132 EQUINE LOCOMOTION. 



to the rear, as in heavy draught, the horse will have to 

 exert his powers in bringing his centre of gravity as far 

 back as possible. Consequently, he ought to have his 

 head well raised, and ought to get his hind feet under 

 him as far as he can without slipping. In this he will be 

 greatly assisted by having calkins on his hind shoes. 



Turning and Circling. — Circling is a uniform 

 change of direction executed on a circle in a more or 

 less continued manner. As the movements are nearly 

 similar in both the turn and circle, there is no need to 

 consider them separately. 



The horse's fore legs bear more weight than the 

 hind ones, especially during movement and w^hen he is 

 mounted; and are consequently the chief pivots upon 

 which the turn is made. Also, the faster the turn, the 

 greater is the proportion of weight which falls on the 

 inside (near, if the turn is made to the left ; and off, 

 if to the right) fore and inside hind leg ; because the 

 horse has to lean inwards (Fig. 192), so as to counteract 

 the displacing action of the centrifugal force. When 

 mounted, the horse will have more difficulty in doing 

 this, because the presence of the rider on his back, adds 

 to the weight he has to carry, and raises its centre of 

 gravity. Hence, the rider when turning, especially at 

 the canter and gallop, should lean inwards, so as to 

 help the horse in adjusting his centre of gravity. 



As the muscle^ which draws the fore limb forward, on 

 each respective side, is attached at one end to the 

 humerus, and at the other end to the top of the head 

 and the first four neck vertebrse ; it follows that the 

 position of the head regulates the direction in which the 

 fore leg is drawn forward. The head and neck also play 

 an important part as a balancing pole, in adjusting the 

 position of the centre of gravity. 



In turning at the walk or trot (say, to the left), the 

 first step to the left had best be taken with the left 



