Experiments and their Verification 227 



placing of off hind foot is not helped thereby, and so it was and re- 

 mained a matter of limited improvement, beyond which the old habits 

 of gait again asserted themselves. The squaring of the two diagonal 

 toes near fore and off hind may be said to be the solution of this 

 problem. Disturbing elements entered even into these shoeings by 

 faulty lengths of toes and angles, but the principle of the two squared 

 toes seemed to be quite correct. For instance, the extensions of near 

 fore and off hind were once nearly the same (0.78 ft. and 0.88 ft.), but 

 there was an impact or beat on ground louder with the round toe feet 

 than with the squared toe feet. This time beating or rhythm sounded 

 like the movements of a lame horse, and it was no doubt due to the 

 fact that the squared toes had a higher action and elevation than the 

 feet with the round toes, which made the latter to reach the ground 

 sooner than they should, causing thereby an irregular rhythm in the 

 motion of the two pairs of correlated legs. Such irregularity, how- 

 ever, could be adjusted by shape of feet and greater weight of one 

 shoe. 



Granting that, other things being equal, the squared toe shoe will 

 cause an easier and quicker break-over of the foot in question, as well 

 as a higher rather than a more extended action, it should be borne in 

 mind, nevertheless, that when between two fore or two hind feet the 

 conditions are otherwise unequal, such as a higher heel or a heavier 

 shoe on either foot, there may result a slightly greater extension of 

 the foot so shod. For instance, a higher heel with the squared toe 

 shoe would diminish the ground surface or rather the length of the 

 shoe, and would, therefore, shorten the contact with the ground of 

 that shoe or that foot so shod. It will seem, therefore, that a foot 

 shod thus differently from its opposite mate will have greater action 

 than that other opposite mate ; that is to say, the action becomes easier 

 because of that easier break-over due to the shorter length of shoe and 

 foot. Any influence added to a foot so pared and shod will, therefore, 

 be more readily visible, whether it be the diagonal influence of a hind 

 foot or a toe-weight or heavier shoe on the fore foot so shod. An 

 illustration to that effect may be found in Fig. 175. Here ABC 

 represent a foot with an angle of perhaps 50. Squaring the toe as 



