BREAKING 209 



after partially rising two or three times, and coming down again, he finally 

 plants himself firmly iu the saddle. Most careful breakers have a roll of 

 cloth buckled firmly in front of their saddles ; and with this precaution, even 

 if the colt bucks or kicks, it is almost impossible for him to dislodge them. 

 When thus mounted, the breaker should be in no hurry, but let the colt 

 get accustomed to the intruder. Let him wait till the pupil has somewhat 

 recovered from the shock, and then only let him urge him forward at as 

 slow a pace as he likes. If all has been conducted well throughout the pre- 

 liminary stages, and the colt is good-tempered, he will walk away quietly 

 enough, and generally no ti'ouble will be given for a day or two; when, 

 probably, there will be some slight fight, which may be either in causing the 

 pupil to go where he does not want to go, or in making him face some object 

 which frightens him. At first, neither whip nor spur should be used, for 

 the object of neither is understood; and if the colt will not readily move 

 forward, he should be led or driven by an assistant, and not whipped or 

 spuiTed by his ridor. In process of time, however, he is made gradually to 

 understand these signs by the tact of the breaker; and then if he offends, he 

 must be punished accordingly, but it must always be remembered that the 

 fault must be met immediately, or not at all. 



The amusing and experienced author of The Horse and his Rider has 

 drawn attention to the misconception of the differences in character between 

 a wild horse and a tame one, which is entertained in this country. He says : 

 " It is generally conceived that in the difficulty of sticking on to the back of 

 a hoi'se there exist thi'ee degrees of comparison, namely: — 



" 1. That it is rather difficult to ride a horse that has been broken in. 

 "2. That it is exceedingly difficult to ride a tame one that has not been 

 broken in. 



" 3. That it must be almost impossible to mount and ride a wild horse just 

 caught, that has never been broken in. 



" We will, however, humbly venture to assert that in certain instances, 

 the three steps of this little ladder might be reversed. 



"1. In a state of nature the horse is such a zealous advocate of our 

 popular principle of 'self-government,' he is so desirous to maintain his 

 'independence,' that although he will allow almost any quadruped, even 

 wolves and lions, to approach within a certain distance, yet the moment he 

 sees a man, though on horseback, he instinctively turns his tail towards him, 

 and, when followed, gallops away. 



" If, consequently, by the triumph of i^eason over instinct, he be caught, 

 saddled, and if all of a sudden, to his vast astonishment, he finds sitting 

 astride his back, with a cigar in his mouth, the very human being he has 

 always been avoiding, his first and almost only feeling is that of /ear, and 

 accordingly, if he be retained by the bridle, instantaneously, by a series of 

 jumps on all four legs, he makes impromptu his first hurried, untaught, 

 unpractised effort to dislocate a rider. But if, instead of being as it were 

 invited to pei'form these unsophisticated antics, he be allowed, or rather, by 

 whip and severe spurs, be propelled to do what he most ardently desires, 

 namely, run away, his power of resistance is over, and his subjection inevit- 

 able. For at the top of his speed, just as when swimming, a horse can 

 neither rear, kick, nor plunge, and accordingly at his best pace he proceeds 

 on his sure road to rixin, until not only all his wind is pumped out of him, 



P 



