114 IX THE BIDIXG-SCHOOL. 



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" You must understand, ladies," says the 

 teacher, "that you must always, in riding in class, 

 keep a distance of about three feet between 

 your horse and the one before you, and that 

 you must preserve this equally in the corners, 

 on the short sides of the school, and on the 

 long sides." 



" That's easy enough, I'm sure," says the so- 

 ciety young lady, taking it upon herself to 

 answer, and eliciting an expression of astonish- 

 ment from the teacher, not because he is sur- 

 prised, habit having rendered him sadly familiar 

 with young women of her type, but because he 

 wishes to relegate her to her proper position of 

 submissive silence as soon as may be. 



" You think so ? " he asks. " Then we shall 

 depend on you to regard the distance with great 

 accuracy. At present you are two feet too far 

 in the rear. Forward! Now, ladies, when I 

 say 'forward,' it is not alone for one; it is for 

 all of you ; each one must look and see whether 

 or not her horse is in the right place. And she 

 must not bend sidewise to do it, Miss Versa- 

 tilia. She must look over her horse's head be- 

 tween his ears. Now, forward ! Now, look 



