The Life of a Great Sportsman 



race of a certain amount of interest, I don't suppose it will 

 make much difference at the pay-boxes when their contents 

 are counted over. The principal question now seems to be : 

 Will the French horse, ridden by a French jockey, with an 

 American seat, prove capable of winning ? Personally, I am 

 dead against this style of riding, the advantage of which I 

 quite fail to see in such a contest as the Grand National. Let 

 us hope, if only for the sake of " L'Entente Cordiale," that I 

 am wrong. 



SHOW JUMPING 



It is quite right in my opinion that jumping competitions, 

 such as those at Olympia, should meet with every encourage- 

 ment, as apart from their great popularity with the British 

 public, who always appreciate good horsemanship, the prizes 

 are well worth having, and there is, in addition, a ready sale for 

 those horses who acquit themselves with credit in the arena. 



The first most important point in making a horse a good 

 jumper is to give him confidence, especially where an extra 

 high jump is concerned ; the pupil being very apt to refuse 

 after the obstacle is raised above a certain height from pure 

 want of belief in his own powers to negotiate it, and that is 

 why the increase should be made as gradual as possible. 



An open ditch on the take-off side of a fence is the surest 

 test I know of whether a horse is a natural jumper, as he must 

 spring from his hind legs in order to clear the obstacle pro- 

 perly. He must also know, when the ditch is full of thorns, 

 not to take off too near, but, on the contrary, to stand well 

 away ; and a fence of this description might be introduced with 

 advantage at our Horse Shows. 



It is, of course, impossible in such a place as Olympia to 



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