DRIVING, RIDING, HUNTING, RACE-RIDING 893 



between the stirrup-plate and the sole of his boot, and keep 

 it there while jumping fences, or during any vagaries of his 

 mount. Or if he is riding without stirrups let the sixpence 

 be placed underneath the knee, and see if it is in its place 

 after three or four fences have been jumped in succession. 

 Many a rider who " fancies himself " will soon discover this 

 test to be too high for his capabilities. 



A rough-and-ready rule for the length of the stirrups is to 

 place the bottom of the stirrup against the armpit, and then 

 stretching the arm to the full extent just touch the saddle- 

 bar. If the stirrup-leathers are so adjusted before getting 

 into the saddle no horse can throw a good rider, although, 

 from the particular shape of the animal, the leathers may 

 have to be altered a little afterwards, to ride in the greatest 

 comfort and to the best advantage. When the rider has 

 omitted this test and is already in the saddle, he should 

 sit on his fork and allow his legs to hang to their fullest 

 extent, and then shorten the leathers until the bottoms of 

 the dangling stirrups barely touch his insteps. He will then 

 find himself ready to cope with any antic the horse may 

 indulge in. Very many riders are in the habit of riding a 

 hole, or more, too long, when the weight is too much placed 

 upon the fork, and a sudden shy or stumble on the part of 

 the horse is only too apt to strain the " tailor's muscle," the 

 painful and baleful effects of which are unfortunately only 

 too well known. Should this happen it is possible still to 

 manage to ride by procuring a very long soft leather strap, 

 and after winding it two or three times round the thigh, 

 buckle it round the waist. The relief this simple method 

 affords can scarcely be appreciated until tried. Without 

 some such support it may be found impossible to ride until 

 the strain is quite recovered, perhaps only after some weeks 

 of treatment. But almost the sole cause of the disaster is 

 the riding with stirrups which are too long. 



Whilst the legs should be rigid, when in the saddle, the 

 body should be quite supple, swaying gracefully with every 

 movement of the horse. The elbows must always be kept 

 close to the sides, which adds greatly to the neatness of the 

 appearance, and also to the power of the rider ; for the elbow 



