Experiments^ and their Verification 171 



action, constitute an excellent variety of equine locomotion, and the 

 average from them should stand for a reliable standard to judge others 

 by. The conviction that Muybridge gave us more than mere pictures 

 has, I think, been sufficiently confirmed by the deductions made here. 

 He gave us, in fact, something of inestimable value to the student of 

 the horse, and the more we study these reproductions very well done 

 considering the times and the appliances the more must we feel their 

 importance and great worth. 



The excessive knee action of Occident and the defective knee 

 action of Clay, with the latter's probable interference as seen in Fig. 

 25, has ever given rise to the idea that the main purpose in curing hind 

 interference is to get the fore feet out of the way of the hind. Some- 

 how, it is thought that the hind must have the privilege of reaching 

 forward to get a hold of the ground which is to be shoved back quickly, 

 so to speak, to attain speed. Of backward hind extension as a cure 

 for interference, little is said ; but on this very question of proper ad- 

 justment of hind action depends the balancing of most trotters. A 

 trotter must have good knee action to be speedy, but he should have 

 good hock action to balance himself well and in a more natural way 

 than is customary. Where heavy front shoes are used to develop 

 action, very light shoes are generally applied to hind feet, the heel 

 calk being the only design to check consequent forward extension of 

 hind. The weight of the shoe is so intimately connected with its shape 

 that the effect ought to be considered as a whole, though the effect of 

 any difference in weight will appear in any case submitted. Too 

 much stress is laid on weight anyway, whereas the shape of the shoe, 

 and of the fot, is of far greater importance. That is why the great 

 skill of our American shoers has accomplished such wonders. No 

 more ponderous shoes of freakish shapes, but plain shoes with nice 

 devices on them to direct action and motion, and shoes well and in- 

 telligently put on a well pared foot these constitute the great achieve- 

 ments, simple in result, but difficult of attainment, which are the causes 

 of the present improvement of both gait and speed of our trotter and 

 pacer. 



Let us now take the cases for illustration that have been shown to 



