77 



permission to ride me. He was told that I never had been ridden, that 

 I was of a nervous, sensitive disposition and required very g-entle, kind 

 treatment, and that he would like to ride me first himself but was too 

 hea\ y for me. Mr. T. said that he would like to try me, so a saddle and 

 bridle were put on me, and I was taken out to a vacant lot. My master 

 held me while Mr. T. mounted, and then led me for a while. I was 

 afraid, as I never had weight on my back before, but while my master 

 went with me I knew that it was all rig^ht and I went nicely. He said 

 to Mr. T., "Now, I will let her go; be gentle with her and do not worry 

 her mouth ; " so he let go. I became nervous then and made two or 

 three plunges. Mr. T. sat me well, w-as easy with my mouth, and spoke 

 kindly to me, so I settled down and walked along quietly. Mr. T. then 

 said, "So my lady, you thought you could unseat me, but I will teach you 

 that I am master here." He then drew heavily on the reins and hurt 

 my mouth, and he hit me a 

 smart cut with his whip, 

 which caused me pain. This 

 made me angry, as he had 

 no right to punish me when 

 I was acting nicely ; so I 

 bucked and threw him off. 

 He alighted heavily on the 

 hard ground ; and I stood 

 still until he got on his feet. 

 My master came to me and 

 caught the bridle ; he asked 

 Mr. T. if he was badly 

 hurt, and told him that he 

 should not have punished 



me. Mr. T. said that he was not badly hurt and that he would mount 

 again, which he did; and as he used me kindly I did not throw him again. 

 The next day I heard my master tell Ernest that two of Mr. T.'s ribs 

 had been broken by the fall. I felt sorry, but really it was his own 

 fault. After this I was ridden daily by Ernest. He was kind to me, 

 and I acted well. I soon became handy, and Ernest said that I was 

 verv easy to ride. One day my mistress asked if she might ride me; and 

 my master said yes, that I was perfectly safe. So they put saddles and 

 bridles on me and my mother, and my mistress and master rode us. 

 After that she rode me often, and said that she liked me better than her 

 own saddle horse. She sits me well and has very light hands. I like to 

 have her ride me. She says that I walk, trot and canter well, and that 

 my mouth is perfection. One day she asked me to jump a ditch, and I 

 did it so well that she tried me over fences. I like jumping ; I think I 

 inherit the liking and ability to jump from both my parents. When the 

 hunting season commenced, my master rode a big bay half-breed that he 

 calls Pharoah, and my mistress rode her big bay half-bred mare, Dorothy. 

 There are so many barbed wire fences and so many swamps around here 

 that they cannot hunt foxes as they do in some countries ; so the 

 huntsman rides across the country with a ball soaked in oil of anise 



Fig. 9ri. The colt "'i^es a lesson. 



