonging to businesa men, which being employed during half the time or more in actual service, are used during spare hours on the road for purposes of amusement. With regard to the first class of these horses, the exigen- cies of the business to which they are applied are, for the most part, such as to supersede and override all rules. In some cases the natural hours of the day and night have to be reversed, and the animals are called upon to do their work by night, and to rest and feed by day. Under these circumstances it may be laid down as an immutable law, that at whatever hour the horses are to be worked, they must have full time, beforehand, to digest their food and water j thej must be careftilly cleaned, and made comforts- I6b HOW TO USE A HOESK. ble^ thej must have sufficient intervals for halting and baiting, on the road, must be cleaned and well fed during ^he intervals of work, and must have ample time for undis- turbed repose. The distance which horses in perfect con- dition can go upon the road, varies greatly with the powers of the animal, the degree of pains bestowed on him, the skill of his driver, and the amount of his load, as well as the state of the roads. But it may be taken as a rule, that strong, able horses, of moderate speed, can travel forty mile& a day, with a moderate load, without distress, for manj days in succession. It may be observed, that it is the bet- ter way to start at an easy pace when on a journey, to in- crease it slightly in the middle of the day, and again to relax it before coming in at night, in order to allow the animals to enter their stables cool, in good order, and ready, after a short rest, and cleaning, to feed with an appetite. It may also be observed, in this point of view, that it is a mistake to fancy that horses are benefited by being driven or ridden very slowly when they have a long dis- tance to perform. If a horse have to get over forty miles in a day, the roads being good, tjie temperature of the day pleasant, and the load not excessive, he will do it with more ease and less inconvenience to himself, going at the rate of seven or eight miles the hour, and doing the whole dis- tance in five or six hours, — with a single stoppage, in the middle of the day, to feed and rest, — than if he be kept pottering along at the rate of four or five miles, and b<; kept out of his stable, hungry and thirsty, and leg- weary lo-boot, for a longer time. Farm-horses, whose work is necessarily slow and con tinuous, lasting ordinarily from sunrise to sunset, with the exception of a mid-day halt for baiting, are under different circumstances. Their work being always slow, and rarely, cf ever, severe, at t'l/ tioment^ or toilsome, except from it« PI.BASDKJ1. HORSES. 159 long duraticn, they need not be subject to the same condi- tion as fast-working "horses, of being fed long before they are pui to work ai-i allowed to evacuate their bowela choroughlj before being harnessed. They may, therefore, be fed and watered at the last moment, and put to slow woik immediately, and will rarely take harm from travelling on ftill stomachs. In the same manner, when they are loosed at noon-day, being rarely overheated, after a slight rest and a slighter rubbing down — which, by the way, they rarely receive — they may take their mid-day feed without delay, and without fear of evil consequences. In the liko manner may be treated carmen's horses, and team-horses, the lab()r of which is heavy and continuous rather than rapid. All horses, however, whatever the work to which they are applied, should have ample time to rest at night, and should be thoroughly rubbed down, dried, clothed and made comfortable, before feeding them and closing the stables for the night, — and the more so, the more trying the day's work. With regard to pleasure-horses, which are usually in the stables, more or less, twenty hours out of every twenty- four, which are only taken out for the gratification of the owner at such times as it suits his humor or necessity, they should never be taken out or driven fast on full stomachs; which can always be avoided by letting the groom know in case that they will be required at an unusual hour oi for unusual work — when he can adapt his feeding hours to the circumstances of the case. \VTi2n harnessed and ready for a start, the driver shculd mount his seat quietly, gather his reins, and get his horses finder way, slowly and gradually, by speaking or chirruping to them; never starting them with a jerk, or striking them with a whip, — allowing them to increase their pace by de> grees to the speed required, instead of forcing it on a sudden 160 HOW TO USE A HOBSK. It is far better f^r horses, to drive tliem steadily at a regular pace, even if it be ten or twelve miles an hour, than to send them along by fits and starts — now spinning them over the road at sixteen or eighteen miles, now plod- ding along at six or seven ; and of two pairs of horses, driven the same distance, after the two different methods, that which is driven evenly will, at the end of the day, be comparatively fresh and comfortable, while the other will be jaded and worn out. In regard to punishment, the less that is administered the better. A sluggish or lazy horse must, it is true, be kept up to his collar and made to do his share of the work, or the free-goer will be worn out before the day is half done ; and for this the whip must be occasionally used. Even good and free-going horses will occasionally be seized with fits of indolence, at moments, induced perhaps by the weather, and it may be necessary to stimulate them in such cases; again, at times when roads are bad, when time presses, and certain distances must be accomplished within certain times, recourse must be had to punishment ; as it must occasionally, also, in cases where the animals are vicious or refractory, and where the master must show him- self the master. Still, as a general rule, punishment should be the last resort. It should never be attempted with a tired, a jaded, or an exhausted horse ; for to apply it in Buch cases is utter barbarity ; little or no immediate ad- vantage is gained to the driver, while it may probablj" result in the loss of an excellent animal. It is common to nee horses punished for stumbling, punished for starting; and whenever a new horse, which one may chance to be trying, starts off into a gallop after committing either of these offences, one may be sure that he is an habitual startei or stumbler, and that he has frequently undergone chastise' ment for them, and undergone it in vain. It is altogethei DRIVING. 161 an error to punisli for either starting or stumbling ; the one is the effect of fear, which cannot be cured by the whip, the other, iu most cases, of malformation or of tenderness in the foot, which certainly cannot be treated successfully by chastisement, which, in fact, aggravates and confirms instead of alleviating or curing. In speaking of driving at an equal pace, we would not, of course, be understood to mean that horses should be driven at the same gait and speed over all roads, and over grounds of all natures. Far from it. A good driver will, while going, always, at the rate of ten miles — we will say — an hour, never, perhaps, have his horses going at exactly the same rate for any two consecutive twenty minutes. Over a dead level, the hardest of all things except a long con- tinuous ascent of miles, he will spare his horses. Over a rolling road, he will hold them hard in hand as he crosses the top and descends the first steep pitch of a descent; will swing them down the remainder at a pace which will jump them across the intervening flat and carry them half way up the succeeding hill ; and will catch them in hand again and hold them hard over the top, as we have shown before Horses in work should be watered about once, with not to exceed two quarts, after every ten miles, or every hour, if one be travelling fast ; and if travelling far, they should be well fed once in the middle of their journey. This point, however, ha? been discussed already under the head of feeding. In closing, -^ e would say, always remember, in using a horse, that it cannot be done with too much coolness, too much gentleness, too much discretion, or too much kindness. There is no better beast in the world than a horse, nor any one which, though often most cruelly misused by man, BO well deserves, and so amply, by his services, repays the best usage. CHAPTER Xm. fcO'W TO PHTSIC A HORSE — SIMPLE REMEDLKa FOB BlMFl.M AILMENTS. OACTiBS OF AILMENTS — MEDICINES TO BE GIVEN ONLY BY THB ORDEB Of THE MASTER — DEPLETION AND PUEGINQ— SPASMODIC COLIC— INFLAMMA- TION OP THB BOWELS— INFLAMMATION OP THE LUNGS- HOW TO BLEED- BALLS AND PURGATIVES— COSTIVENESS— COUGHS— BRONCHITIS— DISTEM- PER — WORMS — DISEASES OP THE FEET — SCRATCHES— THRUSH — BROKBM KNEES. It is not too much to say that more than one-half the ailments of horses arise, in the first instance, from bad management, — or, to speak more correctly, from absence of all management, — from an improper system of feeding, from ill-constructed, unventilated, filthy stabling, from in- judicious driving, and neglect of cleaning. When disease has arisen, it is immediately aggravated and, perhaps, ren- dered ultimately fatal, either by want of medical aid, or what is far more frequent as well as far more prejudicia'i, ignorant, improper, and often violent treatment, either on a wrong diagnosis of the affection, or on a still more •wrong system of relieving it. Over-medicining and vul- garly quacking slightly ailing horses is the bane of half the private stables in cities, and of nearly all the farm sta- bles in the country ; and one or the other, or both com- bined, cause the ruin of half the horses which '* go to tha bad" every year. There is no quack on earth equal to aL ignorant, opin (162) MALPRACTICE. 16S iouated groom ; and every one, now-a-days, holds Liinself a groom, who is trusted with the care of a horse, even if he do not know how to clean him properly, or to feed him so as not to interfere with his working hours. Every one of these wretched fellows, who has no more idea of a horse^s structure or of his constitution than he has of the model ol a ship or the economy of an empire, is sure to have a thou- sand infallible remedies for every possible disease, the names of which he does not know, nor their causes, origin or operation; and which, if he did know their names, he is entirely incapable of distinguishing, one from the other. These remedies he applies at haphazard, wholly in the dark as to their effect on the system in general, or on the oarticular disease, and, of course, nine times out of ten he applies them wrongfully, and aggravates fifty-fold the injury he affects to be able to relieve. These are the fellows who are constantly administering purgative balls, diuretic balls, cordial balls, on their own hook, without advice, orders, or possible reason — and such balls, too I some of them scarcely less fatal than a cannon ball — who are continually drugging their horses with nitre in their food, under an idea that it is cooling to the sj^stem and that it makes the coat sleek and sUky ; never suspect- ing that it is a violent diuretic ; that its operation on the kidneys is irritating and exhausting in the extreme , and that the only way in which it cools the animal's system iu that it reduces his strength and acts as a serious drain od his constitution > These, lastly, are the fellows who are constantly applying hot oils^ fiery irritants, and stimulants, to wounds, strains, bruises, or contusions, which in them- lelves produce violent inflammation, and to which, requir- mgas they do the exhibition of mild and soothing remedies, told lotions, or warm fomentations, the application of these dmulating volatile essences is much what it would be to 164 HOW TO PHYSIC A HORSK. Bdminister brandy and cayenne to a man with a bmifl fever. It should, therefore, be a posi'cive rule in every stable, whether for pleasure or farm purposes, that not a drachm ol medicine is ever to be administered without the express orders of the master. Even if a horse-keeper be so fortu- nate as to possess a really intelligent, superior servant, who has served his apprenticeship in a good stable, and haa learned a good deal about horses, he should still insist on being invariably consulted before medicine is administered. He should acquaint himself with the man*s reasons for wishing to administer medicine at all; his idea of the ailment which he supposes to exist ; of the symptoms from which he diagnoses it, and of the nature and action of the drug which it is proposed to exhibit. If he see that the symptoms do exist, and learn that the nature of the medi- cine is such as would be expected to counteract such an ailment — which a very small share of common sense will enable him to discover — ^he will do well to sanction the proceeding. But if there be the least doubt about the symptoms, and still more, unless the man have a clear conception why he should give this dose for that disease, and what is its effect on the constitution, he should put an absolute veto on all proceedings until the advice of a regular practitioner can be obtained. Even these — unless they chance to be men of superior ability, and, what is very rare in America, even in the large cities, and almost unknown in the country, men of real education also — will be very likely to overdo the matter. In the first place, when called in, they judge it necessary to order something in order to show that they know what is the matter and what is wanting. In the second place, they almost always nave recourse to violent, drastic, aloetic purges, and to extreme measures generally, when, half the time, no xnedi' PURGATIVES. 165 eine at all, or at most a simple alterative^ or a diaphoretic, or an enema, is all that is required. Of course, any sensible man, if his horse be dangerously and acutely affected, whether he do or do not himself know precisely what is the disease, will call in the best medical aid his neighborhood will afford as soon as possible. But, in the mean time, palliations may be always used, innocent in themselves, if not useful ; and, in many acute and sud- den diseases, if immediate relief be not applied, the malady frill have gained such headway that when advice arrives it will be too late to check it; whereas, if some simple but active treatment be adopted on the spot, much time will be saved, in the least important view of the matter, and, in the worst, possibly life itself. Again : in the case of acci- dents, wounds and sudden casualties, it is often impera- tively necessary to act upon the spot ; and it is always highly desirable to do so, insomuch as, if nothing else, it by so much expedites the cure. Once again : there are many ailments of so trifling a character and so simple of treatment that it would be entirely superfluous for a horse- keeper to call in the aid of a veterinary surgeon on each occurrence of one of these, even if he were close at hand, since they are such that every stable should be capable of managing its own cases within itself It is to these three classes of cases that we intend to con- fine ourselves in the remarks which we propose to offer for the use of our readers, whether urban, suburban or rural, who keep horses and desire to promote, what fortunately go hand-in-hand together, the utility and the well-being of that noble animal. And first, we would have our readers divest themselves of the idea that there is anything porten- tously secret, wonderful, or out of the course of nature in the ailments of horses, or that it requires either extraordi- nary sagacity or intense study to treat their commoner and 166 HOW TO PHYSIC A HORSE. more usual maladies so as to give them immediate relief and to enable them to resume their xabors for our own benefit in a short period. The truth is the very reverse of this. The more ordinary diseases and affections of the horse are very similar to those with which we are affected ourselves; their treatment is always analogous, often almost exactly identical ; the processes by which relief ia to be obtained are the same, and the medicines do not ma- terially differ from those suitable to the human race. It is not too much to say that any intelligent man, gifted with good reasoning j)owers and not deficient in observation who knows how to keep his own bodily health in a good state, and to deal with his own ordinary ailments, can, within twelve months, qualify himself to treat a horse in all the cases that are likely to befall him, under ordinary circumstances, as well as any body else, and fifty times better than the stable-keepers, who will sneer at his efforts until they perceive that they are successful, and then will suddenly discover that the means he took are precisely those which themselves recommended. The things Ot great importance which he has to learn, in order to guard against danger, are, how much depletion the system of a horse can endure without danger, and what extent of pur gation his bowels can resist undamaged. And to these questions it may be answered, generally, that the horse can bear much more depletion and less purgation than ia generally imagined, especially of the drastic drugs usually exhibited. We are very decided opponents of purgatives in general, and have been gratified by observing that the recent cause of veterinary practice, both in France and England, is tending to the entire abandonment of the old system ; according to which every horse, whether anything ailed him or not, was put through two annual courses of purgation, each of three doses, in the Spring and Fall, b«^ APPLICATION OF KEMEDIEa 167 side having to bolt a diuretic ball fortniglitly, or often er, according to the whim of the groom, when his kidneys no more required stimulation than his hocks did blistering. A horse of ordinary size contains, on an average, from twenty to twenty-four quarts of blood, and the loss to him of four quarts is not so much as a pound, or pint, to a human being. In cases of acute inflammation, a horse may be bled eight or ten quarts at a time, or until he lies down, with advantage ; and if the symptoms do not abate, may be bled again at intervals of an hour or two, to an extent which a person, ignorant how rapidly blood is made, would suppose must drain the animal of his life. Purgatives, in our opinion, on the other hand, should be very cautiously administered; never when there is any inflammation of the lungs or bowels ; very rarely when there is any internal inflammation ; and when given, should never, or hardly ever, in our judgment, exceed five drachms of new Barbadoes aloes. Injections, diet, and mashes are vastly superior, for general practice, to acute purgatives, horses being extremely liable to super-purga- tion, and many valuable animals being lost in consequence of it yearly. The first branch of this subject on which we propose to treat, is the early application of remedies to horses, sud- denly seized with violent and acute diseases, anticipatory to the calling in of regular medical assistance. It is highly necessary that this should be done as soon as the horse is known to be seized^ and the nature of his seizure is fully ascertained, since, in several of the diseases to which tlie horse is most liable, the increase of the malady is so rapid that, if early steps be not taken to relieve the suf ferer, the evil becomes so firmly seated that the remedy if long delayed, comes too late, and an animal is losi which by timely assistance might have easily been pro* 168 HOW TO l*HYSlC A ttOHSE. served. These ailments, especially, are of common occtir- rence with the horse, of highly dangerous character, and BO rapid in their development and increase that, if steps be not taken for their relief almost immediately after their commencement, all treatment will be useless; — these are spasmodic colic, inflammation of the bowels, and inflam- mation of the lungs. The two former of these have, in their early symptoms, a close resemblance one with the other ; and as the treatr ment of the two should be very different, it is necessary to be exceedingly careful, and to be well acquainted with the diagnosis of the two ailments before attempting to treat the patient, as a mistake might well be fatal, while a delay is almost surely so. " The attack of colic," says Mr. Youatt, " is usually very sudden. There is often not the slighest warning. The horse begins to shift his posture, look round at his flanks, paw violently, strike his belly with his feet, lie down, roll, and that frequently on his back. In a few minutes the pain seems to cease, the horse shakes himself and begins to feed ; but on a sudden the spasm returns more violently, every indication of pain is increased, he heaves at the flanks, breaks out in a profuse perspiration, and throws himself more violently about. In the space of an hour or two either the spasms begin to relax and the remissions are longer in duration, or the torture is augmented at every paroxysm, the intervals of ease are fewer and less marked, and inflammation and death supervene." As all the more violent symptoms of this disease and of acute inflammation of the external coats of the intes* tines^ such as looking round at the flanks, pawing, kicking at the belly, roiling violently, and, in a word, all the man- ifestations of excessive pain are nearly identical, and, as the causes which lead to the two diseases are also nearly COLIC. 169 fche same, so that one miglit be liable to suspect the occur* rence of either, from a knowledge of the antecedents to which the horse has been exposed, it was well done in Youatt to present briefly in a tabular form the distinctions between the symptoms of the two, which, if carefully ob- served, cannot be misunderstood, and will prevent the pos- Bibility of confusion, which might lead to the most fatal consequences. We proceed to present his table, accom- panied by his remark that the treatment recommended for the former (colic) would often be fatal in the latter : Sudden in its attack, and without any warning. Pulse rarely much quickened in the early period of the disease, and during the intervals of ease, but evidently fuller. Legs and ears of natural temper- ature. Relief obtained from rubbing the belly. Relief obtained from motion. Intervals of rest and ease. Strength scarcely affected. INFLAMMATION OF THE BOWELS. Gradual in its approach, with pre- vious indications of fever. Pulse very much quickened, but small, and often scarcely to be felt. Legs and ears cold. and Belly exceedingly painful, tender to the touch. Pain evidently increased by motion. Constant pain. Great and evident weakness. Of these differences the most strongly and decidedly marked are the different affections of the pulse, the differ- ent conditions of the extremities, the remissions of the pain in the one, and the constant increase of it in the other, and the extreme weakness which rapidly comes on in inflammation, and does not show in colic. It will be well, here, to state that the pulse of the horse is most conveniently felt at the lower jaw ; a little behind the spot where the submaxillary artery and vein and the parotid duct come from under the jaw: in other words, close to the junction of the head and neck. The thumb should be placed on the cheek externally, with the nail upward, and the tips of the fingers passing under and 170 HOW TO PHYSIC A HORSE. svitllin the jaw-bone, will readilj feel the artery, and, bj compressing it against the bone, will ascertain not only the number of pulsations, but the manner in which the blood passes, and the quantity. By feeling the heart, through the side, as is the ordinary practice of horsemea, nothing can be ascertained beyond the number cf pulsa- tions. We will here add that, in temperate climates, about thirty-six in a minute is the ordinary beat of the pulse in a common or farmer's horse, which will be increased to forty, or even forty-two, in thorough-breds. It varies but little in horses of different sizes, but is slightly increased in hot weather, and very materially so in hot climates. The pulse of the thorough-bred horse is said to range ten higher in New Orleans than in New York ; and we can readily believe this to be the case, as we have observed the same thing to occur when the horse is kept in a ver} hot stable. Sudden alarm often quickens the pulse by ten beats; wherefore particular care should be had to gf the lx)wels. An overfed or overfat horse, which is sub- COLIC. 171 jected to severe and long-continued exertion, if his lungs be weak, will be attacked, probably tlie same night, by inflammation of the lungs ; if the lungs be sound, the at tack will be on his bowels on the following day. The diagnosis being made, and the disease being ful'y ostablished to be spasmodic colic, and not inflammation, the treatment should be as follows: Give at once, in a drench, by a horn or bottle, three ounces of spirits of tur- pentine and an ounce of laudanum in a pint of warm ale, the effect of which will often be instantaneous. If these ingredients cannot be quickly obtained, a drench of hot ale, with ginger, a wine-glass full of gin and a teaspoonful oi black pepper, with, if possible, the laudanum added, will succeed as a substitute. If the paroxysm returns, or if re- lief of a decided kind do not take place within half an hour, from four to six quarts of blood may be taken, with advantage, in order to prevent inflammation. The dose of turpentine should be repeated, and clysters of warm water, with an ounce of finely powdered Barbadoes aloes dissolved in them, should be injected, at intervals, until the counter- irritation puts a stop to the spasms. For the injections, a common wooden pipe with an ox bladder will answer, al though the patent syringe is far better. The pipe should be greased and introduced gently and tenderly, great care be- ing had not to alarm or startle the animal. The opera- tion and effect of the medicines will be promoted by gen- tle friction of the belly, with a brush or hot flannel cloth, and by walking the horse, or trotting him very gently about ; but all violence, or violent motions, must be avoided, as tending to produce inflammation. These remedies, which can be procured with ease in any village, almost in any house, will almost to a certainty remove the disease. When relief is obtained, the horse's clothes should be changed, which will be found to be saturated with sweat 172 HOW TO PHYSIO A HORSK. he sh(>uld be sliglitly cleaned; warmly and dryjy lit tared down, if possible, in a loose box, and should be fed, for two or three days, on warm bran mashes, and suf- fered to drink warm water only. It is evident that the above treatment, which is stimulating, would be probably fatal, as it would aggravate all the worst features, in a case of iDflammation, which must be treated, as nearly as pos- sible, on the opposite plan — that is, antiphlogistically. Inflammation of the Bowels. — The first step, in decided cases where the extremities are cold and the pulse very quick and very feeble — observe, here, that fifty-five is very quick, indicating considerable fever, and seventy-five perilously quick — ^is to take eight or ten quarts of blood as soon as the malady appears, — ^for there is no other malady that so quickly runs its course. K this do not relieve the pain, and render the pulse more moderate, and fuller, and rounder, four or five quarts more may be taken, without any regard to the weakness of the animal. That weak- ness is a part of the disease, and, when the inflammation is subdued by the loss of blood, the weakness will disappear. We have said that most of the acute diseases of the horse and the man are closely similar, and their treatment analo- gous. In acute inflammation of the bowels there is an exception. The human practitioner properly uses strong purgatives, in cases of acute inflammation of the bowels. The irritablility of the horse's bowels will not allow their exhibition. The most that can be done is, to throw up copious injections — they can hardly be too copious — of thin gruel, in which half a pound of Epsom salts, or hali an ounce of Barbadoes aloes, has been dissolved. The horse should be encouraged to drink freely of warm, thin gruel, and he should have a draught, every six hours, of warm water, with from one to two drachms, — never more, — of aloes dissolved in it. Above all, the whole belly should INFLAMMATION OF THE LUNGS. 173 be blisteied as quickly as possible after the nature of tbe disease is fully ascertained, with tincture of cantliarides well rubbed in. The legs should be well bandaged, to re- store the circulation ; and the horse should be warmly clothed, but the stable kept cool. No hay or oats must be allowed during the attack, but merely bran mashes and green meat ; of the latter, especially, as much as he will eat. As the horse recovers a little oats may be given, a handful or two at a time, twice or thrice a day, but not more; and they should be increased sparingly and gradually. Clys» ters of gruel should be continued for two or three days, and hand -rubbing and bandaging to restore the circulation. There is another kind of inflammation of the bowels, which attacks the inner or mucous membrane, and is produced by super-purgation and the exhibition of improper medi- cine in improper quantities. Its characteristics are inces- sant purging, laborious breathing, pulse quick and small, but less so than in the other form of disease; and, above all, the mouth is hot, and the legs and ears warm, In this disease, no food must be allowed, least of all laxa- tive food, such as mashes or green meat ; but draughts and clysters of gruel, thin starch and arrow-root may be given frequently. If the pain and purging do not pass away within twelve hours, astringents must be given. The best form is powdered chalk 1 oz., catechu j oz., opium 2 scruples, in gruel, repeated every six hours till the purg- ing begins to subside, when the doses should be gradually decreased and discontinued. Bleeding is not generallj' necessary, unless the inflammation and fever are excessive. The horse should be kept warm, and his legs rubbed and bandaged as directed in the former type of the disease. Inflammation of the Lungs. — This disease, which in a state of nature is almost unknown to the horse, is ona to which in his domesticated state he is most liable, and 174 HOW TO PHYSIC A HORSE. whicli is most fatal to him. It requires immediate ana most acti ve treatment. It is sometimes sudden in its attack, but is generally preceded by fever. The pulse is not al- ways much quickened, in the first instance, but is indistinct and depressed. The extremities are painfully cold ; the lining membrane of the nostrils becomes intensely red ; the breathing is quick, hurried, and seems to be interrupted by pain, or mechanical obstruction. The horse stands stiffly, with his legs far apart, so as to distend his chest to the utmost, and is singularly unwilling to move, or to lie down, persisting in standing up, day after day and night after night : and if at last compelled by fatigue to lie down, rises again after a moment's repose. The pulse soon becomes irregular, indistinct, and at last almost imperceptible. The legs and ears assume a clay -like, clammy coldness,— the coldness of death. The lining of the nostril turns purple; the teeth are violently ground ; the horse persists in stand- ing, until he can stand no longer, when he staggers, drops and soon dies. For this disease, the only remedy that can be depended upon is' the lancet. The horse must be bled, not accord- ing to quantity, not only till the pulse begins to rise, but until it begins to flutter or stop, and the animal begins to faint. The operator should watch this effect, with his fin- ger on the pulse, while the bleeding is in process. At the end of six hours, if the horse still persist in stan ling and the laborious breathing still continue, the bleeding should be repeated to the same extent. This will generally succeed in conquering the strength of the disease. If a third bleeding be necessary, as is sometimes the case, it laust not be carried beyond four or five quarts, lest not only the disease, but the recuperative power be subdued. After this, if the symptoms return, successive bleedings to the extent of two or three quarts should be used, to INFLAMMATION OF THE LUNGS. 175 prevent tlie ree'stablisliment of the disease. The instru- ment for bleeding should be a broad-shouldered thumb lancet, and the stream of blood should be full and strong. Some of the blood, from each bleeding, should be set aside in a glass tumbler, and suffered to grow cold, in or- der to note the thickness of the buff-colored, adhesive coai which ^vill appear on the top of it, and which indicates the degree of inflammation at the time the blood was drawn. "We have seen it occupy above one half the depth of the tumbler. As the condition of the blood improves, and the symptoms of the animal decrease, the bleeding may be gradually discontinued. The whole of the horse^s chest and sides, up as far as to the elbows, should now be thoroughly blistered, the hair having been previously closely shaved, with an ointment of one part of Spanish flies, four of lard, and one of rosin, well rubbed in. In making the ointment, the rosin and lard should be melted together, and the flies then added. A horse with inflammation of the lungs must never be actively purged ; the bowels and lungs act so strongly in sympathy, that inflammation of the former would surely supervene, and prove fatal. The horse must be back-raked, ind clystered with warm gruel containing eight ounces of Epsom salts. Castor oil must never be given ; it is a most dangerous medicine to the horse. Doses of nitre, digitalis and tartar emetic, in the proportion of three drachms of the first, one of the second and one and a halfof the third may be given, morning and evening, until the animal begins to amend, when the dose may be reduced to one-half. The horse must be warmly clothed, but kept in a cool box. As he recovers, his skin should be gently rubbed with a brush. If it do not irritate him ; but his legs must be con- stantly and thoroughly hand-rubbed and bandaged. He should not be coaxed to eat, but may have a little hay to 176 HOW TO PHYSIC A HOESE. amuse him, cold mashes and green meat, but on no aocounl a particle of oats. Eight-and-fortj hours generally de- cides the question of death or life. But in case of recov- ery, it is necessary long to watch for a relapse, which is of frequent, one might say of general, occurrence. It is to be met at once by the same energetic treatment. And now, one word to the owner of a horse which has had one bad attack of inflammation, either of the lungs or of the bowels. Get rid of him as soon as possible I It is ten to one thai he will have another, and another, and, as in the former instance, end by becoming broken-winded, — in the latter by being useless, from a nearly chronic state of the disease. Tlie second class of ailments, which every horse-keeper ought to be prepared to treat himself, without assistance, are those natural and constantly occurring cases which are almost habitually present in large stables or farming estab- lishments, and in aid of which to call in a veterinary sur- geon on every occasion would be both an absurd expense and a useless waste of time. Such are, for instance, costive- ness, common cough, bronchitis, or catarrhal disease, stran- gles or colt-distemper, worms, difficulty in staling, and some others, which any man who keeps a horse ought to be able to treat successfully himself, without any advice, and with ordinary medicines, easily procurable from any druggist Condition, in its proper sense, is more dependent on proper and systematic feeding, exercising, clothing and lodging, than on medicine ; and if a horse be of good, sound con- stitution, and be judiciously fed, regularly worked, warmly yet not too warmly clothed and stabled, in a building prop- erly ventilated and aerated; and, above all, if he be kept scrupulously and religiously clean, there will for him be but little need of medicine of any kind. From ill-con- structed stables arise half the worst diseases, those for LBstance of the lungs, from want of ventilation ; many 0/ BLEEDING. 177 those of the eyes, from the excess of ammoniacal vapors and unnatural darkness ; many of those of the feet, as cracked heels, thrushes, grease — which in America is known as scratches — from filth and neglect; and most of those of the bowels, and the bowels and lungs combined, from bad food, or good food badly administered. Slili diseases will and do arise from other causes, in the btal stables, and among the best-attended horses. And again, they do arise, and when arising must be dealt with medi' cally, owing to the causes above enumerated. It may be well in this place to describe briefly the most approved modes of bleeding and administering medicine. The former operation is performed in the jugular vein ; the hair is smoothed, along the coarse of the vein, with the moistened finger; then, if the fleam be used — which, in our opinion, ought to be discarded — with the third and little fingers of the left hand, which holds the fleam, pressure is made upon the vein sufficient to bring it into full view ; the fleam is to be placed on the vein, in the direct line of its course, precisely over the centre of it, not exactly touching it, but as near to it as possible without doing so. A. smart blow i? then given to the back of the fleam with an instru- ment called the blood-stick, which gives it force sufficient to pierce the skin and open the vessel. A much neater way, however, is to use a broad-bladed lancet. The vein is secured and pressed sufficiently to bring it into fidl view and cause it to swell, with the divided fingers of the left hand, when the point of the lancet is sent in, without an effort, so as to cut slightly upward and to open a clean and sufficient aperture. By this method the danger of cutting the neck foul without touching the vein, owing to the horse starting at the moment the blow is given upon tne fleam, and the yet worse danger of dividing both sides oi the vein, are both avoided. When enough blood has been 8» 178 HOW TO PHYSIC A HORSE. taken, the edges of the wound should be brought smoothie together, and secured by a sharp pin, around which a little tow or a few hairs of the horse should be twisted. The blood, while it is flowing, should be made, by a gentle pressure on the vein below the aperture, to spring out in a clear, full jet, and to fall into the centre of the vessel us(}d to receive it. If it be allowed to trickle down the sides of the pail, it will not undergo the changes by which the extent of inflammation may be judged. The operator should accurately know the size of the vessel he uses, so as to calculate the flow of blood. In giving medicine, if balls be used, they should never weigh above an ounce and a half, or be above an inch in diameter, and three in length. The horse should be lashed in the stall, the tongue should be drawn gently out with the left hand on the off side of the mouth, and fixed there, :iot by continuing to pull at it, but by pressing the fingera against the side of the lower jaw. The ball is then taken :)etween the tips of the fingers of the right hand, the arm being bared and passed rapidly up the mouth, as near the palate as possible, until it reaches the root of the tongue, when it is delivared with a slight jerk, the hand is with- drawn, and the tongue being released the ball is forced down into the oesophagus. Its passage should be watched down the left side of the throat, and if it do not pass im- mediately, a slight tap under the chin will easily cause the horse to swallow it. The only safe purgative for a horse Is Bnrbadoes aloes, or the flour of the Croton bean, for some peculiar purposes ; but its drastic nature renders it undesirable as a general aperient. When aloes are used, care should be taken to have them new, as they speedily lose their power, and they should be freshly mixed. Yery mild doses only should be used ; four or five drachms are amply sufficient, if the horse have been prepared, as ha COSTIVENESS. 179 should be, by bemg fed for two days at least, entirely on mashes, which will cause a small dose to have a beneficial effect, equal to double the quantity administered to a horse not duly prepared for it. The immense doses of eight, nine, ten and even twelve drachms, which were formerly in vogue, and which are still favored by grooms, ostlers and carters, are utterly exploded ; and it is well known that eight or nine good fluid evacuations are all that can be desired, and far safer than twice the number. Four and a half drachms of Barbadoes aloes, with olive or linseed oil and molasses sufficient to form a mass in the proportion of eight of the aloes to one of the oil and three of the molasses, is the best general ball, though often four drachms given after a sufficiency of mashes or green food will accomplish all that is needed or desirable. Castor oil IS a most dangerous and uncertain medicine. Linseed oil is not much better. Olive oil is safe, but weak. Epsom salts is inefficient, except in enormous doses, and is then dangerous. It is, however, excellent, given in clysters of weak gruel; which, by the way, except where very searching and thorough purging is required, as in cases of mange or grease, is by far the safest, most agreeable and mildest way of purging the horse, and evacuating his bowels. Where, however, his intestines are over-loaded with fat, where he shows signs of surfeit, or where it is necessary to prepare him to undergo some great change of system, as from a long run at grass to a hot stable, or vice versa, a mild course of two or three doses of physic, with a clear interval of a week between the setting of one dose and the giving of another, is necessary, and cannot be prop* eily dispensed with. CosTiVENESS. — Ordinary cases can generally be con- quered witho'it medicine, by diet, such as hop or bran mashes green meat and carrots ; but where it is obstinatei 180 HOW TO PHYSIO A HOBSK. the rectum should be cleared of dry faeces by passing the naked arm, well greased, up the anus ; and the bowels bhoulvl be then thoroughly evacuated by clysters of thin gruel, with half an ounce of Barbadoes aloes, or half a pound of Epsom salts dissolved in it. If the patent Byringe be used, the injection will reach the colon and ca3cum and dispose them also to evacuate their contents. Common Cough is generally subdued without much difficulty, though it often becomes of most serious conse- quence if neglected. It is accompanied by a heightened pulse ; a slight discharge from the nose and eyes, a rough coat, and a diminished appetite, being its symptoms. The horse should be kept warm, fed on mashes, and should have a dose or two of medicine. K the cough be very obstinate, bleeding may be necessary. Bronchitis is cough, with catarrh extending to the en* trance of the lungs superadded. It is characterized by a quick, hard breathing, and a peculiar wheezing, followed and relieved by coughing up mucus. It must be treated by bleeding, though by no means so copious as in cases of inflammation of the lungs. Eepeated bleedings of four or five quarts, at intervals, until relief is obtained, are prefer- able to the abstraction of large quantities at once. The chest should be blistered, and digitalis, nitre and tartar emetic exhibited, as with inflammation of the lungs ; bron- chitis, if neglected, is apt to degenerate into thick wind. Strangles, or colt-distemper, is a disease which shows itself in aU young horses, and from which, when they have once passed through its ordeal, they have no more to fear. It is preceded by some derangement of circulation, quick- ening of the pulse, some fever, cough, and sore throat. The parts around the throat swell, the maxillary glands are Bwollen and tender, and sometimes the parotids also. The animal refuses to drink, and often declines his food. There WORMS — DISEASES OF THE BLADDER. 181 is a flow of saliva from the mouth and a semi -purulent discharge from the nose. The jaws, throat and glands ol the neck should be poulticed with steaming mashes, the skin stimulated bj means of a liquid blister, and the head steamed, in order to promote suppuration. As soon as fluctuation can be perceived, the swelling should be lanced, ind a rowel introduced, to keep the abscess open and the discharge flowing for a few days. The animal should have walking exercise, and be treated with green food, until the symptoms abate, when he will require liberal and generous food to recruit his strength. Worms are sometimes troublesome to a horse, but in a far less degree than is generally supposed. Botts have long since, been proved to be perfectly harmless while they are within the stomach, — all the stories of their eating through its coats being pure mytlis^ although they are very often troublesome after they have passed out of the oesoph- agus and rectum and begin to adhere to the orifice of the anus. Common purgatives will often bring away vast numbers of the long, white worm, teres lumhricus, which occasionally, when existing in great numbers, consume too large a proportion of the animal's food, and produce a tight skin, a tucked-up belly, and a rough coat. Calomel should never be given, as it too frequently is, for the re- moval of these worms, which will readily yield to balls of two drachms of tartar emetic, one scruple of ginger, with molasses and linseed oil quantum suff., given alternate mornings half an hour before feeding time. The smaller worm, ascaris, which often causes serious irritation about the fundament, is best removed by injecting a quart ol linseed oil, or an ounce of aloes dissolved in warm water, which is a most effectual remedy. Diseases of the Bladder are many, serious, and often mistreated They require, however, so much skill and bo 182 HOW TO PHTSIC A HORSE. accurate a diagnosis, that none but a regular practitionej should pretend to treat them. Simple difficulty of staling can generally be relieved by cleansing the sheath with the hand, and giving gentle doses of nitre. These are most of the simpler diseases, which may be simply and successfully treated at home, and with which every horse-keeper ought to be at least superficially and generally acquainted, We shall touch upon the subject of accidents, strains, simple lameness, contusions, and the like, which can often be per- fectly cured by cold lotions, or simple, warm fomentations, without any further or more difficult process, — though igno- rant persons make much of them, as if their cure proved marvelous skill, and required magnificent appliances. Before proceeding to the consideration of simple acci dents and their treatment, we shall devote a few words to an affection of the feet, or, to speak more correctly, heels, which although not exactly an accident, is not a natural disease, but arises from filth, neglect, cold, wet, and the omission to clean and dry the feet and legs of the horse, after work and exposure to weather. It has been rightly called the disgrace, as it is the bane, of inferior stables, both in the city and the country, but more commonly in the latter, where, to pay any attention to the legs and feet of a farm- horse, is an almost unheard-of act of chivalric Quixotism. This is the ailment known in England as " the grease," in the United States, generally, as " the scratches." It ia Dcrfectly e^sj to be prevented, and easy to be cured if taken in the first instance ; but if neglected and allowed to become virulent, is nearly incurable. Grease. — The first appearance of " grease," which is caused by the feet and heels being left wet after work in muddy soil, and exposed to a draft of cold air, is a dry and Bcurfy state of the skin, with redness, heat and itching. D neglected the hair droDS oflf, the heels swell, the skin m SCRATCHES, OE GREASE. 