TRIMMING. 251 
poster-like appearance which is presented by a leg clipped all over (without 
a corresponding clipping of the body), and at the same time to remove all, 
or nearly all, the superfluous hair, In the summer, a clipped leg is totally 
inadmissible, and even from the legs of a badly bred horse the hair may 
be pulled by gradually working at it for a little time every day with the 
fingers, armed with powdered resin. This prevents the hair slipping 
through them, and by its aid such a firm hold may be obtained that, as I 
said before, perseverance will enable the groom to clear the legs entirely, 
with the exception generally of a strong lock of hair behind the pastern. 
When this is very obstinate, it is allowable to use the scissors to clear 
away the hair below the horny growth which is found there, but there 
should always be left a slight fringe round this, so as to avoid the sharp 
and stiff outline presented by the clipped leg. In the winter, the arms 
and backs of the knees, as well as the bosom and the insides of the quarters, 
will generally want singeing, whether the body is submitted to the lamp or 
not; but in the summer, even if any long hairs are left there, they are 
easily removed by the hand armed with resin. Unless general clipping 
or singeing is practised, the ftont surfaces of the legs do not require 
trimming at any season of the year. 
The mane is not now usually cut, but formerly it was a very common 
practice to “hog” it, that is, to cut it to a sharp-pointed ridge, sticking 
straight upwards from the crest, and giving that part the appearance of 
extraordinary height. Sometimes, however, the mane is very thick, and 
then for the sake of appearances it is necessary to thin it, which is done by 
twisting a small lock at a time round the comb, and pulling it out; this 
zives some little pain, but apparently not much, and evidently not more than 
the trimming of the legs, and not so much as in pulling out the feelers or 
bristles growing from the nostrils. A small lock of the mane is generally 
zut just behind the ears where the head of the bridle rests, as it would 
otherwise lie beneath that part in an untidy manner. 
In trimming the tail various methods are adopted, when it is cut square ; 
for if the hairs are allowed to grow to the full length, no interference is 
necessary beyond an occasional clipping of their points to prevent them 
from breaking or splitting. A square tail, however, whether long or short, 
demands the careful use of the scissors or knife, without which the horse 
to which it belongs is sadly disfigured. Two modes are practised,—in the 
first the tail is carefully combed out, and then allowing it to fall in its 
natural position, it is gathered up in the hand just above the part to be 
cut off, and here a sharp knife is drawn across it backwards and forwards 
without notching it, till it passes clean through. The tail is then released, 
and any loose hairs projecting are removed with the scissors. The second 
mode is not so easy, but when well carried out is more satisfactory to the 
eye, inasmuch as it is capable of giving a sharper and more defined edge 
to the square tail. As in the first method, the tail is carefully combed 
out ; it is then held by an assistant’s hand, placed beneath the root of the 
dock, as nearly as may be in the position which it assumes in the animal 
out of doors. While thus poised the operator takes a pair of sharp 
scissors, and holding the blades horizontally open, he insinuates one of 
them through the middle of the tail at the place to be cut, passing it 
straight backwards, and cutting the hair quite level from the central line 
to the outside on his own left, Then reversing the blades, and keeping to 
the same level, he cuts towards the right, and if he has a good eye and 
can use his hands in accordance with its dictates, he will have presented 
a very prettily squared tail. On the other hand, if these organs are defec- 