183 games a glazed appearance, is covered with pustules, crackg open, and emits a thin, glairy discharge, which soon becomea very offensive. ^ In the last, worst, and incurable stage, the leg, half- way to the hock, is covered with thick, horny scabs, divided into lozenge-shaped lumps by deep cracks, whence issues an extremely offensive matter. In this stage, the disease is called " grapy heels," and is scarcely curable. In the first stage, all that is necessary is frequent washing with tepid water and Castile soap, and the application of a flannel bandage, evenly applied over the whole limb, moistened with warm water and allowed to dry on the part. An ointment of one drachm of sugar of lead in an ounce of lard, will supple, soften and relieve the parts. The cracks may be washed with a solution of four ounces of alum in a pint of water, which will in most cases suf- fice. A dose of medicine is now desirable, for which the horse should be well prepared by the administration ot bran-mashes, as before advised, for a couple of days ; after which, a ball of four or five drachms of Barbadoes aloes will suffice. An injection will not answer in this case, as the object is, not to empty the bowels, but to cool the sys- tem. The horse should be fed on mashes, carrots, and green meat ; oats, Indian corn, and high food of all kinds, are to be avoided as too heating. When the disease has reached the second stage, the physicing must be persevered in for three doses, with the regular intervals ; carrot poultices must be applied to the heels. This is best done by drawing an old stocking, minus the foot, over the horse's hoof, confining it around the fetlock joint with a loose bandage, and filling it from above with carrots, boiled and mashed into a soft pulp. This ma^a should be applied tolerably hot, and repeated daily foi three days. When removed, the heels shoild be anointed with ar ointment of one part of rosin, three 184 HOW TO PHYSIC A HORSE. parts of lard, melted together, and one part of calamine powder, added when the first mixture is cooling; The cracks should be persistently washed with the alum lotion, and the bandage applied whenever the poultices are not on the part. The benefit of carrot poultices for all affec- lions where there is fever, swelling and a pustular condi- tion of the skin, cannot be over- rated. Stocked legs and capped hocks we have seen completely cured by ihem; and, on one occasion, at least, we have known in.»ipient farcy to give way before their emollient and healing influ- ence. Where "the grease" has degenerated into "the graj^es," the aid of a veterinary surgeon must be invoked ; but he will rarely succeed, as the ailment is now all but incurable. It is, however, only the height of neglect which ever allows the ailment to degenerate into this filthy and malignant stage of disease. Thrush. — Among the more common of the simple ailments of the foot is that known as "thrush." This is a discharge of offensive matter from the cleft of the frog, produced by inflammation of the lower surface of the sensible frog. In the fore feet, it is often the con- sequence of contraction of the hoofs. It constitutes a legal unsoundness, and is generally, although not always, accompanied by lameness. Any moderately astringent ap- plication is of advantage, but it must not be of too caustic a nature. Common segyptiacum, or honey boiled wiih \ iTiega r and verdigris, is a good liniment ; but the best of all applications is a paste, composed of two ounces of blue and one of white vitriol, powdered as finely as possible, and rubbed down with one pound of tar and two of lard ; a Dled'j^et of tow covered with this should be introduced J. o iiito the cleft of the frog, as far as is possible, without un- due force, every night, and removed before the horse goea to work in the morning. The ^et «h LimiNi3--rREATiIENT OF STRAINS AND WOUNDS — GALIS OP TEE SKIN— BRACKED HEELS —CLIPPING ANT) SINGEINO — ADMINISTERINO MEDICINES- DISEASES OF TEE FEET. By ferriery we generally understand the performance ol those common operatious which do not require the aid of a Veterinary Surgeon, but may be practiced, with pretty good success, by men of practical experience, who have little or no scientific knowledge of the anatomy and phys- iology of the horse. It is true that very many, if not all of these, would be performed much better by a skilled Veterinary Surgeon, but they are of such a character that his services are not absolutely essential. These operations are chiefly such as affect only the external parts and organs of the animal ; and they may be safely entrusted to any person, who has had a fair amount of experience in the management of sick horse-flesh. It is to be premised, however, that very few of those smiths on whose signs there appears, " Horse Shoer and Farrier^'* are better than q[uacks into whose hands it would not be safe to place the rx)ntrol of the simplest case. As a general rule, every horse owner should, if possi- ble, appeal only to skilled veterinary surgeons, for any Burgical operation, no matter how trifling, of which his horse may stand in need. Where he has to depend on the Bcrvioes of an uneducated country farrier, he should take pains to inform himselfj as far as lies in bis power, of aU 188 FARRIERY, ETC the conditions on which the difficulty in question, and the mode of curing it, depends ; this will enable him at least to prevent much injury which an ignorant quack might occasion, if allowed to have entirely his own way. CASTRATION. This operation is, of course, a very delicate one, and ahould never be attempted, on a living subject, except by a person of experience and skill. The following directions are given by Mr. Youatt : *' The period at which this operation may be best per- formed depends much on the breed and form of the colt, and the purpose for which he is destined. For the com- mon agricultural horse, the age of four or five months will be the most proper time, or, at least, before he is weaned. Few horses are lost when cut at that age. Care, however, should be taken, that the weather is not too hot nor the flies too numerous. " If the horse is designed either for the carriage or for heavy draught, the farmer should not think of castrating him until he is at least a twelvemonth old; and, even then, the colt should be carefully examined. If he is thin and spare about the neck and shoulders, and low in the withers, he will materially improve by remaining uncut another six months ; but if his fore-quarters are fairly developed at the age of a twelvemonth, the operation shoild not be delayed, lest he become heavy and gross before, and perhaps has begun too decidedly to have a will of his own. No spofiific age, then, can be fixed ; but the castration should be performed rather late in the spring or early in the autumn, when the air is temperate, and pojticularly when the weather is dry. " No preparation is necessary for the sucking colt, but it may be prudent to bleed and to physic one of more ad- CASTRATION. 189 vanced age. In the majority of cases, no aflei ^^eatmem will be necessary, except that the animal should be shel- tered from intense heat, and more particularly from wet/' Moderate exercise taken in grazing will be preferable to perfect inaction. The old method of pinning the scrotum (testicle bag) on either side, and cutting off the testicles, — preventing bleeding by a temporary compression of tho vassels while they are seared with a hot iron, — must be abandoned ; and there is no necessity for this extra pain when the spermatic cord, (the blood vessels, and the nerve) is compressed between two pieces of wood, as tightly as in a vice, and there left till the following day, or until the testicle drops off. Another method of castration is by torsion. An incision IS made into the scrotum, and the vas deferens is exposed and divided. The artery is then seized with a pair of forceps contrived for the purpose, and twisted six or seven times around. It retracts without untwisting the coils, and the bleeding ceases ; the testicle is removed, and there is no sloughing, or danger. The most painful part of the opera- tion, that with the firing iron or the clamp, is avoided, and the wound readily heals. Mr. Spooner, the editor of Youatt's works, recommends the use of chloroform, and says that he has performed the operation in seven minutes, without any pain to the animal. DOCKING AND NICKING. These barbarous methods of depriving the horse of hb natural form and appearance, in order to make him con- form to the fashion of the time, is, fortunately, very fast going into disuse. If the tail of the horse were given to iiim for no good purpose, and if it were not a design of nature that he should have the power of moving it ford' 190 FARRIEBY, ETC. bly to bis sides, there might be some excuse for cutting it off, within a few inches of bis body, or for separating tba muscles at its sides to lessen this power ; but, that this ia not the case, must be acknowledged by all who have seen how a horse, whose tail has been abridged by " Docking," or weakened hy nicking, is annoyed by flies. If a horse have a trick of throwing dirt on his rider'a clothing, this may be prevented by cutting off the hair of the tail, below the end of the bones, as is the custom with hunters in England, where the hair is cut squarely oflf about eight or ten inches above the hocks. No apology is offered for not giving in this work a de- scription of these two operations ; they are so barbarous and so senseless, that they are going very rapidly out of fashion, and it is to be hoped that they will ere long, have become obsolete, as has the cropping of the ears, formerly BO common in England. A more humane way of setting up the horse's tail, to give him a more stilish appearance, is by simply weighting it for a few hours each day, in the stall, until it attains the desired elevation. This is done by having two pulleys at tlie top of the stall, one at each side, through which are passed two ropes, which come together and are fastened to the tail, the ropes having at their other ends weights (bags of sand or of shot are very good for the purpose), which must be light at first, and may be increased from day to day. The weighting should be continued until the tail has taker a permanent position as desired. It is true that this method requires a somewhat longer time than that of cutting the muscles, but while it is being done the horse is never off his work, and he suffers infinitely less pain. The method of nicking or pricking, as usually performed in this country, is not quite so cruel nor so hazardous fui BLOOD-LETTINa. 191 the cutting of the muscles; it is thus described by Bir. Allen:* The tail has four cords, two upper and two lower. The upper ones raise the tail, the lower ones depress it, tmd these last alone are to be cut. Take a sharp penknife with along slender blade; insert the blade between the bone and under cord, two inches from the body ; place the thumb of the hand holding the knife against the under part of the tail, and opposite the blade. Then press the blade toward the thumb against the cord, and cut the cord off, but do not let the knife cut through the skin. The cord is firm, and it will easily be known when it is cut off. The thumb will tell when to desist, that the skin may not be cut. Sever the cord twice on each side in the same man- ner. Let the cuts be two inches apart. The cord is nearly destitute of sensation ; yet when the tail is pricked in the old manner, the wound to the skin and flesh is severe, and much fever is induced, and it takes a long time to heal. But with this method the horse^s tail will not bleed, nor will it be sore, under ordinary circumstances, more than three days ; and he will be pulleyed and his tail made in one half of the time required by the old method. BLEEDING. Bleeding, like physic and many other artificial maaaures for assisting nature, is very much over-estimated — as a means of bringing horses into condition ; and its evil effecta on horses in health are not sufficiently appreciated. It is a well known fact, that those men who are in the habit of being bled every few months, because of a supposed over-supply of blood, invariably become so much inclined to oongestion, that the bleeding has, after a time, to be more * Stewart's Stable Book. 192 FAKRIERY. ITO. frequently lepoateJ, and it, can be; dispetsed with onl^ at tlie risk of serious temporary illness; many who liare been bled with unnecessary frequ(m(;y piesent the appeal auce of an apoplectic condition. These resulte a]*e supposed to arise from an unnaturally vigorous action of the blood — forming power, acquired in the attempt of nature to make ap for the loss of bleeding. The same result is observed in .he case of horses, and it is believed that they arise from tlie same cause. B^tood-letting is, in the hands of a " cautious physician,*' a most valuable agent for reducing inflammation or con- gestion, but in the hands of the ordinary horseman, or far- rier, it is subject to great abuse and is the occasion of many evils. Of course, in a case of blind staggers, or of great inflammation from a wound or other cause, it is well that the person having charge of the horse should be able to apply this means of relief; but for ordinary depletion of the system, for bringing horse.') into condition, etc., it is absurd to resort to bleeding. The end desired may bo more safejy attained by administering a proper diet. The operation of bleeding in thus described hj Youatt * This operation is performed with a fleam or a lancet The first is the common instrument, and the safest, except in skilful hands. The lancet, however, has a more surgical appearance, and v/ill be adojfted by the veterinary practi- tioner. A bloodstick — a piece of hard wood loaded at one end with lead — is used to strike the fleam into the vein This is sometimes done with too great violence, and the opposite side of the coat of the vein is wounded. Bad caaes of infla^mmation have resulted from this. If the fist is doubled, and the fleam is sharp and is struck with suffi- cient force with the lowei part of the hand, the b](iolasters in human, as well as veterinary practice, has gone by ; they are now only used by those who have never tak- en the trouble to understand the exhalatory function of the skin, — which salutary function plasters obstruct ; the wet sheet next the skin, and a blanket over it, will bo more likely to do good than a plaster. Should the horse show more than ordinary symptoms of pain, a fomentation of hops should be resorted to ; if, after a day or so, the pain is still manifest, the trouble is something more than mere strain, and the owner had better consult a medicOi man. GALLS OF THE SKIN. A horse newly put to work, and working in a new har- ness, or under a new saddle, which touches parts not in- ured to the pressure, are very likely to have the skin oi the back, and shoulders abraded. Unless there is an absolute necessity for tke animal to be used, he should, in all cases, be allowed a few days rest, that the wound may heal and become somewhat hard ; and even then, until the hair has fairly grown out, the greatest care must be used to see that the chaling of the harness is er.tiifcly obviated, as when the skin is in the least sore it is peculiarly susceptible to irritation. When a gall is fresh and bleeding, nothing will so soon dry it and cause it to cicatrise, as a little dry table salt sprinkled upon it. After the wound is in a measure healed, if it be absolutely necessary to use the horse, a careful examination of the uamess or saddle should be made, and padding should bo GALLS OF THE SKIN. 199 taken oat, or parts of the leather removed, to prevent any part of it from toucliing the wound. To prevent friction, when caused by the saddle or collar, there is nothing so useful as a piece of raw sheep-skin, worn with the flesh side next to the horse. In riding long journeys, it is the safest plan to have such a protection always under the sad- dle. K the chafing is caused by loose straps striking and rubbing against the skin, they should be covered with sheep-skin having its woolly side turned towards the horse Saddle galls are unlikely to occur if the saddle fits the back, and is left on the horse for at least one hour (and it had better remain on two or three hours) after he is put into the stable. K convenient, he should be saddled half an hour before going out, as it is much better that the saddle should become warm, or slightly softened by the insensible perspiration of the back, before the rider's weight is put upon it. The following is a good lotion for galls of the skin : Sal ammoniac, 1 ounce. Vinegar, 4 ounces. Spirits of wine, 2 ounces. Tincture of arnica, 2 drachms. Water, half a pint Mix. If no other remedy is used, a mixture of burned leather guni)Owder and lard should be occasionally rubbed on the gall to prevent the growth of white hair. Sit Fasts, and their treatment, are thus described by Stonehenge : Sit Fast is merely a name for an obstinate and callous galled-sore, which has repeatedly been rubbed by the sad- dle, and has become leathery, and disinclined to heal. If time ci^n be allowed, there is nothing like a small quantity 200 FARRIERY, ETC. of blistering ointment rubbed on ; or the ap})lication of a small piece of fused potass; or even the nitrate of silver in substance, or blue-stone ; all of wbich will produce a new action in the part, and if followed by rest from tbe saddle^ will generallp effect a cure. FLESH WOUNDS. The following, on the treatment of ordinary flesh wounda, is from Dadd's Modern Horse Doctor : Incised Wounds are those inflicted by sharp instru* ments. On the human body they often heal without any subsequent inflammation beyond what nature sets up in the restorative process ; but the difficulty in the horse is, that we cannot always keep theparts in contact, and there- fore it is not so easy to unite them If the wound is seen immediately after infliction, and there seems to be the least probability of healing by first inten- tion, we place a twitch on the horse's nose, and examine the part. K there be found neither dirt nor foreign body of any kind, the blood had better not be washed off; for this is the best healing material in the world. The edgea are then to be brought together by interrupted sutures, taking care not to include the hair between the edges of the wound, for that would effectually prevent union. Nothing more is needed but to secure the animal so that he cannot get at it. If he is to be kept in the stable, with* out exercise, for any length of time, he had better be put on half diet. Contused Wounds. — These are generally occasioned by hooks, or some blunt body connected with the harness or vehicle. They generally leave a gaping wound with bru^^ed edges. We have only to remember that nature possesses the power of repairing injuries of this kind — of filling up the parts and covering them with new skin ; all TREATMENT OF WOUNDa 201 we have to do is, to attend to the general health of tha animal, and keep the wound in a healthy condition. Our usual application is the compound tincture of myrrh. If the part assume an unhealthy aspect, a charcoal poultice will rectify that. If such cannot be applied, owing to the ^/ituation of the wound, dress it with pyroligneous acid. Lacerated Wounds. — Lacerated wounds are gene- rally in the form of a rent rather than cut, inflicted (as we have seen cases) by the caulking of a shoe tearing off the integuments and subcellular tissue, leaving a sort of tri- angular flap. In these cures we generally employ sutures, and treat them the same as incised wounds. Punctured Wounds are those inflicted by a pointed body, as a nail in the foot, the point of a fork, or a splin- ter of wood. These are the most dangerous kinds of wounds, for they are frequently the cause of fistula and locked -jaw. We make it an invariable rule, in the treatment of punctured wounds, to first examine by probe, or otherwise, and remove any foreign body that may be present, and then poultice with flaxseed, into which we stir a small quantity of fir balsam. In puncture of the foot by nail, instead of plastering it with tar, and forcing a tent into the orifice, and then covering the sole with leather, as most blacksmiths are wont to do, we have the shoe taken off, the foot washed clean, and a moderately warm poult' ce applied, and renewed daily, until the suppurative stage commences. That once established, we consider our patient Bafe ; for many men, as well as animals, have lost their livea from the absorption of pus formed in the wound after the external breach had healed. When a bone is injured by the point of a nail, or fork, the cure is rather tedious ; the primary means, however, are the same. The poultices may be followed by astringent injections, as alum water, & sich a casual occurrence. The best remedy for this disease is probably the follow- ing, which has been recommended by Professor Morton, of the Royal Veterinary College : Pyroligneous acid, J Liuseed oil, v . of each equal parts. Turpentine, ) Niix; let the heels first be washed with lukewarm water ind Castile soap ; after wiping them dry, apply the mixture. Repeat night and morning. In order to keep down morbid granulations — denomi- nated by some '■'■ proud flesh'''' — the parts may be sprinkled daily with one of the following articles : Powdered bloodroot. " burnt alum, " bayberry bark. Put on a good coating of one of the above articles ; cov- er the sore with dry lint ; and apply a bandage over all. [t should be borne in mind that bandages should always be dispensed with, if possible ; for they invariably irritate and inflame whatever parts they are applied to. This is owing to the high state of sensibility in the skin of the horse.* CLIPPING AND SINGEING. It has for a long time been the custom to clip the coata of many well kept horses in the fall of the year, that they may present a less shaggy appearance during the winter moR h: than if their hair were allowed to grow to its nata* • From Dadd's Modem Horse Doctor. 204 FABBIEBY, ETC. ral length. For this practice there has been recently sub Btituted that of singeing with burning gas, by means of an apparatus made for the purpose, which may be obtained at most saddlers' in cities where gas is consumed. This is an operation which requires to be performed by a person who thoroughly understands it, and it is unnec- essary to give any directions for it in this work. There have been opposed to this practice many objec- lions, most of which were groundless, in the case of horsea which are highly prized and proportionately well cared for. It would, of course, be unwise to apply it to horsea receiving only ordinary care, such as working-horses ; but for all that are kept for pleasure driving, or for fast work, there can be no doubt that it is judicious, inasmuch as it gives them a much better appearance, prevents their break- ing out in cold sweats in the stable, or carrying wet coatg after perspiring freely. Indeed, it is at least questionable, whether in the case of all horses that are not required from the nature of their work to stand, unblanketed, in the cold, it would not cause a great saving of their natural heat and strength by keeping their coats generally in a dryer condition. To prove that there is less danger of taking cold in conse- quence of this treatment than would be supposed, the fol- lowing extract is made from an English work on "Stable Practice" (by Cecil): I was returning home one evening, in the month of November, and, passing through a gentleman's paik undei K>me trees, the branches of which I could not discern, in ocnsequence of the excessive darkness, I was thereby pulled off my hack, a mare which had been clipped only the day previous. This disaster gave her her liberty ; and, although I obtained the aid of the keeper, and other assistance, I could not succeed in finding the mare. She therefore re- mained in the park, without shelter, all night. Moreoverj TRIMMING THE HAIR OF THE LEGS, ETC. 205 it was bitterly cold, foggy, and frosty. When dayliglit ap- peared, tlie mare was discovered ; and I fully expected, espe- cially as I had ridden her fast up to the time we parted company, that she would be laid up with a violent cold. That, however, was not the case. On her return home she had a bran mash, with two ounces of spirit of nitric ether, and, on the following day, gave no evidence of the slightest indisposition. Had she not been clipped I am inclined to think the result would not have been so fortunate; because, from the pace I had ridden her, with the perspiration in the coat, she would have been wet all night, whereas she quickly became dry ; hence the coldness of the atmosphere had not such an injurious effect as might have been expected." TRIMMING THE HAIR OF THE LEGS AND HEELS. On the subject of trimming the hair of the legs and heels, we find the following sensible remarks in Stewart's Stable Book: The hair of the fetlock, the hollow of the pastern, and the posterior aspect of the legs, is longer on heavy draught- horses than on those of finer bone. It is intended to keep the legs warm, and perhaps, in some degree, to defend them from external violence. It becomes much shorter and lesa abundant after the horse is stabled, kept warm, well fed, and well groomed. The simple act of washing the legs, or rubbing them, tends to make the hair short and thin, and to keep it so. Nevertheless, it is a very common prac- tice, especially in coaching-stables, to clip this hair away almost close to the root. The heels* are trimmed in three difierent ways; the most common and the easiest is, to clip away all the long • The word hed is applied to the back and hollow of the pastera. Is thii place, all that in said of the Leeis is applicable to the lees. 20G FARRIERY, ETC. hail, near or close to the roots ; — another way is, to swilcli the heels, — ^that is, to shorten the hair without leaving any mark of the scissors ; the groom seizes the hair and cutM off a certain portion in the same manner that he shortens a switch tail ; — the third mode is, to pull the long hairs out by the roots. Switching and pulling, which is little prac- tised, are generally confined to the foot-lock ; some neat operators combine these different modes so well, that the hair is rendered thin and short without presenting any very visible marks of the alteration. By means of an iron comb with small teeth and a pair of good scissors, the hair may be shortened without setting it on end or leaving scis- sor marks, but every groom can not do this. When the horse is carefully tended after his work is over, his legs quickly and completely dried, the less hair he has about them the better. The moisture which that little takes up can be easily removed: both the skin and the hair can be made perfectly dry before evaporation begins, or proceeds so far as to deprive the legs of their heat. It is the cold produced by evaporation that does all the mischief. Whenever the legs miLst be dried by manual labor, they should have little hair about them. But in coaching and posting-studs, and among cart-horses, the men can not, or will not, bestow this care upon the legs ; they have not time, and they would not do it if they had time. A team of four horses, perhaps, comes in at once, the legs all wet, and, it may be, the whole skin drenched in rain. Before eight of the legs can be rubbed dry, the other eight have become almost dry of themselves, and are nearly as cold as thej can be. These horses should ever have the heela trimmed: they cannot have too much hair about them. They do indeed soak up a great deal of water, and remain irot fr*'* « inu2h lonsrer time than those that are nearly DRESSING THE MANE, TAIL, AND EARS, 207 naked: but still they never become so soon nor so xh tensely cold. DRESSING THE MANE, TAIL, AND EARS. The Mane. — When it is desired to make the mane lie oi the opposite side from that toward which it naturally grows^ it should be combed and wetted several times a day. ThiA will suffice if it is not very short and bushy ; in such case, Bome of the hair may be pulled out from the under part, on the side toward which it is desired to make it grow ; this will generally cause it to fall easily. If this does not suffice, the mane should be plaited in eight or ten braids, the end of each being loaded with a bit of lead. When the mane becomes too long, or too thick, a few of the hairs should be pulled out, but it is necessary that this should be done with care and judgment. The Tail. — If the tail of ahorse is tolerably good, it may be kept in proper order by being combed daily with a strong f omb. K the hair is inclined to be too wiry, and tc stand on end, it may sometimes be made to lie well hy being moistened, and either tied together at the ends oi bound around with a straw rope. If the tail become urhealthy (which may be known by a dry scurf in the haii*, tvccom- panied hy itching), it should never be combed, but chould be dressed by frequent wiping down with wet straw. It in not the custom in this country to square the end of the tail, and the only directions, therefore, which it is nec- essary to give, are what refers to the pointing of the switch tail. To do this properly requires some skill. The tail must be taken in the left hand, a small portion £*t a time, and the knife, which is held in the right hand, with its edge resting directly across the hair, should be moved up and down over the hair in such a way as to rasp it off, leaving the ends irregular in their lengths. 208 FARKIERY, ETC. The Ear. — Custom to the contrary, notwithstanding, th hair on the inner side of the ear of the horse should nevei be cut awaj. It is necessary to protect that delicate organ from dust, rain, and cold. The only treatment which should be allowed, is to close the edges of the ear together, and to clip off the hair that projects beyond them. ADMINISTERING MEDICINE TO THE HORSE. On this subject Stonehenge gives the following direc- tions : The most common form in which medicine is given to the horse is by means of the ball, — an oblong mass of rather soft consistence, yet tough enough to retain its shape, and wrapped up in thin paper for that purpose. The usual weight of the ball is from half an ounce to an ounce, but they may be given of a larger size, if they are made longer but not wider. Every groom should know how to give a ball, which is managed either with or without a balling- iron, an instrument which is seldom wanted, and which sometimes occasions considerable mischief to the roof of the horse's mouth. Occasionally a horse cannot be man- aged by any other means ; but, generally speaking, they are only an excuse for bad management. In giving a ball in the ordinary w^ay, the horse's tongue is drawn out of his m»juth on the off or right side, atd held there firmly with the left hand grasping it as near the root as possible, but to a certain extent yielding to the movement of the horse's head, so as not absolutely to tear it out. While the tongue is thus held, the ball is placed between the fingers and thumb of the right hand, extended in a wedge-like or coni- cal form, so as to pass as far down the swallow as possible ; and the hand in this form, with the arm bared to the Bhoulder, is carried over the root of the tongue till it feeln the impediment caused by the contraction of the swallow ADMINISTERING MEDICINE. 209 wLen the fingers leave the ball there, and tlie hand is with- drawn quickly yet smoothly, while at the same moment the toiigue is released, and the head is held up till the ball is seen to pass down the gullet on the left side of the neck, after which the head may be released. When the balling- iron is used, the oval ring of which it is composed is passed into the mouth, so as to keep it open, being first well guarded with tow or cloths wrapped round it ; the handle is then held in the left hand, together with the halter, so as to steady the head, and yet to keep the horse from biting ; and while thus held the hand can freely be carried ever the tongue, and the ball be deposited in the pharynx, When a horse is very determined, it is sometimes neces- Bary to keep the iron in the mouth by means of the check- pieces of an ordinary bridle buckled to the sides of the oval ring; but this expedient is seldom required if the halter is firmly grasped with the handle of the iron. In the usual way the horse to be hailed is turned round in his stall, which prevents his backing away from the groom; and if the latter is not tall enough, he may stand upon a sound stable-bucket, turned upside down. Balls should be recently made, as they soon spoil by keeping ; not only losing their strength, but also becoming so hard as to be almost insoluble in the stomach, and frequently passing through the bowels nearly as they went into the mouth. When hard they are also liable to stick in the horse's gullet. K ammonia, or any other strong stimulant, is given in this way, the horse should not have his stomach quite empty, but should have a little gruel or water just before; for if this is put off till afterwards, the nauseous taste of the ball almost always prevents his drinking. When arsenic forms an ingredient of the ball, it should be given soon after a feed of corn ; or a quart or two of gruel should be given instead, just before the balL 210 rARRIERY, ETC. The administration of a drencTi is a n.ucli more trouble- some affair than the giving of a ball ; and in almost all caaes more or less of the dose is wasted. Sometimes, how- ever, a liquid medicine is to be preferred, as in colic or gripes, when the urgent nature of the symptoms demands a rapidly-acting remedy, which a ball, from its req-.iiring time to dissolve, is not; and, besides this, a ball cannot contain any of the spritnous cordials. The best instrument for giving a drench is the horn of the ox, cut obliquely, so as to form a spout. Bottles are sometimes used in an emer- gency, but their fragile nature always renders them dan- gerous. In giving a drench, the tongue is held in the same way as for the delivery of a ball, but the head must be more elevated ; the drench is then carefully poured into the throat, after which the tongue is let go, but the head still kept up till it is all swallowed. Allowance should always be made for some waste in giving a drench. The mode of managing all horses while 'in physic,' is that which I shall here describe. In all cases, if possible, the horse should be prepared by bran mashes, given for two or three nights, so as to make the bowels rather loose than otherwise, and thus allow the dose to act without undue forcing of the impacted fceces backwards. If physic is given without this softening process, the stomach and bow- els pour out a large secretion of fluid, which is forced back upon the rectum, and met by a solid obstacle which it takes a long time to overcome, and during that interval the irritating purge is acting upon the lining membrane, and often produces excessive inflammation of it. Purging physic should generally be given in the middle of the day, after which the horse should remain in the stable, and have chilled water as often as he will drink it, with brao flaashes. By the next morning he will be ready to be ralked out for an hour, which will set the bowels to act PHYSICING. 211 kf they have not already begun. It is ufiua^ to tie up the caii with a tape or string, so as to keep it clean. The horse should be warmly clothed, and if the physic does not act with an hour's walk, he may be gently trotted for a short distance, and then taken home; and, if stPJ ob- etinate, he may be exercised again in the afternoon. Afl soon as the physic operates pretty freely the horse is to be taken into his stable, and not stirred out again, under any pretence whatever, for forty -eight hours after it has "set,''' or, in common language, stopped acting. When the purg- ing has ceased, the mashes may be continued for twenty- four hours, with a little corn added to them, and a quantity of hay. The water, during the whole time, should be in small quantities, and chilled ; and the clothing should be rather w^armer than usual, taking great care to avoid draughts of cold air. Every horse requires at least three days' rest for a dose of physic, in order to avoid risk of mischief The mode of giving a clyster is now rendered simple enough, because a pump and tube are expressly made for the purpose ; and the groom has only to pass the greased end of the tube carefully into the rectum, for about eight or nine inches, and then pump the liquid up until a suffi- cient quantity is given. From a gallon to six quarts is the average quantity, but in colic a much larger amount is required. Lotions are applied by means of calico bandages, il used to the legs; or by a piece of calico tied over the part> if to any other surface. Fomentations are very serviceable to the horse in all recent external inflammations, and it is astonishing what may be done by a careful groom, with warm wafer alone, and a good-sized sponge. Sometimes by means of an elastic tube and sto]) co^,k warm water is conducted in a contiDnoui 212 FARKIERY. ETC. Stream over an inflamed part, as in severe wounds, &c., in which this plan is found wonderfully successful in allaying the irritation, which is so likely to occur in the nervoua gystem of the horse. A vessel of warm water is placed above the level of the horse's back, and a small India-rubber tube leads from it to a sponge fixed above the part, from which the water runs to the ground as fast as it is over- filled. It is a plan very easily carried out by any person of ordiiiary ingenuity. DISEASES OF THE FEET. Thrush is inflammation of the lower surface of the sensi- ble frog, which while so inflamed secretes pus^ instead of horn ; thih" offensive matter being exuded from the cleft of the frog renders it sensitive to pain. The direct cause of thrush is doubtless too much secretion, especially of a foul kind ; but this result will never occur unless the horse is, or has been, so shod, as to prevent a natural expansion of the foot; and even where thrush has appeared it may some- times be cured by the adoption of the "one-sided nailing." Corns in the feet of horses are injuries to the sole, usually occurring in the angle between the crust and bar on the inner side of the fore foot. They are caused by the pressure of the shoe, or of gravel which is lodged under the shoe. They are easily prevented, and when they occur they are a disgrace to the smith who shoes the animal, ox to the groom who neglects to clean out the gravel which accumulates between the shoe and the foot. They may be cured, if recent, or greatly relieved, if of long standing, by a proper adaptation of the shoe. The Bole should be (in the sound foot, as well as in that which has corns,) cut away from the angle in question until it ia lower than both the crust and the bar, and these should be BO prepared as to afford an elevated support for the shoe^ CUTTING, OR INTEKFERINO. 213 which, if pre perl J made, will rest always upon them and will be in no danger of pressing upon the sole at the " corn place." If the case is a bad one, and if the frog is suffi- ciently sound to withstand the pressure, a bar-shoe may be used, which is chambered over the affected point, and so formed as to rest upon the frog. This treatment, however, should not be constant, as the frog would not long bear the pressure, and as the heel being relieved from pressure might become softened, and thus induce permanent lameness. There are few cases in which a bar-shoe, thus formed, can be used for more than two successive shoeings. If a horse, whose feet are already sound, be shod accord- ing to the directions given in the chapter on that subject, there need be no fear of his having corns, if proper care be taken to prevent an accumulation of gravel under the shoe. Cutting, or interfeking, is the striking of the fetlock joint with the opposite foot, or its shoe. It arises some- times from a defective formation of the legs, but generally from improper shoeing. On this subject Youatt says; Many expedients used to be tried to remove this ; the inside lieel has been raised and lowered, and the outside raised and lowered ; and sometimes one operation has suc- ceeded, and sometimes the contrary; and there was no point BO involved in obscurity, or so destitute of principles to guide the practitioner. The most successful remedy, and that which in the great majority of cases supersedes all others, is Mr. Turner's shoe, of equal thickness from heel 10 toe, and having but one nail on the inside of the shoe, ar.d that near the toe ; care being taken that the shoe shall not extend beyond the edge of the crust, and that the crust fib all be rasped a little at the quarters. When the leg is at all swollen from the cutting, it should be protected by a boot, which should in all cases remain on tmtil the cure is complete, as if the swelling remained it 214 PARKIERY, ETC. might throw the parts so far into the line of the other foot, when in motion, as to cause the cutting to continue in spite of every attempt to prevent it. Speedy cut is a cut of the knee, by the striking of the shoe of the opposite foot, when the horse is cantering, or throwing his feet very high in the trot. The only remedy, when the shoeing has been properly performed, and the cutting still continues, is to use the boot on the wounded knee ; but, in such a case of constitutional defect, the boot can never be dispensed with, as an unlucky step might at any time cause the horse to fall from the pain occasioned by the blow. Nail pricking, from careless shoeing, is very common, especially in country districts, where the smith is very often guided only by the horse flinching, in deciding whether a nail has gone too deep. Injury from these causes is not always perceptible at the time of shoeing, but it will be certain to appear in a few days. When an injury arising from this cause is detected, the shoe should be removed and the foot examined, that the extent of the injury may be learned. Stonehenge gives the following directions fol the treatment of such cases : On removing the shoe it is found that there is great tenderness at some particular part of the foot, and some- times a slight bulging ; but this is seldom evident so soon. It is the better plan to place the foot in a cold bran poultice, without a shoe on, and wait for a day or two, when, if the foot continues very hot, the smith must pare down the horn over the suspected place, and let out the matter, if there ia any ; or, if necessary, bleed at the toe, which is likely to relieve the inflammation, and prevent suppuration, if it has not already occurred. K matter has formed, and is let out K little, friar's balsam is pushed into the abscess on a piece of lint, and the shoe tacked on ; but the lint must be so left TBEATMENT OF QUITTOa 215 RS to be capable of being pulled out on the next d:xj, so aa to leave a clear opening for the matter to escape. In a few days the sboe must be taken off again, and any ragged pieces of horn removed, as well as the opening enlarged, if necessary. Sometimes a prick occurs from a nail picked up on the road, and then the accident must be treated ex« actly as if it occurred in shoeing. QuiTTOR is a disease very nearly allied to, and frequently growing out of, neglected cases of nail-pricking. Concern- ing this disease, Dr. Dadd writes as follows : * Quiitor is a fistulous opening running between the sen- sible and insensible limince of the foot ; the opening, or sinuSy runs in various directions downward ; at other times, the lateral cartilages are in connection with it, and become diseased. It generally makes its appearance on the inside of the foot, near the matrix of the hoof In such case, its origin is from bruise or wound. It arises also from pricks in shoeing, gravel, neglected corns, &c. Should a nail enter the sensitive laminag of the foot, and cause suppuration, and the lower outlet become plugged up, the matter moves up- ward, burrowing through the tissues, until it gains exit above the hoof. Treatment. — ^We first examine the sinus by means of a small-sized, flexible bougie, such as are used on young persons. Being flexihlej we are enabled to trace the cavity whatever direction it may take. Having discovered that, v:e make up our mind as to the treatment. Should it descend towards the sole, it is caused either by prick, com, or gravel, which can be ascertained on careful examination. In order to make such, we remove the shoe, pare the foot, and pernaps poultice it, with the double object of softening the hoof and removing obstractions to the lower outlet, if any there be. Whether the cause be evident or not, we • Dadd's Modem Horse Doctor. 21^ FAHRIEUT, ETC. waste no time in injecting the sinus, (which is practised hj manj,) but make a small opening in the sole, as near the base of the sinus as possible, and invite a discharge from it by means of a poultice placed only in contact with the sole A free discharge once secured from the lower outlet, we have no fears of a cure. So soon as a discharge sets up, inject from below strong tincture of bloodroot, two or three times, and then sprinkle some bloodroot in the cavity ; there is no need of any bandage ; let the matter have free vent The upper orifice will now close ; it is only neces* Bary to moisten this region with compound tincture of aloes, or some other traumatic. During this treatment the horse must be kept on light, soft food, and his bowels must be kept in a somewhat re- laxed condition. Over-reaching consists in the striking of the heel of the fore foot with the toe of the hind shoe. It seldom occurs except in saddle-horses which are too slow in moving their fore feet, and this faulty action may be remedied by training the horse to a light " gathered" movement, as directed in the chapter on Baucher's method of training. When a wound has been inflicted by over-reaching, the best treat- ment is to dry up the discharge as soon as possible, which may best be done by the use of tincture of arnica, of full strength, or, in the absence of this, of gunpowder. If the discharge is allowed to continue, it is very apt to de- generate into QuittoTj and to cause much trouble. The cut of the heel in over-reaching is caused not by the clip of the hind sho«, but by the back part of the web at the toe of the shoe, which, being made square at first, is soon worked to a sharp edge. If, when the shoe is made, that part of the web be filed to a round edge, there will be little danger of a severe cut. Clicking, or forging, which is a limited over-reachj STOPPING THE FEET. 21* and wliicli is often noticed in trotting horses, whether tin- ier the saddle or in harness, is a stnking of the shoe of the fore foot with the toe of the shoe of the hind foot. The parts of the fore shoe which are thus struck may b6 known from being worn brighter than the rest of the shoe, and if these parts are filed away the diffiulty will generally pfiaae. Stopping the feet, which belongs to "Grooming" rather than to " Farrieing," consists of filling the space be- tween the shoe and the hoof, and all within the inner cir- cumference of the shoe, with some material which will gradually impart moisture to the foot. It should always be resorted to whenever there is the least tendency to dry- ness or fever in the feet, and there is an advantage in stopping the feet of all horses as often as every other night, The stopping should be very carefully removed before the horse goes out. The best material for stopping are : 1 — Pure cow-dung, — recently dropped. 2-- Wet clay. 3 — Cow-dung and clay, mixed. 4 — Wet oakum. 5 — ^Linseed meal. 6 — A mixture of tar, tallow, clay and cow-dung. A change from one of these to another will be found beneficial, though, in the country, cow-dung is usually the most convenient, and it is quite as good i\8 any of tht 'Others. 10 CHAPTJ!,K XV. HOW TO SHOE A HOBSB. ITBfWJLnjL BHOEES— ANATOMY OF THE FOOT ILLUSTRATED — THI FOOT Of A COLT — PREPARATION OF THE FOOT — REMOVING THE OLD SHOE — PARUTCI THE FOOT — THE SHOE — ^FITTING THE SHOE — NAILING — ^NUMBER OF NAILS-^ DISEASES OF THE FOOT. Although it is an almost universal custom to entrust the shoeing of horses to the Knight of the Hammer and Tongs who happens to be nearest to one's stable, and to pay but little regard to the manner in which the work is done, there are very few who are not ready to admit that the operation is frequently performed in an unskilful man- ner, and that their horses would be more serviceable, and would perform their work with much greater comfort to themselves, if their owners knew exactly how and when the shoeing should be done ; and would insist on its being done at the right time, and in the right manner. There is hardly any other class of mechanics who com- bine so much ignorance of the principles or. which their art is founded, with so much conceit of their knowledge, &s do ordinary horse-shoers ; and it should be one of the first duties of the horse owner to inform himself of the construction and nature of the horse's foot, the reasons why shoeing is necessary at all, what parts of the foot it pro- tects, wliat is the best form of shoe to effect the purpose, how it may be best fastened to the foot, and how often it •honld be removed. [218] ANATOMY OF THE FOOT. 219 To illustrate these fundamental points, cuts are liere in* kroduced, showing the construction of the horse « f^oL Fig. 8. ShOMTS the ground surface of the hoof prepared for receiving a shoe ; and marKS verj iigtinctly the difference between the curvature of the outer and inner quarters. a The toe — rasped away to receive the turned-up shoe, a 1. The inner toe. a 2. Tht outer toe. b 1. The inner quarter, b 2. The outer quarter, c 1. The vntter heel c 2. The outer heel, d d d. The sole, e e. The crust or wall of the hoof //. The bari. {g g. The commissures, hkl. The frog. h. The part immediately under the navicular joint. *. The oval cleft of the frog. I. Tlie elevated boundary of the cleft. i t. The bulbs of the heels. As the various parts of the horse's foot cannot be better lescribed for the purposes of this work than they have been by Mr. Miles (from whose manual the above cuts are kransferred), extracts are here made from his description: The hoof is divided into horny crust or wall, sole, and frog. The horny crust is secreted by the numerous blood- vessel 3 of that soft protruding band which encircles the appcr edge of the hoof, immediately beneath the tenuina- Idon of the hair ; and is divided into toe, quarters, heels, and bars Its texture is insensible, but elastic throaghout its whole extent ; and, yielding to the weight of the horse, allows the horny sole to descend, whereby much inconven- ient concussion of the internal parts of the foot is avoided But if a large portion of the circumference of the foot be 220 HOW TO SHOE A HOBSB. fettered by iron and nails, it is obvious tbat tbat portioHj at least, cannot expand as before ; and the beautiful and efficient apparatus for effecting this necessary elasticity, being no longer allowed to act by reason of these restraints, becomes altered in structure : and the continued operation of the same causes, in the end, circumscribes the elasticity to those parts alone where no nails have been driven, — giving rise to a train of consequences destructive to th« P^G. 9, «. I8 a broad flat mass of horn, projecting upwards into the middle of the el9«ttc cushion, and is called the " frog stay." b b. Are two horny prcjettions rising into the cavity of the hoof formed by the commissures. ec. Are portions of the same projections, and are situated just under the two ends of the navicular bone, and mark the point on either side where diminution in the natural elasticity of the fatty frog would be felt with the great'^at severity by the navicular joint : for under the most favorable circumstances, the qv^antity ot cushion between these points and the navicular joint cannot be very large ; and hence the importance of our doing all we can to preserve its eL^iicity us long as possible. soundness of the foot, and fatal to the usefulness of tlia horse.* The toe of the fore foot is the thickest and strongest portion of the hoof, and is in consequence less expansive than any other part, and therefore better calculated to resist the effect ot tr e nails and shoe. The thickness oi the horn gradually diminishes towards the quarters and • The horse's foot, and how to keep it sound, with illustrations, by Wm HUM, Esq ANATOMY OF THE FOOT. 221 heels, particularly on the inner side of tlie foot, whereby the power of yielding and expanding to the weight of the horse is proportionably increased, clearly indicatiDg that those parts cannot be nailed to an unyielding bar of iron without a most mischievous interference with the natural functions of the foot In the hind foot, the greatest thick- ness of horn will be found at the quarters and heels, and not, as in the fore foot, at the toe. This difference in the thickness of horn is beautifully adapted to the inequality oi the weight which each has to sustain, the force with which Fig. 10. — A section of the Foot. 1. The coronet bone. 2. The coffin bone. 3. The navicular bone. «. The wall. 6. The sole. c. The cleft of the frog, d d. The frog, e e. The fatty frog, or elastic cushion. /. The sensitive sole. g. The sensitive frog. hhh. Ten dons of the muscles which bend the foot. i. Part of the pastern bone. kk. Tendons of the muscles which extend the foot. I. The coffin joint, m. Th« Davicular joint. n. The coronary substance. o. The sensible lamina, off covering of the coffin bone. it is applied, and the portions of the hoof upon which it Calls. The toe of the fore foot encounters the combined force and weight of the fore hand and body, and conse- quently in a state of nature is exposed to considerable wear and tear, and calls for greater strength and substance of horn than is needed by any portion of the hind foot, where the duty of supporting the hinder parts alone \t 222 UOW TO SHOE A HORSE. distributed over tlie quarters and heels of both aides oi the foot The bars are continuations of the wall, reflected at the heels towards the centre of the foot, where they meet in a point, leaving a triangular space between them for the frog. The whole inner surface of the horny crust, from the centre of the toe to the point where the bars meet, is every, where lined with innumerable narrow, thin and projecting horny plates, which extend in a slanting direction from the upper edge of the wall to the line of junction between it and the sole, and possess great elasticity. These pro- jecting plates are the means of greatly extending the sur* face of attachment of the hoof to the coffin bone, which is likewise covered by a similar arrangement of projecting plates, but of a highly vascular and sensitive character; and these, dovetailing with the horny projections above- named, constitute a union combining strength and elasticity in a wonderful degree. The horny sole covers the whole inferior surface of the foot, excepting the frog. In a well-formed foot it presents an arched appearance and possesses considerable elasticity, by virtue of which it ascends and descends, as the weight above is either suddenly removed from it, or forcibly ap- plied to it. This descending property of the sole calls for our especial consideration in directing the form of the shoe • for, if the shoe be so formed that the horny sole rests upon it^ it cannot descend lower; and the sensible sole above, becoming squeezed between the edges of the coffin bone and the horn, produces inflammation^ and perhaps abscess. The effect of this squeezing of the sensible sole is most commonly witnessed at the angle of the inner heel, where the descending heel of the coffin bone, forcibly pressing Jbe vascular sole upon the horny sole, ruptures a small ANATOMY OF THE FOOT. 223 olood- vessel, and produces what is called a coin, but which is, in fact, a bruise. The horny frog occupies the greater part of the trian- gular space between the bars, and extends from the hinder- most part of the foot to the centre of the sole, just ovei the point where the bars meet ; but is united to them only at their upper edge: the sides remain unattached and separate, and form the channels called the " Commissures." If we carefully observe the form and size of the frog in the foot of a colt of from four to five years old, at its first shoeing, and then note the changes which it under- goes as the shoeings are repeated, we shall soon be con- vinced that a visible departure from a state of health and nature is taking place. At first it will be found large and full, with considerable elasticity; the cleft oval inform, open, and expanding, with a continuous, well-defined, and •somewhat elevated boundary ; the bulbs at the heels fully developed, plump and rounded ; and the whole mass oc- cupying about one-sixth of the circumference of the foot. / By degrees the fulness and elasticity will be observed to have diminished ; the bulbs at the heels will shrink, and lose their plumpness ; the cleft will become narrower, its oval form disappear, the back part of its boundary give way, and it will dwindle into a narrow crack, ex- tended back between the wasted, or perhaps obliteratc-d bulbs, presenting only the miserable remains of a frog, such as may be seen in the feet of most horses long accus tomed to be shod. The bones proper to the foot are three in number, — vi:^, the cofl&n bone, the navicular bone, and part of the coro- net bone : they are contained within the hoof, and combine to form the coffin joint ; but the smallest of them, the na- vicular bone, is of far more importance as connected with >ur subject of shoeing, than either of the others ; for upon 224 HOW TO SHOE A HORSE. the healthy condition of this bone, and the Joint fc/med between it and the tendon, which passes under it to the coffin bone, and is called the navicular joint, mainly de oends the usefulness of the horse to man. This small bone, which in a horse sixteen hands high measures only two and a quarter inches in its longer di- ameter, three-fourths of an inch at the widest part of ita ghorter diameter, and half an inch in thickness in the centre, its thickest part, has the upper and under surfaces and part of one of the sides overlaid with a thin coating of gristle, and covered by a delicate secreting membrane, very liable upon the slightest injury to become inflamed ; it is so placed in the foot as to be continually exposed to danger ; being situated across the hoof, behind the coffin bone, and immediately under the coronet bone ; whereby it is compelled to receive nearly the whole weight of the horse each time that the opposite foot is raised from the ground. The coffin bone consists of a body and wings ; and is fitted into the hoof, which it closely resembles in form. Its texture is particularly light and spongy, arising from the quantity of canals or tubes that traverse its substance in every direction, affording to numerous blood-vessels and D irves a safe passage to the sensitive and vascular parta surrounding it ; while the unyielding nature of the bone effectually protects them from compression or injury, under every variety of movement of the horse. In an unshod foot, the front and sides of the coffin bone are deeply furrowed and roughened, to secure the firmer attachment of the vascular membranous structure, by which the bone is clothed ; but in the bone of a foot that has been frequently shod, this appearance is greatly changed, the furrows and roughness giving place to a comparatively Bmooth surface. This change I imagine to be produced PREPARATION OF THE FOOT. 22fl by tlie shoe limiting, if not destroying, tlie expansive power of that part of the horn to which it is naUed ; whereby a change of structure in the membrane itselfj aa well as absorption of the attaching portions of the bone, is induced ; for it is an invariable law of the animal economy not to continue to unemployed structures the same meas- ure of efficient reparation that is extended to parts con Btantly engaged in performing their allotted tasks. The shoe restricts or prevents expansion ; while nature, as the secret influence is called, immediately sets to work to sim plify the apparatus for producing the expansion, which art has thus rendered impracticable, and substitutes for it a new structure, less finely organized, but admirably suited to the altered condition of the parts. The wings extend from the body of the bone directly backwards, and support the " lateral cartilages" of the foot. The sensitive sole, or, as it is sometimes called, the fleshy sole, is about the eighth of an inch thick, and is almost entirely made up of blood-vessels and nerves ; it is one of the most vascular and sensitive parts of the body, and ia attached to the lower edge of the sensitive covering of the coffin bone, — to the bars, — and point of the frog, — and also with great firmness to the whole of the arched under- surface of the coffin bone. , The sensitive frog includes not only the part correspond- ing to the sensitive sole, but also the peculiar spongy elastic substance which intervenes between it and the na- vicular Joint, and fills the space between the cartilages. The proper sensitive frog is thicker, and less finely organ- ized, than the sensitive sole, possessing fewer blood-ves- gels and nerves. Before treating of the preparation of the foot for tho rece^ion of a shoe, it is desirable to correct the generally recei>vjy possibility influence the shape of the foot; for the foot being elastic, expands to the weight of the horse in pre- cisely the same degree, whether it be resting upon the most open or the most contracted shoe : it is the situation of the jiailSf and not the shape of the shoe, that determines the form of the foot. If the nails be placed in the outside quarter and toe, leaving the heels and quarters of the in- side, which are the most expansive portions, free, no shape that we can give to the shoe can of itself change the form of the foot. I would not however be understood to mean, that the shape of the shoe is therefore of no importance ; for I trust I have already proved the contrary. Seeing then that the shape of the foot is in no way changed by the form of the shoe, both wisdom and interest would prompt us to adopt that form which possesses the greatest number of advantages with the fewest disadvantages. A small clip at the point of the toe is very desirable as preventing displacement of the shoe backwards ; it need not be driven up hard ; it is merely required as a check or stay. The shoe should be sufficiently long fully to support the angles at the heels, and not, as is too often the case, so short, that a little wear imbeds the edge of it in the horn at these parts. The foot surface of the shoe should always have a good flat even space left all around for the crust to bear upon ; for it must be remembered, that the crust sustains the whole weight of the horse, and needs to have a perfectly even bearing everywhere around the shoe. In this space the nail-holes should be punched, and not, as is too often the case, partly in ^/, and partly in th« 234 HOW TO SHOE A HORSE. Beating. In what is technicallj called ^'back-holing the shoe," which means completing the opening of the nail- holes on the foot surface, great care should be taken to give them an outward direction, so as to allow the points of the nails to be brought out low down in the crust. The remainder of the foot surface should be carefully seated out, particularly around the elevated toe, where it might otherwise press inconveniently upon the sole ; and I would have the seating carried on fairly to the point where the crust and the bars meet, in order that there may be no pressure in the seat of corns : the chance of pressure in this situation will be further diminished by bevelling off the inner edge of the heels with a rasp. The ground surface should be perfectly flat, with a ful- lering or groove running round the outer edge, just under the plain surface, whereon the crust bears. The principal use of the fuller is to receive the heads of the nails that secure the shoe, and prevent their bending or breaking off: — ^it is further useful in increasing the hold of the shoe upon the ground, and with this view I always have it car- ried back to the heels. In fitting the shoe to the foot, it should never, while red hot, be burned into its place, as this would so heat the sen- sitive sole as to produce a serious derangement of its parts^ but it may with safety be touched lightly to the foot, that by a slight burning it may indicate those points where the foot needs paring ; indeed, it is necessary to pursue this course in order to make the shoe so exactly fit the foot that there will be no danger of its moving sufficiently to loosen the hold of the nails. It is desirable to have the shoe made with steel in front, this being sloped backward to a line running at right angles with the upper slope of the hoof. Old shoe? are always worn to about this form, and new ones should be so made. The steel wQl prevent their being unduly worn. THE NUMBER OF NAILS. 235 Having so fitted the shoe that the foot exactly touchea ft in every part, the next point is to nail it fast to the hoof; and on this subject we can do no better than to quote Miles' very valuable remarks : The next circumstance to be considered is one of vital im- portance to our subject, as upon it depends the amount oi Sisturbance that the natural functions of the foot are des- tined to sustain from the shoe; viz., the number and situa- tion of the nails which are to secure it to the foot. K they be numerous, and placed back in the quarters and heels, QO form of shoe, be it ever so perfect, can save the foot from contraction and navicular di^^'ase. If on the contrary they be few, and placed in the outside quarter and toe, leaving the inside quarter and heels quite free to expand, no form of shoe is so bad that it can, from defective form ilone, produce contraction of the foot. Three years ago I commenced a series of experiments apon shoeing, with a view, among other things, of ascer- taining how feuo nails are absolutely necessary, under ordinary circumstances, for retaining a shoe securely in ita place. The subjects of my experiments were six horses of my own, and three belonging to friends ; the nine among Ihem representing very fairly the different classes of pleas- ir(' horses, — not, indeed, including hunters or race-horses, each of which requires a separate and totally different treat- ment, but carriage-horses, ladies' horses, and roadsters And they also included the common variations in form and texture of the generality of horses' feet. When my attention was first directed to the subject oi nailing, I was employing seven nails in each fore, and eight in each hind shoe. I then withdrew one nail from each shoe, thus reducing the number to six in the fore and seven in the hind shoes ; and finding at the end of a yeai that the shoes of all the horses had been as firmly retained 236 HOW TO SHOE A HORSE. as formerlj^-, I withdrew another nail from each shoe, leav« ing only five in the fore shoes and six in the hii.d. 1 found, however, that six nails would not retain the hind shoe of a carriage-horse, without allowing it sometimes to fihift ; so I returned to seven in the hind shoes, and have continued to employ that number eversince : but five have retained all the fore shoes as firmly during the whole of the last year and a half, as six had previously done. I have invariably directed and superintended the whole operation of shoeing during these experiments ; and have always been very careful to mark that the nails were not driven high up in the crust, but brought out as soon aa possible; and that they were very lightly driven up before the clinches were turned down, and not, as is gene- rally the case, forced up with all the power that the smith can bring to bear upon them with his hammer. The clinches should not be rasped away too fine, but turned down broad and firm. The practice of rasping the whole surface of the hoof after the clinches have been turned down, should never be permitted ; it destroys the covering provided by nature as a protection against the too rapid evaporation of the moisture of the hooi^ and causes the horn to become dry and brittle. Two of the horses alluded to above, worked for some time with only four nails in their fore shoes. I have detailed these experiments with a view to expose the groundless nature of the fear that expects to cast a shoe at every step, unless it be held to the foot by eight or nine nails, driven high into the crust. If the presence of a nail in the crust were a matter of no moment, and two or three more than are necessary were merely useless^ there would be no great reason to interfere with this practice of making " assurance doubly sure ;" but it is far otherisrise ; — ^the uails separate the fibres of the horn, and they never by NAILING. 287 any cliance become united again, but continue asunder and unclosed, until bj degrees they grow down witb tbe rest of the hoof, and are ultimately, after repeated shoeings, re- moved hj the knife. If the clinches should happen to rise, they must be re* placed without delay; as such rising imparts to the nails a freedom of motion which is sure to enlarge the size of the holes, — and this mischief is often increased by the violent wrenching which the shoe undergoes from side to side in the process of removal by the smith. Now as these holes cannot possibly grow down and be removed under three shoeings, it will be found that even with seven nails, the crust must always have twenty-one of these separations existing in it at the same time ; and as ihey are often from a variety of causes extended into each other, they necessarily keep it in a brittle, unhealthy state, and materially interfere with the security of the future nail- hold. During the last six months I have arranged my five nails upon this "system of one-sided nailing," and the re« suit has been most satisfactory ; the shoes have not only been firmly, but easily held to the feet, as is evidenced by the clinches not having risen in one single instance, — a clear proof that the struggle between the expansion of the foot and the resistance of the shoe is entirely overcome by this mode of fastening. This very desirable end appears to be attained in the following manner : the outer side of the foot, being the only part nailed to the shoe, carries the whole shoe with it at every expansion ; while the inner fiide, being unattached, expands independently of it, where- by all strain upon the nails is avoided, and the foot is left, with respect to its power of expansion, as nearly as pes Bible in a state of nature. An unexpected benefit has arisen to one of my horsea 238 HOW TO SHOE A HORSK. from this plan, in the total disappearance of two veiy trou blesome corns : they had existed in his feet for ten years, during seven of which I tried every plan that I had evei heard of as likely to effect a cure, — both in form of shoe %nd local application, — without, however, any decided ad- rantage ; but the adoption of this plan of fastening the shoe to the foot, by removing all restraint and pressure from the part, has accidentally achieved that which I had BO long sought in vain. The hind foot certainly does not demand the same meas- ure of attention as the fore foot, inasmuch as its position and the nature of its ofi&ce render it less liable to in- jury, and consequently it is less frequently lame. It is, however, by no means entirely exempt, nor does it always escape disease of its navicular joint ; for I have myself found disease in a navicular bone taken from a hind foot. This being the case, then, we should endeavor to guard against it oy interfering as little as possible with its expansive power ; and that will be best done by keeping the nails on the in- side as far removed from the heel as we conveniently can, to which end I recommend the employment of seven nails only, — four to be placed in the outer and three in the inner side of the shoe. The holes in the inner side are to be punched closer together, and kept more towards the toe than those on the outside, which need to be more spread out, as affording greater security of hold to the foot. The shoe should be carefully fitted to the hoof all round, par- ticularly at the heels, which are too commonly left without any support Avhatever; and the mischievous custom ot turning down the outer heel only must be avoided, because it throws the weight entirely upon the inner quarter, which is the part the least able to bear it, and causes much un- comfortable strain to the fetlock joint above. Calkins, even tho\igh they may be turned down of perfectly eveu EVILS OF BAD SHOEING. lengths on each side, which, however, is very rarely done, are objectionable appendages, and had better be iispensed with, excepting, perhaps, for very heavy draft, where their ends, by entering the ground, may prevent the foot from slipping backwards, and may thus enable the toe to obtaio a firmer hold. The form of shoe here referred to, and the position o\ th(^ nail holes, are shown in figure 12. Fia. 12 « •. The heela of an even thickness with the rest of the shoe. b b. Show the points at which the heels of the hoof terminated, e «. The seating carried back, so as to clear the angles at the heels, and leave tiM seat of corns free from pressure. d. The nail-holes placed in the flat surface which supports the crust, where they should always be. 4 The hindermost nail of the inner side at the inner toe, whereby the whole A the quarter and heel are left free to expand. The directions for properly shoeing horses having now been as fully given as the limits of this work will allow, the attention of the reader is called to certain evils which are produced by bad shoeing. Contracted Feet, — that is, feet that have shrunken and become narrow at the heels, and of which the frog has be- tome materially reduced in size, — are often caused by in 240 HOW TO SHOE A HORSE. Rammation, arising from various causes, but most frequent ly, without doubt, from improper shoeing. It is tbe custom of many smiths to " set the shoes well off at the heels," and to carrv the seating or bevel of the upper side of the shoes BO far back that the heels, instead of resting on a flat sur. face, as they would on a properly fitted shoe, rest on the slope of the seating, which are, in this respect, simply twa inclined planes, so placed that, at each step taken by the horse, his heels must be pressed together until a greatei or less contraction is made manifest, too late for us to remedy the evil; for there is no means by which this con- traction of the foot can be cured, — though, when it exists only to a slight extent, the internal portions of the foot will sometimes accommodate themselves to its new form. So far as disease is the result of bad shoeing, it can be ob- viated by so forming the shoe that it will afford a sufficient ind perfectly secure and level support for the heels. For the cause, and treatment of diseases of the feet, in* eluding those which result from improper shoeing, the reader is referred to the chapter on Farriery. CHAPTER XVi liA.UGHBB*S METHOD OP TRAININa HORSES TO THE SADVhM, WHAT CONSTITUTES A WELL-TRAINED HORSE — TO MAKE HIM COME AT TOtJl CALL — THE PHILOSOPHY OP TRAINING — FLEXIONS OP THE JAW^FLEXIOHI OF THE NKOK— FLEXIONS OF THE CROUP— BACKINO — THE PACES— LEAPING. There is notriing which so much conduces to the pleas- ure and safety of a rider, as the proper training of his horse. Indeed, no matter how good a rider one may be, it is impossible for him to ride gracefully, easily or safely on a horse that has not been properly broken to the work. It is true that a good rider can, by a sufficient exercise of prudence, get on passably well with an unbroken horse, or even a poor rider may, by putting his horse into a fast gallop, make up in some degree, and for a short time, for wa Qt of training ; but it is very certain that both are la- boring under great disadvantages, and that neither the rider :r his horse is working with ease. It is too often supposed that all that is necessary tc con itjtute a good saddle-horse is, that he should allow a bit to remain in his mouth, and should carry his rider without attempting to throw him, and without viciously trying to make himsfelf disagreeable. If he have a dozen different gaits; if he carry his head low. and his nose out. — tiieso 11 [241J 242 baucher's method. faults arc ascribed to his nature^ and it is not deemed po« Bible to give him an elegant carriage. If he bear with hia full force on the bit, it is considered an advantage, because it gives the rider a firm support, bj enabling him to steadj himself in his seat by bearing his weight on the bridle. There have been for ages more or less imperfect direo* tions given for overcoming these difficulties, and for bring ing ordinary horses into a tolerably good condition for the saddle ; but they were so tedious and so uncertain in their results, that their application was limited to Military schools, and similar institutions, where it was worth while to take a great amount of trouble to train horses for special work. More recently M. Baucher, a French equestrian of great distinction, has, after giving many years to the subject, ad- vanced OD entirely new method for training horses to the saddle, which seems to be founded on natural principles and to be equally applicable to all cases. M. Baucher does not claim that he can make all horses equally good for the saddle, but he does claim, and he seems to prove, that all horses can be made, by his method, as good saddle-horses as they are capable of becoming, with an outlay of very much less time and labor, and with far less pain to the an- imal, than was necessary under the old system. He also asserts that any horse, not actually deformed, no matter how sad a jade he was when taken in hand, will become, after proper suppling and instruction, a light and graceful saddle beast. If the horse to be trained be vicious, and will not allow himself to be approached and properly handled, he should of course be subjected to the processes described m the chapter on Rarey's method of taming horses ; but suppos- ing him to be already tamed, and tolerably docile, he may be proceeded with according to the following direc taLons ; — FIEST LESSONS. 24S TO MA-KE THE HORSE COME TO THE MAN, AWD TO RENDER HIM QUIET WHILB BEING HANDLEl' AND UOXTBTED. Tte rider or trainer should approach the horse, withoni haste or timidity, holding his whip under his arm. He should speak to him in an ordinary tone of voice, and Bhould pat him caressingly on the face and neck ; he will then take the reins of the curb-bit in the left hand, at a distance of six inches from the branches, and in such a manner as to be able to present as much resistance as pos- sible to the efforts which the horse will make to release timself. Take the whip in the right hand, and raise it quietly to the height of the horse's breast, against which it should be struck at intervals of a second, and with a steady and uniform movement. This will, of course, cause the horse to draw back, in order to get away from the whip ; as he recedes, follow him steadily, keeping a uni- form pull upon the reins, and tapping the breast with the same steady movement of the whip. The horse will soon tire of his unsuccessful attempts to back away from the pain, and will try another movement, making a start for ward. At that instant the pressure on the bit should be discontinued, and by caresses the horse should be made to understand that he has done as we desired, by coming toward us, and that in this way he can avoid being whip- ped Repeat this exercise, and continue it for half an hour, being careful always to follow the horse as he re« cedes, and to reward him for compliance, by slacking the hold of the reins, and caressing him. Be sure not to caress him when he has not done well, and not to punish him after he has yielded. This first lesson having been given in the morning, it should be repeated for half %d hour in the afternoon. This will be sufficient to cause the most timid or stubborn horse to respond to the least intima- 244 baucher's method. don of the wish of his master, and without being whipped he will come forward at the first touch of the reins ; it will be gratifying to the trainer, and useful to the horse to repeat the foregoing operation once or twice before each lesson during the subsequent training. Occasionally during the exer- cises the hand may be borne down, so as to depress the head, to teach the horse more ready submission to the in- Btructions which are to follow. When a horse will come freely forward at the least gesture, his progress may be slightly checked by the hand, which will cause him to arch his neck, and draw in his chin, approaching to the perpendicular position of the face, which Baucher so strongly recommends. If the horse be very unruly, it may be necessary, in rare cases, to use the cavesson, (a nose-band of iron, supported by an arrangement similar to the common halter) ; but such aids should be eschewed as far as possible. The following exercises are, like the calisthenic exer- cises of schools, intended to give strength and pliability to the muscles, and grace to the movements. They are not immediately useful, but they render the horse much more serviceable to his rider than he would be in a state of nature, because they enable him to perform smoothly many movements which, naturally, he would perform but awkwardly; and to respond more readily to the indica- tions of the hand or leg. It is one of the first principles of M. Baucher's systeni, that all the resistances of the young horse originate in a phyS' ical cause, and that they have a moral cause only when the horse has been perplexed, and made resentful, by tne un- ekilfulness, ignorance, or brutality of the rider. It is often remarked that horses which are considered in- domitable are those which develop the greatest energy and vigor, as soon as we know how to remedy their phya Fig. 16. Fia. 17. FIRST LESSONS. 245 leal defects ; as with those which, in spite of their bad conformation, are subjected by a bad system of train- ing to a semblance of obedience, we have to thank noth- ing but the gentleness of their natures. If they consent to submit to the simplest exercise, it is on condition that we do not exact anything more difficult ; for they would soon recover their energy to resist any farther attempts. A well constituted horse is one, all of whose powers are regularly harmonized, so as to bring about a perfect equi- librium of the whole. If we once admit these truths : That the education of the horse consists in the complete subjection of his forces ; That we can make use of his forces only by annulling all of his involuntary resistances ; And, that these resistances have their source in the con« tractions resulting from physical defects ; — It is only necessary to seek out those parts in which these contractions operate, to combat them, and to cause them to disappear. Whatever be the fault of conformation which prevents a just disposition of the forces of the horse, it is always in the neck that the most immediate effect is felt. There is no false movement, no resistance, that is not preceded by a contraction of this part ; aad as the jaw is intimately con- nected with the neck, a stiffness of the one is instantly communicated to the other. These two points are the prop on which the horse depends to annul all of the efforts '^i the rider. We can easily conceive of the immense ob- stacles which they present, because the neck and the head are the two principal levers by which we control and d:rect the animal, and it is impossible to obtain any influence over him so long as we do not entirely master •ihese two indispensable means of action. Behind, the parta 246 BAtrCSEft'S METHOD. where the forces most contract for resistance, are the loins and the croup (the haunches). The contractions of these two opposite extremities are, to each other, causes and effects ; that is to saj, the stiffness of the neck induces that of the haunches, and vice versa, Fi EXIONS OF THE Jaw. — The flexions of the jaw, aa well as the two flexions of the neck, which are to follow, are performed standing still, the trainer on foot. The horse will be led on to the ground and the reins passed over his neck. The trainer will first see that the bit, which is of the double sort (see fig. 13), is properly placed, and Fm. 13.— The Bit and Bridoon Bridle that the chain is so fastened that the finger can be easiljr introduced between it and the jhin. Then, looking the animal kindly in the eyes, he will place himself opposite his neck, and near to his head , the body should be firm and the legs a little apart, to strengthen the position and to FLEXIONS OF THE JAW. 247 uuable tlie trainer to contend with, advantage against everj resistance of the horse. In order to execute the flexions to the right, the trainer, being on the near side of the horse (see fig. 14), will take the right curb rein in his right hand, at a distance of about six inches from the branch of the bit, and the left rein in the left hand, at a distance of about four inches from the branch. He will then draw the right rein toward him, and at the same time stretch out the left hand, turning the bit in such a way as to force the horse's mouth open. The force em- ployed ought to be proportioned to the resistance of the neck and the jaw, in order not to render unsteady the po- sition of the trainer. If the horse incline to back, to avoid the flexion, he should be prevented from doing so by hold* ing the hands firmly forward. If the previous exercise has been practiced completely and with care, it will be easy, with the aid of the whip, to arrest this retrograde movement, which is a powerful obstacle to all flexions oi the jaw and neck. As soon as the horse yields to the pressure, and allows his head to be drawn around to the right shoulder, draw gently and evenly on the two reins until the line of the face is perpendicular to the ground, and until the animal will sustain his head in this position without bearing on the bit. The champing of the bit by the horse is an evi- dence that he is completely in hand, and entirely under subjection. Figure 14, shows the position at the commence- ment of this exercise, and fig. 15, that at the termination. He should now be recompensed by a slackening of the reins, and by being allowed, aft;er a few seconds, to regain his natural position. The flexion of the jaw to the left if executed on the same principles, and by opposite means, and the flexions should be alternated from the right to th« left. 248 baucher's method. Depeession of the Neck and Direct Flexion oi THE Jaw. — The trainer will stand as before directed ; he will take the reins of the snaffle in the left hand, at about six inches from the rings, and the curb reins in the righk hand, close to the bit (see fig. 16). He will then bear down with the left hand, and will draw back with the right, — che force *vith which either effort is made being nicelj ad« justed to the resistance of the horse. This figure repre- sents the position at the commencement, and fig. 17 that at the close of this exercise. As soon as the horse^s head shall fall, as though of ita own weight, all force must cease, and the neck and head allowed to resume their natural position. If the horse do not readily lower his head on feeling the pressure on the top of it, which this tension of the snaffle reins produces, he may be taught more prompt obedience by crossing the reins of the snaffle under his chin, and drawing them tightly, so as to compress the jaw, at the same time bearing down with as much force as possible (see fig. 18). He will soon learn that the tension of the snaffle means "lower your head," and he will be quick to obey without waiting for the more painful )art of the operation. By the direct flexion of the jaw we mean the relaxing of those muscles by which the mouth is shut ; this will ordinarily be accomplished by the action of the curb-bit in the pre- ceding exercise, but if the horse persist in poking out his nose, and holding the bit *' in his teeth," his mouth may be forced open, in a way that he will be likely to remem- ber, by the following process: — Stand facing the left side of the horse's head, and take the left snaffle rein in the left hand, and the left curb-rein in the right, both as near to the bit as will allow of a firm hold. Now raise the flbows, and draw the hands away from each other with Bufficient strength to force the jaws apart (see fig. 19V In FLEXIONS OF THE NECK. 249 Ihis, as m all other operations, the force applied by the trainer should be proportioned to the resistance of the horse. Lateral Flexions of the Neck. — The trainer will stand bj the side of the horse's shoulder, as in the fleiu.ons of the jaw. He will take the right snaflle-rein in his right hand, and draw upon it over the horse's neck, (see fig. 20,) holding the left snafile tight enough to prevent the horse from turning his body. As soon as the neck yields to allow the head to go round to the right, the tension of the left rein must cease. When the head is well brought round (fig. 21), the two reins should be equally drawn upon until the head as- sumes a perpendicular position, and until the horse evinces his lightness by champing the bit. After having held him a few seconds in this position, the head should be gently drawn back to its natural place. It is important that the horse should not be allowed to do anything of his own will, and his head should be drawn back before he tries to move it of his own accord. The flexion to the left, wliich should be alternated with this, is of course performed b} the opposite process. When this flexion can be readil;^ made with the snaffle, the curb-reins should be used until the least touch is sufficient to cause the horse to turn his head quite to the shoulder. This is an exercise which should be frequently repeated, even after the training oi the horse has been completed, as it will serve to keep him light and submissive. It is not necessary at all times to cause the horse to bring his head entirely round ; it ia better occasionally to cause the head, pivoting on the neck, to be lightly turned from side to side, so that the horse shall look toward either side, and not to the rear, as in tho complete flexion. Lateral Flexions of the Neck — ^the Trainer ln rHE Saddle — For this exercise the trainer should be in 250 baucher's method. the saddle, holding both reins of the snaffle in his hands in such a manner as to barelj feel the bit. He should then draw lightly on the rein of the side toward which he desires the horse to turn his head (see fig. 22), increasing the force as the horse increases his resistance, and always in such a manner as to control him. The horse will soon tire of struggling against the bit, the continued pressure of which causes an increasing pain, and he will sooner or later incline his head toward the side. As soon as the head is drawn well round to the side (see fig. 23), the rein of the opposite side must be drawn upon as well as the other, go as to place the head in a perpendicular position. It is very important that this perpendicular position should always be attained, as the suppling can never be perfect without it. If while the head is being drawn to one side, the horse try to avoid the pressure of the bit by turning his body round, the opposite snaffie-rein may be used to prevent him from doing so. Direct Flexion of the Head and Neck or Ramener.* — The trainer being in the saddle, he will take both of the snaffle-reins in his left hand. He will then place the edge of his right hand on the reins, so as to give greater force to the tension of the left hand, and by a steady pressure he will draw upon the reins until the horse yields and drops his head toward his breast. As soon as he shows, by champing the bit, that he main- tains this position without aid from the hand of the trainer, it will be sufficient to raise the right hand to reward him. If the horse try to back away from the bit, a slight press- ure of the legs will suffice to keep him in his position. When he will yield to the action of the snaffle, he will do 80 much more readily to that of the curb-it. The curb • Bj Rimener is meant the placing the head in a perpendicular poo Fig. 20. Fig. 21 FLEXIONS OF THE CROUP. 251 should, of course, be used witli much more skill than the snaffle. This flexion is the most important of all ; the others chiefly tend to render it attainable. As soon as it can be executed with ease and promptness, as soon as a slight touch of the hand is sufficient to bring and maintain the head in a perpendicular position, the contractions of the fore part of the animal are destroyed, and its lightness and equilibrium are established. The Hind Parts. — The rider, in order to direct hia horse, acts upon two portions of his body, — the front and the rear. He employs for this purpose two movements, — one with the legs, which gives an impulse to the croup (the hind parts), the other with the hands, which directs and modifies this impulse, by the head and neck. Flexions of the Croup and making it Movable. — The trainer, being mounted, willl hold the curb-reins in his left hand, and the snaffle-reins in his right He will first bring the horse's head into a perpendicular position by drawing lightly on the curb. Then, if he wishes to execute the movement to the right, he will pass the left leg back behind the girths, and press it against the horse's flank, until the croup yields to the pressure. He will, at the same time, cause the left rein of the snaffle to be felt, proportioning its tension to the force which is opposed to it The action of the rein is to combat the resistance of the horse, and that of the leg to determine the movement. The right leg should not be kept away from the horse's «dde during the movement, but should remain near to it in its natural position, to keep him in place and to aid a slight forward impulse, which the right side would natu- rally acquire by the rotation of the whole body about a centre, which should coincide with the centre of gravity of the horse The force with which the two legs are pressed 252 baucher's method. against tlie sides should be about equal, and the trainei Bbould bear in ?iind that their office is to turn the horse between them, much as one would turn a stick held be- tween the fingers ; that is, bj pressing against different points of the opposite sides. This lesson should be pro ceeded with slowly, and so gradually as not to discourage the horse. While it is yet in its early stages, the side-long movement, which the French call the manage de deux pistes* may be practiced as a variety. This may be accom- plished after a week's practice, while the old military school did not attempt it until after several years. BACKING. — This ig an exercise which has not, until Bau- cher's time, been sufficiently appreciated, but which has a very great influence in the education of the horse. The trainer should first assure himself that the croup is exactly on a line with the shoulder, and that the horse is light iu hand. The legs should be pressed gently against the two sides in such a way as to cause the horse to lift one of his hind legs, the snaffle being held sufficiently to prevent his advancing. An immediate pressure on the curb will cause the horse to replace his foot, slightly to the rear of its natural position. If the horse shall have turned to the right or to the left, he may be brought into place by the aid of the snaffle and the leg, and the movement of the hind parts may be repeated. This should be practiced for a time without trying to make the pupil recede to any ex- tent, the first object being to teach him to use his hind legs with facility, while he retains his general lightness. This object being accomplished, it will soon be possible to • " La piste is an imaginary line upon which the horse is made to walk When the hind legs follow the same line as the fore ones, the horse is said to go d'unepisU, or on one line. He goes de deux pistes, or on two lines- when his hind legs pass along a line parallel to that traced by ths fon \eg8 " — Boucher' f Didionnaire d' Equitation. \ Fig. 21 Fir.. 23. BECAPirrLATION— THE PACES. 253 make hirn walk backward as gracefully and as easily aa forward. Bauclier considers tMs to be the best exercise of all, and its proper performance to be the best test of the borse's education. RECAPITULATION. Stationary Exercises — the Trainer orh Foot, 1. Flexions of the jaw to the right and to the left, using the curb -bit 2. Direct flexion of the jaw, and the depression cf the neck. 3. Lateral flexions of the neck with the snaffle and with the curb. Stationary Exercises — the Trainer on Horseback, 1. Lateral flexions of the neck with the snaffle and the curb. 2. Placing the head in a perpendicular position with the snaffle and with the curb. 3. Lateral movements of the croup, and rotation of the croup and shoulders around the centre of gravity. 4. Movement of the hind legs, and backing. THE PACES. The young horse, at first stiff and awkward in the use of his members, will need a certain degree of manage- ment for the development of his powers. We have bj the preceding rules, acquired a means of acting on thr separate parts of the horse's body. We must now facili tate his means of action, by exercising his forces together. if the animal respond to the aids of his rider, by the jaw, the neck, and the haunclies ; if he yield by the general disposition of his body to the impulses which are commu- nicated to him ; if the play of his extremities be easy and regular the entire mechanism of the animal will move 254 with perfect harmony in the different paces. It is these indisputable qualities which constitute a good education The Walk is the mother of all the other paces of the horse ; by it we may obtain their cadence and regularity. Before causing the horse to advance, we should first a* sure ourselves that he is light in hand ; that is to say, that his head is perpendicular, his neck supple, and his croup straight and plumb. The legs will then be gently closed to give the horse a forward impulse; but we should not at the same time slacken our hold on the horse's mouth, for then the horse, free from all restraint, would lose his light- ness, and, by the contraction of his neck, would render powerless our efforts to manage him properly. The rider's hand should be, at all times, an impassable barrier to the horse whenever he endeavors to move his head from a perpendicular position. He will soon accustom himself to the fact that it is only within our limit that he will find ease and comfort. So long as the horse will not keep himself supple and light in his walk, we will continue to exercise him on a straight line ; but as soon as he shall have acquired more ease and stability, we will commence to make him turn to the right and to the left in walking. The Trot. — The rider will commence this pace very moderately, following exactly the same process as for the walk. He will maintain the lightness of his horse, not for- getting that the faster the pace becomes, the more he inclines to fall back into his natural stiffness. The hand should now be used with redoubled skill ; the legs will second the hand, and the horse, kept between these two barriers, which will be an obstacle only to his faulty move- ments, will soon acquire, with the cadence of the step, grace, extension, and steadiness. The Gallop.— In preparing the horse for the gallop, ii THE GALLOP. 253 kfi necessary to render him as liglit as possible, in order that he will not oj^ipose our efforts. Bj a pressure of the legs, the hind quarters are to be brought well under the bodj, and, bj a simultaneous action of the hand and the legs, his fore quarters are to be raised as for a short leap. The great care of the rider during the whole time of training tho horse to this pace, should be given to keeping him, as much as possible, in a light, supple, and active condition, Aithougli a sort of gallop is the natural gait of the horse, the gallop of a well -trained saddle-horse is almost entirely artificial ; and, to obtain its high action, grace, and entire Bubjection to the will of the rider, is more difficult than any other exercise connected with training. It is impossible for ahorse to gallop well until he has been thoroughly suppled, and is in the condition to act only as he is im- Delled by his rider; the position of the head and the plia- bility of the neck must be perfect. No horse can be said to be perfectly trained to the gal- .bp until he can be made to lead off with either the right or the left foot, as we may desire, or change his leading foot at every step, or as often as we may choose to have him do so ; not that it is often important, when a horse gal- lops well with whichever foot he happens to lead off with, whether he starts with the left or the right, but becau.^ his ability to change at the least hint from his rider, is an indication, and a necessary one, that he is in the proper condition as to lightness and submission. It is only by patiently applying the supplings which have been described, and by adapting them to the altered necessities of the new pace, that we can, within a reasonable time, train our pupil to a satisfactory gallop. A great deal has been written on the subject of making a horse lead off with his right, or his left foot, as we may desire ; but, after a careful perusal of all that is to be found 256 baucher's method, treating on tMs matter, we have found no positive infor- mation about it, and believe that it is not possible to give rules for producing this result with certainty, under all cir- cumstances; still there are very many yiders who do it, al- though they cannot clearly tell another person how it is to be done, — just as expert swimmers, or skaters, perform with ease feats of skill which they cannot teach to others, and directions for which cannot be written. There is one principle which is easily to be understood from the fore- going instructions, which is, that a horse will, if properly handled, lift that foot first on which there is the least weight resting, and that if the preponderance of weight be changed from one leg to another, the greatest action or '* leading " will be transferred to that on which the le'abl weight is bearing. There is a certain " knack " of thus transferring the weight from one part of the horse's body to another which cannot be described, but which may soon be attained with practice. The nearest approach to a rule for making a horse lead off with the right or left foot, at the pleasure of the rider, is the following : To make the horse lead off with the right foot, get him well in hand, with his head in an easy position, and his hind legs well under his body and then bear the hand to the left and give an increased pressure to the light leg. This rule is not by any means infallible, but it is the best tc commence with, and the young horse-ti'ainer will sooi learn to modify it, or, what is more likely, will soon acquire a supreme contempt for all rules, and will establish a com- munication with his horse ensuring his success. In the gallop, the horse will sometimes change his step with the hiad feet without changing in front ; he is then said to be " disunited 'Mn his gait. This is a habit of which he may easily be broker by being always made to THE SPUB. 25? Stop and begin again regularly. The rule for correcung Buch a false step, without stopping the horse is, when he is leading with the right foot, to hold the rein firmly, and to press the left leg against his flank in such a way as to dx the left hind foot on the ground, and allow the other to regain its place in advance. If the horse be leading with the left foot and become "disunited," the right leg must be pressed against his flanks, as it is the left hind leg which has fallen behind. The Spurs. — Writers upon horsemanship, and teachera of the art generally, will inform you that the spur is only to be applied to the horse when it is impracticable to urge him onward with the legs, or when you would force him to advance towards some person or thing which terrifies him, — in short, only as a punishment I undertake to say, however, that if properly used, it will be found of the greatest assistance in training the most spirited animal, even those which have not been conquered by the use oif the hardest bits, guided by the strongest hands. With the aid of the spur the veriest Bucephalus will speedily be reduced to subjection, rendered gentle and promptly obedi- ent to rule, and readily brought to a stand-still in the midsl of his most frantic bounds. The spuT will also be found a valuable agent in con- quering the animal's tendency to shift his centre of gravity too much towards his front or rear. In " horses of higrh action," the greatest amount of force resides in the hind quarters, whence their greater rapidity of movement. Pre cisely the reverse of this is the case with those of heavy, sluggish mood. Having, through the instrumentality of suppling, broken up the natural forces of the horse, we should now proceed, by a judiciously blended use of the legs and hands, to con- centrate them in the middle of the animal's body, the 258 baucher's method. proper location of his centre of gravity. Tlie spur should be applied adroitly and witli caution, the legs being as little moved as possible, and brought together so gently as to pause within a quarter of an inch of the horse's flanlis, be fore they actually touch them. The hand should be pei« fectly in unison, the reins being held with a strong grasp, BO as to completely control the increased violence of move- ment caused by the spur. If the hand do not check this at the very moment it is given, and a struggle for the mas- tery ensues, we should restore the horse to complete tran- quillity before attempting to resume our instructions. By pursuing this course, he may gradually be brought to endure the the severest application of the spar, without increasing his pressure upon the bit, accelerating his pace when moving, or starting when standing still. A horse being thus far subjected, three-fourths of the task of breaking is accomplished, his forces being com- pletely at our command, and his centre of gravity coinci- dent with the middle of his body, where it properly belongs, as all his forces unite at that point. Every movement being now perfectly controlled by the rider, his weight can readilv be shifted when it becomes requisite. OF LEAPING THE DITCH AND BAR. The great desideratum ls to induce the horse to andei- take the leap with readiness. If the course I have directed to be pursued, for getting the natural forces of the animal under subjection to our will, have been implicitly followed, its value will be made apparent in the ease with which wo Bhall make him clear every obstacle before him. But dhould he make any resistance, do not employ means to urge liim on, which are likely to cause terror, such as a whip applied by another person, or loud shouts. We LEAPING THE DITCH OR BAR. 259 must gain his obedience bj our own pbysical exertions, aa these alone will give him the ability to fulfil our directions intelligently. In order, therefore, k) overcome the forces which cause his resistance, we must first have brought him perfectly under the control of the legs and spur, the use of which will enable us to act directly and successfully upon them. The bar being first kept on the ground until he crosses it without opposition, is to be raised, inch by inch, to the greatest elevation at which he can clear it, without too se vere exertioa An attempt to make him do more is un wise, as being likely to give rise to a strong disinclination for such exercises. The bar, heretofore loose, is now to be firmly fastened in its place, that the horse, in leaping, may carefully avoid hitting it, which he might not take pains to do, did he know that a touch of his feet would remove it. Nor should the bar be so enveloped with covering as to diminish its hardness, as it is essential that he should be taught by experience the disagreeable results of an unsuccessful leap. Before attempting the leap, the rider should be suffi- ciently firm in his seat to prevent his body's anticipating the movement of his steed. His loins should be supple, and his posteriors well adjusted to the saddle, so as to avoid encountering a severe shock on alighting. His thighs and legs must perfectly fit the sides and body of the horse, thus giving him ready and complete control. The hand, in its natural position, will calculate, by feeling the mouth of the horse, the amount of force with which he is approaching the bar. In this position he will bring the horse to the leap, and if he maintains his freedom of pace to the last moment, a slight resistance with the leg and Land will aid in the elevation of the fore, and the bound of the hind quarters. As the horse rises to the leap, the 260 baucher's method. gra*o cf the hand is to be relaxed to be again applied wben the fore legs touch the ground, lest they should sink under the weight of the body. "We should be content with trying only a few leaps at a time, never attempting such as are too great for the ani- maFs powers. Horses are sometimes so much alarmed in this way, as to refuse thereafter to perform leaps only half the height of those to which they have been previously accustomed. The reader has now been presented with a detailed ao- count of the best manner of training horses for the saddle, and they will be found satisfactory in proportion as he applies them with spirit, adopting, of course, such altera- tions as will be suggested by circumstances. Of the prelim- inary exercises, not one is unnecessary or unprofitable. He who would have a thoroughly good saddle-horse should be contented to follow M. Baucher's directions, until he is able to prove that they are erroneous. It is recommended that each lesson be of a half hour's duration, that the horse have two lessons per day, and that the training be continued for sixty days. Fig. 24. CHAPTER XVa UOW TO BIDE A HORSE. (HI 8ADDLB— THE GIIITHS— THB 8TIEEUP8 — SADDLE-CLOTHS — THB CBOPPSR— TaB MAETDfGALE— THB BRmLE— SPURS— MOUNTINO AND DISMOUNTINO — THB SEAT— THE HANDS— THE LEGS — THE PACES— HINTS FOB SPECLIL OASSf —THE ARV or FALLING — REDING WITH LADIES. It would be useless, in this work, to enter into an argu- ment in favor of horse-back riding. It is so inspiriting, 80 healthful, so enchanting, — such a truly noble exercise for both men and women, — that it pleads its own cause, and it cannot fail to commend itself to all who will master it3 difficulties sufficiently to fairly test its merits. Driving is very well for invalids, and for those who are indolent, or timid, while it is often convenient for all ; but a free gallop or a prancing piaffiir, on a well-bred and well- trained horse, appeals so strongly to the life and spirit of all vigorous persons, while it brings relief for dyspepsia and hypochondria, and immunity from nearly every ill that flesh is heir to, that it must effect, more and more, its own adoption. This being the case, it is deemed necessary to the pur* poses of this chapter only to give a detailed statement oi the various practical matters connected with the art of Bid- ing, — safely assuming that the reader will find, in the prac- tical application of its principles, sufficient inducement for its continued exercise. The Saddle. — Of the various sorts of saddles, there are only two which are sufficiently desirable for modern use to require notice in this work. These are the English hunting saddle and the Somerset saddle. [261] 2(52 fiOW to Rii)E A HOfiSfi. The Hunting Saddle is the one whicli is now almost universallj used for gentlemen's riding. It is smootli, hard, and close fitting, beiug uHually covered with the best tanned hog-skin. This saddle, as used for hunting, is from sixteen to twenty inches long, according to the size of the rider, from pommel to can tie, slightly depiessed in the centre, and having its flaps inclined forward, their anterior edge being furnished with a padding, which, by preventing the leg from slipping forward, gives security in the descent from a leap, or when the horse kicks badly. For road riding the saddle may, without disadvantage, be half an inch shorter than would be necessary for hunt- ing ; and, as it is seldom necessary for the pleasure rider to assume so bracing a position as is, at times, required in the hunting-field, the flaps may be somewhat more per- pendicular. Beneath, the saddle should be well cham- bered, — that is, it should be wide over the withers, and free from stuffing at tliis point, and there should be a space o. at least two inches between the pads of either side to leave a free space over the horse's spine, from one end of the saddle to the other. The pads should be only sufficiently stuffed to protect the horse's back from injury, as too much stuffing, by increasing the distance between the rider and his horse, gives an insecurity to his position. On either side of the saddle, just in front of the stirrup bars, there should be a ring about three-fourths of an inch in diameter, to which to attach the breast- plate, if it should at any time be necessary to use one. The beauty and durability of the saddle depend upon tiae quality of the leather of which it is made. The best quality is hard and firm, and the bristle-holes are large and clearly defined. Hog-skin varies in quality so greatly that its price ranges from ten to one hundred do'Jars? jkjI dozen. THE SADDLE. 263 The cost of sucTi a saddle as is above described, when made in the best manner, is from thirty to forty -five dol- lars; good looking saddles may be bought for a very much less price^ but the best ones are the cheapest, when we consider their durability, and the comfort Avhich they ensure to the horse and rider. The Somerset Saddle is so calL^d, because it was in- vented for one of the Somerset famil y who had Ic^t a leg below the knee. " It is padded before the I'nec and be- hind the thigh, to fit the seat of the purchaser, and if pro- vided with a stuffed seat of brown buck-skin, will give the quartogenarian pupil the comfort and confidence of an arm chair. They are, it may be encouraging to mention, fash- ionable among the more aristocratic middle aged. The front roll of stuffing is much used among those who ride and break their own colts, as it affords a fulcrum against :i puller, and a protection against a kicker. Australians usi a rolled blanket, strapped over the pommel of the saddle, for the same purpose. To bad horsemen who are too con- ceited to use a Somerset, I say, in the words of the old proverb, ' Pride must have a fall.' "* The Girths, of which there should always be two, should be of the best qualitj" of webbing, of good width, and they should be supplied with very strong, long- tongued buckles. The Stirrup-leathers should be attached by bara closed at the rear by a clasp, (see fig. 25) acting with a spring in the manner of an ordinary knife blade. This renders the foot- hold always secure, so long as it is desirable that it should be so ; and, if the rider fall with his foot fastened in the stirrup, the clip yields and allows the strap to draw out towards the rear. The best stirrup straps are usually made with the rough side of the leather outward, as being more *" The Art of Taming Horsea" 264 HOW TO RIDE A HORSE. durable. They should be just long enough when let out to their full extent, to allow the ball of the foot to touch the stirrup when the leg is stretched down to its fullest Fia. 26. ■ a. The bars of the clasp. 6. Is inserted like a knife-blade on a spring e. The same partly open. d d. The ouris by which the clasp is fastened to the saddle, and are covered Dy ine leather. extent. It is sometimes desirable to ride with the stirrups thus long, and any excess of leather beyond what is re- quired for this^ will be inconvenient when riding with a shorter stirrup. The Stirrup-irons should be large enough to allow the ball of the foot to pass easily through them, and noi less than 1| inches wide at the bottom. A very light stirrup is objectionable, as it is more easily lost by the foot and less easily recovered, than one of medium weight. Saddle-cloths. — These are of two sorts. The first is that which is attached to the rear of the saddle, and the office of which is to protect the rider^s coat from being soiled by the perspiration of the horse. They are voted " slow" by modern riders. BREAST- PLATE— MARTINGALE. 2(^5 The second form is a heavy felt cloth, or a folded blanket, wrhicb is put on the horse's back under the saddle, and which greatly protects the horse from injury by its friction. It is of farther use in absorbing the perspiration of the horse, thus preventing the pads of the saddle from becom- ing hard. The Ckupper is too familiar to need description. It ia cf use only on such horses as are, from their straight shoul- ders and low withers, unfit for the saddle. All well-bred saddle-horses are so high in the withers that there is no danger of the saddle slipping forward. The Breast-plate or Hunting Martingale is of use only on such very highly bred horses as, from their high withers and small, round barrels, may " run out of their saddles" in ascending steep hills. It consists of a strap which passes about the neck, and is attached to the girths beneath, having on either side, at a distance of about nine inches below the top of the withers, a ring, from which pass short straps to the breast- plate rings of the saddle. Martingales are of three sorts : — the running martin- gale, which has two rings through which the reins are pass- ed; the standing martingale, which is buckled to both rings of the bit ; and the cavesson martingale, which is buckled to the nose-band of the bridle. The object of the standing martingale and of the cavesson martingale, is to keep the horse's head always in position, and they are but poor substitutes for a proper rein-hold. Except for unskil- . ful riders on fretful horses, their use is to be deprecated aa aiiiiaturally constraining the movements of the horse. The running martingale is scarcely ever more desirable, though with horses which have a habit of rearing, or of throwing up their heads, it may be used as a last resort. But in all cases the straps should be sufficiently long to al- low the rings to go quite up to the buckles when the horso'a 266 HOW TO RIDE A HORSE. head is in a perpendicular position, and tlie reins should be supplied with buttons to prevent these rings from beiag caught on the buckles of the reins. The Bridle should be of white or russet leather, of good quality, and it will be more satisfactory if its buckles are of polished steel and detachable (that they may be easily cleaned), rather than covered with leather, and sew- ed fast to the bridle. Covered buckles are usually so weak as to easily get out of order. The bridle should be, for elegance, as plain as possible, and it may have either single or double head -straps, according to the sort of bit which has to be used. Some persons use a nose-band, buckled sufficiently short to prevent the horse from open- ing his mouth to its full extent, but it is possible so to train a horse as to render this unnecessary. The Bit. — As to the form of the bit, it is the opinion ot many that there should not only be a different bit for each sort of " mouth," but that there should be various bits to suit the varying temper of the same horse. Baucher, who is high authority, insists, on the contrary, that one sort of bit is sufficient for all horses, and for all occasions. He recommends a particular form of the hit and hridoon bridle. (See Baucher's chapter.) The snaffle should be small, and not long. The curb-bit he describes thus: "Branches straight, six inches long from the eye of the bit to the ex- tremity of the branch ; the canon, or that part of the bit which acts against the bars of the mouth, is three-fourths of an inch in diameter; the width of the port at the bottom is two inches." The " Pelham " bit, (see fig. 26) a combination of the snaffle and the curb, if of sufficiently large size, is mora elegant in its appearance, having but a single head-piece, and is very effective. The "Hanovarian" (see fig. 27) is a powerful variation of the Pelham bit, and in the hands o/ THE BIT. m a practiced horseman has an excellent effect on the horse's action. There are fiew horses which can be sattstncto^lj? Fig. 26.— The Pelham Bit. idden with the plain snaffle-bit — such as is ^^^rt^^'^iea m figure 28. Fn. 27.— The Hanovarian Bit. g BiDf pieces Tor the attachment of the bead stall made movable (as at b), to proT«r AlerfereBce with the action of the curb-chain. 2d8 HOW TO RIDE A HOBSE. 'a:bk *^ulley Bridle cau be useful only when 't is nece^ Aury to riae a pig neaded, stiti-necked brute, whose peculiar fancy is for tf a> ng tlie bit between his teeth, and runnlDg like mad, wit^-jut a moment's warning. For ordinary fia. 28— The plain Snaffle-bit use, it acts as a plain snaffle, but, if the horse try to run away with it, a stout pull on the rein which passes through the ends of the bit and over the top of the head will effectually gag him and bring him to terms. It ia much better than the saw-edged, jaw-breaking devices in use in some parts of the world, and, for special uses, it is desirable ; but for a gentleman's saddle-horse it would be absurd, inasmuch as no horse fit for saddle use would at- tempt any prank which Baucher's bit, with its 6-inch lev- erage, would not speedily check. Spurs. — The best form of spur is the old-fashioned sort known to the trade as the *' hunting-spur." This sets over the heel, and is fastened by a strap around the instep. The more fashionable form at the present time, is the spur which is either screwed fast to the heel of the boot, or ivhich is fastened to it by a spring which fits into a socket made in the heel The points of the spur should be filed MOUNTING AND DISMOUNTING. 2G9 off, SO tliat they cannot prick the horse too severely ; in ordinary riding they are used only as reminders. The use of the spurs, as directed in the chapter or Baucher's method of training, adds greatly to nearly every effect of the motions of the legs, and by their skilful aj)pli- cation, it is possible to make the well-trained horse seem a portion of ourselves. The Dress. — The riding dress for gentlemen, in this country, where there are no riding or hunting clubs, and where there is no special fashion for riding costume, may be anything that is appropriate to the season, convenient, and not easily injured by the frequently recurring mishaps incident to riding. Tight breeches, with the boots \^■orn outside, are most convenient, and least subject to accident; Dut pantaloons, with straps, are more elegant, and suffi ciently convenient. MOUNTING AND DISMOUNTING. Mounting. — 1. Walk up to the horse in a quiet, confident way, pat his face and neck, and speak to him gently ; then, standing opposite his left shoulder, fix the reins in the left hand, and with the right hand separate a portion of the mane and wind it around the thumb of the left hand. Then fac- ing the horse's rump, hold the stirrup in the right hand and put the left foot firmly into it ; now hop around so as lo face the saddle, and lay the hand on tlie right side of the cantle ; raise yourself in the stirrup, and throw the right leg well over the horse's back, without bending the knee As soon as you touch the saddle, loose the hold of the mane but be careful that, in finding the right stirrup, your efforts produce no reaction on the bit, which should be held only tight enough to cause the horse to stand quietly. Or, 2d Approach the horse as before, step back so as to 270 How TO RIDE A HORSE. face the saddle, take the curb-rein lightly n the right Land and lay that hand on the right side of the cantle of the Baddle ; with the help oT the left hand place the foot in the stirrup, and then, taking a portion of the mane in the left hand, place yourself in the saddle, as before directed, raising the right hand to clear the right leg, and letting go of the mane and taking hold of the curb-rein with the left hand as the right rises from its position on the cantle to al- low the leg to pass over. This method of mounting is less formal and more graceful than that first described, but it requires a certain degree of skill and good horsemanship to enable one to perform it, without taking too strong a hold of the horse's mouth. These are methods of the schools, and it is conven- ient to be able to employ them at pleasure ; but the follow- ing directions by Baucher will enable one to mount mora easily and more quickly : Approach the horse's shoulder, take the reins in the left hand, and then take in the same hand a portion of the mane firmly, but in such a manner as not to tear the hair from its roots. Place the right hand on the pommel of the saddle, passing the four fingers inside the pommel and laying the thumb on the outside ; spring lightly and raise yourself upon your wrists. As soon as your middle has reached the height of your hands, throw the right leg over the croup, without touching it, and place yourself lightly in tjie saddle. These directions all apply to mounting from the left side of the horse ; for mounting from the right or off side, they should, of course, be reversed. There is no right or wrong side of the iorse from which to mount, and the rider should be able to mount from either side, indifferently. Dismounting. — Ir. leaving the saddle, it is customary, aa THE SEAT. 27 i it is ea^y, to dismount by simply reversing tiie first airec tions given for mounting, — thus: having the reins and whip in the left hand, take hold of the mane, withdraw the right foot from the stirrup, lay the right hand on the pommel of the saddle, and throw the right leg backward over the horse^s rump, being careful not to touch him with the spur. As the leg descends to the horse's side, move the right hand from the pommel of the saddle to the cantle ; lower the right leg to the ground and take the stirrup in the right hand, so that the foot may be withdrawn without throwing the stirrup against the horse's flank. A less dignified but more graceful mode of dismount- ing is the following : disengage both feet from the stirrups, olace both hands on the pommel of the saddle, lean slightly backward, and then throw the body forward, bringing the weight on the wrists ; continue the spring, so as to bring either leg over the horse, landing on either side at pleas- ure, dropping close by his side and keeping hold of tho reins over his withers. The Seat. — On this subject Nimrod says : " It was well observed by Don Quixote, in one of his lectures to Sancho, that the seat on a horse makes some people look like gen- tlemen, and others like grooms; but a wonderful improve- ment has taken place within the last half century in the seat on horseback of all descriptions of persons, effected chiefly by the simple act of giving the rider a few more inches of stirrup-leather. No gentleman now, and very few servants, are to be seen with short stirrups, and, con- sequently, a bent knee, which, independently of its un- sightliness, causes uneasiness to the horse as well as to his nder, — whose knees being lifted above the skirts of the sad- dle deprive him of the assistance of the clip by his thigha and legs. The short stirrup-leather, however, was adopted with the idea of its giving relief to the horse although a 27? HOW TO RIDE A HOBSE. momeiJt'g consideration would have proved tlie contrary and Ibi this reason : the point of union between a man and nis horse, as well as the centre of action, lies j.ist behind the shoulder blades, which, as must be apparent to every one, is the strongest part of the horse's body, and whcrr the sack of wheat or flour is placed by the farmer or mil l^r. With short stirrup-leathers, the seat of the rider ie thrown farther back on the saddle, instead of being exactly in the centre of it, and consequently his weight is thrown upon the part approaching the loins, — the weakest part of the body, and very easily injured. From the same mis- taken notion was the saddle formerly placed nearly a hand's breadth from the shoulders, which, of course, added to the mischief" In military riding, the stirrup-straps are nearly as long aa they can be reached by the ball of the foot. In cross-coun- try riding, on the contrary the strap is considerably short- ened and the foot is placed home, — that is, the stirrup is car- ried in the hollow of the foot. This gives greater security to the seat, and lessens the risk of loosing the stirrup in leaping. The seat, in pleasure-riding, should be a compro- uiise between these two. Various directions are given for the length of the stirrup, such as that the stirrup should hang opposite the ankle joint when the leg is extended downward ; that the leg should be extended, the toes raised as much as possible, and the stirrup adjusted to the position of the ball of the foot, when so placed ; or, that whcD the ball of the foot is in the stirrup, the rider can, keep- ing his ankle still bent, so raise himself as to just clear the pommel. Practically, the best direction is, for the rider to carry his feet in the position that is most comfort- able to him, provided that it does not greatly vary from any of the foregoing, and that it does not caus'^ his seat, iu riding, to be behind the middle of the saddle. The proper THE SEAT. 273 position of jhe slirrup and tlie depression of the heel are represented in fig. 29. The foot must always be carried nearly parallel to the horse's hody, turning out the toe hut very little. The great essential of any seat on horseback is, to have it perfectly secure, natural, and unrestrained. Bau« cher gives the following directions for acquiring a good seat. He recommends for the purpose a quiet old horse : The pupil being in the saddle, the instructor will exam- ine his position in order to detect those parts which most require suppling. The pupil will first expand his chest, and retain himself some time in that position. He will next move his head to the right, or to the left, without a corre- sponding motion of the shoulders. The chest, arms, and head having become properly suppled, he will remove one of his legs as far as possible away fi:om the saddle, and af- terward replace it in such a manner as to take a firm clip with his knees and thighs. The leg must be entirely un- der the control of the pupil, and must be gradually replaced, not allowed to fall back of its own weight. The thighs and knees preserving their adherence to the saddle; the legs must be swung like a pendulum, the heels being raised to the height of the cantle of the saddle. The pupil should hold in either or both hands, weights of from ten to forty pounds, and should continue this practice until he can do it without affecting the security of his seat. The instruc- tor should push the pupil from his seat to one side or to the other, and should watch that he regains it by the use of his hips and knees only. The hands, and consequently the shoulders and whole upper portion of the body, should remain motionless during this movement. In all of these exercises the pupil must have in view the necessity for guiding his horse independently of the means which keep him in his position, and never endeavoring to strengthen his position by his hold of the icins. It is a useful prao- 12* 274 HOW TO RIDE A HORSE. tice for tlie pupil to get upon his knees, and subsequent!} upon his feet in the saddle, while holding weights in hLs bands. Thk Hands. — The position of the hands, in riding, is a matter of the utmost importance, as en the delicacy and firmness of the touch depends very much the rider's ability to make his horse entirely submissive to his efforts. In cross-country riding, and in all cases where great caro is necessary, the reins of each side should be held in the hand of that side. (See fig. 30.) This manner of holding the reins is always the safest, and, as a gentleman in rid- ing is not obliged to use his right hand for a sword, as are military men, there is no reason why he should not use it in such a manner as to give him the best possible control of his horse's mouth. With all strange or unruly horses, in turning to the right draw on the right rein, and to the left on the left rein. If vou find that your horse is so delicately trained that he can be turned by the least pressure of the rein against either side of his neck, it will often be convenient to hold the reins together in the left hand. Baucher, in his Manage riding, holds the curb-reins together in his left hand, and the snafile-reins together in his right. An alternate tension on the two reins keeps the horse more sensitive to the bit. As it is the almost universal custom among good riders in this country to ride with the reins in the left hand only, and as those deviating from this custom would be considered awkward, such persons as desire a reputation for skilful riding should hold their reins as is represented in Fig. 81. The right hand, in which the whip is firmly held, may rest on tlie hip, or hang by the side. The left hand should be held with the thumb upward and pointing toward the horse's ears, and with the little finger near to the pommel of the saddle and directly abo ve it. This enables one to hold THE HANDS— THE LEGS. 275 the elbow close to the side. The old custom of turning the knuckles upward, without giving more power, throws the elbow away from the side, and gives the rider an un- graceful appearance. If the horse has been trained as de- scribed in the chapter on Baucher's method, he mav be best ridden with the curb-rein alone ; the rein of the snaflfle, being slackened only a few inches, may be easily drawn up at pleasure when it is necessary to give the horse a more firm support. " Lightness of hand," about which much is said, is realij a firmness; and, except with delicately formed and perfectly trained horses, a light hold of the bit is not only danger- ous, but is injurious to the perfect action of the horse. On the road the rider should always maintain his horse's head in a perpendicular position ; this requires the rein to be drawn to a certain point, at which it should be constantly kept, unless it be necessar}?- to slacken the pace. The horse will soon learn that it is only within this limit that he can be free from the pain caused by the pressure of the bit, and by keeping his mouth just within it, he will ren- der the hold a light one ; but, should he attempt to pass beyond it, he should find his rider's hand as firm and un- yielding as iron. When in this position the horse is ex- tremely sensitive to the least movement of the rider's hand, and by an awkward motion he may be thrown upon liia haunches, or at least interrupted and confused in his gait. The Legs. — The legs are no less important in guiding snd assisting the horse in his movements than are the hands, for his changes of direction, and indeed his every action is no more dependent on his fore parts, which are controlled by the hands, than on the hind parts which are controlled entirely by the legs. A uniform pressure of both legs tends to bring the horse's hind feet forward, or to give a forward motion to his body. The pressure oi 276 now TO ride a horse. one leg, placed behind the girths, tends to turn -.he crou[ around the fore legs from that side. An equal pressure o1 both legs differently placed, and delicately aided by the hand, tends to turn the horse around his centre of gravity, and, by a combination of these aids, which require as much practice in the management of the legs as in tliat of the hands, the horse, in his movements, may be made entirel3/ submissive to the will of his rider. The legs have still an- other ofl&ce, in enabling the rider to displace his weight so as to throw more weight on one side of the horse than on the other, and to cause him to raise the legs of the side from which the weight has been removed. The ridei should carefully avoid distressing liis horse by an unnec- essary pressure of his thighs. THE PACES. The Walk ii? so simple a gait that it is only necessary to Bay of it that, except when adopted as a resting or breath- ing time for a weary horse, it should be performed with animation, the head being kept in position, and the action made lively and firm ; this should especially be the case when the object is to perform a slow journey, or simply to exercise the horse. After fast travelling on the road, it is at times desirable to allow the head to drop, and the whole muscular system to become relaxed ; but this should be only for a sufficient distance to enable the horse to recover from t^emporary exhaustion, and it should never be allowed on rough ground with any horse, nor even on the smooth- est ground with such as are inclined to trip. The rider may suffer his own body to drop into an easy position, but he must be ready instantly to regain his firmness in case of a false step. The Trot is the fashionahle gait in this country though THE Faces. 277 it is less easy to tlie rider and to the horse thau a well gathered canter ; and it is for both of them an artificial gait, and both will need much practice before, they will ba able to perfoim it gracefully. On the part of the horse, there is too frequently a tendency to bear heavily on the bit, and to trot with a low, reaching step. This always causes a contraction of the neck and jaw, and usually an irregular motion of the hind parts, which is far from being either easy or elegant. No matter how fast the trot m.ay be, the animal should always preserve his lightness and freedom of action, maintaining a perfect suppleness and a uniformity in his step. Military men, and the riders of the French school, prac- tice what the English very properly term ' riding hard,' or sitting close to the saddle, while the English and very many American riders rise in the stirrup at each step of the horse. The latter is certainly the most easy for both horse and rider. This opinion is sustained by Nimrod, who writes as follows : *' It is indeed to the disuse of this practice in France, and other parts of the continent, where rising in the stirrups is never resorted to, even on the hardest trotting horses, tliat is to be attributed the rare occurrence of persons riding any distance, at a quick rate, for pleasure. To this peculiar system in our horseman- ship are we indebted, also, for our rapid style of posting, as without it post-boys could not endure the fatigue the action of a horse creates, especially in hot weather, over a fifteen miles stage, at the rate of ten or twelve miles an hour, without a moment's intermission ; whereas, by me-ona of it, he performs the task with comparative ease and com- fort. The objection to it on the part of foreigners lies in the fancied inelegance of the motion, which we consider not worthy of an argument ; but of this we are certain, that what is called ' riding hard,' tliat is, not rising in the stir 278 HOW TO RIDE A HORSB. nips in tlie trot, nor leaning any weight on tLem \u tha gallop ov canter, must be extremely distressing to the horse." K the novice attempts riding hard, he should avoid leaning back too much, as this, by throwing the weight near to the horses coupling, must always be distressing to him. The proper position is to incline a very little backward, enough to bring the shoulders over the cantel 3f the saddle, or nearly so. In rising in the stirrups one should lean a little forward, and the motion should be only enough to break the shock of the horse's step. The feet should be carefully kept in a line with the horse's sides, as close as possible to hia body, and the swaying motion which they are likely to take should be avoided. One should be able to ride in this manner without the least support from the reins. In slow trotting, as indeed in all slow riding, the reins may be held together in the left hand, if the rider be acquaint- ed with his horse, and is sure that he is not inclined to trip. The Gallop and Canter. — While the gallop and can- ter are entirely different paces, the former being a succes- sion of short leaps, and the latter a movement of the front and hind legs successively, the transition from one to the other is so gradual that it would be difficult to exactly fix it, and the style of riding in both paces is very much the same. The horse being light in hand, and the rider being easy, yet secure, in his seat, it will only be necessary to obserre a few important directions, such as the following : The hand or hands, having a proper hold of the reins» should be so held that the body is not twisted out of its proper position ; that is, supposing the reins be held togeth- er in the left hand, the left shoulder should not be thrown forward, but both shoulders should be placed as nearly aa THE PACE, OR AMBLE. 27& possible at riglit angles with the line of travel. If the horse lead with the left foot, his body w^ill be inclined a little to the right, or if he lead with the right foot it will be inclined a little to the left. In either case, the rider should face the direction in which he is going, rather than the direction of the horse's body. As there is more motion on that side of the horse which ifl leading, the rider's foot of that side will be more inclined than the other to sway with the horse's step ; this should, as far as possible, be avoided, as inelegant and insecure. The body of the rider should be. perpendicular, — or, in the language of Baucher, every part of the body should rest on the part next below it, and the weight should be thrown somewhat into the stirrups, as being less fatiguing to the horse than when borne entirely by the seat. The thighs should in all cases grasp the horse, but not with so much power as to render him uncomfortable, — a frequent error with strong men. In the gallop the motion of the horse is very much in- creased, and there is proportionately greater necessity foi the observance of the foregoing suggestions. For further information concerning the different pace^ the reader is referred to the chapter on Baucher's system of training horses for the saddle. The Pace, or Amble, is a gait which is not recognized in the art of Equitation, and which demands no special attention here, inasmuch as particular instructions with re- gard to it are not required after what has been said on the general subjects of the "Seat," "Hands," etc. While pacing horses are in active demand for the sad- dles of middle-aged beginners, and although the gait has the sole and questionable advantage of being " as easy as a rocking-chair," it may not be amiss to say that the sidling movement and boring mouth of this class of horses, and 280 HOW TO HIDE A HORSE. the necessarily swagging seat of their riders, exclude th* gait from the manage. To an accomplished horseman, pacing is either painfully swinging or painfully dull. So long as his horse moves forward in a direct line he can preserve a safe, elegant, and comfortable seat, no matter how high the action; but when to the forward movement there is added a swaying from side to side, such a seat is impossible ; and, indeed, all works on horsemanship, only teach the means for cor- recting this gait as a vice. Still, as many of the readers of this work may have reason, on account of timidity or physical weakness, to prefer pacing horses, their attention is called to the superior advantages of that particular variety of the gait called " Racking." A true pacer moves the two feet of each side at the same time, and his action is neither so safe nor so pleasant as that of the racher^ whose feet are set down one after the other in regular one-two-three-four time. Turning. — In turning the horse, in any pace, the rider should recollect that he is not simply to pull him round by the head, as this will invariably induce a contraction of the neck or of the whole body. The legs should be held sufficiently close to the sides to keep the horse's hind legs well under him, and the leg on the side from which it is desired to turn should be carried back of the girths at the same time that the head is drawn toward the side ; this wiii cause the horse to turn gracefully, and to retain hia lightness. The Halt. — There is one principle which must be borne in mind, in making a sudden halt from a rapid pace ; that b, that if the hind legs are under the body, when the horse stops, they receive their share of the shock, whereas, il they are not so placed, the whole shock comes on the fore- legs, and a sudden halt becomes dangerous, or disagree- HINTS JOR SPECIAL CASES. 283 able. In halting from the gallop, toucli the horse gently ^ but steadily, with the spurs when the hind legs are for- ward, and immediately follow this movement by a tension of the hand. If the rein is drawn before the spurs arf^ used the hind legs cannot be controlled, and the horse stops only after a series of bounds, which are as uncomfortable to the rider os they are ungraceful. The instant halt, from an ordinary gallop, may, with a well-trained horse, be effected without dif&calty. Skilful riding is, if the expression may be allowed, an acquired instinct^ and written instructions can give but an imperfect idea of the manner in which an accomplished rider is enabled to make his horse entirely subservient to his will, holding him, between his hands and his legs, ready to obey his least suggestion, and powerless to oppose his wishes ; yet this is not a difficult acquirement for any per- son who will devote himself with zeal to his own and hia horse's education. HINTS FOR SPECIAL CASES. In riding over hard ground, tlie horse should be kept to a trot, or a very gentle canter, as the concussion of the gallop is very severe on the hoofs and legs ; strains, in- flammation in the feet, break down, and, \vorsc than all, quarter-crack, are frequent penalties of a disregard of this suggestion. The friction of hard roads on the shoes often renders them so hot as to injure the hoof. When a piece of turf or soft road offers, the pace may be with safety extended to a sharp gallop without much danger of accident. In riding over miry ground, the horse should be taken firmly between the legs, and the body should be inclined dightly backward, to prevent a fall forv^ard in case of hia 282 HOW TO RIDE A HORSE. Btepping on a \ery soft spot. As tlie hind feet are placed very nearly in the tracks of the fore feet, and as thej are put down less perpendicularly, there is comparatively but little liability of the horse's falling on his haunches, and if he should do so, the fall would not be very dangerous to the rider. The management of shying horses is considered in the chapter on Earey's Method of Horse-taming. If the horse be a kicker, recollect that he cannot kick to do any harm so long as his head is kept in the proper po- sition, and that he may be prevented from striking out by the use of the curb, which will cause him to raise his head, in which position excessive kicking is impossible. Some horses rear badly ; they may generally be pre- vented from doing so by being touched in either flank with the spur, just as they commence to rise. It may alsc he prevented, in some cases, by the rider's leaning well back in the saddle, and then throwing his weight suddenly forward, as soon as the fore feet leave the ground. This creates an opposition which the horse had not calculated. on when he took his spring, and brings him to his feet, or at least will prevent the horse from falling over back- ward. Leaping or Fencing. — In the chapter on Baucher^s method, there are given directions for teaching the horse to leap. The rider wall best take his first lessons in cau- tious and unobserved practice. Yery small ditches, and after them, very low fences should be " carried," with a well-trained, or very active horse. The first landing from ever so small a leap, if it be really a leap^ and not a scramble, is usually made with the rider on the horse's ueck, or, at least, very far forward on the saddle ; but the tnach of the thing is soon acquired, and with the aid oi coolness and courage, the novice will, after a few slight LEAPING OR FENCING. 28E mishaps, find it easy to keep well down in his seat, and to land in such a manner as to jeopardize neither his own neck, nor hig horse's fore legs. Instead of the usual lengthy directions for leaping, we Insert only the following suggestions, believing that \.Qe art is to be acquired only by practice, and that the expe- rience of each individual, bought at the cost of a few mishaps, will be of more value than a volume of detailed instructions. In going at a leap hold the reins in both hands, keep- ing them rather low, and steadying the horse by a uniform but not too tight hold of his mouth, reducing the speed to enable the horse to gather his hind legs well under him to take the spring. As soon as he rises, give him the reins, and be ready to hold him at the moment of landing, — but be careful not to interfere with him until he has fairly touched the ground ; a nervous grasping of the reins, such as is natural to the beginner, wil? almost inevitably bring him to grief All high le-^ps should be approached slowly, and those which requi»e a long distance to be covered, should be ridden to at a gallop. In appro<»»ision has passed, and the leap must be taken at all cost, o^ that horse will never face water again. Be careful never to lead your horse to a leap which yon are not sure that he can cover, except in a case of abso- lute necessity ; he will then, if necessary, go to severe leaps with confidence, and with a good chance of " carry ing" them. Do not try to lift your horse at his leaps. You migni as well try to lift yourself by your boot-straps. K youj 284 HOW TO RIDE A HORSE- horse need animating by whip or spur, lei it be done be fore J ou approacli the leap. Any interference on the pail of the rider, at the time of leaping, is more likely to do harm than good. In descending from the leap, throw the shoulders and body well back, to prevent a fall forward. Confine yourself entirely to the standing leap, until both you and your horse can perform it properly. This will render the flying leap always easy and safe ; but if the horse be first taught the flying leap, he will acquire the bad habit of rushing at his fences. Do not disgust your horse by making him leap repeat- edly over the same place ; rather lead him to believe that the leaps are taken from necessity. It is generally best not to ride to the bank of a ditch to examine it, and then turn to run at it ; if it lie in your way, and you are pretty sure of its character, either take it on faith and go at it, or don't attempt it at all ; any inde- cision will render your horse nervous, and lessen his ability to leap safely. The Art of Falling. — " He that will venture noth- ing, must not get on horseback," and everj horseman must expect, sooner or later, to be thrown. Nimrod Bays : There is an art in falling, as well as in pre\'(mt ing falls. This consists in getting clear of the horse as soon as possible. If thrown over the horse's head, put out one, and if possible, both hands, to prevent the shock from being received by the head ; — a broken collar bone is better than a broken neck. If the horse falls, the rider should roll away from him as soon as he possibly can, lest in his struggle to rise again he strike him with his legs or liead. Instead ol losing hold of his reins, and abandoning his horse to hia Dwn will, as the man who is flurried at this time invari ably does, he keeps them in his hand, if not always, per BIDING WITH LADIES. 285 haps in nine cases out of ten, and this secures his horse, It was the remark of a gentleman who was, from his desperate system of riding, and despite of his fine horse- manship, known to have had more falls than any other man during the time he hunted in Leicestershire, that nothing had 80 low an appearance as .that of a man running on !bot over a field, calling out, " stop my horse." In case of a severe fall, if surgical aid cannot be immediately obtidned, drink a wineglassful of strong vinegar and water ; its revul- sive effect on the circulation will delay inflammation. EiDiNG WITH Ladies. — If the lady with whom you are to ride is a good horsewoman, and her horse is perfectly trained, your responsibility is a light and pleasant one, in- volving only those usual attentions in mounting and dis- mounting which suggest themselves. Any unnecessary interference with the lady, or her horse, or excessive solici- tude for her safety, must, to a woman of good sense, be annoying, and may not unfrequently be the cause of acci- dents. As, however, a lady is never so well prepared, from her mode of dress, natural timidity, and inferior strength, for the exigences of an accident, or a contest with a frightened horse, you should always be watchful of her horse, without appearing to be so, especially when passing vehicles or unusual objects on the road. If the lady be inexperienced, or her horse badly trained, an increased responsibility rests upon the gentleman ; and here coolness and good judgment on his part are requisite. If the lady be timid he must inspire her with confidence, not by ridiculing her fears, but by a quiet consideration of her wishes and solicitudes, even when they are the result o^ a foolish timidity. She will then receive his assuran ''.es that ^* there is no danger," with a reliance upon his judgment which she could not otherwise feel. I^ on the other hand, as is veiy often the case she be 286 HOW TO RIDE A HORSE. over-confident of lier own skill or tlie good disposition of the borse, keep a vrigilant eje upon her, but do not un- wisely show jour own anxiety, or utter cautions which will only tempt her to a greater display of her own fearlessness, with a laugh at your advice. At the proper moment you may suggest the danger you see, giving her the reasons for your apprehensions. The instructions for assisting the lady in mounting will be found in the chapter on Ladies' Kiding, and comprise all that is necessary on that topic. If you are to ride with a lady under circumstances which render it probable you will have to assist her, or on thor- oughfares where many vehicles will be met, ride on the left side of her ; but if otherwise, it is well to consult hei preferences as to which side you shall take. There is no rule to be prescribed on this point, though the advan- tages of riding on the left side may be stated as follows : You have the right hand nearest to her, to render her any assistance, if required. On the other side your bridle- hand, which is comparatively inefficient for this purpose, is the only one you can conveniently use. Any disarrangem.ent or entanglement of the skirt can be corrected by the gentleman, and is lees liable to be ob- gerved by passers-by. The left side being the one on which all carriages pass, you ride between them and your lady's horse. Conversation is much more easily carried on, as the lady can, with less exertion, turn her face toward the gertleman If the saddle turn, or any accident render it necessary to lift the lady from the saddle, the left side is always pref- erable. The objections to riding on this side are, that an awk ward rider, or horse, may hurt or incommode the lady^s fxjet, and that it is sometimes desirable to the lady to ad HIDING WITH LADIES 28'< jnst her dress when she would prefer the gentleman tc be on the other side. In rapid riding, keep near to your ladj, but do not crowd her ; the horses' heads should be equally advanced, bui when about to pass a vehicle you may ride slightly for- ward, to be more sure not to press her feet in turning out, a:id to be in a better position for assisting her. If t become necessary, in an extremity, to lift the lady from the saddle, direct her to remove her leg from the pommel, and to take the reins in the right hand ; then hug your left foot close under your horse's side, to strengthen your position and to move him as close to her as possible ; hold your reins in the left hand, pressing the back of the knuckles against the left side of the pommel of your sad- ile, for a fulcrum, and then grasp her with the right arm firmly around the waist, and lift her on to your right thigh ; turn your horse sharply around to the right, thai her's may not kick her on finding himself free. The lady should keep a firm hold of her reins until she begins to leave the saddle, when she should drop them and grasp your horse's mane, at the same time disengag- ing her foot from the stirrup. During the whole operation the gentleman must be firm and decided, and must studi- oufiiy avoid feeling, and consequently communicating to hif ixjmpanion, the least alanu. CHAPTER XVIIl. LADIES* RIDING. WRITTEN BY A LADY. LKAKVnO TO BIDE— THE SIDESADDLE— THE GIRTHS— THE 8TIBSC1'— fHB Hlk- DLB— THE MARTINGALE — THE BIT — THE DRESS — MOUNTING 4irD D» MOUNTINO — THE POSITION — THE HANDS — ACCIDENTS. EvsRY lady should learn to ride ; not at a mature age. when her frame has become exhausted by a sedentary life, and consequent ill health ; uor even when, her school-days being over, she is thought to have leisure for wholesome exercise ; but in childhood, when her will is strong and her body obedient to it. Particularly in our large cities, too little care is given to the physical culture of young girls. Their minds are engaged, not often with energetic mental work, but with idle thought for dress and show , while no other exercise is taken than a measured daily walk, and occasional dancing and waltzing. Where household labor is disdained, and no opportu- nity can be afforded for floriculture or any other agreeable out-door occupation, there is no substitute so good as horseback riding. But for the country girl it becomes indispensable, Not her health, perhaps, but her happiness demands it. No woman ever rides so well as one who from childhood has loved her pet colt. She has chased him, perhaps, for hours around a * ten-acre lot:* and wheo, his frisky mood over, she has been able to take him coax- ingly by the mane and lead him to a mounting place, great was the triumph of her wild ride. And no training oi eare can give the freedom and skill of this youthful prac [288"» Fig. 33. LEARNING TO RIDE. 289 lice. When, at length, she is able to bridle and saddle him, her seat may be somewhat faulty, and her use of the reins awkward, but these faults are easily remedied, and are certainly atoned for by her freedom and fearlessness. Besides, no one can fully enjoy riding who does not both love and admire the noble animal which she rides ; and the quick intelligence of the horse yields ready obedience to the hand and voice of a woman who has learned lovingly to control him. His affectionate nature yields to her the mastery, oflen more readily than to a stronger power. Well mounted on a strong, spirited horse — with a wide country before her — on a clear, cool day — with a love for all the beauty around her, of the noble animal beneath her, and glowing with the bounding life within her, a lady capable of enjoyment is certainly prepared for it then. The first gentle pace of the horse starts the warm blood in her veins, and as both become excited, the glow tingles to the very finger-tips. The close-clinging to the horse, the slight reliance upon stirrup and bit, and the generally light proportion of rider to steed, give a feeling of being possessed of the powers of a new life, of riding upon the whirlwind, and yet controlling it with a word. This combination of a sense of weakness and of power, as every woman knows, is her greatest delight, and is the secret of many an enjoyment which she attributes to other causes If a quieter mood possess the rider, there is no Buch pleasant manner of strolling over a wide extent of country, otherwise inaccessible. The discovery of new paths and openings in woods and hilly country, where momently changes are succeeding each other in the pano- rama, affords delights which are not attainable in any other way. Even hundreds of miles of travel are more pleasantly accomplished in the saddle than in any other manner, even by ladies; provided always that they be 13 ta. tC-Udiet' Saddle witboat the rIght-luMid — Itie rerem* view of the aborp . 8hr wing the Lenptaf 'ttonk PWI THE SIDE-SADDLE. 291 well attired and well mounted. Then tlie companionship of friends is infinitely more sweet under the exhilerating influ- ences of active exercise, fresh air, and keen physical enjoy- ment. What so gay as a party of high-spirited equestrians ? The emulation of riders and horses adds a new element of enjoyment, while the beauty of every fair rider is enhanced not only by the glow of pleasurable excitement, but by the contrasts of color and form which each may present, in her habit and her horse. Companies of gentle- men and ladies, in full hunting suits, bounding in all the excitement of a race over a smooth stretch of road, or bet ter still, over wide meadows, in eager chase, present one ol the most beautiful sights imaginable. Of the healthfulnesa of this most delightful of accomplishments too much can- not be said. But certainly its benefits must greatly dimin- ish when it is resorted to, merely to strengthen the body. If a lady be recommended to ride for her health, let her first seek for the delight of riding, for nothing is more tire- some than being heavily jolted in a lady's saddle, or more wearisome than being quietly ambled over the ground by a small, spiritless pony. To ensure ease, elegance, and enjoyment in riding, many things are requisite. We enumerate as follows : The Sidesaddle. — The following, by Mr. Earey's English editor, is sensible, and to the point : "Ladies' saddles ought invariably to be made with what is called the leaping-horn, or crutch, at the left side. (See figs. 84 and 35.) The right-hand pommel has not yet gone out of fashion, but it is of no use, and is injurious to the security of a lady s seat, by preventing the right hand from being put down as low as it ought to be with a restive horse, and by encouraging the bad habit of leaning the right hand on it, A flat projection is quite sufficient. This will be quite clear to you, if) when sitting in your chair, you put a 292 LADIES' RIDING. cylinder, tliree or four inclies in diameter, betweeu yom legs, press your two knees together by crossing them, in the position of a woman on a sidesaddle. Besides, when a man clasps his horse, however firmly, it has a tendency to raise the seat from the saddle. This is not the caso with the sidesaddle seat : if a man wishes to use a lance and ride at a ring, he will find that he has a firmer seat with this kind of sidesaddle than with his own. There ifi no danger in this side-pommel, since you cannot be thrown on it, and it renders it next to impossible that the rider fihould be thrown upon the other pommel. In case of a horse leaping suddenly into the air and coming down on all four feet, — technically, " hucMngJ^ — without the leaping- horn there is nothing to prevent a lady from being thrown up. But the leaping-horn holds down the left knee, and makes it a fulcrum to keep the right knee down in its proper place. If the horse in violent action throws him- self suddenly to the left, the upper part of the rider's body will tend downwards, to the right, and the lower limbs to the left : nothing can prevent this but the support of the leaping-horn. The fear of over- balancing to the right causes many ladies to get into the bad habit of leaning over their saddles to the left. This fear disappears when the hunting-horn pommel is used. The leaping-horn is also of great use with a hard puller, or in riding down a steep place, for in either case it prevents the lady from sliding forward. ** But these advantages render the right-hand pommel quite useless, a slight projection being all-sufficient (see fig. 35) ; while this arrangement gives the habit and figure a much better appearance. But every lady ought to be measured for this part of the saddle, as the distance be I ween the two pommels will depend partly en the len^li of her le^ THE STIRRUP. 293 "When a timid, inexpenenced lady has to r.de a fierj horse, it is not a bad plan to attach a strap to the outsidosaible for one encumbered by two or three short petticoats. It is the chest and back which require double folds of protectiofl duiing, and after, strong exercise." 298 If ladies prefer, a quilted skirt, tot too full, may be worn. It should be lined witli silk or glazed muslin, and will be found no impediment. Long boots are a great com- fort and protection in riding long distances All ladies who desire that riding should be to them a healthful exercise, must take great care that their dress be perfectly easy in every part, particularly over the chest and around the ribs. Let the boots be easy, and their gloves, which should be leather gauntlets, large and soft, and all elastic bands very loose. Mounting. — The lady in mounting should, if conven- ient, be assisted by two persons ; one to hold the horse, — standing directly in front of him, and holding by the check pieces of the bridle, above the bit, — and the other to assist her to her seat. Having taken the reins and whip in the right hand, she will stand with her face towards the horse's Lead, and with her right hand on the left pommel of the saddle. In the left hand she will hold her skirt, in such a manner as to enable her to raise it clear of the ground. The gentleman will stand, facing her, and opposite to the horse's shoulder, with his left hand holding by his mane ; this steadies the horse when the lady springs. The gentle- man will now stoop and take the lady's left foot, which has been raised fifteen inches from the ground, in his right hand, clasping it firmly under the instep. The skirt having been raised to clear the foot, is now dropped, and the lady places her left hand on the gentleman's right shoulder, giving a spring to straighten the left knee. During this spring the gentleman will simply keep his hand still, supporting the lady's weight, but not raising her until the knee is fairly straightened, when he may lift her to the required height, but without trying to push her over on to the saddle. Sho will find her seat more easily without such assistance, which would often tend to throw her over the horse, rather than X8» THE "OSITION. on bis back. Being seated with ber rigbt hand still on tba pommel, tbe ladj will, with ber left band, adjust tbe folds of ber skirt. Sbe will tben remove ber band from tbe pom- mel, and place ber rigbt knee over it ; wben tbe gentleman will place ber foot in tbe stirrup, and tben aid ber in tak- ing proper bold of tbe reins and wbip. Wben tbis ia accomplisbed, tbe attendant at tbe borse's bead steps out of tbe way, and tbe ladj assumes tbe control. Fortunately, tbe operation is less tedious tban its description. Dismounting. — A lady dismounts witb perfect ease. After tbe groom bas takuu bis place in front of tbe borse and secured bim, by roltasing ber bold upon tbe bridle and stirrup and lifting ber rigbt leg over tbe pommel, wbicb sbe now bolds witb tbe rigbt band, wbile tbe left, on tbe sboulder, or in tbe band of ber gallant, affords ber suffi- cient support in slipping to tbe ground. THE POSITION. The Seat in the Sidesaddle. — Tbe lady sbould, by exercises similar to tbose recommended for gentlemen, en deavor to acquire a perfect independence of tbe rein-bold in tbe security of ber seat. Sbe sbould be able to lean far to tbe rigbt or to tbe left, or lie back on tbe borse's bauncbes, or forward on bis neck, and to regain ber position witbout disturbing ber seat in tbe saddle, and witbout holding by tbe reins. Witb tbe use of tbe leaping-horn it will be more easy for her to attain perfection, in tbis respect, tban it will be for tbe man, who must depend in a great measure on tbe clip of bis legs. We introduce a series of cuts to show tbe difference be- tween good and bad positions in tbe sidesaddle. Fig. 38 represents tbe proper position, tbe figure being erect, di- rectly over tbe borse's spine, tbe shoulders at an equal height and tbe elbows near tbe sides. Fig. 39 shows a more 800 LADIES' RIDING. common faullj position, tlie weight of the body being placed far to the left, and supported by the horn. Thia position is taken from a fear of falling to the right, and is most distressing to the horse, while it makes the lady look as though hung on a peg at his side. In fig. 40, the last described ungraceful position is attempted to be avoided by a lady who takes her seat in the proper place on the sad- die, and at that point, her courage failing her, bends hei shoulders far to the left, by a combination of curves more remarkable than beautiful. The fear which occasions these faults will in a great measure disappear if the leaping-horn be adopted. The spine should be perpendicular over a line running lengthwise through the centre of the saddle, and the right leg, by which the weight should be mainly supported, should lie as far from the right as the construction of the saddle will allow. The right leg, from the knee dowui should lie close to the saddle, rather than be pressed hard against it. Care should be taken to keep the foot turned to the right ; otherwise the lady can have no firm hold, and it will break one of the most graceful lines of her flowing skirt It is also important that the stirrup be not too short. It should be of such a length as to raise the left thigh lightly against the leaping-horn, while the heel is very slightly depressed below the level of the ball of the foot. The leg can then be either borne hard against the horn, or lowered slightly away from it at pleasure. The Hands. — It is believed by many that a good seat is all that is required to make a good rider, and it is un- doubtedly of vast importance to the fair equestrienne. But this excellence can be more easily obtained than the proper use of the hands. However strange it may seem, a •'heavy " liand is found quite as common among ladies aa THE HANDa 801 gentlemen, thougli this is more from lack of decision and energy than from any other cause. Practice alone can ensure a delicate hand, unless it be a natural gift. Some hints towards holding the reins properly will assist ma- terially. Ladies, particularly those with very small hands, will often find it burdensome to hold their reins both in one hand, as is universally taught in our riding-schools. Foi young riders it is best to use both hands, pulling the right rein when they wish to go to the right hand, and the left when they wish to go to the left. It is better for new be- ginners to ride with one bridle and 1 wo hands, than with two bridks and one hand : it ensures a square seat, and gives that power which can only be dispensed with when great skill is acquired. A man has the power of turning a horse, to a certain extent, with his legs and spurs ; a wo- man must depend on her reins, her whip, and her left leg. The best way for a lady is, if her hand be light, to knot up the snaffle and let it rest within her reach, in case of acci- dent to the other rein. Or, if her touch be not delicate enough for the curb, let her hold it lightly and depend on the snaffle. lu this case the snaffle should be taken on either side of the second finger of the bridle hand, and the curb on either side of the little finger. Reverse the order, if it is desirable to use the curb. Two reins are certainly more safe, and sufficient practice will enable a lady to uso them with perfect ease. She should be able to shift ihem instantly to the right hand, without slackening her pace, in case of disarrangement of her skirt, or other accident. Ladies, whose hands are sufficiently large, may ride v/ifcb the four reins gathered in the left hand, keeping the elbow close to the side, and the thumb pointed upward, as re- commended hr gentlemen; but usually with ordinary reins, only the snaffle, or the curb-rein, — as the case maj 802 LADIES* RIDING. be, — can be held gathered, and the otner must lie acroaa the hand (fig. 32).* When two reins are held in each hand they should be arranged as in fig. 38. V/.it the whip should, usually, be dropped and allowed to hang by its cord fi'om the wrist, as the two reins are quite enough for a lady's hand, and this double hold of both reins is not often neces- sary at a time when the whip is called for. The Whip and the Left Heel are valuable aids to a lady in the saddle. By a proper use of them she is enabled to retain a much freer hold upon her reins. Particularly in stopping and turning they are invaluable. Also, in starting^ the pressure of the leg and whip should be applied to bring the horse up to the bit. In making the turn he must be kept well up, and be assisted both by a steady feel- ing of the outward rein, which should only be relaxed enough to admit of an easy inclination of the horse to the side to which he is to turn, and, by a stronger pressure of the outward aid,— the leg or whip, — to keep the haunches from falling too much out. Care must be taken at all times to make the step steady, and not by a sudden or violent pull upon the reins, which often causes some horses to rear, and injures others. The use of the reins, the heels and the whip might be enlarged upon indefinitely ; but only the nicest care and minute observation can teach the lady the rare art of perfect management. Accidents. — Ladies, of course, should never ride horses which are in any manner vicious. But the best animals are not faultless, nor the most sure-footed always reliable. The lady should therefore be prepared for critical situations. Perhaps the most common fault is shying. If a horse is known to be afraid of any object, his attention may often- times be diverted by turning away his head or speaking Kindly to him ; also, rather than to oppose him, he may often to much better advantage be humored in his whims, ACCIDENT'S. 30ft and even be compelled to continue them after lie is tired ; thus, if lie turn short round, make him turn in the same direction half a dozen times. If he refuse to go foi ward compel him to go backward. Stumbling is more often a habit or an infimity than an accident. Where it is accidental, it is generally in a young horse, who will probably recover himself without danger to the rider; but, on the slightest intimation, she must throw her body back, and by raising her hands raise his head and assist him to regain himself The greatest danger a lady encounters is the possibility of her horse rearing very high ; when she should be suf&ciently self- possessed to slacken his rein and throw the whole weight of her body forward, being always ready to rise the mo- ment the horse comes to the ground. With proper watch- ftdness of eye and hand, a well-seated lady will always be prepared for any emergency. Above all things be chary of an improper use of the whip. Eemember that with a long skirt about her feet, and with little experience in such exercise, it is always unsafe for a lady to leap from her saddle. She can tell at once, on mounting, if her saddle is not securely girthed, so that only inexcusable neglect will admit of its turning. So long as the saddle is in its place, and the horse on his feet, a lady should never leave him under any circumstances un- less he be rearing badly, and an attendant be at hand to reeeive her ; if the saddle turn entirely off from the horse'a back, or, if he has fallen and cannot recover himself, a lady may disengage herself quickly, but carefully. In a runa* way, her place is close down in the saddle, holding the four reins low on either side, and giving an alternate tension to the curb and snaffle, steadying her horse in the road and saving her strength to force him to run long after lie would gladly stop. CHAPTER XIX. UOW TO DBIYB A. HOBSB. ia« ART OF DRITING — PLEASURE DRIVINa — HOW TO HOLD THE RBTKB— DHTfk DfO A PAIB— FOUB-m-HAND DRIVING— DRTVTNO WORKING HORSES— PLOW- ING — THREE-A-BREAS'" When tlie colt is once made to understand what is required of him, in both double and single harness, his after education depends on the skill and patient perseverance of his driver. The art of driving, whether for pleasure or work, demands a clear understanding of the requirements of each particular case, and attention to every motion of one's horse. Pleasure horses are required to travel actively, evenly, safely, and with as much style as possible, while work horses are required to throw their weight into the collar, and with a steady, even pull, without swerving to the right or to the left, and without fretting or noticing what is going on about them, to keep up a uniform motion of their load, at no time losing the assistance of its momentum, and never unnecessarily wasting their strength by a sudden rapid pull. The ability of the horse to assume one or the other of these characters depends even less upon his own nature than on the mannei in which he is driven. In Pleasure Driving the seat should be rather high, BO that one may easily see over the dash-board of the car- riage, but low enough for a direct pull on the bit when it is necessary. The feet should be firmly planted (avoiding an ungraceful or studied attitude,) in such a manner as to give strength to the pull, and securitv to the position, ii? (804] HOLDING THE REINS. 305 case of a sudden jolt of the carriage. The legs and hips should be as firm and immovable, and the upper part of the bodj should be as free and flexible, as possible, the princi- ple being borne in mind, as in the case of riding on horse- back, that while the seat should be perfectly secure, thid security should not imply the least support from the reins, nor the least inability to do whatever may be necessary with the head or arms. The eyes of the driver should be always on his horses, yet always about him. While he should see every strap and buckle within eye-shot, every movement of the horses' ears, every toss or shake of their heads, and every step that they take, he should also see every vehicle coming toward him, every object by the roadside, or elsewhere, which can possibly frighten his team, and every stone oi uneven place in the road on which they are likely to step, or which may come in the way of the wheels. To sit in this manner, and to be thus watchful while driving a pair of lively horses, and at the same time to appear perfectly at ease, is no small accomplishment ; still it may be attained by practice, and is essential to elegance in driving. The manner of holding the reins should depend on cir- cumstances. They may be both held in the left hand in either of the following ways, the hand being held with the thumb upward : — First. Let the off rein pass over the fore finger, and the near rein between the fore and middle fingers, the thumb pressing on the off rein to keep it in place, and both reins passing out between the ring and little fingers, aa shown in fig. 41; in this way they can be held veiy securely. Second, Let the near rein pass under the little finger, and the off rein between the ring-finger and little finger, both ends being brought out between the thumb and fore S06 HOW TO DRIVE A HORSE Gngei, falling over tlie knuckles, and being secured bj the pressure of tlie thumb, as is shown in figure 42; this is a lighter hold than the former, and is better for driving perfectly trained horses which require only the least touch to bring their heads into the proper (perpendicular) position It is more fatiguing than that first described, with horset which are at all hard on the bit. When it is desirable to hold the reins in both hands, the ofl rein may be taken in the right hand, by passing the fora finger under it,and allowing it to fall down through the hand, and out between the ring and little fingers; this will admit of the hand being opened to take the whip. (See fig. 43.) The rein in the left hand may remain ifi the same position as before. If it be necessary to strike a severe blow with the whip, the rein should be passed into the left hand, and quickly regained after the blow has been struck; this manner of holding the reins will give the greatest possible power over the team. The whip should be taken from its socket only when there is occasion to use it, and it should be returned as soon as it has become unnecessary. While held quietly in the hand it should lie horizontally across the near rein, and pointing over the whiffle-tree on the near side. Driving a single horse is not at all difiicult, and it re- quires only a good hand, a good temper, and a watchful eye. The horse's mouth should be ligttly felt, that he may be supported if he trip ; and especially in going dowu hill, the driver should sit with his feet well braced and his hand ready to support the horse in a false step, which, if at all, is most likely to occur at this tirr e. Driving a pair of horses requires much more skill and care. It is thus described by Stonehenge : " In Driving a Pair, the great art consists in putting them together so as to draw equally, and to step together i DRIVING A PAIB. 30? To do this well, tlie horses must match in action and tem- per, two slugs being much better than a free-tempered horse with a slug; because, in this case, the whip applied to the one only makes the other more free, and as a con- sequence it is impossible to make them draw equally. In Bome cases where two horses are exactly equally matched^ the coupling-reins must both be of equal length ; but this is seldom the case ; and when they do not do an equal amount of work, the coupling-rein of the free one must be taken up, and that of the idle horse let out. In watching the working of the two horses the pole-pieces should always be the guide ; and if both are slack, with the end of the pole steady, and neither horse shouldering it, the driver may rest contented that his horses are each doing their share ; if, however, the pole is shouldered by either, that horse is a rogue, and is making the other do more than his share, keeping the pole straight by the pressure ot his shoulder, instead of pulling at the traces. On the other hand, if either horse is pulling away from the pole, and straining at the pole-piece, he is doing more than his share, and his coupling-rein must be taken in accordingly. Sometimes both shoulder the pole, or spread from it, which are equally unsightly habits, and may generally be cured by an alteration of the coupling-reins of both horses, let- ting them out for shouldering, and taking them in for its opposite bad habit. The reins are held in the same way for double-harness as for single. In driving a pair, it shoulJ always be remembered that there are two methods of driv- ing round a curve, one by pulling the inside rein, and the other by hitting the outside horse, and these two-should generally be combined, graduating the use of the whip by the thinness of the skin of the horse. In aU cases the whip is required in double harness, if not to drive horsea when thoroughly put together, yet to make them pui] 308 HOW TO DRIVE A HORSE, equally ; and there are very few pairs wbicli do not occa Bionally want a little reminding of their duties. A constant change from one side to the other is a prevention of those tricks and bad habits which horses get into if they are kept to one side only. The coachman should, therefore, change them every now and then, and back again, so as to make what was a puller from the pole, rather bear towards it than otherwise when put on the other side." There is a certain animation of manner on the part of the driver which, without being noisy or demonstrative, keeps a team lively and cheerful at work, while another driver would not be able to get them to nearly so good a pace with even more labor to himself, and more fatigue to them. To attain this correspondence with one's horse should be the object of every person who attempts to become a fine driver. No such influence can be had over a horse which is not light in hand, and sprightly in his action, — that is, in the condition which is best and most eas- ily attained by the suppling for the saddle described in the chapter on that subject. Some of the advantages of this are, that it gives the horse more style, — that is, a higher, more graceful step, a better carriage of the head and tail, and generally a more lithe appearance. It has consider- able influence in causing the horses of a double team to step together in measured time. This must of course depend very much on their relations as to size and form, but it will do more than any other mode of training to equalize their steps, as it renders them very sensitive to the least action of the hand, and as the trotting of one horse will produce a slight reaction on the band, it must have an equal effect on the mouth of the other horse with vhich the hand is equally connected. Four-in-hand Driving. — With respect to coupling rking horses should never be whipped while drawing, except it is absolutely necessary ; and then they should not simply be tapped, but smartly punished in a manner that wlI cause them to understand and to recollect that their driver really means that they shall work, and work properly. Fifth. — If necessary to stop to rest before going up a hill, let the halt be at a little distance from the foot of the hill, that they may not get in the habit of stopping just at the foot of every hill which they encounter. When they are fully rested and prepared to go on, let them move vigorously, but do not allow them to rush at the hill ; the^ DRIVING WOEKING HORSES. 815 if onl'l in sucli a case lose more in wind than they would gain in impetus. If possible, go moderately up every hill without stopping, recollecting that it is much harder to start a load against a hill, than it is to keep it in motion after it is started. At the top of every difficult hill, eithei stop the team or let them walk slowly for a few rods, until they have recovered from the effects of the extra exertion. Sixth. — At all times, and especially in difficult places, or when first starting with a heavy load, the driver should carefully avoid exciting his team by crossness or impatience, but should hold them steadily by the bit, and talk to them in a quiet and determined manner, endeavoring to keep them cool and resolute, pulling evenly and steadily until they start their load, without making a sudden jump at it, as many nervous horses are inclined to do. Such a move- ment is very likely to disconcert the other horses, and it exhausts the strength more than ten times the effort prop- erly expended. Seventh. — In descending a hill, especially if there be no break or drag on the wheels, the team should be so held back that the wagon never gets an increasing speed, and the pole should be kept in an exact line with, and not diagonally across, the wagon. Eighth. — The team should never be so hardly driven as to become blown (where it is possible to avoid it), noi should they ever be allowed to become indolent, or care- less in their gait. They should always be active and will* ing, but never impatient to do more than is clearly within their powers. A road team, well kept, and driven according to the above directions, will last longer, keep in better condition, and do more work than horses managed by the ordinary system, and in the hands of persons who are either not able or not willing to give any thought to the matter, U 814 HOW TO DRIVE A HORSE. These directions apply to all sorts of teaming, whether with drays or trucks in towns, or with farmers or manufacturers' wagons on country roads. The proper driving of stage and omnibus horses is a combination of the essential points of pleasure and team- driving. The team should still be kept cool and resolute, and very free from impatience, and they should at the same time be held so well in hand that they can, at a moment's warning, be either stopped or turned suddenly out of their course. They should also be able to start from a halt steadily, and without loss of time. As it is important that their pace should seldom degenerate into a walk, their trot should be uniform, and not excessively fast ; and unless the horses are only requi red to go very short stages, they should not travel faster than from six to eight miles per hour, according to their load. Plowing. — Plowing on rough ground, with horses which are fit for anything else, is, at best, a painful necessity. There is occasionally to be found a stylish carriage team, or a pair of fast trotters which will work like oxen at the plow ; but generally horses of spirit will become impatient, under the frequent interruption caused by stones, or by the frequent turning necessary in small fields, while the harness generally used for this work is neither comfortable nor complete. In large fields, free from obstructions, horses may very properly be used, as they are more pleasant to work with than oxen ; but in rough work the latter are preferable, being by temper and structure much better adapted to such work than horses. Horses are frequently driven to the plow with the sin- gle line or with a pair of lines fastened to the outer rings of each horse's bit, the inside rings being connected by a short line passing from one to the other. This wiil rs, some being dreadfully alarmed by one kind of object, which to another is not at all formidabl e. When a horse finds th at he gains his object by turning round, he will often repeat the turning without cause, pretending to be ahtrmed, and looking out for excuses for it. This is not at all nncommon, and with timid riders leads to a discontinuance of the ride, by which the horse gains his end for the time, and repeats the trick on the first occasion. In genuine shying from fear, the eyes are generally more or less defective ; but sometimes this is not the cause, which is founded upon a general irritability of the nervous system. Thus, there are many which never shy at meeting wagons, or other similar objects, but which almost drop with fear on a small bird flying out of a hedge, or any other startling sound These are also worse, because they give no notice, whereas i\. 53. Pig. 54. VICES AND BAD HABITS. /S2ft the ordinary shyer almost always shows by his eats that he is prepared to turn. For shyers the only remedy is, to take as little notice as possible, to make light of the occurrence, speak encour- agingly, yet rather severely, and to get them hy the object somehow or Oilier. If needful, the aid of the spur and whip may be called in, but not as a punishment. If tho horse can be tirged to go by the object at which he is shying without the whip or spur, so much the better; but if not, he must be compelled to do so by their use. Whenever fear is the cause of shying, punishment only adds to that fear but where vice has supplanted fear, severity should be used to correct it. As a general rule the whip need never be used, unless the horse turns absolutely round, and not then unless there is reason to suspect that he is pretending fear. If only he will go by the object, even with ' a wide berth,* as the sailors say, he may be suffered to go on his way unpunished; and nothing is so bad as the absurd severity which some horsemen exercise after the horse has conquered his reluctance, and passed the object. At this time he should be praised and patted, with all the encour- agement which can be given ; and on no account should he be taught to make those rushes which we so commonly see on the road, from the improper use of the whip and Bpur. If punishment is necessary at all, it must be used beforehand; but it often happens that the rider cannot spare his whip-hand until the shying is over ; and then, in his [)assion, he does not reflect that the time is gone by for its I mployment. Baulking or Jibbing. — This is one of the most pro- voking vices of the liorse, and it can be successfully corn- batted only by a man of the most imperturbable temper. The least sigu of vexation only increases the evil, and 830 BAREY'S HORSE-TAMINO. makes tlie animal more and more troublesome each time that he refuses his work. The writer has known a thick-headed, quick-tempered Irish driver to flj into a passion and beat or otherwise abuse his horse, on the least symptom of baulking, until the animal became absolutely worthless from a confirma* lion of the habit. As a rule it may be stated, that horses baulk from nerv- cusness, or unsteadiness of disposition, if not, indeed, from an over-anxiety to perform their work. Nervous, well-bred horses are more susceptible to the influences which induce baulking, than are colder blooded, more indolent ones. A high-mettled horse, when carelessly driven, will start sud- denly against his collar, fail to start his load, draw back from the pain which the concussion causes, rush at it again, and again draw back, until it becomes impossible for his driver to steady him in his collar for a dead pull. Add to this a smart cut with the whip, and a fiercely spoken word, — with perhaps a blow over the nose, or a stone in the ear, — and every fear or vicious feeling of the horse will be called into action, and he becomes entirely unmanage- able, requiring to be left for an hour or two in his position before he gets sufficiently calm to be coaxed to move. There may, occasionally, be a horse which cannot be made to draw steadily by the most careful treatment, but the cases are exceedingly rare in which gentle treatment, and firmness, — a patient persistence in mild, authoritative com- mand, and judicious coaxing, — would not either prevent the formation of the habit, or cure it, when formed. The prevention of baulkey habits lies with the driver. If he jump on to his load, gather up his reins carelesslyj flourish his whip or call out wildly to his horse, he will be very likely to start him forward with a jerk which will bo TICES AND BAD HABITS. 33\ of uo avail to move a heavily laden wagon. The horse thiis commences to baulk at a heavy load, and, after a cer- tain amount of such treatment, he will refuse to draw any thing except under the most favorable circumstances. Le\ any man driving a strange horse, with a load which he is not perfectly sure that he can start easily, proceed according to the following directions, and he may be certain that if the animal be not already a "jibber" he will not make bim so, and that if he is one he will have the best chance for getting him along without trouble : He should slowly examine the harness and wagon (partly to accustom the horse to his presence), gather up the reins gently, speaking to the horse to prevent his starting, get quietly into his seat, and then, if possible, get control of the horse's mouth before allowing him to move, so tha,t when he does step off it may be only at a slow walk. If by a forward movement of the hands he can be made very gradually to press against the collar, and if the whole operation is performed in a cool and unexcited manner, there will be little diffi- culty in bringing him to a dead pull, from which he will recoil only if the load is a serious tax on his strength. If you fail in the first attempt, wait until your horse has become quiet, and until you have recovered from your own vexation, and then try again. It may be necessary to have the assistance of one or two persons, to start the wagon from behind, but they should not push it until the horse is fairly against the collar. To cure the habit of baulking is not an easy matter, and it is possible only by the kindest treatment. If the horse show fear by his excited manner, or by looking about him wildly, that he is expecting a blow, you may be sure that he has received hard usage under similar ciroumstances, and that he must be ['.onvinced by caresses and kind words 882 babey's horse-tamino. that you will treat him gently. You must recollect that the horse cannot understand your language, and that, whila he is confused, he will misinterpret every sign that you make to him. He has an idea of your superior power, and in his fear that you will exercise it, as bad drivers have done before, to his injury, he will not, at once, feel confi donee in your kind intentions. He micst feel this confidence, whether it take an hour or all day to convey it to him, before you can do anything to cure him of his trick. If you have him harnessed to a light wagon, on a smooth road where it will afford but little resistance, you may, by repeated trials, convince him that it is a simple and easy matter to draw it, and you should continue to exercise him from day to day with the same light load, and afterward increase it gradually, until you have trained him to a quiet manner of starting, or of going up a hill or elsewhere where he has been accustomed to baulk. By the same gentle treatment you may start a horse or a team that have baulked under the driving of another person. Eequest the driver and all spectators to go to the side of the road, and then unfasten the check-reins, hang the reins where they will be easily accessible, but so that they may lie loosely on the horses' backs, caress them and allow them to look about and convince themselves that no harm is being done. When they have become properly quiet, go to their heads and stand directly in front of the worst jibber of the team, so that his nose may come against your breast if he start. Turn them gently to the right, without allowing them to tighten their traces, and, after caressing them a little, draw them, in the same way, to the left. Presently turn them to the right, and, as you do so, bring them slowly against their collars and let them go. ^.fHAPTER XXI BACINO. nUININQ FOE THE BAC>^ -THE STABLES— FEEDING AJ/TD EXEKCISft -LAliSOl' BA0IN3 — TAIiUt OP WEIGHTS FOR AGES— HAia)ICAPPINO. By Kacing, in -^^je proper acceptation of the term, is meant a trial of speed between running horses. Match-trotting, although moie jn vogue in this country, is less intimately connected with the science of breeding horses, which it is one of the objects of this work to discuss. With the moral bearing of the subject of horse-racing we have nothing to do. It is used as a means for im- proving the breed of horses, and this result is certainly attained, for there can be no doubt that more capital is de- voted, and more attention given, to the raising of thorough bred horses than could be expected to take this channel if no such remunerative market for fine horses existed. It is true that the thorough-bred horse is frequently of but very little practical use for anything but racing and breed- ing, but as a getter of horses for all kinds of ordinary work, whether for the saddle or harness, he is not only unequalled, but almost indispensable, since without him we could not have for any kind of work so good an animal as it is possible to get by an infusion of thorough blood. Even il' it were probable that thorough-bred horses would [223] 334 RACING. be raised in perfection without the stimulus of liiciug, there would bo no means for ascertaining which of them wa# the best for transmitting the two important qualities of speed and bottom (or endurance) ; no other test would so fully make known these qualities. To give the reader an idea of the manner in which horses are trained for racing, and of the management of the race itself, we condense tne following account from the best writers on the subject, in England, (where horse-racing is a national pastime. Parliament adjourning on the day of the great Derby race at Epsom,) and from the rules of the English " Jockey Club." A careful study of the manner in which horses are trained for racing cannot fail to give some valuable suggestions as to keeping working and pleasure horses in a proper condition for the performance of their labor. Training-stables are necessarily located near a good piece of ground upon which to exercise the horses. This should be, if possible, of such a character that it will never get either very soft in wet, nor very hard in dry weather. A piece of deep old turf, on land which is thoroughly well drained, either naturally or artificially, is best for the purpose. The stables themselves should be roomy, and well ventilated ; and it is desirable to have them rather dark than light, as the horses get the necessary amount of light in taking their exercise, and as they will be more ready to take their feed, and to rest themselves after hard work, in tolerably dark stables. The best form for the stable is probably a compromise between stalls and loose boxes which keep their inmates entirely secluded, — ^tliat is, large stalls, about ten feet in length and six feet in width, closed at the rear with a door which c£.n be locked, when it is desirable to allow the horse to move about at pleasure in his apartment, and boarded up only to .• TRAINING-STABLES. 336 height of six feet ; the remainiDg space, from tht top of the partitiDn to the ceiling, which should be from ten to twelve feet from the floor, being supplied with iron bars, which will allow the horses to see each other ; and which will make the stable generally warmer in winter, and allow a better circulation of air in summer. A cheaj^ arrangement of shutters, to entirely close up the barred space, will confine the heat to the stables which are occupied. Training establishments are usually supplied with sad- dles, of various forms, weights, and sizes ; bridles ; bits, of every form; rollers, straps, knee-caps and boots, and clothing in every conceivable variety ; also with the simpler remedies for the ordinary ailments of horses in training. Before the training commences the horse should be ex- amined as to his health, form, and temper, as well as to his pedigree. This examination is one of the most respon- sible duties of the trainer, and its object is to put him in possession of as many facts as possible as to the points of strength and weakness of the horse, whether acquired or inherited. By the deductions therefrom made, he decides in what way it is best to treat his subject so as to develope his powers, with the least risk of injuring his health or disposition. The average length of time required for training is about six months, during which the horse un- dergoes three different stages of treatment, the object being to remove all unnecessary fat from the external and in- ternal parts of the body, to put the heart and lungs in the best condition for the performance of their functions, and to give, by means of exercise and nutritious food, the greatest possible amount of strength and endurance. The first preparation, as far as exercise is concerne.lj consists mainly of walking, which removes excess of fat, and gives hardness and endurance to the legs. A.fter it 336 RACING. has bt-en continued for from two to four weeks, according to tlie condition of the horse, he has his first sweat, which ia given b J galloping him moderately, under heavy clothing ; if it be desirable to greatly reduce any part of the body in particular, as, for instance, the neck or shoulders, these parts are more heavily laden with blankets than the rest of the body. Immediately after the perspiration has be- gun to flow freely, the horse should be well scraped, and then rubbed dry, by four boys working as rapidly as pos- sible. During the first preparation an occasional shoii gallop is allowed, to vary the monotony of the work, but it must be only a very gentle one ; and toward the last these may be somewhat increased, if the horse is evidently in condition to bear the extra work without being put back in his training. The sweats are continued at inter vals during the whole time of the first preparation, this matter being decided by the trainer from his knowledge of the character of the horse. Light doses of physic are also given, from time to time, as they may be required. During the second preparation, the feed, which was eight quarts of oats per day at first, is raised to ten quarts ; the sweats are more frequent, and the gallops are more frequent and more severe, the object being to improve the wind as well as the legs and muscles. In the third or final preparation, the work is made more severe, the feeding is managed with the utmost care, being small in quantity and highl}^ nutritious. The water, as well as oats and hay (all of which must be of the very best quality), should be given in such a way as to produce the best results. The stable must at all times be kept scrupulously clean. Every circumstance which can possibly have an influence on the condition of the horse is taken into the account, and faithfully regarded The sweats, at first, are gross LAWS OF RACING, 837 and lathery, but towards the last they are little more than water. From this fact the progress of the horse^s training may be approximately ascertained. The legs are hand- rabbed, at least fifteen minutes each, every day. During the whole time of training there is a great lia- bility to all manner of accidents and diseases, and the trainer finds, in the treatment of such cases, no small part of his Iwbor, while nothing can be more vexatious than to Bee a horse, whose final preparation is in the fiill tide of successful experiment, thrown out of the race by a casu- alty, suoh as "breaking down," or "Curb." LAWS OF RACING. The fallowing are some of the rules of the Jockey Club of Englaud ; — *' The Age of all horses is taken from the 1st of Jan- uary. "In Ca-TCH Weights any person can ride without going to scale. A Feather Weight is defined to be 4 stone, but the Xxsual declaration must be made if the jockey in- tends to i-ide u'ore than that weight. "A MAiVi'V'f horse or mare is one that has never won* An Untrlf/> stallion or mare is one whose produce has never started in public. "Jockeys Must Ride their horses to the usual place of weighing, and he that dismounts beforehand, or wants weight, is distanced, unless he is disabled by accident, in which case he may be led or carried to the scale. If a jockey fall from his horse, and the horse be rode in from the place where the rider fell by a person of sufficient weight, he may take his place the same as if the rider had not fallen. (At Newmarket, jockeys are required to weigh before as well a^j after the race.) "Every Ji^^key is Allowed 2 lbs. above the weight U 838 RACING. Bpecified for his horse ; but should any horse carry mor6 than 2 lbs. above his weight without having declared it, he will be considered distanced, although he came in first " Heats. — For the best of the plate, when three heats are run, the horse is second which wins one heat. For the best of the heats, the horse is second that beats the other horso twice out of three times though he do not win a heat. When a plate is won by two heats, the preference of the horses is determined by the second heat. When a plate is given to the winner of the best of three heats, a horse must be the actual winner of two heats, even though no horse appear against him for both or either of the heats. When three horses have each won a heat, they only must start for a fourth. In running heats, a dead heat goes for nothing, and all the horses may start again, unless it be between two horses that had each won a heat. Horses drawn be- fore the plate is won are distanced. No distance in a fourth heat. " False Description. — ISTo horse will be deemed the winner of any race which shall be proved to have run under a false description ; the disqualification to remain in force until his pedigree be ascertained and recorded. No objection can be made after the lapse of twelve months from the time of running. " Allowance of Weight to the produce of untried horses or mares must be claimed at the time of running Extra weight and allowances for not winning are not ao cumulative unless particularly specified. Extra weights for running are enforced up to the time of running. " Fictitious Name.— When any person enters a horse^ or subscribes, under a fictitious name, or in the name of a person not fully identified at the time, he will be considered in all respects as the owner of the horse, and as the sub- •criber to the stake. The stewards of the Jockey Club i LAWS OF RACING. 339 have power to call upon a nominator to produce testimony that the horse named is not the property, either wholly or in part, of any person whose name appears in the list of defaulters; and if he fail to do so, thej may cause the nomination to be erased. " Examination of Mouth. — When the age or qualifi- cation of a horse is objected to, either before or after run- ning, the stewards haye power to order the examinatioii of the horse's mouth, by competent persons, and to call for such evidence as they may require, and their decision ia final. The person requiring the horse's mouth to be ex- amined, at Newmarket, must pay the expenses of such ex- amination, unless it should prove that the horse is of the wrong age, in which case the Jockey Club will pay it. *' Fraudulent Owners, &c. — If a horse shall run, or be brought to run, for any race, in England or elsewhere, and shall be proved not to be of the age represented, the Jockey Club have power to disqualify for ever the owner, or part owner, trainer, groom, or person having the care of such horse at the time, from running or training any horse where the rules of the Jockey Club apply, and from being employed by any member of the Club. And any horse thus fraudulently entered or run, is for ever disqualified for running in any race whatever. "Non-payment of Stakes. — No person can start a horse for any race, either in his own name or that of any other person, unless both the owner and namer shall have paid all former stakes and forfeits before the time fixed foi starting for the first race. This rule extends to forfeits due elsewhere than at Newmarket, provided a n,7>tice of them be delivered by ten o'clock in the evening preceding the day of running. " Defaulters. — ^No person in arrear for stakes or for- feits, after application for payment nnd no person note- 840 RACING. riously a defaulter in respect of bets, can enter and run bi his own name, or in that of any otlier person, any horse ol which he is wholly or iii part owner. And to prevent any evasion of this rule, the stewards have power to call upon tlie nominator to procure satisfactory testimony that such is not the case, and on failure of such proof may cause the nomination to be erased; and the nominator will be held liable for the stakes or forfeits thereon. And no horse trained by any groom or person thus in default, or in any way under the care of a person in default, will be per mitted to start. Should any horse, coming under the above regulations, be mistakingly permitted to start, he will not be considered a winner, though he should come in first; and the subscriber will have to pay the whole stake, as for a beaten horse. (This rule does not apply at Newmarket, but at most of the principal races elsewhere.) " Liabilities of Sellers and PuRCHASER3.^When a horse is sold with his engagements, the seller has not the power of striking the horse out ; but, as the original sub- scriber remains liable for the forfeits, he may, if compelled to pay them, place them on the forfeit-list, as due from the purchaser to himself; and both the purchaser and the horse remain under the same disabilities as if the pur- chaser had been the original subscriber. In all cases of private sale the written acknowledgment of both parties that the horse was sold with the engagement is necessarj? to entitle either buyer or seller to the benefit of this rule. " Forfeits may be Paid. — When a person has a horse engaged in the name of another party, who may be on the list of defaulters, he may, if he pay this forfeit, start his horse, leaving the forfeit on the list, and substituting hia own name for that of the person to whom it was pre- viously due. He may take the same course in respect to forfeits not on the list TABLE OF WEIGHTS. 841 " Non-Declaration of Forfeits. — When a person lakes a nomination for a stake, in which the forfeit is to be ieclared by a particular time, and does not declare forfeit bj the time fixed, he takes the engagement on himself, and his name will be substituted for that of the original Bubscriber." The following is Admiral Rous* scale of standard weights for ages : — HALF A MILE. Age. April 1. Mayl June 1. July 1. Aug. 1. Sept. 1. Oct. 1. Nov. L Years. 2 3 4 K, 6, and a. St. lb. 5 2 7 5 8 7 8 9 St. lb. 5 7 7 7^ 8 7 8 8 St. lb. 5 12 7 10 8 7 8 7^ St. lb. 6 1 7 13 8 7 8 7 St. lb. 6 3 8 8 7 8 7 St. lb. a 5 8 1 8 7 8 7 St. lb 6 7 8 1.1 8 7" 8 7 St. \h 6 8 8 2 8 7 8 7 T. Y. C. OR SIX FURLONGS. 2 3 4 B, 6, and a. 4 9 7 2 8 7 8 13 4 13 5 3 5 6 5 8 5 10 5 12 6 7 4 7 6 7 7.^ 7 9 7 10 7 n •7 12 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 12 8 lU 8 11 8 lO.i 8 10 8 9 8 8 ONE MILE. 2 4 2 4 4 4 7 4 10 4 13 5 2 5 4 5 5 3 6 13 6 13 7 1 7 4 7 6 7 7 7 8 7 9 4 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 5 9 8 13i 8 13 8 12.', 8 12 8 lU 8 11 8 10 Cauda. 9 1 9 8 13.1 8 13 8 12 8 11^ 8 11 S 10 TWO MILES a 4 2 4 7 4 9 4 il 3 6 3 6 7 6 12 7 7 2 7 6 7 6 7 7 4 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 6 9 2 9 U 9 1 9 0.'. 9 8 13 8 13 3 m €Aiida 9 5^ 9 5 9 3.] 9 3 9 2 9 n 8 13 1 9 .2 THREE MILES 3 4 4 3 6 6 4 6 8 6 11 6 13 7 7 2 7 4 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 6 9 4 9 3 9 2 9 IJ 9 1 9 Oi 9 9 tanda. 9 8 9 6^ 9 6 9 5 9 4 9 3 9 i 9 842 RACING FOUR MILES. 3 5 10 6 6 4 6 7 6 9 6 m t) 13 "7 4 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 1 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 6 9 6 9 5 9 4 9 3 9 2t 9 2 9 1^ 9 6 9 11 9 9 9 8^ 9 7 9 6 9 5 9 4 9 aged 9 13 9 10 9 9 9 7 9 6 9 5 9 4 9 Mares to be allowed 5 lb. from April to June 1st; 3 Jb. from June let to Sr.plember 1st: 2 lb. from September 1st to November. Geldings allowed S lb. throughout the year. The stone is 14 lbs. HANDICAPPING. Bj handicapping is meant an adjustment to the dif- ferent horses entered for a race of such different weights as will equalize their powers, and give them all equal chances for winning the race. The person who makes the adjustment is called the " handicapper," and it is his duty to inform himself of the character of each horse, of the running that he has previously made, of his age, and in snort of every circumstance which can effect his running in the race in view. Although very much in vogue, it is a system which encourages more dishonesty than any other connected with the turf, inasmuch as it offers a premium for fraud, by making it appear, to the " handicapper," at least, that one's horse is a poor one, when he is quite the reverse. The means by which this is accomplished are as many and us dishonorable as they are notorious. A horse will, at times, be made to lose every race for a whole season, in order that in a " handicap" race, for which he is being pre- pared, he may be weighted as lightly as possible, and tha;i then, with the extra power which has been kept in abey- ance, he may easily win a prize which repays ten-fold the losses of the early part of the season. The whale system has done more to bring discredit on the racing of horsei HAXDICAPPINQ. 348 than anything else connected with it, especially in Eng- land, where handicapping is much more general than in this country. Without it, it is possible to make horse- racing respectable ; with it, it will be more difficult than ever to divorce it from the fraud and rascality which it ifl said to foster. The speed of ihe best race-norses is from 13J to 14 seconds pei furlong, or from lm.48a.tol m.62a pef mile. CHAPTER XXII. VETERINARY HOM(EOPATHV. ?HE HOM(BOPATHic ireatment of disease is baaed on the liscoverj of Halineraann, and its fundamental principle is : " In order to cure a disease, select such a lemedy as ia capable of producing a similar malady in a healthy person, and of such a remedy prescribe only a small dose." Without any discussion as to the truth of this theory, there is a sufficient reason for the preparation of this chap- ter, in the fact that a large and intelligent class of persons prefer this system of practice, and there can be no doubt that it is as well adapted to the diseases of animals as to those of the human family. The practice of Veterinary Homoeopathy has been popu- larized by several valuable works, to two of which we are much indebted in the compilation of this chapter — " The New Manual of Veterinary Homoeopathic Medicine," by J. C. Schoefer, translated by Ch. J. Hempel, M. D., and " Tho Hand Book of Veterinary Homoeopathy," by John Eush, — published by Wm. Eadde, N. Y. The reader is referred Id these works for the treatment of complicated cases. The remedies used in homoeopathic treatment should be prepared with the greatest care, and are usually in the form of liquid solutions. They, can be purchased at pres- ent only at certain places in large towns ; but as they may be kept for a very long time, and are not expensive, and LIST OF MEDICINES. S49 as a very small quantity will suffice for years, it will be found most convenient to procure sets of the remedies, wliicli are neatly put up in boxes. The following list of medicines will be found sufficient for the ordinary diseases of the horse. The first column gives the names which are used in the prescriptions, the second gives the abbrevia iona with which the bottles are labelled, and the third gives the English signification of the Latin terms. LATIN. ABBREYIATION. BNQLIgH. Aconitum napellus, Aeon. Wolfs bane. Ammonium muriaticum Am. mur. Muriate of ammoni^t Antimonium cruduni, Ant. cr. Antimony. Arnica montana, Am. Leopard's bane. Arsenicum album, Are. Arsenic Belladonna, Bell. Deadly nightshade. Bryonia alba, Bry. White bryony. Calcaria carbonica, Calc. carb. Carbonate of lime. Campora, Camph. Camphor. Cannabis satira. Can. sat Hemp. Cantharides, Canth. Spanish fly Carbo vegetabilis, Carb. veg. Vegetable. Causticum, Caust. Caustic. Chamomilla, Cham. Chamomile flower China, Chin. Peruvian bark. Cina, Cin. Wormseed. Colcbicum autumale, Colch. Meadow safiroa Colocyntbis, Conium maculatum. Con. Hemlock. Dulcamara, Dulc Bittersweet. Euplirasia officinalis, Euphr. Eye bright Hepar sulpburis. Hep. Liver of sulphur. Hyoscyamua niger, Hyoc. Henbane. Ipecacuanha, Ipec. Ipecacuanha root Kali carbonicmn, Kal. carb. Carbonate of p^tad Lycopodiom, Lye. Clubb moss. Mercurius corrosivua. Merc cor. Corrosive sublimate. Si6 VETERINARY HOMCEOPATHTc Mercurius solubilis, Mercnrius vivus, Natrum muriaticum, Nitrum, Niix Yomica, Opium, Phosphorus, Platina, Pulsatilla, Rhus ToxicodeadroD, Sabina, Secale cornutam, Sepia, Silicea, Spongia marinatosta, Squilla maritina, Stramonium, Sulphur, Thuja occidentalis, Veratrum album, Tartarus emeticus, Merc. sol. Merc. V. Nat. mur. Nitr. Nux. ». Op. Phos. Plat. Puis. Rhus t. Sab. See. Sep sa. Spong. SquiL Stram. Sulph. Thuj. Verat Soluble mercury. Quicksilver. Kitchen salt Saltpetre. Yomic nut. White poppy. Phosphorus. Platina. Meadow anemogie# Sumach. Savina. Spurred rye. Cuttle fish. Silex. Burnt sponge. Sea onion. Stinkweed. Brunstone, Tree of Life. White hellbore. Tartar emetic. Nitric acid. Phosphoric acid. Tincture sulphur. Tlie remedies being in a liquid form, the best means oi administering them to the horse is, to put six drops on a small piece of bread, or on a wafer of flour paste, and to raise the horse's head a little, " press down the tongue to one side, and pull it out as far as may be, and then place the wafer as far back as possible ; after which the mouth is held closed with the hand, in order to compel the animal to swallow the wafer." Schoefer says : In some cases the dose has to be repeated ; but all useless and improper rep« etitions should be avoided. If no change of any kind should take place after the first dose, this is a sure sign that the medicine had been improperly selected, and that a DIRECTIONS FOR ADMINISTERING MEDICINES. 347 aecond dose of tlie same remedy would not do any more good than tlie former liad done. In this case we have to review the symptoms a second time, and to selec-t a different remedy. K the first dose should produce a favorable change in the symptoms of the disease, and this change should again be followed by an aggravation, it is proper to give a second dose of the same remedy. K the symptoms should become aggravated after the first dose, we should not all at once resort to a different remedy ; for this aggra- vation might be what we have termed homoeopathic aggra- vation, which would soon be followed by a favorable re- action. In all very acute diseases that run a rapid course, and after one, two, or four weeks, terminate in death or re- covery, such as Glanders, Pleura, Pneumonia, et cetera, the dose should be repeated every five, ten, or fifteen minutes. In such dangerous maladies, the first dose is often fol- lowed by a visible improvement, which soon ceases, how- ever : this is the time to repeat the dose, and a second dose may then be eminently useful. In chronic diseases that run a long course, the medicine may be repeated every day, or every two, three, or four days. In such cases the rule is, likewise, not to interfere with an incipient improve- ment by giving another dose of the same or some other remedy. If the improvement stops, the medicine may be repeat- ed, and if no improvement at all should set in after a rea- sonable lapse of time, another medicine may be chosen. Among the class of chronic diseases we number all ner- vous and mental diseases, lingering fevers, etc. An im- proper remedy does not produce any very injurious effects; for a homoeopathic remedy only acts upon a disease to which the medicine is really homoeopathic : otherw -se the small- uess of the dose is such that the medicine cannot possibly 848 VETERINARY HOMCEOPATHY. affect tLe organism. All tliat we have to do is, to give anotlier remedy, and endeavor to avoid mistakes for the fiiture. Homoeopathic remedies may be applied externally in the case of burns, and other injuries. We use piinci- pally Arnica, Symphytum, and Urtica-urens, from twenty to thirty drops in a half pint of water, and this mixture to be applied to the part according to directions. A proper diet in the case of sick domestic animals \a of great importance. All applications, quack medicines, etc., that might interfere with the regular treatment, have to be avoided. Injections of water mixed with a little salt on soap are allowable. The iisual feed may be continued. « * * * ^ * * Half an hour, at least, should elapse, between the feeding and taking of the medicine. On the treatment of the sick animal. Rush says : Treatment of a sick animal. As soon as an animal is dis- covered to be unwell, let it be immediately placed in a house by itself ; this is necessary both for the welfare of the sick animal and for the safety of the others. The house that the animal is placed in ought to be warm, well- lighted and ventilated, and above all, kept scrupulously clean. Let the person who attends to the wants of the animal be very cautious to approach in a quiet manner, never make any unnecessary noise, or do any thing that would tend to irritate the animal when in a state of health. With regard to diet In acute diseases no food whatever ought to be given until improvement has taken place, and even then only in a sparing manner ; the articles of diet most suitable are bran, oats, hay, carrots, Swede turnips, and green food, either grass or clover. The bran may be given either dry or wetted, whichevei vav the animal prefers it REMEDIES. 849 Oats may be given mixed witli the oran, either raw and crashed, or whole and boiled. It is necessary to keep the animal without food or water half an hour before and after administering the medicine. Repetition of the dose. Id acute diseases it is necessarj^ to ?epeat the dose every Jivey ten^ fifteen^ or twenty minutes. lu less acute diseases, every two^ four^ six, or eight houra In chronic diseases, once in twenty-four hours is suffi* dent. REMEDIES FOR SPECIFIC DISEASES. MANGE. The principal medicine to be used in this disease is SuU phur, of which six drops must be given every day for two or three weeks ; afterwards the following medicines will be found useful — Arsenicum^ Sepioe^ and Rltus toxicodendron, Arsenicum^ if the hair falls off and the skin becomes loose and flabby, or if there are ulcers with hard red edges. Dose. — Six drops night and morning. Sepioe^ if the parts affected are tender, and the animal shrinks when touched, or if there are white-looking blisters, filled with a watery fluid, ' Dose. — Six drops night and morning. Bhits toxicodendron, if there are hard elevated patches or scabs that do not fall off of themselves, and if taken off, others soon form in their places. Dose. — Six drops three times a day until better. FARCY. REMEDIES. Aconite^ Arsenicum^ Ghina^ R\m Toociso- iendron, and Thuja Occidentalis, Aooniis, if accompanied with fever, in which case th« 850 VETERINARY HOMCEOPATHT. B welling is Lot and painful, tlie animal refuses to eat, is restless, and moves about from place to place. Dose. — Six drops or twelve globules, three or four times a day. Arsenicum and China alternately, if the swelling is ccld. Dose. — The same as prescribed for Aconite. Rhus toxicodendron^ if with the hot swelling there is great Btififness of the limb. Dose. — Six drops or eight globules, morning, noon and Light. Thuja occidentalism if there are any pimples or hard patches, or if the animal frequently stretches the limbs, and a crackling noise is heard at the same time. Dose. — The same as recommended for Rhus toxicodendron. GREASE. REMEDIES. Thuja occidentalism Secale cornutum^ Arsen* icum^ Mercurius vivusj and Sulphur, Thuja occidentalism both internally and externally, if there are bluish or brownish excrescences, which bleed on the least touch, and there is a discharge of fetid ichor. Dose. — Six drops three times a day ; at the same time the parts may bo bathed with the strong tincture night and morning. Secale cornutum and Arsenicum may be used in alterna- tion, if there is a watery swelling or dark looking ulcers, with fetid discharge. Dose. — The same as directed for Thuja occidentalis, internally. Mercurius vivuSj when there are numerous small ulcere that discharge a thick matter, and bleed when touched. Do^E. — Six or eight drops twice a day. It is necessary to give a dose of Sulphur once a week during the treatment, and keep the legs clean by washing them with warm water. REMEDIES. 35) FOUNDER. REMEDIES. Acomtej Bryonia, Veratrum, Arsenicum, md Bhus toxicod — Four drops every two hours, until the febrile symptoms haTS vnelion^ted, after which give the next remedy. REMEDIES. 857 MeicuriujvivuSj if there is mucli saliva in the mouth, enlargement and swelling of the glands of the neck, diffi- cult deglutition, symptoms worse toward night Dose. — Six drops or eight globules three times a day u. til better. Belladonna^ if there is difficulty in breathing, shrinking when the throat is touched, as the slightest pressure causes a choking sensation, difficulty of swallowing, especially fluids, which are returned through the nose. Dose. — The same as directed for Mercurius. Spongiaj if the breathing is very difficult, accompanied with a rattling kind of sound, the animal has an anxious csountenance, turns his head from side to side and appears to be suffocating. Dose. — Four or six globules every two hours. Lycopodium^ if the animal sweats, and the swelling is most under the jaw, the membrane inside the nose and lips yellow, the mouth smells yqyj badly. Dose. — Six drops night and morning until better. Sulphur^ in obstinate cases, if the swelling is extensive, painful constriction with difficult deglutition. Dose. — The same as of Lycopodium. INFLAMMATION OF THE LUNGS. REMEDIES. Aconite^ Phosphorus^ Bryonia, Belladonna^ Tartar emetic^ Hepar sulphur^ Mercurius vivusj Ipecacuanha^ Rhus toxicodendron^ Squilla^ and ISulphur. Aconite^ in the very commencement, if there is much fever, quick and full pulse, thirst, hurried respiration, dry heat of the skin. It is considered the sheet anchor for this disease, as well as for all cases of inflammation, if it is resorted to immediately at the commencement of an attack. D08E. — Four drops or six globules every fifteen, twenty or thirty minutes, VitU some amelioratioD of the most violent symptoms takes place, whicb 858 VETERINARY HOM(EOPATHY. may gcTierally be seen at the end of two or three hours ; it may then b« administered at longer intervals, in alternation with the next following remedy. Phosphorus may be used in alternation with Aconite^ when tlie more violent febrile symptoms have been subdued. L>08E. — Four drops or six globules every one, two or throe hours, accord- ing to the violence of the symptoms. Bryonia^ if the breathing is difficult, especially if with each respiration there is heard a grunting sound. Dose. — The same as directed for Phosphorus. Belladonna^ if the breathing is hurried, and a rattling noise is heard in the throat, short dry cough occasioning a spasmodic constriction of the throat and chest. Dose. — The same as directed for Phosphorus. Tartar emetic^ if the breathing is short and difficult, cough coming on in paroxysms, irregular, almost imperceptible pulse ; it is especially useful if hepatization is supposed to have commenced. DosB. — Four drops or six globules every three or four hoars. Hepar sulphur^ frequent deep breathing, with wheezing, expectoration of tenacious mucus, as if tubercles or ab- scesses had formed. Dose. — Six drops three times a day. Mercurius vivus^ if there is much discharge, diy cough, oppressed bieathing, pulse feeble, frequent sweating. Dose. — The same as prescribed for Hepar sulphur. Ipecacuanha^ if the breathing is rapid and anxious, rat- tling noise in the throat when breathing, eyes red and in flamed. DoBB. — Six drops every one, two or three hours, according to ttio vio lence of the case. REMEDIES. 369 Ehm toxicodendron^ if there is oppressio-i aad heaving of the chest in breathing, the nose red, inflamed and pain- ful to the touch, and the animal has his legs widely sepa* rated. Dose. — The same as directed for Ipecacuanha. Squilla, violent painful cough, breathing quick and ^nx jous, constant desire to urinate. Dose. — Four drops or six globules every three hours. SuljjhuVj rattling in the chest on breathing, relieved by expectoration, cough dry, with discharge of lumpy, green- ish mucus as if abscesses had formed. Dose. — The same as directed for Hepar sulphur. The animal must be debarred from food till the violence of the disease is abated, and then it ought to be sparingly given for some time. Cold bran mashes, carrots, and a little sweet hay may be given. After a day or two, if all goes on favorably, a few oats may be allowed ; cold soft water, frequently refreshed, should be constantly kept within reach of the horse. If the legs are cold, they must be rubbed with the hands, and flannel bandages applied ; the usual practice is to use straw or hay bands, but these are too cumbrous, and fre- quently irritate the animal, and consequently do more harm than good. INFLUENZA. REMEDIES. Aconite^ Mercurius vwits^ Belladonna, Ar tenicumy and Bryonia, Aconite is generally required to commence the treatment with, if the disease assumed an inflammatory character, and there is fever, dry cough, violent sneezing, and running from the nose. I>oeBd — ^Foor drops or six globules every three hoars. 360 VEO^ERIKAEY HOM(EOPATHY. Mercurius vivus^ if witu the sore throat there is profuse secretion of saliva, the animal sweats, watering of the eyes and intolerance of light. Dose. — Six drops three times a day. Belladonna^ if the head is affected, the eyes prominent and inflamed, inability to swallow, especially fluids. Dose. — The same as directed for Aconite. Arsenicum^ if there is great weakness, general heat of the body, loose evacuations, sometimes bloody, discharge Qf bloody matter from the nose, great thirst Dose. — Four or six drops three times a day. Bryonia is useful, if the febrile symptoms do not give way after using Aconite^ and the discharge from the nose etops, and the breathing becomes affected. Dose. — The same as directed for Aconite. COLIC OR GRIPES. REMEDIES. Aconit\ Arsenicum^ Nux vomica^ Opium^ ChamomiUay Colchicicm^ Cantharis^ Hyoscyamus^ and Coh- cynth, ^ Aconite J in the commencement if there is dryness of the mouth, the ears are either hot or cold, breath hot, pulse accelerated. Dose. — Four drops or six globules every fifteen or thirty minutes, according to the urgency of the case, if no relief is obtained after the third dose, proceed then with the next remedy. Arsenicum^ if the disease depends on indigestion, food of bad quality, drinking cold water when heated, or if it is caused by a constipated state of the bowels, in which case it is considered to be specific. Dose. — Six drops every half, one or two hours. I have succeeded in curing a great number of cases BEMEDIES. 861 with these two medicines ; I generally, after giving two oi three doses of Aconite^ give Arsenicum and Aconite alter- nately. Nux vomica^ is useful for colic from constipation, when the animal walks slowly round, and then lies or falls dowD euddenly, bloated appearance of one or both flanks. Dose.— The same as directed for Arsenicum. OpiuTUj if Nux vomica fails to remove the constipation, 01 if the excrements are very dry, hard and dark colored nearly black, and the animal lies stretched out as if dead. Dose. — Four drops or six globules every one, two or three hours, accord- ing to the urgency of the case. Ghamomilla^ if the bowels are relaxed, the animal is very restless, frequently Ijing down and getting up; an attack of pain soon followed by an evacuation, swelling of the abdomen, extremities cold, especially the ears. DoBE. — Six drops every one or two hours, according to the severity of the case, until better. Cokhicum^ if the disease is caused by green food, and there is flatulent distension of the abdomen, protrusion of the rectum, the animal strikes at his belly with his hinder feet. Dose. — The same as directed for Chamomilla. CanthariSj if there is a troublesome retention of urine, and the animal often places himself in position to pass urine, but only succeeds in passing a few drops ; if this remedy does not relieve, give Hyoscyamvs. Dose. — The Baiue as directed for Chamomilla. INDIGESnOK, KEMEDIES. Antimonium crudum^ Ipecctcuanhu, Nva vomica^ Arsenicum^ China^ Silicea^ and Sulphur, 16 S62 VETERINARY HOMCEOPATHY. Antima/imm crvdum^ if tliere is total loss of appetite^ rough staring coat, evacuations watery and stinking, crav- ing for drink. Dose. — Six drops or ten globules night and morning. Ipecacuanha, if there is aversion to food, or vomiting of food and mucus, stools green and fetid. Oosi. — The same as of Antimonium crudum, or they may be given alternately. Nux vomica is useful, if it arises from cold in the spring of the year, and there is constipation, or the animal stands in a stupid, drowsy state for hours together, without chang- ing his position. Dose. — The same as prescribed for Antimonium crudum. Arsenicum J if the derangement of the stomach is of long standing, the skin becomes hard in different places, with or without diarrhoea, but it is more particularly indicated when the stools are watery or bloody. Dose. — Six drops once or twice a day according to circumstances. China, if it is a young horse that has been overworked, especially if there is much debility and loss of appetite. Dose. — Four drops or six globules three times a day until better Silicea, if the animal sweats from the least exertion. Dose. — ^The same as directed for China. Sulphur may be given as an intercurrent remedy in amp stage of the disease. WARRH(EA. REMEDIES. Bryonia, Arsenicum, Sulphur, Chamo- milla, Pulsatilla, Dulcamara, China, Carho vegetahilis, and Cohct/nihis, Hryonia^MXhQTQ is alternately diarrhoea and constipation, REMEDIES. 863 or if brought on hj sudden changes of temperatuie, espe- cially from heat to cold. Dose. — Six or eight globules every three or four hours. Arsmicum^ if it is the result of green or unwholesome food, and the discharges are watery, with or without pain. Dose. — The same as directed for Bryonia. Sulphur and Arsenicum may be given in alternation if the evacuations are Moody and very offensive ; also in chronic Dose. — The same as directed for Bryonia. Carho vegetahilis^ if the discharges are very offensive and approach putridity. Dose. — Six drops or eight globules every four or six hours. Ghamomilla^ if there is swelling of the abdomen, evacu- ations greenish, and the animal is restless. Dose. — The same as directed for Bryonia. Pulsatilla^ if the evacuations are frequent and full of Air bubbles, flatulent state of the bowels, aversion to food. Dose. — Six drops or eight globules three or four times a day. Dulcamara^ especially in summer, if it has been brought r»n by taking cold after getting wet, and the evacuations 're watery, accompanied with colic. Dose. — The same as directed for Pulsatilla. China^ if the diarrhoea is of an intermittent character. Dose. — The same as the preceding remedy. GolocynthiSj if approaching dysentery, with colic, and th6 BVjM)uations consist of slime and blood. Does. — Six drops every one, two or three hours, according to the ^ lo. lence of the case. INFLAMMATION OF THE BOWELS. KEMEDIES. Aconite^ Arsenicum^ Rhus toxiccdendron^ Cohcyni^iiSf Nux vomica^ Cantharis and Arnica, 864 VETERINARY HOMEOPATHY, Aconite is the chief remedy to be depended upon in thia disease, and should be frequently administered till a calm is established, which generally takes place in about an hoar. Dose. — Six drops or eight globules every ten or fifteen minutes, until relieved. Arsenicum^ if after the use of Aconite some symptoms rtiU remain, especially if the disease has been produced by green food, or by drinking cold water when heated. Dose. — Six drops every half, one or two hours, or at longer intervals, if the disease is not very violent. RhiLs toxicodendron^ if the extremities are alternately hot and cold, with sweating of the belly, and a frequent dis charge of urine. Dose. — The same as directed for Arsenicum. Colocynihis^ if Arsenicum does not remove all the symp- toms, especially if it is accompanied with colic, and there are bloody evacuations. Dose. — Six drops or eight globules every half or one hour. Nux vomica or Opium^ if after the disease is cured there remains a constipated state of the bowels. Dose. — Six drops night and morning. CantKaris or Hyoscyamus^ if there is retention of urine. Arnica will be useful in very obstinate cases, if the dis- charges are very fetid, frequently small stools consisting only of slime. Dosb. — Six drops every one or two hours, until better. WORMS. REMEDIES. Cina^ Sulphur^ and Mercurius solvMlis. Cina^ if there is a discharge of worms, violent itching o* the parts, causing the animal constantly to rub. Do8B. — Six drops or eight globules three times a day. REMEDIES. 806 Sulphur, discharge of lumbrici, with hard stooL Dose. — ^The same as of Cina. Mercurius solvhilis^ if there is violent heaving of th« flanks, discharge of large worms, soreuess of the anus. Dose. — Six or eight drops twice a day. Then there are the ascarides, small dark or red worms these sometimes exist in immense quantities, and hiin dreds are often voided at one time. REMEDIES. Gina, Digitalis^ Stramonium^ Sulphur^ and Arsenicum, Cina J symptoms similar to those indicating its use in lumbrici. Dose. — The same as above stated. Digitalis may be given if the animal wastes away, and there is diarrhoea. Dose. — Six drops twice a day. Stramonium is useful if the horse rubs himself behind. Dose. — ^The same as of Digitalis. There are several other varieties of worms ; but the symptoms are too complicated to be treated from any directions that can be given; but generally Cina and Sulphur will be found beneficial. I have also seen great improvement from a dose or two of Arsenicum. INFLAMMATION OF THE KIDNEYS. REMEDIES. Aconite^ Arnica^ Dulcamara, Cantharis^ Cannabis, and Mercurius vivu^. Aconite in the beginning, if the animal is very uneasy and the urine is fiery red, depositing a thick muddy sedi- ment. Dose. —Six drops two or three times a day. Amka^ if it is the result of an injury. HoHS. — Six drops or eight globules night and monuog. 566 VETERINARY HOMCB.PATHT. Dulcamara^ if it supervenes after exposure to wet Dose. — The same as of Arnica. Gantharis^ if there are frequent and painful emissions of bloody urine, in small quantities, trembling of the kinder extremities, which are wide apart, and the back arched. Dose. — Six drops thfee or four times a day, until relieved. Cannabis^ if there is violent straining; the animal ia very restless, paws the ground, and strikes at the abdomen with his feet Dose. — The same as directed for Cantharis. UercuruLs vivus^ if the animal sweats and the discharge oi urine is profuse. Doss. — ^The same as directed for GaothAris. A GLOSSARY OF DISEASES. ALBUGO, • ANCHTLOeiS, • Amattsosis, Blood Spavih, Bloody Ubins, 500 SpAVIH, • Bonk Spatin, - Bora, Break-down, • Broken Knees, - Broken "Wind, - Bbuisi op thb Sole, Partial dimness of the corner of the eye, with whitish spots. Loss of motion in joints ; bones grown together, or ligaments contracted. A sort of blindness called " glass eyes." An enlargement of the sac which contains th€ lubricating fluid of the hock joint. An emission of blood, more or less mixed with urine. An aggravated form of blood spavin. A bony enlargement of the lower part of the hock joint on the inner side of the leg. The larvae of the gad-fly. The eggs are de- posited on the horse's hair, and after he licks them off, and swallows them, they are hatched in the stomach, where they adhere to its sur- face. Rupture of the sheath which confines the back tendon of the leg. Injury to the knees from falling. The skin is broken, and, at times, the joint is opened. Rupture of the air-cells of the lungs ; heaves. Injury, and consequent inflammation of the sensi ble, or inner sole, caused by pressure of a badly fitting shoe, of gravel between the shoe and the foot, &c. 868 GLOSSARY OF DISEASES. CAPrED Hock, - Gataraot» • • - OoLio, Spasmodic, Gouo, Flatulent, - oontraction of the Foot, - - - Corn, Ccna, Diabetes, - Distemper, - Enteritis • Falling in or the Foot, Fausb Quarter, A swelling of the point of the hock, behind^ caused by an enlargement of a sac containing synovial fluid, as in blood spavin. A disease of the eye. A spasmodic action of the muscular coat ovci certain parts of the intestines, without a cor- responding activity of the wh ole. It pro- duces an irregularity in the passage of the food through the intestinal canal, and causea great pain. An inflation of the bowels by gas emitted by the fermentation of undigested food. A drawing together of the back part of the foot, and an accompanying reduction of the size of the frog. A bruising of the sensible sole, and an accom, panying rupture of its blood-vessels at the angles, between the wall of the foot and the bar. An enlargement of the back part of the hock, three or four inches below its point, and a< strain of the ligaments of the tendon, or a rupture of its sheath. Excessive urinating. An epidemic catarrhal fever. Inflammation of the external coats of the stomach. A depression of the front part of the wall of the foot, caused by the descent of the coflfin-bone \Q pumiced feet. A more or less complete separation of the hoof as it grows down from the coronet. The re- sult of injury to the coronet, or of neglected quarter, crack, or quitter. GLOSSARY OF DISEASES. 369 Parct, Fistula in thb Withers, - • Fistula in thb Poll, Foot, Oanker in, - FouNDEB, Acute, - Founder. Chronic, - Foot, Inflammation OF, Obstruction of the absorbent vessels, whose dutj it is to remove useless matter from the various organs. It is a stage of Glanders. A bad sore, resulting from neglected sad lie galls on the withers. Poll evil ; a troublesome ulcer on the top ol Um head. A growth of fungus matter (proud flesh) be- tween the horn and sensible part of the foot. An inflammation of the lamiuge of the foot, originating in too hard work, or in cold. This is a species of founder, insidious in ita attack, and destructive to the horse. It produces less severe lameness thau acute founder. Acute founder. FooTj Prick in the, - A wound of the laminae by a badly driven nail, or the penetration of sharp substances to tho sensible sole, or frog. Gall, - - - Abrasion of the skin by the saddle or harness. Glass Etb, - See Amaurosis. Glanders, - - - - A contagious disease, peculiar to horses, assea and mules. It commences with a slight di» charge, generally from one nostril, but some- times from both, and terminates in a complete obstruction of the absorbent vessels, which produces death. Gbeasb, An inflammation of the skin of the heels, which renders them dry and hard, and causes then to crack. GMPB8, See Oouc. 16» 870 GLOSSARY OF DISEASES. GitaioiiiEss, • - A weakness, and tottering condition of the fore legs, accompanied, usually by a knuckling over of the fetlock joint. Gutta Serena. - - See Amaurosis. Heatbs, - - - See Broken Wind. Hematuria, - - - See Bloody Urine. Hernia, .... A protrusion of the intestines, through a natowil or artificial opening in the belly ; rupture. Hide Bound, • • - Dryness and unyielding condition of the skin, accompanied by a staring coat. Itch, - - • See Mange. Jaundice, . - • - The introduction of the bile into the general circulation. It is accompanied by a yellow appearance of the skin when visible. • - A swelling of the gums or bars of the mouth. • See Founder. Lamp AS, - • Laminitis, - Laryngitis, Locked Jaw, Luxation, - Mallenders, Mange, Marasmus, MEGRrvs^ ' Moon Blindness, Naral Gleet, - Inflammation of the upper part of the windpipe. A constant spasm, and rigidity of all of the voluntary muscles. Usually fatal. Partial displacement of the bones of a joint. Scurfy eruptions on the inside of the knee of the fore leg. A pimpled eruption on the skin, with increasing scabs. A decay or wasting of the whole body. A determination of blood to the head, caorang temporary unconsciousness, and often causing the horse to stagger or fall. See Ophthalmia. An increased and thickened discharge from the nostrils. GLOSSARY OF DISEASES, B7\ Ka&al Polypus, - - Navicui«ab Disease, OrHTHALXIA • - Qtbbreaohiko, ?ALST, • - - Poll Evil,- - • • 1*u¥iced Foot, QUITTOR, - . - - A tumor hanging by a nick from tte lining of the nostril Inflammation, or anchylosis (growing together) at the joint formed by the coffin-bone and the lower pastern-bone, in connection with the navicular-bone. An inflammation of the eye which recurs at regular intervals, and terminates in total blindness of one or both eyes. It is som* times called " Moon blindness." Striking the fore legs with the shoe of the hind foot in travelling. A suspension of the nervous influence over the muscles. An inflammation at the top of the head, re- sulting from a bruise or gall of that part A foot of which the sole, in consequence of disease, descends to a level with or below the wall of the hoof. A deeply seated ulceration in the foot, resulting from a neglected or badly treated wound. QuiDDiNG THE FooD, Dropping the partly chewed food ; an indication of sore throat Quarter Crack, Babies, - • • RlKOBONE. • ROASINO, • BUPTUBK, See Sand Crack. Hydrophobia. A bony enlargement of the pastern near tbt foot. Noisy inspiration, resulting from an obstmo tion of the air passages of the throat Of lungs. See Hernia. 872 GLOSSARY OF DISEASES, Rupture or the Sus- PBV80RY Ligament, Sallbnders, • 6ahd Orack, • SOOUBINO, - - SlTFAST, - • • Spavin, • • - Speedy Cut, - Splint, or Splent, Staggers, - - - Staling, Propusk, Strangles, - • Strangury, String Halt, Burfsit, Breaking of the ligament by which the seaa molds, two small bones on the back part of the pastern-joint are kept in place. Scurfy eruptions on the inside of the hock-joint of the hind leg. A separation of the laminae of the hoof, forming a crack up and down its wall ; when it occurs in the front part of the hoof it is called " to« crack ;" when on one side, ** quarter-crack." Looseness of the bowels. A hardened integument on the back, resulting from an obstinate saddle gall. See Bone Spavin. A wound on the infide of the fore leg, near the kneee, made by the striking of the shoe of the opposite foot in fast travelling. A bony enlargement on the side of the leg be- low the knee or hock. See Meorims. An excessive discharge of urine. A disease, sometimes called "colt distemper" A tumor forms under the jaw, and breathing is rendered difficult ; in time the tumor breaks and the patient recovers. "Inflammation or spasmodic affection of the neck and bladder." A sudden jerking up of one or both of the hind legs, not entirely involuntarily, but to a greater height than is natural, or than is in- tended by the horse. A disease much resembling mange, but usuallv commencing on the neck. It arises in, or is accompanied by, a closing of the pores of tho skin of the affected part. GLOSSARY OF DISEASES. 87S Tbianus, • - Thick-wind, - Thobouoh-pin, Thbush, - - Locked jaw. Laborious breathing, insulting from a dimiiiishod capacity of the lungs after disease. A sort of wind-gall, or swelling upon the hock, and between the cord and the bone. It can be pressed through from side to side. A softening of the frog of the foot, accompanied by an offensive discharge of pus. ToB Crack, • Tbbad, - . - * • See Sand Crack. A wound of the coronet, inflicted by other feet. Warbles, - - • Lumps in the back, resultmg from neglected saddle-galls. Washiness, • Looseness of the bowels. Water-farcy, • Local dropsy in the cellular membrane, reaulticf from general debility. Wheezing, • • Asthmatic breathing. Wind, Broken, - See Broken Wikd. Whirlbonb Lamb- iriBB, - - - - UmeDeHofUtthipjofart. CHAPTER XXIIl. CABBIAGES. ffTTLE OF OlARIAGES IN THE UNITED STATES— HOW TO BUT A CAREIaQ»— MUST BE ADAPTED TO ITS PURPOSE— THE WHEEL— TEE HUB — THE 8P0KB6— THE TIRE — THE AXLE— THE SPRmOS— THE SHAFTS AND POLE— THE BODY— THE TOP — THE LEATHER — THE PLATING — THE TRIMMING — THE PAINT- ING — HINTS ON COLORS — HARMONY OP COLOR IN THE TRIMMINGS WITH LADIES' COMPLEXION AND DRESS— THE CARE OP THE CARRUGE— WASH* mo — LUBRICATING— REPAIRING. In a country where riding in carriages is an almost uni- versal custom among those who can afford to keep a horse, the selection of a carriage, and the manner of taking care of it, are subjects of no small importance. The vehicle, as soon as it rises above the condition of a '* business wagon," and is constructed with a view to com- fort, or elegance of appearance, and assumes the character of a "carriage," becomes an article of luxury, although by no means a useless one ; and its selection is a question which should exercise both the judgment and the taste of the purchaser. No carriage can really look well if it does not look ser- viceable. If for heavy work, it must be strong and appear strong, without appearing heavy or unwieldy. If for light work, it can hardly appear too light ; for it is so generally known that delicately-made carriages may be very strong, that the light appearance does not convey an idea of weakness. If the carriaore be intended to make a rich display, it will be most beautifully finished when aost richly decorated. If to be used by persons of mod [874] STTLB. 876 est and retiring habit, it will be most beaatifullj finisbed when it exhibits great simplicity, or an entire absence of decoration. A royal state carriage, and a simple coup^ are both beautiful, though widely different. The simple vehicle will usually be the most elegant, and the error, if any, should be oq the safe side. The style of carriages in the United States is, for all descriptions, much lighter in appearance and in reality, than in England. Something is undoubtedly sacrificed OD the score of strength and durability to this taste, but as it cannot be supposed that Young America will, for this generation at least, be content to drag about heavy lumber- ing carriages of the European style, we may find som.e com- pensation for the sacrifice in the fact, that what is lost in wear of the carriage is gained in horse-flesh, and in the speed and despatch with which our business, and even our pleasure-driving is accomplished, — while we may justly pride ourselves on having arrived more nearly at the maxi- mum of strength for a minimum weight of wood and iron, than any other people. Economy and safety demand that the purchaser assure himself that the carriage is sufficiently strong, and well made for the service for which it is required. If intended for use -yn city pavements or in stony districts, it must be of the best possible quality of material and workmanship, ana a little extra weight in the wheels and axles is desir- able. In all streets paved with stone, there are so many inequalities, and so many unyielding obstacles to the smooth moving of the wheels, that a single stick of un- sound wood will usually soon make itself known, a bad tire will most likely be broken, a bad bolt wiU become loose or bent, and a bad spring will either be broken, or lose its shape and elasticity. Of two carriages of exactly the same appearance, and in precisely the same service^ 876 CARRIAGES. one will last for years, while the other will give signs oi dissolution in a month. In these hints to those who would purchase a carriage either ready made or made to order, we would not claim that any one, however experienced, can avoid being cheated if he fall into the hands of a dishonest maker, who has no regard for his reputation. In a hundred things can the purchaser be deceived ; the quality of iron and steel— of the wood and leather — of the paint -and var- nish even — can only be tested by actual use ; and the cap* riage-maker himself has to depend in a great degree on the " brand" or the reputation of the manufacturers, for the quality of many of the materials. Much more, then, must the purchaser of a carriage, which, when it is delivered to him, is covered up with paint and trimmings, depend on the character of the carriage manufacturer oi merchant. To those who would buy a carriage, our advice then is : First — Make the most diligent investigation into the character of the firm with whom you deal ; if possible, obtain the opinion of those who have dealt with them pre- viousljT-, as to their reliability ; and when you are satisfied on this point, do not let an undue suspicion prevent your asking and following their advice — obtaining, when you can, a full guarantee for at least one year, against all de fects or breakages, accidents excepted. Do not hope to buy a good carriage at a very low price. A dealer who professes to sell at cost is always to be suspected. A well- made carriage is always cheaper than one poorly made, at any difference in price. Second — Consider well the purpose for which you re- quire a carriage, and the character of the roads on which it will be used, and let your selection be carefully made in reference thereto. The weight of the carriage, the thick- VARIETIES. 377 ness of the tire and felloes, size of the wheel, strength of the iron work, the stiffness of the springs, materials foi the trimmings, the plating, the leather — all should cor- respond with the intended use. A desire for ornament, or a fine appearance, should never lead you to buy a fine carriage for a vehicle of all work. A " shabby gentility " will be the result after the gloss is worn away. If a nice caniage is required for occasional use, while there ia also a necessity for driving during bad weather and on bad roads, it is poor economy to try to make one vehicle answer all purposes. A second, more strongly made, with more durable trimmings, must be provided, or the finer one will soon expose your want of judgment. VARIETIES OF CARRIAGES. The Coach (Figure 55). — All panelled carriages with seats for four persons inside, and an elevated coachman's seat, are designated coaches. The town coach proper, has windows in the doors, and one in each end, the quarters being panelled. The most elegant coaches of this kind have a full sweep in the lower line of the body, although the out- lines are varied to please individual taste. For many pur- poses windows in the quarters are deemed desirable. For country use, leather curtains in the quarters, instead of pan- els, are becoming popular. For cold weather the curtains may be *' squabbed " on the inside, and rendered perfectly warm, while, in summer, by rolling up the curtains, the comfort and convenience of an open carriage may be ob- tained. A full sized town coach weighs about 1600 lbs. Price, $900 to $1200. The one from which our figure ia taken* is finished in the best style, and would comniand the highest price. A curtain-quarter coach, for road use, may weigh 1200 lbs. ; price, $750 to $900. • From the extensive manufactory of Messra O * D Cook. New Havei 878 CAERIAGES. The Caleche (Figure 56) is of Frencli orig.n ; a carriage with leather top, and portable glass shutters ou the sidea, and a panelled front, with sliding window. The whole front may be removed in a few minutes, making it an elegant open Barouche, with a half-top over the back seat. No carriage is so desirable for winter and summer use. They are made for four persons inside. Weight, about 1360 lbs., with the front. Cost, about $75 more than a coach of the same quality. The Landau is similar to the Caleche, without the portable front and glass sides ; the entire top being of leather, supported by folding joints in each quarter. The top may be divided in the centre, the whole falling front and back. These are complex in construction and liable to get out of order, which prevents their popular use. Weight and cost about the same as a caleche. The Barouche (Figure 57) is made for four persons inside, and has an elevated coachman's seat ; leather half- top over the back seat; or an extension top, covering the font inside seats. The lat • ter form is desirable for country use, as it affords protection from the sun and rain. 1'he half- top, for morning and evening drives, is much liked; the top being thrown down, the carriage presents an ele- gant appearance, and affords an opportunity for the display of full dress — Whence it is popular with visitors at watering- places and public parks. Weighs about 1100 lbs. Costj $760. Fio 57. — 7 he Barouche. VARIETIES. 879 A smaller Barouclie is made to carry four persons, in- cluding tlie driver, of less pretension and mucli cheapei and lighter, with an extension leather top (covering four Beats), which may be thrown back at pleasure. It may he used with one or two horses. Weight, about 600 lbs. ; cost, $350 to $400. A Barouche of the smaller kind is made with a "jump, seat," so that it may be in a few seconds converted into a buggy, with seats for two persons. There are some objeo- tions to this mongrel, such as its liability to get out of order ; and it is not possible to have the springs and other parts of the carriage well adapted to a huggy and yet capable of doing double duty when required. It is, how- ever, often convenient, and will be much used. Messrs. G. & D. Cook, of New Haven, have just brought out a new style, shown in Figs. 58 &59, with an adjustable seat and extension top, — the latter feature being new, and a great addition to the value of this vehicle. The Coupe, or Brougham. — A half-coach body (Fig. 60), for two persons inside, and an elevat ed coachman's seat: very popular in Eu rope, and now becom ing popular here They are used in Eu rope with one horse only ; here with one ©r two horses. Weight Fiq. go.— Coupe, or Brougham. 800 to 1000 lbs. ; price, about $700. The Eockaway. — A Eockaway proper, has a plain square or straight body, with standing top and leather curtains, to roll up ; for either four or six persons ; all Beats on a level Of late years, all vehicles with standing 880 CARRIAGES. top and seats on a level are called Eockaways. Some aw made for six persons, with panelled sides and glass windows, whicli approach nearly to a coach in weight and cost. The following styles of Rockawajs are in general use : The square four seat Rockaway^ for one horse. Weightj about 500 lbs. Cost, from $200 to $300. The same for six persons and two horses. Weight, about 700 lbs. Price, $350 to $400. The six-seat Germantown Rockaway has the body slightly curved. Weight, say 800 lbs. Cost, $450. The Coupe Rockaway^ for four persons, with a partition ; having windows to divide the front and back seats ; body curved, with windows or curtain in sides. Weight, about 700 lbs. Price, from $350 to $500. The Brett. — A Brett proper, is a French half-top Barouche, with all the lines of the body at right angles. They are generally made with four inside seats, and elevat- ed coachman's seat. Weight, about 800 lbs. Cost, $650. The form more familiarly known in this country as a Brett, resembles that^f the English Barouche, except it has only a half- top. Of this style we give an illustration in Fig. 61. The Phjeton. — There is an infinite variety of Phaetons As originally made, they have seats for four, with a port- able half-top, or without a top. Some are hung on plat- form springs without a perch ; others on two spnngs with a perch. They are also made with a comfortable front seat, having a leather top, and a smaller seat behind for a •ervant only. The varieties in use are: The ^^ Mail Phceton;' the ''Park Phoeton,'' the ''Sylph Phceion,'' the " Gopcuty'^ the " Yicioria^'' and the " Pony Phaetoii,^^ Price, from $350 to $650. A form of Phaeton, very common and popular, has seats for two. The Queen's Phreton (Fig. 62) is a good carriage VARIETIES. 881 for old people, or for ladies' use, being wide and roomy, hung low, and the top coming well over the seat. Price, $250 to $300. There is a form of this buggy -ph^tcn, with a close Boston top, well adapted for Physicians' use. •The Buggy. — Of this kind there is a great variety AU, however, have four wheels, and seats for two persons. They are made of every conceivable form, both with and without a top ; at all prices, varying from $75 to $400. The Victoria Buggy (Fig. 63) is one of the prettiest styles, showy and of graceful form. As usually finished, it sells for $150 to $175. Our Figure 64 represents a plainly finished but fine vehicle, costing from $175 to $225. Figure 65 is what the Messrs. Cook call the World's Fair Buggy, having taken the medal there, and can be made for from $250 to $500. For buggies without tops we give Fig. 66 — a very light trotting wagon of 145 lbs.; Fig. 67, the light Concord Pio. 98.— Skeleton Wagon. buggy and Fig. 68, a skeleton wagon for use upon the track. The Dog-Cart, is made with two or four wheels. The original English Dog-Cart is on two wheels, Fig. 69, the body being nearly square, and carrying four persons. The 582 CARRIAGES. back end of tlie body is made to drop and form a foot' board ; tlie persons on the front and back seats riding back to back. The sides are generally made with blinds or lattice work, to accommodate dogs, when used for spoiUng pur- Pio. 69.— Dog Cart poses. Two-wheel dog-carts weigh about 450 lbs. Cost about $275. On four wheels they weigh about 600 lbs. Cost about $450. Tee Jagger Wagon is for two persons. The body is attached to axles without springs. Weigh fc, 200 Iba Price, $100 to $125. CONSTRUCTION — THE WHEEL. The Hub of the wheel being at once its centre and foun- dation, mechanically speaking, should be particularly strong and of well-seasoned wood. Red elm, white elm, and particularly the gum, are good timber for this part, aa they are not liable to crack in seasoning, or to split bj the pressure of the spokes. The modern form of the nub is much shorter than that used even a dozen years ago, and though it may have some advantages in crowded thoroughfares, where, as on Broadway, New York, col- lisions are frequent, it is undoubtedly a change for the worse, so far as strength is concerned, as it gives a shorter hold to the axle. CONSTRUCTION. 885 The Spokes should, for heavy work, be made of tv^hlte oak of clear grain, and free from checks or knots — for light carriages hickory is preferable — fourteen in the fore wheel and sixteen in the hind wheel, except in vehicles of the lighter kinds, when two less in each wheel will answer. If the tenon or " tang," which is inserted in the felloe, is Bquare instead of round, it will greatly add to the strength, though few makers are found who will take this trouble. Every spoke which is discovered to be defective, in any way, should be scrupulously rejected by the carriage- maker; for one bad spoke will spoil the wheel. In a business wagon, the spokes should be set in the hub in range, or in a straight line, while in a buggy or light car- riage, they should be placed alternately, in and out, that the weakness caused by their light construction may be compensated for by the bracing position, which this zig- zag position affords. The Felloes or Rim. — This part of the wheel should be of the best eastern white ash or hickory (the western growth is softer and less tough). Oak is often used for this purpose, but is much more liable to sun checks, and will split more easily, and is more apt to break in at the joints. For pleasure carriages, which are kept well painted, and, for the most part, secure from the weather, the bent rim is better than the short pieces or sawn, felloes ; but for business wagons, or those much ex« posed to the sun and rain, with the paint not always in the best condition, and which require a more frequent resetting of the tire and the consequent cutting of the ends of the felloe-sections, it is better not to be obliged so often to cut the same ends, as is the case when there are only two pieces. There are always, when the felloes are sawn^ two spokes to each section. The wheels should, in all cases, be ^dished, as this adds 384 CAERIAGES. much to their strength and durability. A light wheel fat road wagons, 4 feet in diameter, should dish about | to j inch ; and coach wheels, 3 ft. 6 in. in diameter, should dish ' inch, the measurements being taken, in both cases, after the tire has been set. The Tire. — It is upon this part of the wheel that must of the wear comes, and if defects exist here, no excellence in the other parts will be of any avail. The important points in a good tire are, that it should be made of good iron, that it should be the size best adapted to the vehicle on which it is to be used, and that it be " set" well, nei- ther so tight as to draw the wheel out of shape, or so loose as to allow any racking of the spokes. The tires should be made of Ulster iron, or the best English re- fined iron. Ordinary steel tires, though thrice as durable as iron, are apt to snap in frosty weather. Imported " homogeneous" steel is now being successfully used in light vehicles; but its cost (16c. per lb.) precludes its use on heavy wheels. It is very durable, and remarkably tough. Flat tire is the best for all purposes ; convex tire ia satisfactorily used on the flat, hard roads of Europe, but they are not adapted to American use. Heavy tire on light rimmed wheels is objectionable, for the reason that it breaks down the felloes. All tires yield, more or less, kc sudden concussions; if heavy, it retains its bent form, while, if light, it is forced back to its proper position by the spring of the felloes. Wide tires are desirable on soft roads, being less likely to cut in (causing the carriage to run heavily, and injuring the road,) than narrower tires« AC tires should be fastened on with bolts, one bet\reeii e»^ two bpokee. THS AXLE. 886 THE AYT.IC Since the general introduction of the iron axle, the wooden axle has gone out of use, except for the heaviest description c»f wagons for the farm, or other heavy work. Axles may be either straight, arched, or cranked ; the arched form, which is essential for all very light axles, being stronger than straight ones, though a very slight arch answers the purpose. Cranked axles are adopted foi the purpose of allowing the body to hang low. Particu- lar care should be given to setting the axles exactly at a right angle to the line of travel. Any deviation from this rule causes undue friction to the arm of the axle and the hub, and places the wheel in a position to receive more injury from concussions, and to be more easily wrenched out of its proper shape than when properly directed.* The Patent Axle, or as it is sometimes called the 3fail Axle is represented in Figure 70. a is the arm of the axle, around which the hub revolves ; 6 is a shoulder which serves to keep the hub in place ; c is a circular iron plate, having through its centre a hole to fit the arm of the axle, behind the shoulder, where it revolves ; it is secured to the inside end of the hub by the long bolts, e e, which run through the entire hub and the plate d. There is a washer, which should be of hard sole-leather, nicely ad- ^lo. zo.-The Patent axIa •Thege remarks do not refer to the slight "gather" which is fre»iuently given to wheels, to cause them to crowd slightly toward the carriage, lather than to run against the nuts at the end of the axle 17 886 CARRIAGES. justed to tlie proper thickness, on each side of the Bhoulder, to prevent the wear of the boxes and plate against the shoulder. On taking off the wheel, the nuts, before- mentioned, are removed with a wrench, and the hub is drawn off the end of the axle, leaving the plate c remain- ing upon the axle. The leather washers require to bg occasionally renewed, if they wear so thin as to give toe- much lateral motion to the hub. This form of axle has many advantages, among which are : that it prevents rattling, or the lateral motion of the wheel ; it is safer, for if the axle break at any point be- yond the shoulder, the wheel is still retained in its place by the plate behind the shoulder ; it forms a tight space about the arm of the axle for the lubricating oil, excluding grit or other substances which would cut away the axle. Its great disadvantage for small hubs is, that it is necessary to cut away so much of the hub in boring for the bolts that it is weakened. This is, however, very greatly obvi- ated by the patent of E. M. Stratton, the gentlemanly Fio. 7L— A longitudinal section of Stratton's Patent Axle and Box. « The axle; & The box, inserted on the hub ^; not onlj those who, keeping their own carriages or busi- ness wagons, have to procure and maintain one or more sets of harness, but, in a less degree, those who have to trust their valuable persons to the fidelity of strap and buckle. The horse-keeper, from motives of economy, should acquire such knowledge of the quality of leathei and workmanship, and of the best means of preserving harness in sound condition, as will enable him to purchase as wisely, and as seldom as possible. While those who ride in hired vehicles should be able to assure themselves of the safety of the harness by which they are drawn. It is the object of this chapter to give as much informa tion concerning harness, as can be comprised within ita limited space, by general remarks on the quality of mate- rials and workmanship ; descriptions of the various parta of the harness ; and directions for keeping the leather, bits, buckles, &c., in the best possible condition foi safety, durability, and good appearance. Note. — In preparing this chapter we have been greatly aided by Ifessrs. J. T. Snutk Ik Co,, of 842 and 344 Broadway. The saddles, harness, bits, etc., lllastrated in thic work, were mainly selected from their extensive stock. 402 THE LEATHER. 403 THE QUALITY OP LEATHER. There can be given no very definite rules for judging of the quality of leather, but the following hints are not with- out value: — All harness-leather of good quality is made from the hides of neat cattle, and is tanned either with oak or hem- lock bark ; that tanned with oak bark being very much the best. Leather which has been tanned with oak bark alone, Las, when cut, a yellowish drab color, without the least tinge of red, while that tanned entirely, or in part^ with hemlock bark, has a reddish tinge, more or less decided in proportion to the quantity of hemlock bark which has been used. This reddish tinge is sometimes visible on the " wrong " or flesh side of the leather, though it is often disguised by subsequent coloring. By cutting a piece so as to show the inside of the leather, the red hue may be distinguished. If it has this appearance in any consider- able degree, it should be discarded as not of the best quality. Leather which has been sufficiently tanned, is of the same color throughout its entire thickness; while, if it has been only imperfectly tanned, the middle will appear darker than the part near the outside. Hence if leather, on being cut across and having its newly cut surface moistened by the tongue, shows a dark streak in the centre, it may be fairly assumed that it has not been prop- erly tanned. Nearly all harness-leather has, on its black side, a wrinkled appearance. These wrinkles run from the back of the animal around to the belly ; and, in this direction, the leather is weaker and more liable to stretch, than in the direction of the length of the animal's body, or across the wrinkles. The purchaser should, therefore, see that 404 HARNESS. every strap of the Harness "has the wrinkles running across it, and not in the direction in which its strength is to be tested. No saddler with a regard for his reputation would cut his straps in the direction of these wrinkles, and it is chiefly in purchasing ready made harness, of a cheap auality, that this caution is necessary. Poor leather in sometimes varnished, to give it a bright appearance. This can be detected by comparing it with leather known to be- ef good quality. Varnished leather should be rejected in all cases when good quality is desirable. The softness and pliability of leather is a pretty good test of its quality, inasmuch as a skin is never so soft and vliablu when rotten, or half tanned, as when fully tanned jind of good stock. The fact that the best tanned sole- leather (English Bend) is very hard, seems to be opposed to this idea, but this hardness is due, in a great degree, to compression. Beyond these, and, possibly, a few other similar indica tions, there is nothing which can be said on this subject, which would be of any practical value to those whose only interest in learning the character and quality of leather is based on their occasional necessity to purchase harness. Important differences between two tannages of leather appear, to the uninitiated, as subtle as those be tween two vintages of old wine, and they can be detected only by men cunning in the craft. THE QUALITY OF WORKMANSHIP. Of course the most casual observer will perceive grwit differences between the style of manufacture of different harness. Aside from ornamental stitching, and scrolled edges, there is a certain air of neat and dexterous woik manship apparent in the stitching and trimming of welJ made harness. THE COLLAR. If the stitclies be somewliat wide apart (or long) they are stronger, supposing good thread to have been used, than those which are very close together. AgsaHj if the awl, which is dagger-shaped and not round, has been so inserted as to make the greatest length of its puncture in the direction of the stitching, the work is not nearly sc strong as if the holes have their longest diameter extend- ing diagonally/ across the line of the stitching. This differ- ence is a very important one. Especially in cheap harness, the improper style of piercing is frequently adopted, from its greater rapidity. The reason why it is not so well is, that it weakens the leather by a too continuous line of cutting. When the proper plan has been pursued, the ends of the slit-like awl-holes can be seen on either side of the stitches. PARTS OF THE HARNESS. The Collar. — The best for heavy work is the English Collar^ which is shown in figure 80, as it distributes the draught over the whole surface of the breast and shoulders. Its size and weight should be regulated by the nature oJ the work to be performed. If for light work, too great weight should be avoided, as it increases the heat about the shoulders. For heavy work, it should be broad and full, especially at the point wh(ire the most direct strain comes, viz : where the traces are attached. The proper fitting of the collar is an important matter, and shoidd receive the especial attention of the horse- keeper. If it is too loose, it will gall the shoulders and chafe the neck by its motion; or if too tight, it will obstruct the breath by its pressure upon the windpipe. When in its proper position, snug against tlie shoulders, there should be space enough between the collar and the windpipe U) allow the insertion of the fingers. With horses o\ 406 HARNESS. Btylisli carriage, holding their heads high, and having very sloping shoulders, the collar is liable to work too much against the windpipe. This may be obviated by selecting harries^ with the attachment of the traces very low down, and by the use of a breast strap, or false mar- tingale, passing from the collar, between the fore legs, to the girth. A collar which is open at the top, fastened by straps and buckles, does not afford so firm a resistance to the draught, and for light harness is not so desirable as one solid-made, though it allows the size of the collar to be regulated to the neck. For fine harness, collars are usually made with patent leather on the outside, because this has a more finished appearance, but a strong quality of common leather ia more durable. The lining for the collars of fine harness should always be of leather. This is also best for work harness, but woollen cloth is generally used, because it is cheaper. The stuffing in an English collar, for light work, may be soft ; but for heavy work it should be hard and perfectly even. It should be of some material which will not become matted together. For a buggy harness it may be of long straw, bound together, and covered with woollen; while for heavy harness there is no material so good aa rye straw, cut as short as possible, so that it may be packed away in the collar, like sand. This will always give an even bearing on the shoulder, and will remain dry and cool. The Breast or Butch Collar, which is represented in figure 81, is better than the English collar for any light work, (in single harness) and it has the advantage v:>f showing off a fine shoulder, which the other style would only conceal. The construction of the breast-collar is very simple. It should be lined on the inside with a wide, double fold of soft enamelled leather, under the breast-straji THE COLLAR AND BRIDLE. 40( Fio. 81.— The Breast or Dutch Collar. or plate, as well aa under that wliicli pas- ses over the neck. The plate should be so long as to bring the trace buckles over the line of the back part of the fore leg. The plate, in front, should be furnished with a loop, to hold the mar- tingale in its proper position. The Traces should be of a size propor- tioned to the weight to be drawn. Square traces look unwieldy, and round ones are apt to rip. The best form is oval, — that is, a narrow, flattened trace, thick in the centre, and rounded at the edges. Coach traces are cut seven feet long, and are usually supplied with an ar- rangement by which they are secured around the end of the whiffle-tree, while the traces of buggy harness are six feet three inches long, and are fastered by a slit at the end, to an iron in the end of the whiffle-tree. TirE Bridle may be, with propriety, more ornamented Oit more highly finished than the rest of the harness (except perhaps the saddle) ; for a neat, plain harness, the bridle should be especially neat, with some slight ornament, as a rosette, or with a very little modest stitching ; for a more highly ornamented harness, it may be covered with a pro- fusion of fine work, and have a fair allowance of plated ornaments and buckles. In its general construction, il aonsists of a head strap, cneck pieces, throat- lash, and bit ^08 HAENESS. Blinkers, or Blinders, (as they are very appropriately termed,) are, fortunately, growing more and more un* popular. There is no earthly reason why they should be generally used, except that they afford a good field for the display of initial letters and family crests. They are ft frequent cause of blindness, resulting from an undue pressure against the eye ; they cause horses to be frightened by the sudden appearance before them of objects which, without blinkers, they would have seen slowly approach- ing ; and their use for the mere purpose of ornament is as unfortunate as is the use of green spectacles by fine-eyed men. It is not, of course, to be recommended that they be at once discarded in the case of horses on which they have always been used, though many such would go better without them : it is on young horses that their use is espw cially to be deprecated. There are, now and then, to be found cunning horses who regidate their pace to the indications of danger from behind. They will watch the driver, and go fast or slow, according to the probability of his using the whip. Such- animals should wear blinkers, to prevent their looking back to the carriage. Even in these cases it would be better to substitute the "half-blinker," which consists of a narrow piece back of the eye, preventing the horse from looking back, while it allows him to see directly to the side. Where it is considered necessary to use blinkers of the ordinary form, great care should be paid to their shape, and their position on the bridle. They should be very much hollowed out over the eye, and should be so placed that the greatest concavity will come directly over it. If placed a little too high or too low, their edges are liable to bruise and chafe the parts. The Check, or Bearing Kein, is another unaccountable mistake in harness invention. While it holds the horse's THE BIT. 40ft head in an unnatural, ungraceful, and uncomfortable posi tiou, it gives tlie mouth a callous, horny character, an'l entirely destroys all chance for fine driving. The check- rein is considered valuable, especially to prevent horses from grazing, or fi-om lowering the head. The same end may be equally attained by substituting a simple bridle rein, U> be fastened to the saddle without passing through the loops of the throat-lash. The Bit. — The bit is the most important part of the bridle ; in fact, the chief use of the latter is to hold the bit in its place in the horse's mouth. Bits are of various devices ; that most commonly used is the snaffle^ figure 27, and for ordinary mouths, it should be large, plain, and easy to the mouth ; the smaller it is, the more severe it wQl be. Thenar bit is a simple bar of iron^ without a joint ; it is easiel to the mouth than the snaffle, and is Fio.83.— Til., p.it. ""^ much used for fast trotting horses, which are to be driven with a strong hand. A still easier bit is that represented in figure 82, which is made of leather, covered with India-rubber ; it is useful for very tender mouths. All of these bits should be supplied with long branches, or large rings, or with IfvTge discs of leather, to prevent their being drawn through Uie mouth, when either rein is drawn in turning. For car- riage teams there is often employed a species of curb bit, called the Hanoverian, which does not differ, in principle, from the Hanoverian bit, shown in figure 28. Its form ia somewhat modified by having its branches straight, and supplied with holes for attaching the reins at greater or lesa distances from the mouth -piece, according to the amount 18 410 HAKNESS. of leverage required. The mouth-piece is usually madt plain, — without the port or curve which is used in the Hanoverian bit, for riding. "Whenever a curb-chain is used, particular attention should be given to its length. K too tight, it chafes the horse's chin ; if too loose, it does not act with sufficient power. It should be so adjusted that, when the branches are perpendicular, and the horse's head in its proper posi- tion, the finger maj be easily passed between it and the chin. The Body. — The body part of the harness consists of the saddle, with girths, the back-strap, and crupper, and the breeching and hold-back. The Saddle. — The saddle may be either heavy or light, according to the character of the harness. For buggy har- ness and for light double harness, it should be very narrow and light, (in all cases, it should be stuffed on either side of the spine), with a piece of heavy felt, or leather plate, of somewhat greater width attached to it, to prevent i:. from injuring the horse's back, — this is entirely separate from the saddle, and is attached to it by two small straps passing around it, one at either end of the saddle. The terrcts are two standing rings at the sides, and a hook in the centre, to which the check-rein is fastened. The Girths should be made in the same manner as the shoulder-piece and plate of the breast-collar, — ^that is, of a piece of ordinary leather, protected on the side next to the horse, by a pad of softer leather of greater width. Single harness has two girths — one to hold the saddle, and one to hold down the "tugs," (through which the shafts are passed,) while double harness has but one girth, the traces being passed through a loop on the lower part of the sad- dle-straps on either side. The Back-strap and Crupper. — The back-strap posses THE BREECniNG. 4i:i from a nng at tlie back of tlie saddle to the crupper, and has an opening over the horse's hips, through which the strap, supporting the breeching, is passed, and the continua- tion is divided at its end so as to buckle into either end of the crupper. The Crupper is that part which passes under the horse *a lail, and which serves to hold the saddle back to its prope? place, and to prevent its yielding to the tension of the check-rein, when one is used. It should be very large (aa being less likely to hurt the horse), and filled with some material which will not become hard and stiff; a very large crupper will prevent the horse from holding his tail hard down over the rein, and thus removes a serious diffi- culty incident to driving. The Breeching. — The breeching is the strap which passes back of the horse's thighs, and which sustains the weight of the carriage in descending hills, and moves it in backing. It is indispensable in single harness, but is not necessary in double harness, except for heavy work or in hilly countries. On tolerably level roads, and with mod- erately light loads, horses will work equally well and more comfortably without it, while their appearance is very much improved by its absence. The breeching should be made in the same manner as the plate of the breast-collar, having at its ends strong rings instead of buckles. It should not be too long, the rings coming very little for- ward of the horse's stifle. It is supported by a strap pass- ing over the horse's hips, to the divided ends of which, on either side, it is attached at the ring and at a point further back, which should not be less than six inches from the ring. This supporting strap may be either split up nearly to the back-strap, or it may be connected by a ring with two short straps which pass to the two points of attachment of the breeching. a2 HARNESS. The IlcldhacJcs are tlie straps which connect the ringi at the ends of the breeching with the shafts. In these very essential parts of the harness, strength should never be sacrificed to appearance. They should be made of the best quality of leather, cut straight at the sides, stitched coarsely at tlie fastening on of the buckle, and be of good aize. Thej will be stronger and more durable if made of one thickness of stout leather, than if made of an equal weight of two strips of thin leather stitched together. The Eeins should be so strong that, if the traces or whiffle- tree break, the horse may draw his load by the bit ; their rounded part, which should ex- tend well back of the saddle terrets, should be smooth and not twisted; and the hand-pieces, which are best made of soft russet leather, should be of a size suited to the driver's hand, and very pliable. The reins may be sup- plied with buttons to prevent the hands from slipping, and the end next to the bit should be enlarged, as in fig. S3, to prevent the martingale rings from sli])ping over the buckle. The Martingale may be of either the standing or ring sort, according to the taste of the purchaser. It is not a very important part of the harness, if the horse has been trained to carry his head in its proper place. If he persist in running out his nose, he will probably be most effectually cured by Fia. 83. the use of the standing martingale^ nhile, if he have a trick of tossing his head, a rather short ring-martingale will ennble his driver to resist or punish 16 HARNESSING. 418 fche attempt. The martingale, in its passage from the girth to the reins, should be securely attached to the collar (if the English collar be used); and if there be no martin- gale, the collar should be connected with the saddle girth by what is called a false martingale. This is very impor- tant, especially in double harness without breeching, wheB fully one-half of the weight of the load, in going down bill, comes upon this false martingale. The Mounting. — The finest bits are of polished' steel ; and the terretsand buckles of plated metal, orcovered with leather. The steel bits should be smooth, and entirely fi'ee from flaws and dull spots ; the brilliancy of the polish is of no consequence. Plating is of two sorts, — electro-plat- mg, and close-plating ; the latter is the best, and may be distinguished by breathing on it, and examining it while covered with moisture, when there will be found, on some part of it, the joint where the two edges of the leaf of silver or gold come together. When no such joint can be found, reject the mounting as electro-plated. The plating should be free from little cracks. Covered buckles and terrets are a vanity. They look well at first, but they are never strong, and the leather in time wears off and looks shabby. Even plain japanned buckles are to be preferred to covered ones. HOW TO HARNESS AND UNHARNESS THE HORSE. Lead the horse out from his stall to where the collar haa been conveniently hung, and, with the large end upper- most, put the same carefully over his head, having first widened it by pulling it over the knee. After it has passed his head, turn it (in the direction in which the mane falls) to its proper position. The breast-collar may be passed 114 HARNESS. over the head, of course, without these precantioui. No w tie your horse securelj, and fit the collar to its ulace. thai it may become warm before work commences. Examine the hames to see that neither the strap at the top nor tlie connecting links of the traces are twisted ; then put them over the collar, and buckle them at the bottom. K fast- ened by an iron at the bottom, they should not be unfaat. ened at the top, but the iron may be put in its place while they are over the horse^s neck, and then they may be put in their place on the collar and drawn up at the top. In either case they should be drawn snugly to their place, without being made so tight as to press the collar too tight. ly against the neck. Take the body of the harness from its peg, hold the saddle in the left hand, and with the right properly adjust the various parts ; then, taking hold of the back-strap near the supporting strap of the breeching, place the whole quietly on the horse's back. Standing bj the side of the horse's hip, raise the tail with the left hand, and, with the right, put the crupper in its place under the tail, being careful to free it from the hairs of the tail. Buckle the crupper to the back-strap, and then draw the saddle forward to its place ; the back-strap should be short enough to keep it well back of the withers. Pass the girth, which holds the saddle, through the loop of the martingale, and fasten it pretty tightly, leaving the other girth buckled to the terret on the off-side of the saddle. Now adjust th^ parts of the bridle, hang its head-piece over the thumb oi the left hand, and remove the horse's halter, slipping the right hand over the top of his head and holding him by the forelock. Take the top of the bridle in the fore finger of the right hand — the others still retaining their hold of the forelock — and with the left insert the bit in his mouth, drawing it quickly to its place, and passing the head-piece over the horse's ears. Now arrange the bridle, drawing HARNESSmO. 416 the forelock under its front piece, and fitting tlie bridl« tbout tlie ears. Buckle tiie throat-lash long enough to dllow it to fall down against the cheeks. If you use a check-rein^ pass it over the terret hook of the saddle ; sq% that it is not so short as to unnaturally confine the horse'i head. In cutting the horse to the wagon^ if you are not sure thAt he is well trained to stepping into the shafts, either have a gecond person to hold up the shafts while you back him into them, or stand him before them and raise them up so as to draw them over his hips. Pass the shaft through tho near-side tug about 6 or 8 iaches, and then go around to the off-side and put the end ol the other shaft through the tug and the loop of the second girth, which is buckled through it. Unfold the trace of the off-side and pass it first under the tug, and then through the loop on the shaft, fastening it, without a twist, to the whiffle-tree. Then come back to the near-side and fasten the other trace; after which unfold the holdback and pass it down be- tween the horse and the trace, through the loop under the shaft, and again over the top of the shaft, forward of the loop, then down between the shaft and the trace, up again outside of the shaft, and then between the shaft and the turn which has been made over it, and back to the buckle. Fasten the other holdback in the same manner, and adjust the buckles of both so that when the horse is stand- ing back squarely against the breeching, there shall be a alack of 3 inches in each trace; this will give him rcoDQ to work. See that the braec^iing is high enough^ — not more than 12 or 14 inches below the setting on of the tail. Un fasten the second girth from the terret of the off-side, pass it tknugh the martingale loop, and buckle it around the shaft and through the tug on the near-side. Uncoil the reins, pass th^m through the martingale rings and the ter- 416 HARNESS. rets cf the collar and saddle, and, carefully avoiding twists buckle their ends together, and your horse is geared, B« sure that you have every strap only sufficiently tight: do not emulate the example of that distinguished Hibernian who drew taut all of the straps, buckled them in the last hole, and then cut off the ends " to make it look nate." To unharness^ pursue the following order : — Unbuckle the reins and coil them to the rings of the bit ; let down the check-rein ; unbuckle the second girth and fasten it to the terret ; unfasten and fold up the holdbacks ; unfasten and coil the traces ; slip the tugs from the shafts ; lead the horse out of the shafts, lowering them easily to the ground; lead the horse to the place of unharnessing and remove the bridle, holding him by the mane until his halter is made fast; unbuckle the crupper and the saddle-girth, slipping the latter free fi'om the martingale loop ; take the saddle in the left hand, and the back-strap in the right, drawiiig the body part off over the hips, and remove the harness, — hanging each part of the harness in its place as taken off. Nonv unfasten the halter-tie ; move the collar to the upper part of the neck, widen it by drawing its sides apart, and turn it upside down (turning in the direction in which the mane falls) ; stand in front of the horse's head, and draw off the collar, squarely and slowly, holding the sides as much as possible away from the horse's eyes.* The work of putting on and taking off harness is done as much as possible on the near-side of the horse, a^id special care should be taken to do everything with the ut- most quietness and gentleness. In harnessing the double team, the same general plan if to be pursued as with the single horse, deviating firom the « If the collar can conveniently be left in its place imtil the neck i« cool, the skin will be less liable to become sore from its pressure than if it be uinediately remeved. CARE OF THE HARNESS. 4l7 above described system only so mucb as is required b^ the different character of tbe harness, — and bearing in mind the remarks on coupling-reins, and occasionally changing sides with the horses, which will be found in chapter XIX., (How to Drive a Horse.) THE CARE OF HARNESS. Fine harness should not be kept where it will be con- kstantly surrounded by an atmosphere saturated with ammonia, as in the stable, or so near to it as to be within reach of the fumes of the manure of the horses. The am- monia would be absorbed by the imperceptible film of noisture on it, and would " eat up" the oil of the leather. For the same reason it should not be hung against a white- washed wall, as the lime would get on the leather, and in- jure it by the same action. For each harness there should be two long pegs, five or six feet from the floor. On one, hang the bridle, next to the wall ; and the collar, the small end up, outside of the bridle. On the other, hang the body of the harness, by the saddle, letting the back-strap and breeching kang down, and the hames outside of the saddle. Thus arranged they will be in the proper order for putting on to the horse. When the harness is taken from the horse, take a woollen cloth or chamois skin, kept for the purpose, and w^ipe off the dust, and all moisture from rain or perspira- tion; and when the harness is nearly dry, lub its damper Darts very thoroughly with a second cloth or skin, until it is quite soft and pliable. The bits and plated mounting should be cleaned and rubbed with a slightly oiled rag before the harness \a 18* 418 HARNESS. finally hung in iis place. It is well to protect tlie hainesg from dust bj covering it, on its pegs, with a sheet, or, better still, by hanging it in a closet. When the leather of the harness becomes dry and hard, it should be cleaned and oiled. The best published directions for these pro- cesses aie contained in the following, written to the N E Farmer^ by Mr. J. Hart, of Portsmouth, IST. H. : — First, I take the harness apart, having each strap and piece by itself; then I wash it in warm soapsuds. I used to soak it in cold water for half a day, as others did, but I find that warm water does no harm, and much facilitates the job. When cleaned, I black every part with a harm- less black dye which I make thus : — One ounce of extract of logwood, twelve grains bichromate of potash, both pounded fine; upon that I pour two quarts boiling rain- water, stirring until all is dissolved. When cool it may be used. I keep it on hand all the time, in bottles. It may be applied with a shoe brush, or anything else con- venient. If any one objects to the use of this blacking, fearing that the bichromate of potash it contains would in- jure the leather, I would say, that this kind of potash will not injure leather, even when used in a much larger proportion. The blacking generally used contains cop- peras, sulphate of iron, and it is found that it will eat out the life of leather, unless used with great caution. When the dye had struck in, I go through with the oiling pro- cess. Some have a sheet-iron pan to oil in ; but I have s sheet of iron nailed to a board ; it is about two by three feet square. This I lay upon a table ; I lay a piece or part of the harness upon this, and with neat's-foot oil applied with a paint-brush, kept for the purpose, I go over it, oil- ing every part. The traces, breeching, and such parts aa need the most, I oil again. For the last oiling I use one- third castor oil, and two-thirds neat's-foot oil, mixed, A CLEANING TnE HAKNESS, 419 few hours after, or perhaps the next day, I wipe the haruesa over with a woollen cloth, which gives it a glossy appear- ance. Why I use some castor oil for the last coat is, be- cause it will stand the effects of the atmosphere and tha -ain much longer than neat's-foot oil, — consequently the harness does not require oiling so often. One pint of oii ifi sufficient for one harness. The common way of oiling a harness is, to apply aa aauch neat's-foot oil containing lamp-black as the leather m'.l take up ; then washing off with castile soap and water. This way is not so good as mine, because it makes the harness smutty, and also the soap that is used contains barilla,— a strong alkali,— which cuts up and feeds upon the oil in the leather, and the weather, especially if rainy, soon renders the harness stiff and unyielding as before; the wax in the threads is also destroyed, and the stitching givea way. I have experimented with different kinds of oii, and find that the kind, and the process I now use, is the best. A French work, ''Le BourelUer et le Sellier;' gives the fol- lowing recipe for restoring old and stiff leather: Melt over the fire, in a metallic vessel, eight pounds of very pure beeswax, stirring it until it is all melted; then introduce one pound of litharge, which has been pul- verized in water, dried, and passed through a fine sieve. Leave it on the fire, and stir it until all of the soluble part of the litharge is incorporated with the wax; remove the vessel from the fire, and when the mixture shall have lost a portion of its heat, incorporate with it, little by little, one pound and a half of very fine ivory black, of the best quality; replace it on the fire, and stir it incessantly until the wax commences to boil again ; then remove it and allow it to get nearly cool. Then add to it spirits of tur. pentine, until it is of the consistency of a paste. More tur 420 HARNESS. pentine may from time to time be added, as may beooma necessary. Application". — ^If the leather is old and stiff, or covered with gum, wash it \wlh a brush with weak potash- water or soap, and then with pure spring-water ; leave it to dry, and then blacken it with ink. When that is well absorbed, wipe it with a cloth, and then grease it abundantly with fish oil of good quality, (neat*s-foot oil is probably prefer- able.) When the grease has been thoroughly imbibed, pass over it a sponge moistened with spirits of turpentine, to remove the grease from the surface ; then give it, with a shoe-brush, a layer of the above preparation ; finish by polishing with a soft and dry brush. This process will restore the leather to a soft, pliable rendition, and give it a beautiful appearance. Cleaning Plate. — If the plated portions of the harness become tarnished, they may be cleaned by rubbing first with whiting and water, and then with whiting alone. Polished steel mountings should be kept clean and imper- >jeptibly oiled, by the use of a cloth which contains only a ntspicion of sweet oil. Use no acids in cleaning the plate as it will soon destroy the coating. INDEX. FAOa A^ddentfl in Ladies' riding. . . 302 A iaptation of Sire and Dam . . 35 AiHcan Jack. 91 Age of the Horse 101 Age of a Horse, How to tell.. 115 Amble, the 279 American horses rarelj savagely vicious 151 A ndalusian Jack 91 A.pproaching the horse 324 Arab Blood 68 Axle, the 385 Axle, the patent 386 Axle, Stratton's Patent 386 Axle, the Half-patent 387 Back-strap of the Harness. .... 410 Backing 253 Balls, how to administer. . 178, 210 Barbadoes aloes 178 Barouche, the. 378 Bars of the Foot 22; Baucher's Method of Train- ing 152, 241 Baulking 329 Bit, the 409, 267 " Palham 267 " Hanoverian 267 " plain Snaffle. 268 " for Ladies' riding 295 " and Bridooa Bridle. 246 Bladder, Diseases of 181 Blanketing 147 Bleedmg. .., 193 " instrument for 176 " how performed 177 PAOI Blindness, inherited 93 Blinkers, the 408 Blood, quantity contained i^i the horse 167 Blood-spavm 114 '♦ Blood," its definition Ifl " what it gives to the horse 20 Blood, should be on the side of the Sire 21 Blood less important in the Mare 26 Blood from the Sire, beauty from the Dam 2tf Bloods which " hit" 4 Body of the Carriage 391 Body of the Harness 411 Bog-spavin 114 Bones of the Foot 223 Breaking a horse, what it im- plies 151 Breast-plate 265 " BreecMng up," definition of. . 39 Breeching, the 411 Brett, the 380 Bridle, the 266, 401 " the pulley 268 " for Ladies' riding. ... 294 Broken Knees lOt, 186 Bronchitis 180 Brood-mare, points of. 27 Brougham, tho 379 Buggy, the 381 Caleche, the 878 Canadians 41 (42g 422 INDEX. PAGB CanJier, thp 218 Caniages, chapter on 374 Carriages, varieties of. 377 Carrots for food 126 Castor Oil, dangerous 179, 176 Castration 188 Catarrh 854 Oatch weights 837 Ohapman's Shaft-faatener 390 Check-rein, the 408 Clean legs 113 CUcking 218 Chppmg 303 Clothing for the horse 147 Clyster, how to administer 213 Coach, the 377 Cold 354 Colic, spasmodic 168 Colic 170 Cohc, Homoeopathic remedies. 360 Collar, the 406 Collar, the Breast or Dutch. .. 406 Colors for Carriages 393 Colors, harmony of 393 Colt, management of the 153 Construction of the carriage. . . 382 Conti^ted Feet 239 Corns 214 Corns, remedied by proper Shoeing 238 Com-me^ food for horses. ... 137 Costiveness, treatment for 179 Cough, treatment for 180 Cough 355 Coupe,the 379 Cracked heels 202 Crossing the breeds 40 Crupper, the 265 Crupper of the Harness 410 Cuthay 137 Damaged back sinews 112 DtTk Stables 140 Defects detected 101 Depression of the neck 248 Description of a good shoe. . . 231 Diarrhoea 362 Diet for Sick Horse 348 Diseases Causes of. 162 Diseases of the Foot caused by bad shoeing 237 rxau Dismoonting 370 " from the Side-ead- dle 299 Distemper 180 Docking 189 Dog-cart 381 Doors for stables 141 Drenches, how to administer 178, 211 Dress for gentlemen riding. ... 269 " " ladies " .... 296 Driving, chapter on 804 " a single horse 806 " a pair 806 " four-in-hand 808 " working horses 311 Ear, dressing the 208 Economy of proper stable ar- rangements 140 Education of a Horse 162 *' should commence when young 153 Enclosure for Training Horses . 323 Epsom Salts, effect of. 173 Examining the Horse 100 how to Examine 104 Falling, the art of. 284 Farcy 349 Farm Horees, how to use 158 Farriery 187 Feeding a Horse 122 Feet, Diseases of 182 Felloes, the 383 Fitting the Shoe 234 Flesh Wounds 200 Flexions of the Jaw - 246 Flexions of the Neck 249 Flexions of the Croup 251 Floor for Stables. 141 Foal, Food of 124 Food of the Race-horse 122 Foot, Anatomy of. 219 Fomentations 913 Forgmg 218 Founder 351 Fresh Legs 118 Frog of the Foot 922 Gag-bit IM Galloways II IKDEX. 423 PAGB Gallop, the 264, 278 GaUsoftheSkin 198 General Rules for choice of Stallion 24 Qeneral Rules ^or choice of Mare 34 Qirtha, the 263 nirtha of the Harness 410 rilossary of Diseases 367 Jroase 350, 203, 182 SreenFood 129, 126 aripes 360 Grooming 149, 144, 139 Grooming, importance of 145 " necessary for Work- Horses 146 Halt, the 280 Handicapping 342 Hands, position in riding 274 Hands, position of the Lady's. 300 Harmony of Color in Trim- mings, with Dress and Complexion of Ladies .... 394 Harness, chapter on 401 Harness, parts of the. 405 Harness, the care of. 417 Harness, to clean 418 Harnessing the Horse 413 Hay rooms 142 Hay, Amount fed to Omnibus Horses, 138 Heats 338 Hereditary, defects which are. 23, 29 Hidebound 351 Hinny, the 84 Holdbacks, the. 412 Homoeopathy 344 Horny Crust of the Foot 219 Horse, how to buy 94 " how to breed 17 Hub, the 382 Icelandic Ponj 65 Indian Pony 16, 67 Indigestion. 36 Inflammation of the Kidneys . . 865 Inflammation of the Bowels ... 363 Inflammation of the Brain 353 Inflammation of the Lungs . . 173, 357 Inflammation of the Bowels 172, 168 Influenza 86f Interfering 21S Instructions for practising Ba- rey's Method 32S Jagger Wagon 8S2 Jibbing .^ 329 Kicking 827 Knee-pad 323 Landau, the 878 Laying the Horse down 325 Leaping 268, 283 Leather for Harness, quality of 403 Leather, in carriages 891 Legs, defects in 107 Legs, to examine the 108 Legs, use of| in riding 276 Lightness of Hand 276 Lotions. 213 Lubricating the Axie 899 Maiden Horse 837 Maltese Jack 87, 92 Mane, dressing the 207 Mange 849 ]\Iare, choice of the 25 Mare, Food for, during Gesta- tion 122 Mare, Care o^ durmg Gesta- tion 81 Martingale, the 266, 295, 412 Medicines, Caution in Admin- istering 163 Medicines, how to Administer 208 Medicines, list of 340 " Administering Ho- moBopathic ?48 Megrims 862 Metallic Mangers 130 Mexican Pony 1$ Modern Arabian inferior to English or American thorough-bred 69 Mounting the Horse 269 Mounting, the Side-saddle. . . 298 Mounting of the Harness . ... 413 Mouth, Examination of 339 Mules, how to Breed 81 Mules, their use in the U. S. . . 88 424 INDEX. rAOB MtntangPony 67 Naragansetts - 72 Navicular Disease 113 Nicking 180 Norman Blood 51 New Com Injurious 127 Omnibus Horses in New York 185 Of er-reach 186 Over-reaching . . 218 Paces, the 253,276 Pace, the 279 Painting the Carriage 392 Panels of the Carriage 391 Paring the Foot for Shoeing. . 227 Percheron Norman 52 ♦' Importation to New Jersey 53 Phseton,the 380 Physic a Horse, how to 162 Plating on the Carriage, 392 Plating, cleaning the 420 Pleasure driving 304 Pleasure Horses, how to use. . 159 Plowing 314 " three-a-breast S15 Pole, the 390 Ponies 63 Pony not a Dwarf Horse 64 Points of the Horse. 99 Position of the body in riding . 272 " hands 274 Positions of the lady. 299 Preparation of the foot 226 Prickii^ by a nail 216 Pulling on the halter 328 Punishment of the Horse 160 Purchasing a Carriage 375 Purchasing the Carriage, rules for 395 Purgatives, tiie Horse very sen- sitive to 166 Qqittor. 216 Race-horse, food of. 122 Racing. 333 Radng, laws of. 337 Barey'B System of Horse-taming 318 fUttring 28^327 Reins, the, for Harness. 418 Rems, how to hold. . . 311, 800, 30* Remedies for specific diseases. 341 Repairing Carriage 40C Riding, chapter on 961 Eiding with Ladies. . . ., 281 Riding, Ladies' 288 Ring-bone IH Roaring. 105 Rockaway, the 871 Roof of the Carriage 391 Rules for purchasing Carriage. 39* Rye Bran to prevent scour- ing 188 Saddle, the 261 Saddle, the Somerset. 263 Saddle, the Hunting 262 Saddle of the Harness 410 Saddle-Cloths 264 SaddleGalls 199 Scottish Ponies 65, 67 Scratches 182, 203, 350 Scratches caused by filthy stables 139 Seat in the Saddle 271 Seat m the Side-saddle 299 Shafts, the 389 Shetland Ponies 65, 67 Shoe, preparing the 231 " form of 233 Shoeing 218 Shying 32f Sick animal, treatment oC . . . . 848 Side-saddle, the 291 Side-bone 113 Sit-fasts 199 Size of Sire and Dam. 87 Sore Throat 86« Spanish Jack 91 Spavin 113 Special cases in riding 281 Speed necessary to excellenoe. 19 Speedy-cut 216 Splenta. HI Spokes, the. 388 Springs, the 881 Spurs, the 357,268 StabUng the Colt 823 Stallion, choice of. 17 ** points of SI INDEX 4^S PA«B Btttllfl,eiMof 142 " Stopping" the feet 218 Strains 188,196 Stranglea 180 Stirrups 264 Stirrup, the Lady's 293 Stirrup-leather 268 Sniping the running gear. .... 394 3) al. ling the Horse 139 cjtyle of Carriages in the Unit- ed States. 875 Bommering Horse 133 Table of dimensions for parts of Carriage 388 Tail, dressing the 207 Teeth of the Horse 101 Teeth, " mark" m 116 Temperature of Stable 148 Thick Wind 105 Thorough-pin 114 Thrush 184, 214, 352 Tire, the 384 Tire Setting 400 Traces, the 407 Training Horses, Baucher's method 241 Training-Stables 334 Tniuiing Racers 334 Trarelluig, feeding while 181 PAOB Trimming the mane and taQ. . 207 " hair of the legs. 206 Trimming Carriage.... 392 Trot, the 264, 27« Tying up the leg 885 Unharnessing the Horse 41 i Use a Horse, how to. 167 Varnish for Carriages. 398 Ventilation of Stables 139, 142 Vices and bod habits 327 Walk, the 244, 278 Watering the Horse 129, 161 Washing the Carriage 397 Weights, table of, for Racers . . 341 Weight of rider, in racing. . , . 337 Welsh Ponies 65 Wheel, the 882 Wheezing 106 Whip, Ladies' 802, 295 Whistling 106 Wind, defects in, detected. . . . 104 Windows for Stables. 142 Working Horses, food for. , . . 126 Workmanship, quality of. ... . 404 Work-horses, how to use 167 Worms 181, 384 Wounds 186,808 STANDARD BOOKS . . 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First-hand knowl- edge has been die policy of the author in his work, and every crop treated is presented in the light of individual study ol the plant. If you have this book you have the latest and best that has been written upon the subject. Illustrated. 450 pagesc 51-2x8 inches. Cloth $i.7S The Potato By Sai^tuel Frazer. A reliable guide on the cultivation of the potato, its development, manuring and fertilizing, planting^ tillage, sprays and spraying, breeding t,ew varieties, harvesting, storing, marketing, etc., etc. Tnkeii all in all it is the most complete, reliable and authoritative work on the potato ever published in America. Illustratc^i. 200 pages. 5x7 mches. Cloth. . $0.75 Land Draining A handbook for farmers on the principles and practice ol draining, by Manly JMiles, giving the results of his extended experience in laying tile drains. The directions for the laying out and the construction of tile drains will enable the farmer to avoid the errors of imperfect construction, and the disap- pointment that must necessarily follow. This manual for practical farmers will also be found convenient for reference in regard to many questions that may arise in crop growing, aside from the special subjects of drainage of which it treats. Illustrated. 200 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. . . $1.00 Barn Plans and Outbuildings Two hundred and fifty-seven illustrations. A most valu- able work, full of ideas, hints, suggestions, plans, etc., for the construction of barns and outbuildings, by practical writers. Chapters are devoted to the economic erection and use of barns, grain barns, horse barns, cattle barns, sheep barns, corn- houses, smokehouses, icehouses, pig pens, granaries, etc. There are likewise chapters on birdhouses, doghouses, tool sheds, ventilators, roofs and roofing, doors and fastenings, workshops, poultry houses, manure sheds, barnyards, root pits, etc. 235 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. , . . . $i.cx3 Irrigation Farming By Lute Wilcox. A linndhook for the practical applica- tion of water in the production of crops. A complete treatise on tva.tev supply, canal construction, reservoirs and ponds, pipes for irrigation purposes, flumes and their structure, methods of applying water, irrigation of field crops, the garden, the orchard and vineyard, windmills and pimips appliances and contrivances. New edition, revised, enlarged and rewritten. Profusely illustrated. Over 500 pages. 5x7 hiches. Cloth. $2.00 Forest Planting By H. Nicholas Jarchow, LL. D. A treatise on the car*' of woodlands and the restoration of the denuded timberlands on plains and mountains. The author has ful'y described those European methods which have proved to be most useful in maintaining the superb forests of the old wo^ld. This expe- rience has been adapted tc the different climates and trees of America, full instructions being given for forest planting of our various kinds of soil and subsoil, whetner on mountain or valley. Illustrat ed. . 25 pages, 5x7ihoies. Cloth. $1.50 Animal Breeding By Thomas Shaw, This hook i§ the most complete and comprehensive work ever published on the subject of which it treats. It is the first book which has systematized the subject of animal breeding. The leading laws which govern this most intricate question the author has boldly defined and authoritatively arranged. The chapters which he has written on the more involved features of the subject, as sex and the relative influence of parents, should go far toward setting at rest the wildly speculative views cherished with reference to these questions. The striking originality in the treatment of the subject is no less conspicuous than the superb order and regular sequence of thought from the beginning to the end of the book. The book is intended to meet the needs of all persons interested in the breeding and rearing of live stock. Illustrated. 405 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. , , $1.50 Forage Crops Other Than Grasses By Thomas Shaw. How to cultivate, harvest and use them. Indian corn, sorghum, clover, leguminous plants, crops of the brassica genus, the cereals, millet, field roots, etc. Intensely practical and reliable. Illustrated. 287 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. $1.00 Soiling Crops and the Silo By Thomas Shaw. The growing and feeding of all kinds of soiling crops, conditions to which they are adapted, their plan in the rotation, etc. Not a line is repeated from the Forage Crops book. Best methods of building the silo, filling it and feeding ensilage. Illustrated. 364 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth $1.50 The Study of Breeds By Thomas Shaw. Origin, history, distribution, charac- teristics, adaptability, uses, and standards of excellence of all pedigreed breeds of cattle, sheep and swine in America. The accepted text book in colleges, and the authority for farmers and breeders. Illustrated. 371 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth $1.50 Profits in Poultry Useful and ornamental breeds and their profitable man- agement. This excellent work contains the combined expe- rience of a number of practical men in all departments of poultry raising. It forms a unique and important addition to our poultry literature. Profusely illustrated. 352 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth $1.00 The New Egg Farm By H. H. Stoddard. A practical, reliable manual on producing eggs and poultry for market as a profitable business enterprise, either by itself or connected with other branches of agriculture. It tells all about how to feed and manage, how to breed and select, incubators and brooders, its labor- saving devices, etc., etc. Illustrated. 331 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. ^.00 Poultry Feeding and Fattening Compiled by G. B. Fiske. A handbook for poultry keep- ers on the standard and improved methods of feeding and marketing all kinds of poultry. The subject of feeding and fattening poultry is prepared largely from the side of the best practice and experience here and abroad, although the underlying science of feeding is explained as fully as needful. The subject covers all branches, including chickens, broilers, capons, turkeys and waterfowl; how to feed under various conditions and for different purposes. The whole subject of capons and caponizing is treated in detail. A great mass of practical information and experience not readily obtainable elsewhere is given with full and explicit directions for fatten- ing and preparing for market. This book will meet the needs of amateurs as well as commercial poultry raisers. Profusely illustrated. 160 pages. 5x7 1-2 inches. Cloth. . $0.50 Poultry Architecture Compiled by G. B. FrsKE. A treatise on poultry buildings of all grades, styles and classes, and their proper location, coops, additions and special construction ; all practical in de- sign, and reasonable in cost. Over 100 illustrations. 125 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth $0.50 Poultry Appliances and Handicraft Compiled by G. B. Fiske. Illustrated descriptions of a great variety and styles of the best homemade nests, roosts, windows, ventilators, incubators and brooders, feeding and watering appliances, etc., etc. Over 100 illustrations. Over 125 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth $0.50 Turkeys and How to Grow Them Edited by Herbert Myrick. A treatise on the natural history and origin of the name of turkcN's; the various breeds, the best methods to insure success in the business of turkey growing. With essa\'s from practical turkey growers in different parts of the United States and Canada. Copiously illustrated. 154 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth . , . $1.00 Coburn*s Swine Husbandry By F. D, CoBURN. New, revised and enlarged edition. The breeding, rearing and management of swine, and the prevention and treatment of their diseases. It is the fullest and freshest compendium relating to swine breeding yet offered. Illustrated. 312 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. $1.50 Home Pork Making The art of raising and curing pork on the farm. By A. W. Fulton. A complete guide for the farmer, the country butcher and the suburban dweller, in all that pertains to hog slaughtering, curing, preserving and storing pork product — from scalding vat to kitchen table and dining room. Illus- trated. 125 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. . . . $0.50 Harris on the Pig By Joseph Harris. New edition. Revised and enlarged by the author. The points of the various English and Ameri- can breeds are thoroughly discussed, and the great advantage of using thoroughbred males clearly shown. The work is equally valuable to the farmer who keeps but a few pigs, and to the breeder on an extensive scale. Illustrated. 318 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth $1.00 The Dairyman's Manual By Henry Stewart, author of the " Shepherd's Manual," *' Irrigation," etc. A useful and practical work, by a writer who is well known as thoroughly familiar with the subject of which he writes. Illustrated. 475 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. $1.50 Feeds and Feeding By W. A. Henry. This handbook for students and stock- men constitutes a compendium of practical and useful knowl- edge on plant growth and animal nutrition, feeding stuffs, feeding animals and every detail pertaining to this important subject. It is thorough, accurate and reliable, and is the most valuable contribution to live stock literature in many years. All the latest and best information is clearly and systematically presented, making the work indispensable to every owner of live stock. 658 pages. 6x9 inches. Cloth. . . $>2.oo Farm Grasses of the United States of America By William Jasper Spillman. A practical treatise on the grass crop, seeding and management of meadows and pastures, description of the best varieties, the seed and its impurities, grasses for special conditions, lawns and lawn grasses, etc., etc. In preparing this volume the author's object 'has been to present, in connected form, the main facts con- cerning the grasses grown on American farms. Every phase of the subject is viewed from the farmer's standpoint. Illus- 'trated. 248 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. . . . $1.00 The Book of Corn By Herbert Myrick, assisted by A. D. Shamel, E. A. Burnett, Albert W. Fulton, B. W. Snow, and other most capable specialists. A complete treatise on the culture, marketing and uses of maize in America and elsewhere, for farmers, dealers and others. Illustrated. 2)1^ pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. $1.50 The Hop — Its Culture and Care, Marketing and Manufacture By Herbert Myrick. A practical handbook on the most approved methods in growing, harvesting, curing and selling hops, and on the use and manufacture of hops. The result of years of research and observation, it is a volume destined to be an authority on this crop for many years to come. It takes up every detail from preparing the soil and laying out the yard, to curing and selling the crop. Every line represents the ripest judgment and experience of experts. Size, 5x8; pages, 300; illustrations, nearly 150; bound in cloth and gold; price, postpaid, $1.5^ Tobacco Leaf By J. B. Killebrew and Herbert Myrick. Its Culture and Cure, Marketing and Manufacture. A practical handbook on the most approved methods in growing, harvesting, curing, packing and selling tobacco, with an account of the opera- tions in every department of tobacco manufacture. The contents of this book are based on actual experiments in field, curing barn, packing house, factory and laboratory. It is the only work of the kind in existence, and is destined to be the standard practical and scientific authority on the whole sub- ject of tobacco for many A^ears. 506 pages and 150 on^inai engravings. 5x7 inches. Cloth $2.00 Farmer's Cycl opedia of Agriculture jH ^ (A Compendium of ^Agricultural Science and Practice on Farm, Orchard and Garden Crops, and the Feeding and Diseases of Farm Animals : : • : Bt; EARLEY VERNON WILCOX, Ph.D. and CLARENCE BEAMAN SMITH, M.S. Associate Editors in the Office of Experiment Stations, United States Department of Agriculture THIS is a new, practical, and complete pres- entation of the whole subject of agricul- ture in its broadest sense. It is designed for the use of agriculturists who desire up-to-date, reliable information on all matters pertai'^xing to crops and stock, but more particularly for the actual f^nneT. The vol'-me contains Detailed directions for Jhe cui^ure of eve y important field, orchard, and garden crop grown in America, together with descriptions of their chief insect pests and fungous diseases, and remedies for their control. It contains an ac- count of modern methods in feeding and handling all farm stock, including poultry. The diseases which affect different farm animals and poultry are described, and the most recent remedies suggested for controlling them. Every bit of this vast mass of new and useful information is authoritative, practical, and easily found, and no effort has been spared to include all desirable details. There are l)etween 6,000 and 7,000 topics covered in these references, and it contains 700 royal 8vo pages and nearly 500 superb half-tone and other original illustrations, making the most perfect Cyclopedia of Agr/cul- ture ever attempted. Handsomely bound in cloth, $3.50; half morocco (Very sumptuous). $4.50, postpaid ORANGE JUDD COMPANY, Vi^^^^i^:^:^^;^ Wfebsterrc =-terinary CummingsSci.u^ oiennary MedJdnesft Tufts University . 200 Westboro Road